Chapter 23
“Oh, little vixen,” Kryx calls, sounding as sly as a winter fox as I dodge between the trees, the demon hot on my heels.
My cotton dress flies behind me, catching on branches and thorns, tearing from the hem up.
His heartbeat pounds in my chest as he chases me, the thrill sending a pulse straight to my clit.
I leap over the frozen river, my foot slipping on the ice, causing me to fall to my knees as the cold sinks its frigid teeth into my skin.
I scramble back to my feet, only to be shoved down again, a burning hot hand pressing between my shoulder blades.
“Now, now,” Kryx says with a tsk. “Did you really think you could get away from me so easily?”
His hand grips my hair, yanking my head back as his tongue traces up the side of my throat, nipping at my ear. I try to speak, but all I can manage is a low moan as his knee slides between my legs, pressing against my center, and I grind against him.
My skin heats, melting the snow around us and causing it to drip toward the frozen river at our feet. Kryx’s shadows slip beneath my hips, lifting my ass as I hear the laces of his pants pulling free, his cock already pressing against my entrance.
His body cages mine, his scent of pine and smoky embers filling my nose as he teases me with the head of his dripping cock. “Fuck me, Krampus,” I purr. “Fuck me like the naughty demon lord you are.”
He slams into me with a growl, his piercings sliding over my G-spot and making me see exploding stars.
His hand slips away from my hair, curling around and pressing against my throat, causing my eyes to roll back.
His thrusts become erratic before he emits a vicious roar, shaking the trees and warning everything nearby to steer clear of the monster.
Suddenly, he flips me onto my back, spreading my legs wide as he consumes my pussy, his tongue spearing into me as his teeth gently graze my pulsing clit. “Yes,” I moan, gasping for air as fiery warmth spreads through my abdomen, with wave after wave of my orgasm crashing over me—drowning me.
Will he someday get tired of this? The question comes out of nowhere as he drags the tips of his claws across my ass, making my skin sting.
Kryx lifts his head from between my legs, his face smeared with a mix of our cum, sporting a sinister smile. “I will never tire of you, little vixen,” he says, licking his lips. “And don’t you ever have such a thought again, or you will be punished for the rest of eternity.”
“Is that a threat or a promise?” I tease breathlessly with a fiery grin on my lips.
“It’s always a promise, but I can make it whatever you want,” he purrs as he climbs up my body, pressing his lips to mine and forcing his tongue into my mouth, coating it with our desire. I get lost in his kiss, his touch turning tender as he slides his hand to my nape, not letting me go.
“I love you, little vixen,” he says into my mind. “Our love was written in the cosmos, singed into the earth by the fires of Hell, and so long as I’m breathing, it will never burn out.”
Kryx altered my entire life and gave me a new one. He revealed secrets and gave me the power to free my mother’s lost soul. He’s a demon, but he’s nothing like the bedtime stories told of him. He’s cruel, but also merciful. Domineering yet submissive. A vicious nightmare, but a dream come true.
And he’s mine.
My heart.
My soul.
My mate.
He slowly pulls back from his kiss, his lips sliding across my jaw and down the curve of my throat, his body merging with mine.
I’m lost in him, feeling his claws scrape across my mind, my legs entangling with his.
The wind whirls wildly around us, the icy branches cracking, and the flutter of winter birds circling us fills the air.
I should be worried about what is lurking in the shadows, watching us between the trees, but I’m with the scariest thing this forest has ever seen, and I’ve never felt safer—more secure.
I slide my fingers into his hair, gliding them up and down his horns, his cock hardening again as he slides it between my folds. “And I love you, Krampus,” I say, letting him feel the smile on my lips as they press into his. “My heart is yours. For eternity and long after.”
I feel dust brushing against my face, sprinkling into my eyes, and the world around us begins to fade, darkness draping over us like my favorite quilt.
I feel the earth shift before we’re slowly lowered into a dreamscape.
I open my eyes, expecting the clearing that has become my second home, but instead, I’m surrounded by walls of ice, blue veins glowing from beneath them, filling the cavern with their light.
“Kryx,” I say out loud. “Where are we?”
His hand cups the back of my head, a gentle smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
“I know all your dreams and desires, your darkest secrets. You have not only sacrificed your soul but also given me your heart.” He presses a soft kiss to the corner of my eye, nuzzling his face into the crook of my neck.
“And now, I want to show you more of me, starting with my own dreamscape.”
He pulls away, rising to his knees as he offers a hand to help me sit up.
I look around, taking in the winter wonderland around us.
It’s filled with snow-dusted evergreens, lights twinkling among the branches like fallen stars.
Holly bushes dot the clearing, with mistletoe growing wild through them, and the scent of pine fills the air.
In the center stands a large four-poster bed with tall, pine spindles, draped with sheer fabric that flows down and pools on the ground.
The duvet is bright white, gently spread over dark green silk sheets, with a mountain of pillows of various shapes, colors, and fabrics piled in front of the headboard.
A massive stone hearth rises from the snow-covered ground, a fire crackling inside, with embers floating like fireflies in the air, warming the entire clearing.
“Kryx,” I breathe, my breath clouding in front of my lips. “This is beautiful.”
We rise to our feet and walk over to the bed, his shadows pulling back the duvet as he guides me onto the mattress, sliding in beside me.
He lowers me back, and I gasp at the vastness of the stars above us, constellations twinkling like lights on a Christmas tree.
He chuckles, cupping my cheek and turning my face, softly pressing his lips to mine.
“I made it into the wonderland that I dreamed of living in with you,” he says, his voice smooth. “I saw what your dreamscape used to be, and I always imagined I’d be able to create it for you again and make up for all the pain and suffering I caused.”
I curl into his side, letting my fingers drift over his chest, swirling one around his pierced nipple, where I hear him quietly gasp.
“You were just doing your job; the blame falls on the Clauses. But I don’t remember asking you to stop inflicting pain on me,” I say, sliding my leg over his hips and rising to straddle him.
“In fact, I think it’s time I return the favor, Krampus. ”
His grin sharpens, and his eyes flash with fire as a pile of chains appears beside us on the bed, softly clinking, with a flogger resting on top.
He runs his hands up my thighs, gently scraping the back of his claws and sending a shiver up my spine while heat curls tightly in my lower abdomen.
“Sticks and stones may break bones,” he says lowly.
“But whips and chains excite me, little vixen. Make me suffer.” He gives me a wink and licks his lips.
I grin as I reach over and grip the flogger, sliding the leather tendrils across his abs, watching as the dense muscles flex tightly.
“You’ve been a naughty demon the last decade,” I say with a flick of my wrist, the flogger cracking across his skin.
He moans, his claws digging into me just as shadows curl around his wrists, lifting his arms above his head.
“And your eternal punishment begins tonight.”
He yanks on the shadows, his eyes wide with surprise, realizing that I’ve manifested my own, guiding them with my silent commands.
His hair is fanned out on the red satin pillow beneath his head, his eyes burning bright as he scrapes his teeth across his bottom lip.
“Oh, my little vixen has learned a new trick,” he croons. “How delightful.”
I drag the flogger across his chest, flicking my wrist and causing a hiss from between his sharp teeth as the leather bites into him. “It’s not the only thing I have up my sleeve,” I say, my voice going husky as snow begins to fall around us, the flakes kissing our cheeks.
“Dash away, little vixen,” he breathes as I grind my center onto his cock. “Put yourself back at the top of the Naughty List.”
Oh, Krampus, I fully intend to.
Our moans fill the clearing as our hearts beat as one, burning as brightly as an open fire. I have found my home, but not in my cabin or his castle—in him. He is everyone’s nightmare, but my dream come true, and I never want to wake up.
I, Nicolette Evergreen, have been called every name imaginable except for nice. I used to be a thief, a fraud, and a con artist. But now, you'd better watch out because, thanks to the demon of Christmas, I can be much, much worse.
For someone like me, it’s a pain to be nice, but oh, what fun it is to be naughty.