Chapter 23
ANIYAH
That was definitely something new. I’d never met a demon who, the moment he tasted cum, radiated power so thick it drenched the room in lust. It was like the air had been drugged.
My head swam with the possibilities. Just imagine the kind of profits we could rake in with a power like that on tap.
What the hell was a man like that doing in IT?
Then I remembered his words from before, how he’d been suppressing that power. Taking blockers. Holding himself back… for me.
You can’t buy that kind of devotion.
Goosebumps chased across my skin, and a heady warmth bloomed in my chest, bubbling over into something giddy and greedy. I wanted to pinch his too-cute face then fuck him into next week.
Something warm and damp brushed against my thighs.
My leg was lifted, and I cracked an eye open to find Rasmus kneeling between them, methodically cleaning me up with a cloth, his fingers lingering just a second too long.
His gaze, dark, intense, reverent, made my core clench with fresh want.
I bit my lip. Maybe his magic still lingered in my veins.
Maybe the only cure was another round. I am so down for that.
Across the room, my grumpy troll was staring at his forearms like they’d betrayed him. Unarmored, Alic was starting to become one of my favorite flavors. Fuck, that man had a cock worthy of legend and knew exactly what to do with it.
Now that everything was out in the open, I felt lighter, like I'd shed something. Rasmus had been in my life before I even got to New York. That thought still surprised me. If my brother sent him, his skills in IT had to be stellar, which meant he was smart and determined.
That was already a dangerous combination, but add in his unending loyalty? That made him the perfect obsessive companion, someone who could be useful in so many ways.
“So,” I said, propping myself up on my elbows, “when are we watching the tapes from last night?”
Ras slowly withdrew the cloth, resting his cheek on my thigh and closing his eyes like he was savoring the moment. That was somehow worse. That heat flared again, teasing just under my skin, and I nearly purred. Fuck, I am such a thirsty bitch.
That warmth I had felt during sex, the pulse of something ancient, powerful, and personal, was still there.
Now that I knew the seal on my tattoo was breaking, I started wondering if maybe I did have multiple mates.
Now that they were circling in close, maybe the magic couldn’t handle the sudden overload?
Then there were the roses on my ink. Five of them. Five roses. Five men currently orbiting me like predators on a blood trail, but what if the bond was the bait? Leading them to a bigger predator… me. I liked the thought of that.
“I’ll pull the memory card,” Ras said, voice calm, “and we can bring it back to the apartment.”
I nodded, letting my body relax. “Let me know when you're done… and… thanks.” A simple thanks for… everything.
Apparently, that wasn’t enough.
He leaned in, kissing me long, deep, and slow. So sensual it made my toes curl. It was the kind of kiss that made promises with no expiration date.
When he pulled back, he rested his forehead on mine, his breath brushing against my lips.
“You have nothing to thank me for,” he murmured. “Everything I do is for you.”
A flutter bloomed in my chest, soft and sweet. It startled me. Pleased me more than it should have. My fingers brushed his jaw, memorizing the moment. See? We knew the stalker wasn’t dangerous. Always go with your gut, Aniyah.
From the corner, Alic muttered, “Stalking isn’t romantic. It’s textbook psychosis.”
Ras threw him a glance sharp enough to cut, and I smiled. Maybe he’s only dangerous to everyone else but me.
I pushed up, kissed Ras’ cheek, and whispered, “Keep giving me orgasms like that and help me catch whoever did this… you might get first boyfriend status.”
His face lit up like a kid at Christmas, and he practically bolted across the room to retrieve the videos. What a good boy.
Alic’s jaw dropped. He looked at Ras’ back, then at me, scandalized.
I shrugged. “I never said anything about mates.” Everything inside of me said he was mine, they were mine, but I couldn't afford to have any weaknesses or distractions.
“He’s been useful,” I said dismissively, and a small part of me winced. “He deserves a reward for good behavior.”
Alic huffed, crossing his arms like a sulking teen. “I helped with that orgasm, too. I should get some kind of status…”
His eyes dropped to my bare chest, and I bit back a laugh. I’d never been shy about my hourglass figure, stunning tits, or pussy that could stop traffic, but the way he was staring? Getting lost in just looking at me. That was priceless.
Still smiling, I pointed to my cropped sweater by his feet. “Sure. But you’ve got demerits, too. It’s a scaling system. Can I have that, please?”
His eyes blinked, his brain just now catching up. When he realized what he was so focused on, he scrambled to grab the sweater. By the time he handed it to me, his eyes refusing to meet mine, his face was fully flushed.
“Aww,” I teased, a soft chuckle escaping. “You can look. I’m not going to bite your head off.”
He hesitated. I smirked, liking this kind of endearing reaction from him. “It’s not like you haven’t seen them before.”
Only when he had explicit permission did his gaze drift back to me. I stretched just a little as I pretended like I was about to pull the sweater on, bunching it at my forearms, giving him a front-row seat.
He tried not to react. I could see it. Tension coiled in his shoulders, showing his effort to not let his cock take the lead. Dropping my shoulders, I pushed my chest out and bit my lip, staring up at him through my lashes like a well-trained tease.
His whole body shifted, his eyes devouring me like he was trying to prove a point, saying, There. Happy now? And I was.
I stepped toward him, moving closer and closer.
His face twitched, that quiver of his mouth giving him away. The war between his duty and his desire clashed, and when I was right up against him, I reached out, dragging my finger along the pulsing vein in his neck.
He didn’t flinch, didn’t pull away. Just clenched his jaw.
Tilting my head up, I whispered with a wicked grin, “Now that you’ve been broken, we’re going to have so much fun.”
His hands gripped me roughly as he snarled, “I’m not broken. Just unleashed.”
He was trying to scare me or maybe convince himself, but either way, I wasn’t about to lie to him.
His hands were locked around my biceps, but mine were free. Sliding my fingers from his outer thigh inward, his cock twitched, angling toward me like it knew exactly where it belonged.
“You think so?” I purred.
The air around us sparked like it was a living thing, hot and thick, pulsing with something darker. Dominance and the need to win. His canary-yellow eyes demanded I fold.
I didn’t, and with each second that ticked by, they slowly softened into something pleading, begging me to give him the out.
“Got the video,” Rasmus said smoothly.
I looked over. He was calm, composed, but his stare was feral. The way his eyes fixed on me promised he’d never let me go, no matter who or what was in his way.
Alic released my arms, and I slipped the sweater over my head, dragging my hair free with a sigh. “Great. Let’s head back to my place.”
Slipping on my heels, I was halfway to the door when Alic called from behind me, “Wait. Don’t you want your underwear or your bra?”
His eyes dropped as he licked his lips. That wasn’t a look of concern; it was hunger.
Rolling my head to the side, I shrugged. “He can keep them.”
I stepped toward Ras, cupped his flushed face, and smiled sweetly. “You want them as a memento, don’t you?”
His eyes fluttered as he nodded, unable to hide his desire for them nor the pleasure he got from being able to keep them.
My thumb brushed his lip, and I exhaled, remembering exactly how those lips had felt beneath me.
Like he knew where my thoughts had gone, his chest rose in a harsh breath.
“Just make sure to buy me more,” I said, brushing my mouth across his jaw. “You can have as many as you want… if you replace them.”
Ras groaned, something raw and unyielding, and shoved his face into his hands like he couldn’t bear the pleasure of it.
God, the way this man unraveled for me was sexy. I was starting to get addicted.
If I didn’t have something urgent to do, I would’ve dragged him back to bed for another round, but priorities came first.
“Let’s go, boys. We’ve got a long day of footage and research ahead of us.”
“They tried to cut the power to the cameras.” The more Ras uncovered about that night, the angrier I got.
“What they didn’t know was that your brother set up a backup generator, one fueled by magic, so we’ve still got footage from the entire night.”
Ras was perched on my couch, hunched over my laptop, scrubbing through the feed and showing us everything leading up to the explosion.
I had watched Randy take a bullet when he tried to stop them, which made me go a little feral.
Van quickly assured me he saved him before we came to my apartment, and when he showed up at the club today, Randy was still at his post, insisting he wouldn't leave until everything was secure. Said he wanted to prove himself after “idiotically getting shot,” not wanting “Miss Aniyah to think he was a weakling.” Who wouldn’t love a grump like that?
“Here.” Ras pointed at the left screen. “That’s him, coming in through the service entrance.”