Carnal (Her Dark Desires #1) (21 page)

“What
do you mean?” he asked, annoyed. “I’m here to judge your final.”

My
mouth dropped open in absolute horror. “You’ve gotta be shitting me.”

He
wrinkled his nose. “No wonder you have such trouble finding acceptable clients,
with a mouth like that. Women are supposed to be refined and delicate. Most of
all, they’re supposed to be obedient.”

Maybe
in the fifties
,
I wanted to shoot back, but Prescott shoved me forward into the waiting
vampire’s arms.

“Go
on,” he said, giving me a daring grin. “Why don’t you dance with the nice man?
You look like you could relax.”

I
wanted to call him a few choice words, but one glance at Hector silenced me.

He
was watching me with flames in his eyes, looking like it was taking every ounce
of willpower he had not to tear me out of the vamp’s arms.

Cursing
my luck, I had no choice but to drag the vamp out onto the dance floor.

Some
people were having sex literally a foot away from us, on the floor itself. Men
and women, in any combination and wearing various levels of clothing, joined in
the heady throng of gyrating bodies.

The
vamp wasted no time feeling me up. “You feel pretty good,” he said, all but
plastering me to him. “I wonder what you taste like.”

Three
months ago, I would have flushed at such a comment. Now thanks to Hector’s
lessons, I replied without missing a beat, “Probably not as good as you’d taste
coming in my mouth.”

He
licked his lips, and I felt his erection grow beneath his pants, brushing
against my leg. “I’ve never had succubus before.”

“What
a coincidence. I’ve never had vampire before.”

His
hand reached down and squeezed my ass. I always expected vamps to be cold, but
he was surprisingly warm. If I couldn’t see his fangs elongate with his desire,
I wouldn’t suspect he was a vampire at all.

He
nuzzled my neck, and I tensed as his fangs trailed across my skin. What was
probably meant to be sensual scared the crap out of me, and my near-death
experience of the alley with Hobo-Vamp sprang to mind. “Do you want to…” He paused
to lick my neck - yuck! “…go somewhere more private?”

Not
in a million years
.
In one of my self-defense moves, I reached down and grabbed a fistful of his
balls. He yelped and gaped at me in astonishment. “Have you lost your mind?” he
squealed.

“No,”
I said, never flinching, “but you’re about to lose your dick if you don’t back
the hell off right now.”

“You
crazy bitch!” His eyes glowed red, and I braced myself for a fight.

Power
radiated off someone behind me as a deep voice said icily, “Is there a
problem?”

The
vamp’s eyes snapped to Hector, who stood over my shoulder, staring menacingly
down at the vamp. The vampire actually gulped. “Um, no,” he said, tacking on a
charming smile for good measure. “Everything’s fine. Just a misunderstanding,
Mr. Aurelius.”

My
brows raised. Apparently Hector’s reputation was for more than his good looks
and acclaim as a bedmate.

“Good,”
Hector said. “Love, will you please release this nice man now? I think he’s
learned enough.”

I
gave a good twist and let go. The vampire scrambled away, disappearing into the
crowd as quickly as he’d asked me for a dance.

Warm
hands wrapped around my waist, moving me to the beat as Hector came up behind
me and started grinding to the rhythm. I reached up and wrapped one arm around
his neck while the other reached behind him to press his hips harder against
mine. “This is a bad idea,” I murmured, already losing myself to the heat of our
connection.

“I
think it’s a fantastic idea,” he murmured, nipping at my earlobe.

I
groaned and rubbed against him like a kitten, feeling him growing longer and
harder through his thin pants. “You’re making me horny.”

“That’s
the point.”

“To
get me ready?”

That
abruptly killed the mood. He stopped moving and stepped back, though his hands
remained on my waist.

I
turned around, hating the anger and the sadness in his eyes. “You okay?”

He
laughed bitterly. “No. I’m going insane inside, thinking of what’s about to
happen.”

“Me
too,” I said quietly.

The
music abruptly died, and a spotlight shone on a stage set with a table adorned
with a velvet cushion and gauze. It looked like a fancy mattress, like
something you’d find in a king’s bedroom chamber. Everyone’s attention turned
to the stage, and I narrowed my eyes as Dean Prescott took the microphone with
a cheesy smile. “Welcome, esteemed patrons of Elysian!”

They
all cheered. The room was full of half-drunk and horny-as-hell succubi, incubi,
vamps, weres, you name it. Save for the few people in the room without a
signature, most of the audience was of the supernatural kind.

“We’re
all here tonight to witness the performances of some very special candidates
from our elite Elysian program,” Dean Prescott went on. “Remember, if you’re
struggling with shape-shifting, have problems with blood-sucking, or if you
just want to be comfortable in your own skin, Elysian can help. Please see our
table at the front for registration details.”

I
rolled my eyes.
Of course. Had to get some promo in.

“Each
group will be judged on their performance, from their presentation to their
technique. Our judges are…” He rattled off their names, all staff from Elysian.

“Why
aren’t you judging?” I asked Hector.

He
stood there with a stormy look on his face, his muscular arms crossed over his
big chest. “Because I’m your mentor. They don’t want me to give you a biased
score.”

“Makes
sense,” I muttered.

Hector
sighed and dropped his arms. I took the opportunity to discreetly take his hand
and squeeze it for all it was worth.

“Now,
please welcome our first candidate!” Dean Prescott said. “Tina Messenger!”

It
was amusing seeing such an exotic woman - and a succubus at that - step onto
the stage, waving and smiling like she was at a Miss America pageant. Her
partner was a human male, who looked as nervous as I felt.

After
waiting for the judges’ consent, Tina wasted no time seducing Brian, the human
volunteer. It was obvious from his clumsy manner he wasn’t nearly as experienced
as Tina. He actually reminded me of myself a few months ago.

Had
it only been a couple of weeks? It seemed like I’d known Hector for a lifetime.

As
I watched Tina mount Brian atop the velvet-cushioned table and start riding him
for all to see, I squeezed Hector’s hand tighter and tighter. I was surprised
he hadn’t lost circulation, but he never once let go.

By
the time Brian and Tina came, I had almost bitten my lip off in worry. After it
was over, Tina helped a wobbly Brian up, where he was ushered over to paranormal
paramedics. No doubt having your soul sucked out of you left you feeling a
little woozy.

One
by one, the judges raised their scorecards, which Prescott gleefully announced
to cheers and whoops. It was like they were judging a fucking ice-skating competition.

Tina
squealed at her high marks, and as her mentor, an equally gorgeous succubus,
stepped on stage, Tina hugged her with a big smile on her face. They stepped
off, her mentor patting her on the back and offering congratulations the whole
way, and Prescott took the stage again.

“Our
next candidate - Sally Sanders!”

All
the air left my lungs in a whoosh. I hadn’t expected to go so soon.

Hector
almost didn’t let go as I tried prying my hand free from his grasp. Taking a
deep breath and concentrating on not throwing up, I slowly made my way to the
stage. The applause only made me more sick at my stomach as I ascended the
steps. After my eyes adjusted to the brightness of the blue spotlight, I caught
Prescott grinning at me from below. His wicked expression said it all.

Hmph.
So he expected me to fail, did he? Well, this girl was about to prove him
wrong!

Which
was easier said than done when the potential love of my life was standing at
the back of the crowd, eyes burning with an intensity that left me breathless.

Heels
clicked on the other side of the stage, and I turned to see who my partner was.

For
the second time that night, I was struck speechless.

A
beautiful blonde woman wearing a sexy black lingerie set winked at me from
across the stage. My stomach flopped. While Hector and I had talked about it
because it was part of the job, I’d never considered I’d have to do it with a
woman. I’d never been attracted to a female, pretty as she was as she sauntered
toward me. I made myself walk toward her, prepping myself mentally to just get
this over with.

It
doesn’t mean anything. It’s part of your job. Remember, you can’t let Prescott
win. Hector’s job and your future is on the line.

My
nerves only became more wired as I tried encasing my heart with steel. I froze,
letting the girl come to me.

I
couldn’t do this. I couldn’t cheat on Hector.

He
was right. We should have run away when we had the chance. Maybe we could still
escape. Desperate, I started searching for exits. Maybe I could fake sudden
illness, postpone this long enough for Hector and I to escape.

“Done
it with a woman before?” the blonde asked coyly.

“Sure.
Plenty of times,” I said distractedly. “I’m a pro.”

She
smiled, but there was something off to it. Did her teeth look extra sharp?

In
the background, I was vaguely aware of Dean Prescott announcing our names as
the girl leaned in.

“Glad
to hear it. Because I’ve been waiting for this for a long time.”

I
tensed. What. The. Hell? That was distinctly a
man’s
voice who’d
whispered in my ear. And not just any man, but-

I
stepped back as the girl shape-shifted, her image shimmering and skin
stretching until her features were completely morphed, and a strikingly
handsome yet sinister-looking man stood before me in all his naked glory.

Damien
smiled at me. “Hello, love. Miss me?”

Chapter 16

MY
MIND SCRAMBLED TO form a solid plan for escaping, because I knew there was no
way in hell I could beat this guy. Preparing to shift, I felt my skin start to
tingle when a fireball flew right past my face, nearly slamming into Damien.

He
gracefully backflipped, twirling through the air as if he weighed no more than
a feather, and landed on his feet. He bowed to me. “Excuse me,” he said, then
turned to face a fuming Hector. “You insist on getting in my way, but one way
or another I will have her.”

“Over
my dead body,” Hector growled, then lunged himself at Damien.

All
hell broke loose.

Our
guards immediately moved into place, surrounding Hector and making to grab me.

Damien
clapped his hands, sending a shock wave throughout the room that catapulted me,
Hector, and anyone within a thirty foot radius through the air. Something hard
smacked me in the back of the head, followed by the sound of splitting wood as
the table gave way under my weight. Stunned, I lay there gathering my wits,
blinking to stave off the stars sparking along my vision. What I saw on the
stage made my jaw drop.

Smoke
poured from Damien’s fingers, writhing and screeching as shapes formed. I
watched in horror as several streams of darkness became demonic creatures with
red eyes and long, snapping jowls.

I
was so preoccupied with watching the spectacle before me that I didn’t register
Hector was at my side until he was pulling me to my feet. “We have to get out
of here. Now,” he growled, pulling me toward the exit.

I
couldn’t move. My legs had turned to lead. “What is he?”

“His
signature is still shifting too rapidly for me to tell for certain,” he said,
“but I’ve only ever seen demons possess this kind of power.”

My
eyes bugged. “Damien’s a
demon
?”

“Or
at least, half of one. Come on, move! We have to get out of here!”

People
screamed as shadow monsters filled the air, looking like a cross between a bat
and a pterodactyl. They teleported in and out of the darkness, appearing in
puffs of dark blue smoke, swooping down from the ceiling to claim victims as
they returned to eat their prey in the rafters.

Prescott
cowered in the corner, his eyes glued to the smiling figure on the stage.

“We
have to help them!” I shouted.

Hector
shook me hard. “There is nothing you can do. I’m not risking losing you.”

“But
all those people-”

“I’ve
called the D.P.I. They’ll be here any minute.”