by R. Scarlett
It would change everything—Tensley would be the most powerful Dux in the country. “Important.”
Fitz Senior smiled at that. “I knew your older brother, and he seemed quite sensible—at first.”
Anger sizzled in Tensley’s veins, but he kept his mouth clamped shut.
“Until that awful scandal. There hadn’t been quite one of such infamy in our time. You were only a young boy at the time, but I remember it very clearly. I watched your family fall from the graces of the High Court to being the mockery of our world. Your father was still powerful and because of the loyalty of a few of his men, he was able to still hold Scorpios.”
Senior swirled his drink and took a sip, smacking his lips to gather the taste.
Tensley still sat rigidly in his chair, not making a sound, but his insides were twisting too tight to breathe.
“Your family has been on a delicate thread in the High Court. One wrong moment, and snip.” Senior hummed out a low laugh. “I see differences between your brother and you…but, I also see the similarities. Your family cannot withstand another scandal.”
Tensley threw back his whiskey in one swallow. “Spit it out, Fitz. What the fuck are you getting at?”
“In exchange for our power, our seats in court, and territory that’s been in our family since the 1600s…” The old man grinned again, his teeth yellowed with age. “I want the daemon for my son.”
A hollowness expanded in Tensley’s chest, like all the oxygen in his lungs had leeched out. “What?”
“She’s a liability; you don’t want her by your side in office. I heard she even broke Evelyn Rose’s wrist today.”
Tensley glared at the bastard.
“I can already see she’s a distraction to you. Do you really want someone so erratic to be on the High Court’s radar?”
“Oh, and you’re exempt from their watch?”
“Without our territories, yes, so we need something to continue giving our family name value.”
Tensley looked away, silent. The idea of Molly being kept far away from Fallen and his High Court—after the way she’d betrayed Scorpios already—was appealing. His head told him Fitz was right. Molly would be a liability, a disaster waiting to happen, especially with his affection for her growing. Then there was the fact that she had already betrayed his men, his family, and himself—what if she did something like that again? It would be out in the public with so many watchful eyes.
“It’s too late. I’ve already marked her,” Tensley said darkly.
Fitz Senior’s horridly sharp teeth gleamed in the office’s light; he could see the hardest part of the argument was won. “We can make arrangements regarding that. Anything you need will be allowed.”
Tensley shook his head, wondering if he might vomit.
He wouldn’t give her away like property. He wouldn’t give her to anyone.
He knew he was becoming too attached to her, too emotional, and that would cost him his judgment and lives. He’d figure out a way she could go back to her own life, away from his demonic world where no one would harm her.
“The question is, son,” Senior said, clearing his throat. “Are you weighing your emotions or are you weighing logic?”
Tensley balled his hands. Fuck. Fuck! He knew the answer. He wasn’t thinking of Scorpios; he was thinking of her and of himself, of what it meant to let her go…what it meant that he didn’t want to let her go.
But then what would happen if he fell for her? What would happen to their family, to Scorpios? The delicate thread quivered at the merciless hands of Fallen.
One wrong move, and Scorpios would be destroyed.
Tensley glanced from under his lashes at Fitz Senior’s scar, hidden poorly. “I’ll think about it.”
Senior clasped Tensley’s kneecap and flashed his uneven teeth. “Good choice, son. Let me know soon though.”
Tensley leaned back and watched the white-haired man leave, rubbing his temples for what felt like hours.
Molly was never supposed to be his. He had to figure out a way to extract Molly Darling from his demonic world altogether—but if he couldn’t, this might be the only way to keep her safe.
THE ROOM SPUN and Molly’s head ached as the Knights’ guests danced around her. Tensley was nowhere in sight, and Evelyn had talked loudly the entire night to all the other women about her poor wrist.
“She just grew so vicious, like a wild animal, and grabbed me from behind and—she broke the bone in half,” Evelyn said, vividly describing the lie.
“How is she to become our Dux’s wife? She’s dangerous to us,” another one of her listeners agreed, gasping.
She could feel their eyes on her, only a few feet away. She didn’t want it to bother her, but the hatred, the gossip surrounding her was becoming too much—like reliving high school when she’d broken a student’s arm by accident.
“I heard she killed Cree Alejandro,” one said.
Molly froze, her blood turning ice cold. Even the pounding headache stalled for a moment.
“Really?”
“Yes. She slit his throat.”
Molly didn’t waste a second longer. She couldn’t stay here, listening to rumors, to people insulting her, making her the villain. With Tensley’s coldness, she had no reason to stay.
She darted through the large crowd to a far quieter hallway.
She dragged her finger along the crown molding trim on the wall, stopping when a fancy oak door came into her path. She peeked inside to find Tensley sitting behind a large desk, hands full of papers.
“Tensley,” she said softly.
His head jerked up, eyes darkening at the sight of her. “What are you doing? Go back to the party.”
Molly disregarded his command and stepped inside. “Everyone’s too afraid to speak to me. It gets rather boring hearing people gossip about you when you’re right there, in the exact same room.”
Tensley scoffed. “Well, I’m no more thrilling than the rest of them.”
“I think I’m gonna go back to the city, actually,” she said, voice steely.
Tensley’s eyes shot up to her. “Molly,” he huffed and stood, walking around the desk. “Just two more days.”
“Why should I stay?” She folded her arms and glared up at him.
“Because Scorpios needs this deal.”
“Not a good enough reason.”
He gritted his teeth, running a hand down his face.
“Tensley,” Molly said as she went to touch his hand. He jerked it back fast. She scowled and slowly looked up at him, could see the distress on his features. “Are you ever going to forgive me? You don’t trust me…” He swallowed. “Do you think I’d hurt you?”
He looked to the bookcases and sighed. “Go back to the party, Molly.”
“And today at the winery—did you honestly believe Evelyn over me?”
“It’s not like you haven’t hurt demons before,” Tensley said. “It’s not entirely out of the question.”
Anger shuddered through her frame. “I didn’t touch her, Tensley,” she said through gritted teeth. She went to say more, to argue, but she stopped herself, glaring at him. “I’m not staying here any longer if you choose to believe her over me. You know what? I’ll give you some more time to mull it over on your own.” Molly took off, speed walking down the hallway.
At the sound of his heavy footsteps, she quickened her pace and turned into the party, tiptoed through the crowd. Luckily, her small frame helped her escape his wandering hands and left him in a more difficult situation of trying to move through the crowd untouched.
“Molly!” Tensley called.
Just as she made it through the party and moved toward the grand staircase, Tensley gripped her arms.
“Don’t touch me,” she said, thrashing away from him.
She gasped when he scooped her off her feet and marched up the stairs, tossing her on the bed unceremoniously.
“I’m leaving,” she said, standing to throw her things in a s
uitcase.
“No you’re not,” he snapped.
“I can’t do this anymore! I’m sorry for Gabel, I am! I never meant to hurt you or him—I thought it was a life-or-death moment. You have to forgive me, Tensley! You have to trust me; I told you the truth, didn’t I? I was honest with you, even when I knew this very thing might happen. So can you forgive me or not?”
Tensley sat heavily on the bed, and for the first time ever, Molly saw only a man in pain before her.
She took a deep breath, trying to contain her anger. “I’m not doing this anymore,” she snapped. “You don’t trust me. You don’t let me inside. At all. Do I even know you? Do you know me?”
She watched Tensley’s face contort in anger then smooth out. A moment later, he stared down at her. “What do you want to know?”
“Everything. Demon and man. All of it.”
TENSLEY’S ANGER FADED at how soft her words sounded. He stroked his jaw, and simply watched her side profile, her lashes fluttering softly.
He wanted to trust her words, wanted to trust that she wouldn’t hurt him, but he was terrified if he gave her all the power, she would destroy him.
Demon and man?
The chanting in his head, the little voice that reminded him of what she was, the power she held in her tiny fist, dimmed. The grip on himself he had had in his father’s study loosened and he relaxed his shoulders.
“I understand now why you did it, Molly,” he murmured. “Gabel was more beast than rational at that point. More savage and primitive.”
“Because they starved him,” she spat. “Which had nothing to do with me.”
A tense silence settled between them and he watched her carefully.
“You…” he began, unsure. “You said earlier that I didn’t know you and you didn’t know me,” he continued, frowning. “If we’re going to make this relationship work, we can’t have that happening. Tell me something about yourself, dolcezza,” he said softly.
“What do you want to know?” she asked, her fingertips refreshingly cool as they slid softly across his shoulder blades and collarbone.
“Tell me about your favorite memory,” he said, his eyes finding hers in the dimly lit room. Somehow, that moment, both of them talking softly at night as if no trouble could reach them, reminded him of the night he held her from the nightmare in her dreams and they had talked openly to each other until the early hours of the next day. As much as he hated to admit it, she had told him things about herself, about her life, about what she wished for in the future, and he had felt honored that she would share that with him, that she trusted him enough to open up to him. It was one of his favorite memories of them together.
“One time,” she said, stroking her hair back behind her ear. “September and I went sailing at Cape Cod and we smelled like fish and the ocean but I loved it. I made a lot of fish friends that day.” She laughed into her hand. “I think we ate a lot of them for supper that night.” More laughter erupted from her thick lips. He couldn’t stop smiling at her. “What about you?” She sat up on her elbows, one of the straps of her dress sliding down, exposing pale, glowing skin—exactly where he wanted to mark her all over again, sink his teeth to leave a print of himself on her.
“I don’t know,” he finally said, fixing her strap begrudgingly.
“What do you mean you don’t know?” She cocked a brow. “C’mon, you have to remember one.”
He shrugged, his gaze leaving hers. “No, not really,” he said, lost to his own thoughts.
She inched closer, her hands sliding underneath his shirt collar. It felt nice, soft fingertips exploring his skin, his bones, his body. She made him forget what he was—a beast, a monster to fear. “C’mon Tensley.”
He sucked at his teeth. “Playing in the park one day with Illya when we were boys.” He squinted and stiffened as her eyes drank him in. “Pretty much all the days in the park with Illya were good days.” He found himself lost in thought and turned to see her staring back at him.
“Do you ever get scared?”
His eyes darted to take in her features, which were flushed—most likely from the wine.
“Yes.”
Her eyes stayed on him like she was afraid he would vanish. “What are you scared of?”
“I’m scared of failing,” he whispered. I’m scared of you. He paused and frowned. “And you?”
“All the time,” she said, gasping at the end.
“About what?”
She toyed with her bottom lip and he so badly wanted to suck on it. “Work, school, demons…you.”
He scowled. “So you’re scared of me?”
She nodded.
His fingers fanned across her cheek and into her hairline. The words dangled off the tip of his tongue and he weighed his choice: be the monster or be the man.
“I’m the last demon you should be scared of.”
Her eyes lifted, glowing under her thick lashes, and carefully, she leaned in and pressed her bottom lip to his earlobe. “Do you trust me?”
His lips twitched and he turned his head so he could whisper into her ear. “I’m not sure if I should…”
“Tensley…” A hint of anger came through in her soft voice, but she calmed herself. “I messed everything up before when I trusted Cree and betrayed you. It was my fault, and I want to prove to you that I am trustworthy, that you can depend on me. I never want to hurt you ever again. I was so naïve then. I killed someone you cared about.” She wiped underneath her nose and sniffled more.
Tensley rubbed the back of his neck. “I understand why you did it. I understand it was in defense—but it still shocked me. It hurt me. It still hurts. I had to tell his parents they weren’t ever going to see their son again. I grew up with Gabel; he was a good man. He was a friend to me when no one else was,” he murmured, his pain still clear in his tone.
Molly joined Tensley on the bed, her eyes glistening and red. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know, and I’d take it all back if I could.”
Molly took his hand, and Tensley relished the familiar warmth of her fingers wrapped around his. “I’m sorry, too, for being cold and distant. I was…afraid.”
“Afraid?”
“Of where your loyalties lay.”
“They lie with you—”
“I know,” Tensley continued, holding his index finger to her lips. “You risked your life to save Lex, and you were hunting Cree for weeks. I…I just got lost for a little bit.”
Molly bent forward, placing her head against his chest. “It’s okay to feel lost sometimes, but just remember, I’ll always be here when you come back.”
He combed his fingers through her hair, burying his nose in its flowery scent. He never wanted to let her go.
“I don’t know whether you tame or stir the beast,” he said, lifting her chin to steal a taste of her pouty lips. Her breath quickened, her breasts rising faster and fuller as he watched her. Little tremors tensed at her temples, focusing on his features, searching for a hint that he was testing her, challenging her.
“Tensley—” Her confession died and she drew those full lips into her mouth and chewed. “I just want you, all of you—the beast and the man.”
A heat stirred in his stomach as she stood, shedding her gown to unveil her magnificent body to his. “Dolcezza,” he murmured. “I’m yours.” She was tempting the beast, and he wanted to indulge. To have her again.
His calloused fingers toyed with her hair, his thumb brushing her ivory cheek and tracing along her pretty face.
In her darkness, he caught that beautiful radiant smile of hers and wished he had discovered it sooner, claimed her sooner—before everything went to hell and damned them.
Maybe if he moved the wedding date…
Maybe if she held his child…
He growled deep in his chest as she continued to undress, removing her lacy bra and panties. He moved his hand around to the back of her head, knitting his fingers through her blonde air as he took hold. “You’re going to
be the death of me.”
“Do you want me?” Molly asked, running her hands slowly over her collarbone down to her breasts, stroking her nipples until they stood erect.
“More than anything,” Tensley said, snatching her and throwing her onto the bed.
Then he attacked, tasting her sweet mouth, her tongue battling his. As soon as he attacked, he grew tender, stroking her face, stroking her heavy breasts and laying them down on the bed.
She instinctually wrapped her legs around his waist, opening herself up for him to claim. Her fingers popped open his slacks and he slipped out of them, along with his briefs, revealing a scarred, dark skin, clashing against her soft, ivory flesh. Her hands lingered over the many scars on his legs with a gentle touch, tracing the lines back to his groin. He shuddered when she gripped his veiny shaft, pumping gently.
“I’ll never go hungry,” he murmured, pressing his mouth to hers. She rewarded him with a nip on his lower lip, pulling him down so that his whole frame encaged her.
“I won’t let you,” she whispered between frenzied kisses, sighing when he nudged the thick, purple crown of his manhood against her opening.
“Dolcezza,” Tensley groaned when he pushed in, stretching her around him and making her moan as he claimed her with the slow, steady pumping of his hips.
It wasn’t like the other times, even with the same amount of pleasure.
Her eyes never left his, their entire bodies merging together as one.
It was dangerous what he was doing to her, a crime.
Her entire body was a crime, convincing him to feel and do that which a demon never should.
Her paler skin met his hard, tanned flesh, the short tangle of dark hair above his shaft tickling her most sensitive part.
She had drunk his venom, tamed his beast, and survived.
Would he?
His fingers dug into the base of her spine, lifting her up so he held her torso to his, never parting as he pumped faster.
Climbing faster and faster away from reality and into a hell of lies. She squeezed around him and her eyes fluttered partly open, desperate to watch him.