Chapter 12 #3
“And now I see why.” She might have to find herself a Sem of her own. “Maybe I should be hanging out at Underworld General. I think half the world’s Sem population works there.”
“You need to stay away from incubi.” He rolled to the side, taking her with him. “We’re all horny assholes.”
True. But she knew many Seminus demons, and for the most part, they were decent, loyal, and dedicated to their work.
“Is that why you’re still inside me?” She reached up and brushed a lock of dark hair off his forehead. “Do you need more?”
“I don’t…need it.” His cheeks burned red, which was adorable. “I just don’t want this to end.”
Her heart stuttered at his admission. She didn’t want it to end, either.
Back when the three of them had taken the oath, it had been hard, at first, to watch them pursue other females. She’d even walked in on them in the middle of banging some of them, which had been like pinpricks in her heart.
But she’d gotten over it. All those pinpricks became protective scars, and for years now, she’d understood that friendship was all they could ever have.
Now, something had changed for her. Something new stirred, and she wasn’t sure she was ready to let go of the feeling quite yet.
“Scotty?” Blade pressed a lingering kiss onto her forehead. “I’m sorry your first time was…this.”
Was he kidding? This was better than she could ever have hoped for. She’d thought she’d go on a date or two with Jon, or Skoll, or anyone who wasn’t Blade or Mace, and they’d have hot sex, but a hella awkward time after that.
“This was perfect, Blade.”
She rested her head on his shoulder, growing gradually more aware of the mud on her skin, the rocks stabbing her bones, and the chill in the damp air. An imaginary timer started, too, one that ticked down the few remaining minutes they would ever have like this. The last seconds of—
“I’m worried about Mace,” Blade said softly.
Yep, there it was. Back to reality. An uncertain reality because, like it or not, things were different. And yet, nothing could change.
“Mace is in the best hands,” she assured him. “We’ll see him soon.”
“I know.” Blade withdrew, formally breaking their connection and leaving her feeling…empty. He sat up to gather her scattered clothes. “That’s not what I meant.”
Oh. He meant the sex. Her gut did a slow roll of dread. “He’ll be okay with it,” she insisted. He would. “You’ll see.”
“He’ll say he’s okay. And he might even understand.
” Blade dragged his hand down his face, looking suddenly tired.
“But deep inside, he’ll blame me for not injecting myself sooner, or for losing my pack.
I only left it behind that once, but he’s always jumping my shit when I take it off. It’ll fester. You know how he is.”
Yeah, she did. Mace didn’t let much get to him, but when it finally did, he was completely irrational, and he didn’t calm down for her the way Blade did.
He’d say he was cool with something, but then, someday down the road, maybe even years later, he’d randomly explode over something small, and all his anger would erupt.
And it was destructive. To himself and everyone around him.
Blade laid her clothes on a relatively dry boulder. “Maybe we shouldn’t say anything.”
If only it were that easy. “He can read us like books, Blade.”
“Yeah, but he can’t read us if there’s nothing to read. Nothing has changed between us. We’re still friends. This was a one-off, and it won’t happen again.”
No, it wouldn’t, but she didn’t like how the finality of his words made her chest tighten. “We have to tell him. There can never be secrets between us.”
There was silence, broken only by the drip of water from the cave ceiling. Then, finally, “I know.”
A deep heaviness sank into her belly as she sat up and reached for her clothes. This was it. She would go her way, and he’d go back to fucking a dozen females a week. Or Masumi, dozens of times a week.
Jealousy percolated as they cleaned up in silence, using the little pond of cool water to rinse. Not jealousy of Masumi. Not really. Scotty loved the succubus. Masumi had probably saved the life of everyone in the house. And she was genuinely a good person who cared about the entire family.
It was just too bad Masumi wasn’t free to love. Her species had been bred specifically to fulfill the needs of Seminus demons, and without that, she’d die. Unless she mated with a Seminus demon, Scotty supposed. Was she even allowed to do that? She’d have to ask her someday.
Just as Scotty tugged on her top, a sound, like a snake slithering through ashes, froze her in her tracks. She glanced down at her comms. Sunrise.
“Blade,” she whispered.
Instantly, he was armed and at her side, his nostrils flaring as he sniffed the air. “Wendigo,” he said in a hushed voice. “Strike that. Multiple wendigos.”
A shiver crawled up her spine, followed by a rush of adrenaline. Those things might be creepy as shit, but she and Blade had been born to slay monsters like that.
“We got this,” she said.
He nodded, shooting her a sly smile. “Let’s put them down before those two idiots show up. I want all the credit.”
“Hell, yeah,” she said, putting out her fist. “Team up.”
“Team up.” He bumped her knuckles, and just like that, things were back to normal.
Perfectly, perfectly normal.
Really.