In the Company of Witches (6 page)

Hearing the rush of wings, she lifted her arm so Cathair had a landing perch. As the male’s talons gripped her arm, he made his rasping sound, flapping his wings.

“Ow. Cut it out. Some familiar you are. You bugged out like a big, black chicken.”

“Bite me, bite me,”
he chirped at her.

“I’ll bite you. I’ll cook and chew you up in little pieces.” She let him move to his perch. It was where he typically slept, on the threshold between inside and outside. An additional protection for her, and his preferred roosting point.

“Did you find those ingredients I need for the moon ritual?”

He hopped from the perch to a permanent nest he’d built in one of her balcony chairs, ruining it, of course, and plucked out several long strands of foliage, along with two or three wilted florals. A couple dimes rolled out, a silver screw. “You really need to work on your addiction to shiny things,” she commented. Picking up the plants, she examined them with a critical eye, nodded. “Good finds. These will do perfectly.”

Despite her teasing, he’d performed as required, as he always did. There’d been no need for him during her interaction with Mikhael, and a good familiar knew when it was best to stay out of the way, let his witch have elbow room. But yanking his chain was one of her little rituals.

Actually, she enjoyed yanking anyone’s chain. Mikhael had reminded her of the dangers of that, there at the end. Still, she’d been perversely pleased at the faint flicker of irritation he’d shown when she thwarted his earlier plans.

He thought her too lenient with Isaac. Wrong assumptions could always be used to her advantage. When she’d rebounded that arc of power from Isaac, popped him with it like the snap of a single tail, she’d pulled a tendril of it into herself. Like Mikhael, she’d now know if the incubi left her property. Unlike him, she also had the organic energy of her house to aid her, so she’d get the news bulletin first. Probably not by a wide margin, but that extra minute or two might save Isaac’s life, if he was foolish enough to bolt.

She wasn’t worried about Mikhael trying to sneak off with him. There was nothing subtle about the Dark Guardian. If he changed his mind about their deal, he’d tell her straight out. Probably because he’d enjoy the fight.

When she glanced in her mirror, she realized she had a feline smile on her face. Yeah, part of her twisted makeup. Mikhael liked to yank chains, too. She thought of a length of chain in his hand, winding around her wrists, twisting over his fingers, a steel tether…

No restraints…except the ones I put on you myself.

She yanked herself away from that door. She didn’t discourage fantasies, because they were a much safer outlet than real life, but in this case, the craving was far too close to the surface, and dangerous. Someone who wanted to feed it was in the house.

Your true nature…

She needed a different kind of distraction. Pursing her lips, the smile returned. Time to yank someone else’s chain. Dialing Ruby’s cell, she glanced at the clock. One
A.M
. She shrugged. Time meant little unless client appointments were involved. Since Ruby traveled with Derek, there was no telling what time zone they were in tonight.

Plus, finding Ruby in bed didn’t mean any sleeping was happening, unless it was the postcoital kind, a woman sated and exhausted from a couple hours of sweaty pleasure. Derek was definitely a powerhouse in that area. Maybe because she’d turned Mikhael down, Raina felt an unwelcome twinge at the thought of her friend under Derek, his very substantial cock thrusting into her, catapulting her into climactic ecstasy.
Bitch.

“What do you want?” The bitch sounded querulous and sleepy, the kind of sleepy that came from being woken at one
A.M.
Apparently they
were
in the same time zone.

“It’s the middle of the night. You could answer with a note of concern.”

“Says Peter about the wolf. You always call me at freaking ungodly hours, and it’s always absolutely nothing important.”

“That’s a matter of opinion. But if you feel that way, why do you answer?”

“The wolf did eventually try to eat Peter.”

“I can handle any wolf on my own. I think you answer because you’re so entertained by what I call you about.”

“Yes, I get so bored helping a Light Guardian save the world every other day. Oh, and having mind-blowing sex on the off days.”

“Does Derek know you’re having mind-blowing sex on the off days? With who?”

Ruby’s chuckle made Raina smile. As the tense coil in her lower belly eased a little, she realized she hadn’t called to yank Ruby’s chain. She’d needed a friend. Mikhael had stirred up some hazardous terrain, whether she admitted it or not.

“All right, what is it, you shrew?”

“It’s nothing, really.” Raina examined her glossy bloodred nails. Gina had done the manicure, and Raina liked the pair of tiny black triangles projecting from each cuticle like vampire fangs. “I have your old boyfriend Mikhael staying here. Other than pussy, what does he like to eat for breakfast?”

A clatter as something was knocked over, followed by an impressively creative oath. Before Ruby could say anything else, Derek had the phone.

“You want to repeat that?”

“I don’t see the need. Just because you can hear what’s being said a mile away doesn’t mean you should eavesdrop.”

“We’ll be there in a few minutes.” Static was already crackling on the line, because Derek couldn’t use cell phones without his magic aura screwing with them. She’d lose him in a moment or two.

“No,” Raina said sharply. “You won’t. This doesn’t concern you, Derek. I’m handling it.”

“What exactly does he want?”

“That’s between him and me. If I have problems, I’ll call Ruby and let her know I need
her
help. Not yours.”

She could almost hear Derek grinding his teeth. Music to her ears.

“Raina…”

She sighed. He loved her best friend. It was damn annoying. It put a damper on the whole chain-yanking experience. “Honestly, there’s no need. I just wanted to pick on Ruby about it. Plus I wanted to give her—and you—a heads-up he’s in town, and let you know it has nothing to do with her.”

“I wouldn’t have worried about that. I trust Ruby.”

“I wouldn’t trust any woman with a pulse around him. I’ve seen him. If you get a lull in your save-the-world plans, this would be the perfect time to give her an early birthday gift. Every woman dreams of a threesome with two hot guys, and—”

Click.
Raina put the phone down with a saccharine smile. Ruby could thank her for that one later. Once a man’s testosterone got poked by that kind of stick, he’d have something to prove. Probably for another couple hours. Lucky bitch.

“
Every
woman dreams of a threesome?”

Holy Mother.
She managed, barely, not to spin around and take out the door with a blasting spell. He’d breached the protections on her floor, arrived with no warning at all.

While she locked down her reaction to that, it was hard not to react to his appearance. He’d changed clothes. Gone were the shirt and slacks, the polished shoes. He was barefoot, wearing a dark pair of jeans that rode low on his bare hips. He made the most of the look, leaning against the banister to the stairwell, arms crossed.

Gina, an avid reader, had once spent a whole week studying a medical text and teaching them all about male and female anatomy. Because of that, Raina knew the delicious diagonal lines of a man’s lower abdomen that pointed the way to his cock were actually ligaments, the inguinal ligaments. The set of those jeans revealed those ligaments, tapering down from impressive external obliques. Nothing covered his chest except the casually crossed arms, which of course emphasized the swell of biceps. Everything about him said virile, badass male. If he brought out the wings, she was a goner.

Oh, get a grip.
She was around sex all the time. She embraced its many forms, because she was a woman, a witch and a succubus, and all of those incarnations enjoyed earthy pleasures. But she had a line she couldn’t cross. It didn’t matter that he’d offered her the chance to step over it tonight, unleash her deepest level of sexual energy and have the chance that others did, to be swept away by her release.

Release, surrender…Hazardous, mesmerizing words.

She arched an indifferent brow. “You’re trespassing. I didn’t invite you here.”

He lifted a shoulder. “Trespassing rules? Coming from a woman who regularly flouts authority?”

“I don’t flout authority. I just politely ask it to stay the hell out of my business.”

His expression was dismissively Slavic. “So…you wouldn’t trust any woman with a pulse around me? You have a pulse.”

“Don’t let it go to your head. Either one of them.” She affected a bored look. “Mikhael, as often as you worked Ruby over, I know Dark Guardians have an insatiable libido. We can find you something to fuck, without you sniffing around my bed.”

His face closed down, which she found interesting. Ruby had made it clear that feelings weren’t involved in her volatile encounters with the Dark Guardian, at least not from his side, but Raina read something different in that reaction.

“You started this business by doing this kind of business, right?” he said curtly. “The hard-to-get routine rings a little false.”

Using a sharp tongue on an opponent brought consequences. From someone being casually cruel, who didn’t understand certain things about her, she would have dismissed it, treated him with stoic disdain. But he’d already gotten under her skin, gotten too close. Even so, she hadn’t expected the return cut to slice so deep. Like a cat, a succubus had a higher metabolism and body temperature, which meant she was always warm. Except now, when the coldness blasted through the cut he’d just made, an arctic freeze that affected her vital organs, swept over her skin, raising all the small hairs.

He straightened, hands dropping to his sides, his brow creasing. “Raina.”

She rose from the bed, drew herself up to her full five-two height, knowing that blue sparks were flickering off her skin. If he’d been human, she’d have reined them back, because they were toxic, but now she hoped a few jumped on him like lice and ate him alive.

“I told you you’re welcome to use the services of the others here for a reasonable rate. I’m not part of those services. If you’re a sick bastard who enjoys rape, you might have the ability to overpower me, but you’ll be fucking a corpse, because that’s the only way you’ll take me down.” She’d be damned before she admitted her voice cracked.

Mikhael’s reaction wasn’t to become more soothing or gentle. Not that she would have expected that from him. But she didn’t anticipate his barbed humor transforming into something that filled the room with deadly purpose, his voice the steady steel of an executioner’s ax.

“I’ve hunted those who’ve committed that crime. By the time I deliver them to Hell, they’re begging for the mercy of the fire.”

He backed up, began to descend the stairs. When he’d gone several steps, he stopped. It put his head below the level of the landing railing, the straight balusters like the boundary of a cell door.

“One kiss,” he said.

“Excuse me?” Still torn between the ice of her reaction and the heat of his reply, she had to clear her throat.

He locked gazes with her. “After one kiss, if you don’t want what I have to offer, then we leave it at that. But don’t tell me you’re not game enough to try the one kiss. You have the courage of a wounded badger.”

It was a backhanded compliment, but the unexpected image did pull her back from that intense edge, put her back on her feet. Somewhat. She arched a brow. “Daring me to kiss you? Do I look that gullible?”

“No. I think you want what I have to offer, Raina. But you’re a smart woman. You’re denying yourself, because you know it’s dangerous to want things too much. I’m telling you that I’m a safe port. No strings attached, just pleasure.”

Safe
was not an adjective she’d ever attach to Mikhael Roman, half-naked and slouching with sensual awareness against the wall of her staircase. “I suppose you’re offering this out of the goodness of your heart.”

“Hell, no,” he said mildly. “I’ll definitely get something out of it.” His attention slid over her lips, making her moisten them in reaction. It resulted in another flare in those dark eyes. They were feeding each other’s flames, and in short order the two desires would become one conflagration. Unless she did something to stop her slide down this slippery slope, a headlong plunge into the fire.

“If you’re overcome by my kiss, as I’ve been assured any woman with a pulse will”—he nodded at her phone—“I might get laid. As I said, I don’t do a lot of sleeping. Sex passes the time. Good sex passes a lot of time. That’s all it is, Raina. I’m not looking for more than that. I’m as curious as you are.”

“Have you ever been with a succubus?” She tried to sound offhand, though her heart rate was increasing like a schoolgirl’s. Not a usual occurrence for her…not ever.

“No, as a matter of fact.”

She gave him an exasperated look. “Then how do you know I
can’t
hurt you?”

“The same way I know certain things are too hot to touch. I just know.”

But some things were worth the burn. Her slide down this slope was increasing to an out-of-control sledding on her ass.

“Earlier tonight, I could have moved you out of my way,” he said. “I didn’t.”

“You knew I’d fight you. You only hurt a woman if you have no other choice…or if it gives her pleasure.”

She really shouldn’t have said that, because her voice had thickened over the syllables. His gaze narrowed, watching her manicured nails bite into her palms.

She’d told him she knew what his tastes were, because that was her job. Her succubus nature could ferret out the deepest sexual fantasies and passions a man had. But with experience alone, she’d evaluated plenty of men in her parlor, figuring out from stammering voices or cocky bravado, the subtle shifts of body, the flicker in the eyes, what they sought, what they really wanted. Mikhael had no cocky bravado, no stammer, and he controlled his body language, revealing only what he wanted revealed.