Tall, Dark and Paranormal: 10 Thrilling Tales of Sexy Alpha Bad Boys

by Opal Carew

  “The only feelings I have are about the ring and making sure it gets back to Hell, where it belongs.” Asmodeus folded his arms over his chest and focused on keeping his tone even but to no avail. He sounded as irritated as he felt and it pissed him off that Isadora saw right through him. “I’m here to retrieve the ring and that’s all.”

  “Bullshit,” Isadora said.

  “Careful, Isadora.” Asmodeus turned slowly and leveled a stern gaze at her. “Regardless of the changes you think you see, I still don’t like being spoken to that way.”

  “Oh, hush up and sit your big ass down.” She waved her cane toward a chair on the other side of the table. “This isn’t Hell and I’m not one of the tortured souls you get to command for eternity. This is my house. I’m a tired old witch, and you and I both know that girl in there doesn’t have time for bullshit.” She pointed a crooked finger to the other chair. “Sit down.”

  “You, however, have remained the same in many ways. Still bossy.” Asmodeus let out a beleaguered sigh and did as she asked. Leaning back in the chair, he looked at her with raised eyebrows. “Yes?”

  “Since you arrived, you haven’t said a word to me about why you brought her here and not to the Brotherhood. For Goddess’ sake, she practically fell asleep the second she came into the house and it wouldn’t surprise me if the poor child passed out in the shower. Your little Fae-witch is wearing the Ring of Solomon, which I always thought was just some made up story to keep you and the rest of the Brotherhood in line.”

  “Yes,” Asmodeus said evenly. “Thank you for the recap. What’s your point?”

  “Why are you here and not in the Underworld?” Isadora’s green eyes stared at him intently.

  “As you know, the ring won’t come off.” He folded his hands in his lap, hoping to seem unconcerned. “You are the most powerful witch I know, who I can also trust. I thought you might have a spell that would get the ring off her finger—and hopefully you do.”

  “Mm-hmm.” She narrowed her eyes. “That’s fine and dandy and we’re going to try it when she comes out. But why didn’t you bring the ring back to the Underworld with her still attached to it? I know you haven’t been starin’ out my windows because you like the scenery. “ Her white eyebrows raised. “You’re hiding from the Brotherhood, aren’t you? You’re hiding her.”

  “How could I possibly hide from them?” He asked innocently. “You know we are connected by a collective consciousness.”

  “Do I look stupid?” Isadora cast a doubtful look in his direction. “You and I both know that you can disconnect from the Brotherhood and cut them off when it suits you.” A smile curved her weathered lips. “If memory serves, when you and I took a tumble in the hay all those years ago, you were here on an unsanctioned visit. You told me then that you cut off Lucifer and the others so you could come up to earth to help your brother, Mammon.”

  Asmodeus’ jaw clenched. Isadora was one of the most perceptive women he’d ever known and, despite her age, she had a memory like an elephant. Her green eyes twinkled and the array of lines around her mouth deepened as her smile grew.

  “I’m doing what’s necessary,” he said, evenly.

  ”I call bullshit on that too.”

  “Fine.” He lifted one shoulder. “Call it what you want.”

  ”You haven’t slept with her.”

  ”Contrary to what people think, I don’t have sex with every woman I encounter while I’m on earth.”

  “Ha! I’m sure it wasn’t for lack of trying.” Isadora placed one gnarled hand on the table and pushed herself up from her chair before shuffling over to the stove again. “She didn’t fall victim to your charms right away, did she?”

  Silence hung between them as he refused to confirm or deny her statement. Asmodeus watched her small, hunched form, but when she turned around, those sharp, green eyes reflected her witty, intelligent spirit.

  Isadora was right on the money. He should have brought Kai back to the Underworld with him when he realized the Fae were after the ring. Asmodeus had no doubt that the other members of the Brotherhood would have done exactly that if they were in his position.

  Taking the ring to the Underworld was the only way to ensure the Fae didn’t get it, but it also would mean subjecting Kai to the worst souls in existence. There was no way he would expose her to that kind of darkness. She was too good for that.

  “I’m not bringing her back to the Underworld because I can accomplish this task on my own without the rest of the Brotherhood.” Asmodeus kept his voice matter of fact, hoping Isadora would believe his lie. “Can you imagine the indignities I would suffer if I had to request their assistance? Mammon is still catching shit for requiring my help the last time he was here. Lucifer is an insufferable ass as it is, so I’d rather not spend the next millennium listening to his crap. I’ve been keeping watch for any sign of the Fae—not the Brotherhood. I’m sure that your cloaking spell around the property is brilliant, but the Fae are notoriously crafty.”

  Another lie.

  He was worried about the Brotherhood far more than the Fae. He only had a day left before Lucifer would send the others, along with their minions, to collect Kai and the ring.

  “I have to get the ring off her finger and send it back to Hell.” He held her stare. “End of story.”

  “I see,” Isadora gripped the knob of cane. She nodded and gave him a doubtful look. “Why haven’t you slept with her?”

  “Why are you obsessed with my sex life?” He smirked. “Is it due to your lack of one?”

  “I have plenty of sex.” Isadora winked and settled in her chair again. “I’m old. Not dead. Now, answer my question. You are, after all, the Demon of Lust and, if memory serves, the only thing you like more than sex is the chase.” Tapping her fingers on the tabletop she eyed him intently. “It’s more than that, though isn’t it?”

  “It’s business.”

  “No.” Isadora shook her head. “You really do feel something for her and instead of admitting it, you’re hiding behind duty and obligation. I’d say you’re being a stubborn ass. Still feeling the pain from when that Vivian woman told you to piss off?”

  “Hardly,” Asmodeus said with as much boredom as he could muster. Yet, the truth of her words cut deep. Vivian had rejected him and cut him out of her life and the life of their son, who he’d only recently reconnected with.

  “Well, Vivian was human and wasn’t exactly wrapped right. But as we know, Kai is not human, at least not entirely, and the girl seems to have her shit together. Seems to me you’re fucking up an opportunity to end up with a woman who can handle you and all the baggage that comes with you.”

  “You always were direct, Isadora. I used to think it was one of your best qualities.” Asmodeus shook his head and laughed, but his smile faded as Kai’s sweet face drifted into his mind. He wanted her. He wanted Kai more than any woman he’d encountered—even more than Vivian. Perhaps it was because she didn’t fall at his feet and hop right in bed with him. But whatever the reason, he knew now that he could never have her.

  His plan to seduce Kai in order to get the ring had vanished the instant he saw the horrified look on her face in the kitchen—when she saw who he truly was and it repulsed her. His brows knitted at the memory of the sheer terror in her eyes and the way she scrambled out of the house to escape him.

  She only came here with him because she was scared and confused and had no other options. Being with him was a last resort and basic survival instinct. She’d leave him as soon as she had another option—just like Vivian had—and he wouldn’t blame her. Kai was the embodiment of innocence and light and he... well... he wasn’t.

  His resolve had weakened briefly when Kai pressed that beautiful body against him. He’d almost taken her right then and there on the Harley, but her latest revelation had stopped him cold.

  Asmodeus was taking Kai’s light—her soul. Every time he touched her, she was losing a little bit of her soul to him, but the most terrifying thing w
as that he wasn’t trying to do it.

  All members of the Brotherhood had no aura—no soul. Demons were empty vessels waiting to fill up on the souls of the damned. They did it every day when a new batch of tormented sinners arrived in the Underworld and it was where they got their power. Yet, when the new day dawned the demons were empty once again. Soulless and dark. They could also absorb the souls of their minions but it was always done with intent.

  Asmodeus didn’t know why he was unintentionally sucking her light from her but he knew it had to stop. Kai Kelly was too good for him. She was an innocent with an exquisite, enlightened soul and he was a soulless demon who could bring her nothing but death and darkness.

  Kai was not his to take. It was that simple.

  “I don’t need to sleep with her anymore.” He squared his shoulders and met Isadora’s questioning gaze. “I had planned to seduce the ring out from under her but after everything that’s happened, it’s not necessary. Fucking her would only be a distraction from my mission.”

  “Thanks for the clarification.” Kai’s overly sweet tone, with an edge of go- fuck-yourself, filled the small cabin and Asmodeus’ gut clenched. “At least I can take sexual harassment off my list of worries.”

  Kai had heard everything he said. Shit.

  Unmoving, he sat in the chair as the sound of her bare feet padding along the floorboards whispered through the air. Adorned in one of Isadora’s nightgowns, she made her way around to the other side of the table.

  She was beautiful. Her blond hair, combed off her face, was still wet from her shower and though the thin cotton nightie covered her, it did little to hide the tempting curves of her breasts and hips. Without sparing him a single glance, Kai sat in the chair opposite him and kept her attention on Isadora, who was in the process of pouring her a cup of tea.

  “Glad to see you’re back in the land of the living,” Isadora said as she pushed the ceramic teacup across the table. “Drink this. It’ll give you a little more pep.”

  “Isadora has found two spells she can try that might get the ring off.” Asmodeus rose from his seat and went back to the window. Not because he was really worried about anyone being out there at the moment, but because of the look on Kai’s face. She looked at him like she hated him and given the circumstances it was just as well. He held her challenging stare and kept his voice even. “We need to do this as quickly as possible.”

  “No.” Kai’s voice, clear and calm, filled the small cabin.

  “What?” He turned slowly and glared at her. Anger flickered up his back and the tattoos on his arms burned. “No to what?”

  “No to all of it.” Kai sipped her tea and those big brown eyes stared boldly back at him over the edge of her teacup. “Even if I could take it off, I’m not giving the ring to you or anyone else.”

  “Kai, you must give me the ring.” Asmodeus’ hands balled into fists at his side. “You have no idea the kind of power it has.”

  “So why don’t you tell me?” Kai placed her teacup on the saucer and pulled her feet under her on the chair, making herself comfortable. “So far, all I know is that the Brotherhood and the Fae want the ring, but I still don’t know why.”

  “The less you know about it, the better it will be for you.” Asmodeus turned his back on her. Hands on his hips and staring out the window, he wrestled with just how much he should tell her. “All you need to know is that as long as you wear it, your life is in danger.”

  “You may be a demon but you’re also a macho dickhead.”

  “Maybe.” He spun around and met her defiant glare. “But I’m the only thing standing between you and a very unpleasant ending with the Fae and the rest of the Brotherhood. Dickhead or not. I’m all you’ve got, sweetheart.”

  “I can take care of myself. I was on my own for quite a while before you came storming into my life and, if memory serves, I’m the one who knocked Ben unconscious. Not you.” Her dark eyes flashed and the lines in her forehead deepened. “I may not know how to use whatever power I’ve got but I’m a quick study. I’m not some stupid little girl you can simply command and, in case you forgot, this ring is the only thing I have left from my grandmother.”

  “Your grandmother?” Isadora interrupted. Her eyes narrowed as she leaned both hands on the end of her cane and glanced from Asmodeus to Kai. “Asmodeus failed to mention that to me... “

  “I found the ring in a crate in the attic of my grandparents’ house.”

  “All by itself?” Isadora asked skeptically. “Just rollin’ around in there?”

  “Well, no. It was with some pictures of my grandmother with my mother when she was a baby.”

  ”There’s more,” Asmodeus interrupted. “On the outside of the crate it said, Custodians of the Light.”

  ”Son of a bitch. I didn’t think they were real.” Isadora’s eyes widened and she leaned back in her chair as she continued to stare at Kai. She shot Asmodeus a look that could kill. “You could have saved us a whole lot of damn time if you’d told me this when you got here.”

  “I’d never heard the term before,” he said evenly.

  ”Yes,” Isadora said with a weary sigh. “Well, I have.” Isadora muttered under her breath and waved one hand over the Book of Spells, which promptly closed with a loud clap. Seconds later it flew through the air onto the mantle and back in its usual spot. Asmodeus noted that Kai observed the entire thing with obvious fascination but no fear.

  “Your aura burned orange when you used your magic,” Kai said quietly.

  “Not surprised you see auras or that the ring won’t come off, and all of that is just the tip of the iceberg for you, young lady.” Isadora looked at Kai with a serious expression. “You are a Custodian.”

  “What?” Kai laughed out loud and rolled her eyes. “I don’t even know what that means.”

  “According to the stories I’ve heard, Custodians of the Light are exactly what the name says. They guard the light from the darkness.” Isadora jutted her chin toward Asmodeus but kept her attention on Kai. “More specifically, Custodians are on earth to be sure the demons don’t submerge the world into chaos. Then again, it could also have something to do with the Power of Light that the Fae have. Not sure about the witch connection. Hell. I’m not sure about any of it.” Isadora let out a sigh. “Except that you are quite a unique, young woman.”

  “But—”

  “Could your mother see auras?”

  ”Yes.”

  ”What about your grandmother?”

  ”I—well, I don’t know. She died when my mother was very little and she could barely remember her. My mom hadn’t spoken to my grandfather since she married my dad.”

  “Not surprised.” Isadora nodded. “So your mother could see auras and spoke with you about it?”

  “Yes.” Kai nodded. “But she didn’t want anyone else to know about it and discouraged me from telling people. My mom flipped her lid when I opened up my tarot shop.”

  “Well, if she’d never really been taught about the gift, then her wariness of it makes sense. Sometimes a small amount of information is worse than none at all.” Isadora glanced at Asmodeus. “You say the pictures you found were of your grandmother. Was she wearing the ring in the pictures?”

  “No.” Kai shook her head and looked at the ring before turning her attention back to Isadora. “I—I don’t think so. But on the back of one of the photos, it said, my sweet Katherine the next Custodian. Katherine was my mother.”

  “Mm-hmm.” Isadora’s aged hands gripped the top of her cane tightly. “Your grandmother must have been taught by another Custodian, probably her own mother, but died before she could pass it on.”

  “Kai’s grandmother couldn’t have been wearing the ring,” Asmodeus interrupted. “The Brotherhood would have felt it, the way we did when Kai put it on. We wouldn’t even have known the ring had been found if it stayed in that box.”

  “Mm-hmm.” Isadora pursed her lips. “Anyone else ever wear this ring?”

  �
��Once.” Asmodeus ran a hand over his face and let out a weary breath. “After it was relinquished, I tossed it into the sea and thought that was the end of it.”

  “Clearly not,” Kai said as she held up her right hand.

  “Your grandmother must have been taught by someone who told her that she shouldn’t wear the ring.” Isadora twirled her cane between her hands as a thoughtful look consumed her. “Was there any kind of altar in your grandparents’ house?” Isadora jutted a thumb toward the mantle. “Something like this? A place she might have used for worship or to practice her magic?”

  “No.” Kai shook her head. “Nothing like that. To be honest there was barely any evidence my grandmother existed, except for the crate I found in the attic. I obviously shouldn’t have put the ring on but I didn’t know.”

  “Obviously.” Asmodeus smirked but his expression hardened quickly. “I should have brought the ring to the Underworld when I took it from Solomon but I won’t make the same mistake twice. You will give it to me and I’ll take it back where it belongs.”

  Kai shook her head. “No.”

  “It has to be given willingly, doesn’t it?” Isadora murmured with a far off look in her eye. “And it obviously didn’t get stuck on old Solomon’s finger.”

  “No, it didn’t and yes, it has to be given willingly.” Asmodeus flicked his attention to Kai. She was staring at the ring and running the tip of her finger over the face of it. The sad look in her eyes made him want to smash all the furniture in the room. He cleared his throat and turned his gaze back to Isadora. “Or the bearer has to be dead.”

  “Dead?” Kai’s head whipped up and her frightened eyes met his.

  “She’s an innocent,” Isadora snapped as she pushed herself up from the chair. “The Brotherhood can’t harm her.”

  “I’m not that innocent,” Kai said with a laugh as she avoided Asmodeus’ gaze. “I’m not a virgin.”

  Asmodeus’ eyes burned as he wrestled with the gut instinct to punch something at the mere mention of Kai having lovers. It was stupid and he knew it, but it didn’t make it less true. He loathed feeling jealous over such a ridiculous idea and yet, he couldn’t help himself. What a revolting development.