FinsFantasy

by Jocelyn Dex

  “I’m gonna grab some beer. You want anything?”

  When she didn’t answer, he said, “Fuck it,” and ported home.

  * * * * *

  He headed directly to the well-stocked kitchen, grabbed a six pack of Dos Equis XX and wasted no time porting back to the cabin. He sat on one of the rocking chairs on the porch, popped the top off a beer and guzzled half of it in one gulp. Ahhhh.

  It was nice out there, secluded in the woods, no neighbors around to bug you, just the sound of the light breeze rustling the leaves and pleasant bird calls every so often. He loved the mansion but it was always bustling with demons and he rarely got to experience this type of peace. No wonder Navine enjoyed the cabin so much.

  He popped another beer, closed his eyes and relaxed as the liquid began to dull his senses. He might get a place like this for himself one day soon. Take breaks from the mansion. Maybe find a female to settle down with. Maybe.

  “What’s happenin’, man?”

  Baden’s voice broke through the fog in his brain. He must have fallen asleep in the rocking chair. He stretched his arms over his head and yawned before answering. “Guess I was tired.”

  “Hope you don’t mind, I brought a friend,” Baden said.

  Fin recognized her. Raimee, the Sensus demon who’d helped Valia unbind the auras of Rydin and two of Debol’s guards. Since when were Baden and Raimee friends? He didn’t even know they’d ever met.

  “No problem,” he answered, keeping his suspicions to himself. “How’s it going, Raimee?”

  She shot him a dazzling smile and answered cheerfully. “Fantastic as always.”

  Baden held up three boxes, the aroma of the contents making Fin drool. “You ready to eat some pizza?”

  Fin rubbed his stomach. “Definitely.”

  They went inside and Baden placed the boxes of pizza on the kitchen counter and Fin took the six pack of Dos Equis XX and six-pack of cherry beer from Raimee, pulling three beers out and distributing them, then put the rest in the fridge with the rest of Navine’s cherry beer and the rest of his six pack he’d brought in from the porch.

  “I guess I should whip up a smoothie for Navine, real quick,” Fin said.

  “Nah, I mean I know she loves ‘em but she likes this too.” Baden opened the top box and Fin saw the regular pizza crust with tomato sauce but it was covered in different types of fruit. Cherries, plums, pineapple, grapes.

  “She eats that?” he asked.

  “Well, ya know she doesn’t eat the crust but she loves to pick the fruit out of the tomato sauce.”

  Fin winced. “Cherry beer and that?”

  Baden laughed. “Yeah, she has some strange tastes.”

  “Pineapple on pizza is great but all those others… I don’t know about that.”

  “Well, where is she anyway? Pouting in her room?”

  “Fuming, more like. I’ll go get her. I assume she’ll come out if she knows you’re here.”

  Baden winced. “Uh, yeah, but probably only because she wants to kick me in the ass.”

  Fin shrugged. “Whatever works.”

  Baden and Raimee put plates and napkins on the table while Fin knocked on Navine’s door. No answer. He said, “You’re brother’s here with the pizza.” Still no answer. He tried the doorknob—locked. Baden walked around the corner when Fin banged on the door.

  “So, she is pouting?”

  “I don’t know. She usually at least tells me to go away.”

  “Just go in.”

  “Door’s locked.”

  “I’m sure you can— No, I’ll do it. Let her get pissed at me instead of you.”

  Baden strode over, gave the knob a yank, effectively breaking the lock and walked in the room. “Navie, quit being a baby,” he scolded her but instantly his face fell when he saw her.

  Fin stepped into the room, wondering what had changed Baden’s mood. Navine was sleeping, her breathing labored and her face flushed.

  “What the hell?” he asked Fin.

  “Shit, she was fine a couple hours ago.”

  Baden sat on the bed beside her and laid the back of his hand across her forehead. “She’s burning up.” He shook her gently. “Navie, wake up.”

  Her lids lifted halfway and a small smile formed on her lips. “Hey Bade. Time to eat?”

  She sat up, with some effort, and when she noticed Fin, her eyes dilated like they had earlier. He’d have popped a hard-on if her brother wasn’t in the room.

  Navine shook her head, her silky black locks flipping around her face and she squeezed her eyes shut.

  “Is the addiction getting the better of you?” Baden asked, his voice rough with emotion.

  She opened her eyes, slammed her hand into the blanket and hissed. “It’s him.” She pointed at Fin.

  “Navie—”

  “Just give me a minute alone. Be out in a sec.”

  Baden didn’t look convinced but he followed Fin out of the room, closing the door behind him. Raimee sat at the table, one hand holding her chin, the other tapping the table top.

  “Everything okay?” she asked. When Fin and Baden just looked at each other, she said, “Well, I’m starving,” and grabbed a slice of pizza.

  Baden and Fin each grabbed a slice too. A minute later, Navine came out smiling, which surprised him. He figured she’d be wearing her Fin-is-a-fucking-mutant-and-I-want-him-dead look. Her face was still flushed and he realized the smile was a show for her brother.

  “Navie, this is Raimee.”

  “Hey,” Raimee said cheerfully.

  “Hey yourself,” Navine returned. She turned to Baden and asked, “Girlfriend?”

  Fin didn’t miss the blush on Baden’s face. “No, just a new friend.”

  Navine found her pizza, picked out two slices and grabbed a cherry beer from the fridge. She used her fingers to pick off chunks of fruit and pop them into her mouth. “Ah, yeah. That’s good stuff, Bade.”

  He grinned at his sister, obviously happy she wasn’t berating him. “So, you doing okay? Need anything?”

  She shrugged. “I’m okay.” The for now hung in the air. “Some alone time would be nice. Can you get me that?” She cut Baden off before he could answer. “Never mind.”

  Raimee broke in, “So, how long have you and Fin been dating?”

  Fin choked on his beer. Baden choked on his pizza. Navine’s mouth dropped open, then she snapped it shut and gave Raimee one helluva glare. “He is not my-my-anything. Can’t you sense what he is, Sensus demon?”

  Raimee wasn’t fazed by the outburst. “No, he’s cloaked, but I know what he is. So what? Look at him. He’s gorgeous. Fine specimen of male right there.”

  Navine’s eyes bugged. “But he’s,” she glanced at Fin and back to Raimee, “you know.”

  Fin knew she wanted to say mutant but probably feared he’d kiss her in front of her brother. Probably mostly feared her body would respond to him again.

  Raimee raised her shoulders to her ears and let them fall quickly. “Not an issue for me. Was a little shocked when I heard but hey, I say again, look at him.” She waggled her brows.

  Navine couldn’t believe this bitch was flirting with Caffin. She’d come here with her brother, for fuck’s sake and she could tell Baden liked her. Oh he might not know it yet, but a sister could always tell.

  “Well then please take him with you when you leave,” she said sarcastically.

  Raimee turned to Fin and winked. “I might just do that.”

  Fin and Baden made a few attempts at lighter conversation but it mostly fell flat. Navine didn’t like that female. Fucking Sensus demons. Not many species of demon cared for Sensus demons or Empath demons. They were too damn dangerous. Screwing with emotions and auras was considered much more egregious than beating the crap out of someone or slitting their throat.

  Wait a second. Is that why Baden brought her here? She jumped out of her chair. “Oh hell no. Hell no, Bade! You’ve already made me a captive to him. You’re not having your frien
d work her fucked up magic on me. I will hate you forever! And you,” she directed at Raimee, “I will kill you if you try any of that shit on me!”

  With that, she stormed out of the cabin, slamming the door behind her. The hell if she would stick around for that. She’d stroll around the woods for a while and hopefully they’d all leave soon so she could die in peace.

  * * * * *

  “What the hell was that, Raimee?” Baden demanded.

  “Just doing what you asked. Auras always shine brighter and truer when emotions are high. But what I did didn’t require me to read her aura. When she thought I was hitting on Fin, she got jealous.”

  “Jealous?” Fin asked, dumbfounded.

  Baden scoffed, “Yeah, I think you shoulda read her aura because you’re not very perceptive.”

  She huffed. “I did but I went with my female intuition first. Trust me. She was jealous. Wanted to punch my face, pretty much.”

  “So, you’re saying she likes me?” Fin asked, doubtful.

  “Oh, she wants you, enough that she didn’t want me to have that pleasure but don’t let it go to your head because, at the same time, she truly is disgusted by your presence. It’s causing her a lot of confusion. Stressing her out.”

  “Well, if she wants him, then you can give her a little push in the right direction, and that makes it not so bad, right?” Baden asked hopefully.

  Fin pushed away from the table. “I need some air.”

  When they followed him outside, he rounded on Baden. He hadn’t intended to but he felt inclined. “Did you talk to Valia or did you come up with this on your own? That’s pretty fucked up.”

  “Hey, man. Your sister gave me the idea and hooked me up with Raimee, but I think it’s a good idea.”

  “No,” Fin shouted. “You can’t take her free will away from her. Not like that.”

  “If it saves her life—”

  “She’ll hate you, hate Raimee, hate me and she’ll feel disgusted with herself. It’s like giving her a roofie. I won’t be a part of that. She already thinks I’m a mutated, tainted monster. If I’m a party to that, I’ll actually feel like one. Her free will is her own. Debol took that away from her for six long months. I’ll do my best to tempt her, to be nice to her, to seduce her, but it’s because I truly want her. I want to save her. I care about her.”

  Raimee grinned and Fin would have tried to backtrack on that last statement but Raimee would see right through it anyway. Baden blinked at him a couple times, then slapped him on the shoulder.

  “Then be more tempting.” He turned to Raimee and nodded and they both ported away.

  Fin shocked himself when he’d declared he cared about Navine. Yeah, he was hot for her—like scorching, skin melting hot—and he cared whether she lived or died in a general sense. But that wasn’t what he meant when he’d said it and he knew it no matter how much he told himself it wasn’t true. He just couldn’t figure out why.

  Maybe because she was strong, funny—in a bitchy way—ridiculously adorable when she stomped her foot, passionate, determined… Okay, so there were reasons but damn, why’d he get so attached to someone he repulsed? Thanks to Raimee, he knew she wasn’t totally repulsed but still…

  He blew out a breath and went back inside instead of searching for Navine. He figured she could use some space.

  * * * * *

  Navine eavesdropped. Yep, that’s right. She’d jogged back to the cabin, intending to break her brother’s nose for even thinking about doing that to her but when she was five feet from breaking into the clearing, she’d heard raised voices. Curious, she ducked behind a tree as close as she dared to get and listened.

  She wasn’t surprised to find she’d been right about her brother’s intentions but fury about it almost made her leave her cover. Then Caffin yelled at Bade, stuck up for her, defended her right to free will. She’d been…touched, grateful, surprised. He seemed to understand what that Incubus Debol had taken from her.

  Why did he have to be an abomination? That skank Raimee was right, Fin was one fine specimen and he stood up for her. She’d been nothing but shitty to him—well, besides the impromptu hand job—and he’d stood up for her and refused to participate in any schemes that basically forced her to do something.

  Really, she didn’t understand why he stuck around. She’d heard him say he cared for her but figured that was an exaggeration for Baden’s sake. He had no reason to care for her. She certainly hadn’t given him one.

  She waited for Fin to go back inside before leaving the cover of the treeline. He’d seemed so riled up, she didn’t want to risk facing him and have him take it out on her. Ya know, with the brutally delicious kissing and groping. Her damn traitorous body reacted to that thought, tingles spreading throughout her belly, then lower.

  Maybe she’d try to be a little less grossed out by him, be a little nicer. She guessed she didn’t have to be so combative. It didn’t mean she’d let him taint her any more than he already had but…yes, she’d try to calm her herself when around him. At least a little. Mutant or not, for backing her up, he deserved that much.

  Chapter Seven

  Navine entered the cabin, planning to rein in her yuckies about Fin and maybe sit down and have a companionable conversation, but he wasn’t even present and she was surprised to find herself disappointed. She wasn’t particularly tired, which also surprised her. Really at this point without feeding, she should be exhausted and in some pain.

  Glad for whatever respite she was experiencing and not wanting to look into the whys of it, she seriously considered knocking on Fin’s door. She didn’t feel like being alone right now and his company wasn’t really that bad, she supposed.

  She grabbed a cherry beer from the fridge, popped the cap and tossed it into the trash, then made her way to the living area. Plopping down on the couch, she turned on the TV and flipped through the channels, not interested in what was on, she simply wanted background noise so she didn’t feel so alone.

  Seconds later, Fin emerged from his room. He’d changed into a pair of soft black workout shorts and a black tank top. His muscles rippled as he stretched his arms above his head. She downed half her beer in one gulp and let out an embarrassing burp. Her face must have turned ten shades of red, as hot as it felt. It hadn’t been something she could hold back. Damn beer.

  Fin laughed at her faux pas and part of her wanted to bean his head with the bottle. Instead, she laughed too.

  “Um, excuse me,” she said sheepishly.

  He treated her to a brilliant smile and said, “You’re totally excused.” His jubilant expression faded to a guarded one as he asked, “Mind if I join you?”

  She remembered her earlier promise to herself, took another swig of beer and said, “Sure. Why not.”

  Surprise lit his handsome face as his smile returned. He grabbed a beer from the fridge and pulled up a chair and ottoman from the corner, making himself comfortable.

  Navine tried but couldn’t keep herself from ogling him. From his toned legs to his soft dark-brown hair, he was a sight to behold. She downed the rest of her beer, hopped up, grabbed another and lay back on the couch. “You know, you can ditch the contacts. Like you said, I already know what you are.”

  He winced even though she hadn’t spoken harshly and she felt inclined to add, “I mean, I’m curious to see your real eyes.”

  “You feeling okay?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “Okay as can be expected I suppose,” she shrugged and took a long pull from the bottle.

  “Hate these damn things,” Fin said as he rose from the chair. “Back in a sec.”

  She watched his ass flex beneath those workout shorts and had to stifle a quiver. Damn, the male was built. His body was exactly as she preferred.

  He returned and sat down on the chair again but kept his eyes averted from her. “Lemme see,” she encouraged. She really was curious about them. She’d never seen the color on a male before.

  He slowly turned his head and s
he was momentarily awe struck by the brilliance. Deep gold, flecked with warm golden-brown specks. She could get lost in their depths if she wasn’t careful.

  “Stunning,” she breathed before she knew the word was going to cross her lips. Her cheeks burned. Feeling awkward and ridiculous, she downed the last of her beer, jumped off the couch and grabbed another bottle, lingering in the kitchen for longer than necessary, willing the heat from her face.

  She tried to be casual as she made herself comfortable on the couch again. Thankfully, Fin didn’t call her on her declaration but she’d swear his slight grin held a hint of cockiness.

  “So, what’re we watching?” he asked.

  “Nothing.” She chucked the remote to him. He caught it with one hand. “Watch whatever you want.”

  “I’m not much of a TV fanatic. Any suggestions?”

  “Nah, it’s all junk. I mostly just turn it on for background noise.”

  He clicked the TV off and stood. “Then let’s sit outside.”

  Be nice, she reminded herself. “Okay.”

  He held the door for her as she stepped onto the porch. She chose to sit on the swing, enjoying the breeze.

  Fin sat in the rocking chair a few feet away, sipping his beer. Several silent minutes passed until Navine felt compelled to speak.

  “Why did you stick up for me today?”

  “You heard that?”

  “I did and I don’t get it. If you’d have just let that Sensus demon work her poison on me, you could be finished with me by now.” As his eyebrow rose she added, “I mean, it wouldn’t have worked, we’d all know the rumor was bullshit and you could go on with your life.”

  He nodded slowly. “Why are you so certain it wouldn’t work?”

  She rolled her eyes and left it at that. “So, why?” she repeated.

  He looked away, sipped from his bottle and said, “I want to help you but not like that. It’d be wrong. It’s your choice. I won’t be a party to the equivalent of…” He stopped as if he couldn’t even stomach the word. “Anyway, I’m here and will continue to be here as long as needed, but that’s all.”

  “I… Well, I appreciate it. That was nice. Noble. Thank you.”