Chapter 40
40
“ W hat the fuck am I doing here?” I mutter under my breath as I cut the engine after pulling into the parking lot outside The Vault. Judging by how many cars are here already, it’s going to be more packed than the last time I came.
Memories of that night swirl in my mind. The nerves, the excitement, the overwhelming pleasure, and the hopeful blossoming of my heart. My chest squeezes painfully and I fight back tears.
I check my makeup in the visor mirror, dabbing at my watery eyes with a tissue so I don’t ruin my eyeliner.
I could turn around and go home. I don’ t have to do this.
And then what? Sob into my pillow again until I fall asleep and dream of Blair?
The woman who stares back at me in my reflection looks unhinged—sad, pissed, scared, and so, so tired of being upset.
No. I’m here and I’m doing this, dammit.
I reapply my hot pink lipstick, tug down the neckline of my dress, and give myself a determined look before flipping up the visor. I throw the car door open and haul myself out, flashing my panties to anyone nearby with my graceless exit.
Who cares? I’m here to be messy and reckless tonight.
Samantha waits by the entrance, her toned legs looking impossibly long in the white dress that barely covers her ass. If it weren’t for how much skin she had exposed, I’d swear she looked like an angel under the glow of parking lot lights, her long white-blonde hair draped over one shoulder, soft, subtle makeup highlighting her striking features, and a sweet smile spreading her lips as I approach.
But the grin it morphs into as she checks me out is nothing but sinful, and I fight not to blush. I’m attracted to Samantha. It’d be impossible not to be unless you aren’t into women even in the slightest. She’s gorgeous and magnetic and probably everything I should be looking for in a rebound fling.
Yet, when I look back at her and wave, I don’t feel anything other than a confidence boost from her obvious appreciation of my appearance. She’s the most alluring person I’m likely to encounter, literally bestowed with powers of seduction, but I don’t want her.
I wish I did.
Maybe that makes me a terrible person, wanting to move on to something else so fast, but desiring Samantha would be proof that I was being foolish with Blair. That my feelings resulted from the rush of trying something new and our kink dynamic, not a bone-deep connection that I’ll never get over .
“Grace!” Samantha exclaims, tugging me into a quick hug, before pulling back and giving me another once-over. “You look so fucking hot, wow. Like I knew you were pretty, but damn .”
I laugh at her compliments. “Thanks! You look incredible, too.”
She does a twirl, showing off the back of her dress where there are long slits on the shoulder blades and a smaller one right above her tailbone. “Let’s go inside and scope things out. Claim a spot to watch the bacchanal.”
Samantha loops her arm through mine and leads me inside. Her presence at my side bolsters me enough that I don’t immediately freak out being back in this space under very different circumstances. We check in with the bouncer, who unabashedly eyes up Samantha as he goes over the rules of the club.
“Most important one for tonight, other than consent, is no photos or videos. Humans leave their phones up here.” The burly man holds his hand out expectantly to me.
“Huh? Why?” I ask, clutching at my purse defensively. Mona wanted me to text updates on how I was doing throughout the night. She’s worried I’ll freak out or do something I’ll regret, and I could tell Max was concerned that Samantha would be a bad influence.
“Someone’s guest broke the rule and now it’s club policy. You don’t want to give me your phone, you don’t go inside.”
I reluctantly hand it over, and Samantha nudges me reassuringly. “You can use mine to let Mona know I haven’t used you in a kinky dark magic ritual or whatever she and Max are worried about.”
“Damn, you’re not going to do that?” I ask teasingly.
She laughs and shakes her head. “No, I save that for the third date.” I must look surprised because she holds up her hands defensively. “Not that this is a date! Just two new friends casually watching a bunch of monsters get their freak on.”
She winks at the bouncer, who perked up at her comment about us not being on a date. I have a feeling most unattached people here tonight will have the same relief when they find out we’re not a couple.
As we head into the hallway connecting to the main room of the club, I grab her forearm to stop her before we go further. “You sure I won’t get in your way? I won’t be upset if you want to, uh, partake. I can stay to see all the monsters and then head out.”
Samantha chews on her lip, considering my offer. “Honestly? I’m just here to watch, too. Absorb some of the energy. I’ve been feeling worn down lately, and I could really use a boost, but I’m not in the mood to fuck.”
“A boost?” I ask.
“Oh! Yeah. So my mom is a succubus. She feeds off sexual energy and needs it to sustain her and she passed some of that need on to me. Not to the same extent, but I can definitely feel it when I haven’t fed in a while.”
“Whoa, okay. I bet this will be like a buffet for you then,” I say. Knowing that won’t be getting in her way, and she’s going to spend the night just hanging out with me, I’m able to relax a little.
She smiles, her pearly teeth so bright they’re almost the same color as her dress. “Exactly! Or actually, more like a B12 shot. Something to perk me back up.”
“I’m jealous,” I say with a soft chuckle. “I feel like shit all the time lately. It’d be nice to know a surefire way to improve that. Sorry, that’s probably an overshare.”
“No such thing tonight,” Samantha says, placing a hand on my shoulder. “We’re going to go in there, bask in the monster sex, and bitch about our love lives. ”
“Sounds good to me. The only thing missing are drinks to make this a proper lonely girls’ night.”
I’m joking, but Samantha looks around the hallway to make sure no one is coming, then digs into her cleavage and pulls out a flask.
“We’re not supposed to have alcohol in here!” I squeak, motioning for her to put that away while simultaneously impressed at how well hidden it was.
“Relax.” She chuckles and tucks it back between her breasts. “These places have that rule for consent purposes, and neither of us are taking part tonight. It’s fine. Besides, it’s fun to break the rules sometimes.” She gives me a devilish grin, then adds, “When it isn’t hurting anyone. Or is, but the pain is consensual. You know what I mean.”
She loops her arm in mine again and we head into the main room of the club. It takes a minute to find an open couch for us to sit on, and once we settle in, someone is already coming around to let us know monsters are free to shift or let their human glamors down.
“Excited to see a succubus for the first time?” Samantha asks, waggling her eyebrows at me. “Even if you’ve seen Max in his demon form, I’m way hotter in mine.”
I laugh, rolling my eyes at her comment. “What’s up with that, by the way? You messing with Max.”
She shrugs. “He’s easy to tease, and it’s fun to argue with him. He’s always been the broody one of the family, too, so my sisters and I try to pester him to get him to come out of his shell more.”
“And flirting with Mona?” I ask.
“Your best friend is a total babe. It’s my nature to flirt. Trust me, if I actually wanted to steal Mona from Max, it would’ve already happened. No one can resist my charms.” She gives me a decidedly filthy look and a wave of her seductive energy hits me, but it doesn’t change my lack of actual interest. “Now hold my purse while I shift to my other form,” she says, passing her bag over and sticking her hand up her skirt with no preamble.
“Whoa! You have to do that to shift?” I quickly avert my eyes.
“Huh? Oh!” she says with a boisterous laugh. “I have a spellmark on my inner thigh that I have to touch to change forms. Don’t worry, I’m not fingering myself.”
I turn back around, my eyebrows shooting up when I see her new appearance. Her skin has changed to a pale pink that matches the bows on my dress, and small bat-like wings extend behind her, the edges tipped in silvery-white that matches the slightly altered color of her hair. Her violet eyes have an unnatural glow to them, and she has short, slightly twisted pink horns also tipped in white.
“If I weren’t currently heartbroken and wishing I were with someone else, you’d be the magical monster girl of my dreams,” I say, looking at her in awe. “I’m so jealous.” I reach out to touch her skin, fascinated by the sparkling flecks that almost look like glitter, then freeze, face heating as I realize how rude that is.
Samantha leans forward and takes my hand, pressing it to her chest. “You can touch,” she says, her tone more amused than seductive.
Her skin is unnaturally warm, and where my palm connects with her body, there’s a tingling sensation that sends a small pulse of arousal through me. I gasp and pull back like I’ve been burned.
She chuckles. “Whoops! I’m burning hotter than usual. Usually it takes more than a casual touch to have that effect.”
I narrow my eyes at her. “You’re sure you weren’t trying to seduce me after all?”
Her mischievous smile confirms my suspicion. “Alright, maybe just a little. Mostly, I wanted to get rid of that sad look in your eyes for a second. And it worked!”
“Next time, warn me,” I say, shaking my head at her unapologetic grin.
“Ooo, so there will be a next time?” Samantha asks, licking her lips as she leans closer. “Because now that I’m in my succubus form, you’re looking like even more of a treat.”
Now that I’m getting used to her, I can tell there’s no actual intent behind Samantha’s words. She just enjoys getting under people’s skin. I roll my eyes. “I’ll pass.”
“Damn,” she says, laughing and sitting back, looking out to survey the room. “Wow, there’s certainly a variety tonight.”
I pull my eyes from her pretty pink demonic form to scan the room too, and can’t help the gasp that the sight elicits.
There are monsters everywhere .
People are still chatting and getting settled in, but I see elfin creatures with glittering wings, a pair of werewolves, a woman with a long snakelike lower half of her body, and a hulking minotaur. Not to mention the person who looks like they’re part-dragon. Or the tusked, green skinned… orc ?
“Holy shit, orcs are real?” I ask, trying to keep my voice down as best I can so I don’t come off as a gawking human.
“Out of all the monsters here, that’s what’s surprising?” Samantha asks, bemused.
“I’m a fantasy nerd,” I say absently, eyes darting around the room in wonder. For the first time in weeks, the weight of my heartache eases and there’s a glimmer of genuine happiness as I see the literal manifestation of creatures I’ve read about since I was a kid .
And then I see her .
Our eyes lock and the devastation comes crashing back in. My breath punches out of my lungs.
The crowd parts like the sea around Blair’s preternaturally beautiful form as she stalks over to where I’m seated. I’m frozen, my traitorous body choosing neither fight nor flight when faced with seeing her again.
Then she’s standing above me, staring down with an intensity that sets my body alight with a potent mixture of anger and yearning.
“Uh, can I help you?” Samantha asks, moving to position herself in front of me more.
Blair flashes her fangs and glares at the succubus like she’s one second away from ripping her throat out. “No. You can’t.”
I finally find my voice, though it comes out far too shaky for my liking. “W-why are you here?”
Her red eyes lock back on me, softening into something that’s far too similar to affection. To yearning.
No. She doesn’t love me. She doesn’t want me. She doesn’t ? —
“I’m here for you.”