Chapter 14 #2
“Come out and I’ll tell you,” I say, offering her a gentle smile that seems to calm her. “There’s no need to stay hidden now.” This time, she reaches for my hand, slipping her fingers across my palm, sending a jolt of electricity up my arm.
I pull her to her feet, and just as if on cue, her robe falls open.
She inhales sharply in surprise as her eyes flicker downward, but she remains still.
I let my ravenous gaze wander over her, taking in her gorgeous breasts and alluring curves that lead right to her core, my bite a striking red tattoo on her otherwise smooth skin.
The energy in the room shifts, her fear replaced by an almost palpable hunger.
“Oops,” she whispers as her fingers trail over her breast, circling her nipple—teasing me.
My cock twitches at her heated gaze as adrenaline continues to pump through my veins, her hand trailing down to her ribs and hips before coming around to her ass.
She arches her back, letting her head fall back as she rakes her nails up her side and back to her breast, palming it.
What a naughty girl.
“Nicolette,” I say lowly, her name a rumble in my chest—trying to claw its way out. “What are you doing?”
She drops her hand, and her robe slides from her shoulders, pooling at her feet. She remains silent as she turns, bending over to reveal her full ass and pussy, the latter glistening in the dim light. She delicately lifts her robe back up and looks at me over her shoulder, her green eyes twinkling.
I growl, holding myself back as she slides the robe back on, tying it tightly around her waist. She brushes past me toward the doorway, my fingers grazing her arm, but she quickly pulls away. Turning toward me, she holds up a hand, her eyes narrowing.
“No more touching. Not until you tell me everything,” she says sharply, her commanding tone making me hard. She turns back and crosses into the living room.
Like a dog on a leash, I follow her, licking my lips. This woman is infuriating, teasing me like that and expecting me to be able to form a fucking sentence. “Nicolette,” I warn as she lowers herself onto the couch, widening her legs and exposing her needy little cunt to me again.
“Tell me everything, Kryx,” she says as she reaches down and cups her center, gliding her fingers through her folds. “And if I’m satisfied, then you can touch me—fuck me—all you want.”
My mouth waters at the sight of her, my feral side threatening to pounce, and I hold back the groan that’s rising in my throat. “I can’t talk to you when you’re sitting like that,” I choke out, my jaw tense as fingers curl at my side.
She chuckles, her voice smooth as honey but dripping with poison. “I con men out of their money for a living, Kryx. That means I have to do whatever it takes to get what I want, and right now, this is the only way to make sure you tell me everything.”
This woman has me by the fucking balls. No wonder she’s at the top of the Naughty List.
She moves her fingers up and down, gliding in and out of her slit. “I’m waiting,” she says lowly as she continues to touch herself, her middle finger circling her entrance.
Fuck me.
“You’re never getting off my Naughty List, little vixen,” I growl, palming my hardened cock through my pants. “Fuck, Nicolette.” I scrub my other hand over my face, my claw hooking on my bottom lip. “Do you know what you fucking do to me?”
The corners of her mouth tilt up, giving me a sly smile that disappears as quickly as it appeared. “Tell me why you’ve been infiltrating my dreams and stealing any memory of it, Krampus.” She bites out the last word, showing her teeth, pressing her finger into her cunt, and pumping it in and out.
She’s an absolute fucking menace, her anger rising in the air and blending with the scent of her desire, crackling like embers.
I stand and watch her, my mind flailing as I fight against my feral demonic side, which is waiting to finally claim her.
She relaxes back, opening her robe to reveal her breasts.
Her perfect, pink nipples harden at her touch, making my mouth water.
Her gaze narrows on me. “Since you claim not to know what you were punishing my mother for, let me ask this: how many times have you been sent to see her?”
I grip my cock, letting the pain clear my foggy mind. “I’ve been sent there for decades,” I say with a growl, my throat tightening. “I was initially sent to punish your father, who became well acquainted with my whips and chains.”
The energy in the room shifts as she gradually slows her touch, lifting her fingers and letting them hover over her center. She watches me, but her expression reveals nothing; her only tell is the slight flush of her cheeks.
“I assume you learned your profession from him?” I ask, and she gives me a curt nod, but her face remains neutral, her mind going silent.
“He was a piece of shit,” she snaps, sitting up straight. “When I was a teenager, he left us high and dry to run off with his assistant—who he’d been having an affair with for years—and start a whole new life with a brand-new family.”
The wind outside howls, making the fire flicker and illuminating her green eyes with ire.
“I had to figure out how to make money, to keep the roof over our heads, even as my mother worked herself to the bone. So, I used everything he taught me, and I beat him at his own game. Drained him fucking dry right before the Feds dragged him to the slammer and gave my mother every penny that bastard owed her.”
I shift on my feet, inching toward her. “And he paid handsomely for his crimes,” I say, trying to calm her anger and offer some reassurance. “In fact, I can make a special trip to his cell as my personal gift to you, and make sure he hasn’t become too comfortable.”
She averts her gaze, watching the flames that dance wildly, beckoning to her. “My mother is a good person, Kryx,” she says softly, her brows furrowing. “If she did anything wrong in her life, it was staying with my father for as long as she fucking did. Your list must be wrong.”
Shaking my head, I walk over to the couch and tower above her. “It’s never been wrong, Nicolette. I can see you love your mother, but not everyone is who they seem. She was at the top of the list for a reason.”
A small voice in the back of my mind fills my ears, buzzing like a mosquito.
What if it was wrong? Magic has a mind of its own; it gives and takes, creating a balance in the world.
However, Evelyn Evergreen was breaking, her mind crumbling.
She wasn’t aware of any crimes, nor did she give me the same feeling that most on the Naughty List do.
I can sense it when someone is terrible, taste it like rot on my tongue, but hers tasted sour, like regret.
She shakes her head, clenching the fabric of her robe and covering herself, her cheeks flushing even more with anger. I can feel it in my chest as the flame intensifies and brightens. “Why was she on the list, Kryx? And don’t lie to me.”
“I don’t know,” I say roughly, my throat burning.
She jumps to her feet, her hands hitting my chest as she pushes me away. I’m caught off guard, taking a stiff step back, my hoof echoing through the room. “You’re fucking lying,” she shouts. “I’m a liar by trade, and I can sniff one out a mile away.”
I stare down at her, her eyes turning glassy as tears gather in the corners.
I clear my throat, the pain tearing through it, until I finally give in.
“She had an affair first, Nicolette,” I say, and even as the pain in my throat subsides with the truth spilling from my lips.
A knot forms in my chest, making it hard to breathe.
“It had been going on for a long time, and she—”
Nicolette moves and shoves me again, but this time, I don’t budge. “You’re a liar,” she snarls. “That’s what demons do, they fucking lie.” She pounds her fists against my chest as a rogue tear falls, splashing onto me.
I hold her wrists, securing them as she lets out a furious scream, a sob escaping her lips.
I pull her close to me, her forehead resting against my chest, tears sliding down her face and wetting my skin.
I wrap my arms around her, holding her tightly.
“I would never lie to you, Nicolette,” I say calmly, refusing to feed off her wave of emotions even as my chest feels as if it's caving in. “I would never lie to my mate.”
She stiffens, her head snapping back and her eyes widening as she gazes up at me. “What did you just fucking say?”
I hold her chin in my hand, gently pressing my claws into her jaw.
“I said, I would never lie to my mate.” I tilt her chin higher.
“You are my mate, Nicolette.” She looks back at me, her expression growing more panicked with each second that ticks by.
“Why do you think we can speak to each other in our minds? That I can feel your emotions as if they are mine, tearing me apart and burning through my chest? You are undeniably my mate.”
Her fingers wrap around my wrist, pressing into my pulse point and feeling my thundering heartbeats.
She remains silent as the words continue to fall from my lips.
“I tried to stay away, Nicolette. I tried to let you live a normal life, but when it became too much, I had to sneak into your dreams. It’s why I stole them so that you would be none the wiser. ”
“But, Kryx, how—” she starts, but I press my thumb to her lips, silencing her words.
“But when your name showed up on the Naughty List, Nicolette, it was a sign. My chance to come crashing back into your life—to ruin it and ruin you.” I lower my face, brushing my lips across hers. “To make you mine.”
She sucks in a shuddering breath as her trembling hand comes up and cups my face. “Is that why you gave me those memories back? Not to scare me, but to let me see the truth?”
I press my cheek into her palm, feeling the electricity in her touch flutter through me. “Once we came face to face again, I couldn’t hold on to them any longer, and they were not mine to keep. You deserved to see that we were meant to be together, no matter how painful it could be.”
She averts her gaze, her lips parting. “I’m your mate?” she whispers, saying the word as if she’s tasting a delicacy, rolling it across her tongue. “But... how is that even possible?”
“Fate,” I say simply. In truth, it’s the only answer I can think of, since no one knows how mates are chosen.
I believe it was written in the cosmos, taking thousands of years to come to fruition, forcing me to search every corner of the world to fill the empty space in my chest. To make me whole.
“And no one defies fate, little vixen. Not even a demon.”