Wary, he told her, “Doesn’t matter. You are my decoder.” And lifemate. “Not my therapist.”
“Ohhh. Now there’s a fantasy to add to my list.” Once again, she batted her lashes. “Sex therapist and patient. I just have to pick the right partner.”
The calculated gleam...those batting lashes... He understood now. She wanted to irritate him. This was, indeed, part of his punishment.
Her mistake.
In the land of sexual torment, he was king. My turf, my rules. “In this scenario, what do I do?” he asked, using his huskiest tone. “Do I watch or take notes?”
She gulped, goose bumps spreading over her arms. “Take notes? As if! You don’t do any—”
“You’re right,” he interjected. “How can I take notes when my face is buried between your legs?”
At first, she blinked at him. Then she dropped her jaw. Then she laughed outright, awakening something hot, dark and possessive inside him. He barely refrained from grabbing her and hauling her fine ass into his chair.
Unaware of the insatiable beast she provoked, she clutched the photos to her chest and said, “I know you’re ready for me to leave. And I will. Just as soon as you tell me three facts about you. And don’t refuse. For all you know, I’m deciding whether or not to bail on you and mount an escape.”
He admired her spirit. “You think you have a choice?”
“You think you can force me?”
Nix that. He lamented her spirit. “Very well. Three facts in exchange for zero escape attempts. One—”
“You’re a bad kisser. I know. I meant, tell me things I haven’t yet learned.”
Stilling punishing me. Noted. “I’m not a bad kisser, damn it.” He pinched the bridge of his nose and prayed for patience. His phone buzzed, signaling a text had come in. In desperate need of a reprieve, he hurriedly reached for the device.
“Is that your dad? I bet it’s your dad. Do you think I’m the kind of girl he’s always dreamed of for his precious little boy? Are you going to tell him you’re falling in lust with me, a paranoid unicorn who has the paranormal version of a multiple personality disorder? If I were you, I maybe wouldn’t lead with that. We want him to be super excited when you bring me home to show me off.”
William ground his teeth. “Fact one. I did not receive a text from my father, my friend.” He read the screen.
Lucien, Anya’s Boy Toy: Code red. The Sent Ones want Fox dead. Granted, they have reason. She killed 10 innocent Warriors. (Galen is on a rampage about it, making HIMSELF a target for elimination.) Anything you can do to help?
Galen was a Lord, just like Lucien, only Galen carried two demons. Jealousy and False Hope. Fox, Galen’s right-hand woman, hailed from a species known as Gatekeepers, able to portal anywhere, anytime. On top of that, she carried the demon of Distrust. Both were allies. Hades hoped to exploit them both, Fox especially. But first, William would have to save her life, it seemed.
Besides, an ally was an ally, and Sent Ones needed a reminder of that. Mess with William’s people, and suffer.
He texted back: I’ll take care of it.
Then he texted Zacharel, the only Sent One he dealt with. One of their most powerful.
“Who’s Lucien?” Sunny asked. “Who’s Anya, Fox, Galen and Zacharel?”
“Doesn’t matter.” He stifled a spark of anger—at himself. Because he wanted to tell her, wanted her advice. “How did you read the screen? Unicorn magic?”
“Maybe. Or maybe the mirror behind you.”
Well. He set his phone aside. Where was I? Oh, yes. Facts about himself. “Two, I survived torture and imprisonment more times than you can count. And three, I kill everyone who betrays me, always, without exception. I value loyalty far more than pleasure.”
She half smiled at him. “Wily prince. You used your facts to warn me.”
Perceptive female. And now he absolutely needed to make that game plan. He reached out to jab the call button on the landline, only to discover Pandora had been listening the entire time. He pinched the bride of his nose. Sisters sucked. “Panties—yes, that’s your new nickname. Deal with it. Do me a solid and escort Sunny to her new quarters. When you get there, she’s going to write a list of supplies.” He tossed the unicorn a notebook and pen. “Buy her whatever she wants.”
“Without complaint,” Sunny piped up.
“Without complaint,” he added, wanting to smile. No, frown. Definitely frown.
“And where will she be staying, hmm?” Pandora asked, her voice spilling from the speaker.
Where else? “The stable.”
10
“For me, there’s a time and place for lust. Always, and everywhere.”
Sunny prowled through her new home, breathing in the musty, dusty scent of a forgotten space. Bigger than the bunkroom, with an open floor plan, it had a tiered ceiling, three windows and a row of stalls, all empty. In back were the living quarters, complete with a bedroom, bathroom, laundry and kitchenette. Unless she counted dust bunnies, no animals lived here.
She had some cleaning to do, though. And traps to make. She’d set them around the perimeter, ensuring no one entered without permission. But... I think I’ll like it here. For so long, too long, she’d been on the run, moving from one run-down motel to another. Now she could roost.
Pandora stood in a portal, a vision of strength and beauty with her angular features, bedroom eyes and toned body. Her arsenal of weapons only added to her appeal. Two short swords were strapped to her back, and two semiautomatics were holstered to her waist. She had a dagger anchored to each thigh, and also stuffed into the sides of her combat boots.
To steal one or not to steal one?
Nah. There was no need. Sunny wore the world’s best weapon around her neck. The medallion.
“Just so you know,” Pandora said, “William is my family now. Something I lacked for a very long time. If you harm him, I’ll harm you back, only worse.”
Oh, to have someone so loyal in her corner. Envy bloomed. “William survived a magic death-bullet to the face. I assure you, he can take whatever I dish.” But what would it take to actually kill him? Best she find out ASAP. Not because she wanted to kill him. She didn’t. Not at this moment. But because he was a prince of darkness who might turn on her. She needed to be ready.
Sunny placed the notebook, pen and stack of photos at the edge of the bed, then stuffed the cell phone in her pocket. She would so not be surprised if William had preloaded a couple dickpix in the camera roll.
Would he use your instead of you’re when—if—he texted? Or maybe their instead of there? Dude. He did, and she would take sex off the table because priorities!
Sex...with William... From adamantly opposed, to eagerly for? Well, earlier she’d thought to tease him with a kiss—and ended up teasing herself. Pleasure had burned hot, torching her trust issues. For a moment.
A moment she would forever replay.
Then he’d done his robot thing, ruining it. Still, she wanted to kiss him again, wanted to bask in the softness of his lips, the decadence of his taste and the undeniable strength in his every touch. Afterward, she wanted to talk with him. The man might be coarse and crude, but his sense of humor was unparalleled. And...and...she wanted everything and nothing, solitude and companionship.
“You think physical survival is all that matters?” Pandora tsk-tsked. “That’s sad.”
Yeah. It kinda was. Her shoulders rolled in. But, in her defense, William’s mental and emotional health shouldn’t matter to her. Captor/prisoner, remember?
So why can’t I forget the sadness I glimpsed in his eyes?
“I heard your conversation with him,” Pandora admitted. “I know what you are, and I’m impressed. Just don’t go thinking you’re special to William. He’ll never settle down.”
“Whoa. Who says I want to settle down?” Me! Me!
I do! While a prince of the underworld would never be boyfriend material for Sunny, he might be great...boy-toy material?
She no longer believed William had aided Lucifer in the destruction of her village. And the way he looked at her...
As if they were already in bed, naked, their limbs intertwined. Her pulse spiked, her thoughts growing muddled.
Pandora sighed. “I know that look. You’ve just sprung yourself a lady boner.”
I have, haven’t I?
“Come on,” the other woman said, waving her over. “Forget William, and give me your list.”
Forget William? I don’t think I can.
Sunny returned to the bed and drafted the shopping list, adding everything she’d mentioned to William, plus clothes with sizes, comfortable lingerie—no thongs!—toiletries, games and a few other necessities. Lastly, she added a no-exceptions must-have: everything she’d left in the hotel room, including her book. The one with her lists.