Omens (Dark in You 6)

He never would have thought he could be so drawn to someone like her. But she fascinated him. Beckoned him. Made him laugh when little else did anymore.

“You gonna glare at Khloé all night?” asked Levi, his voice laced with amusement.

“I’m not glaring at her, I’m watching her … because it’s only a matter of time before she does something stupid, and then I’ll have to wade in.”

“What’s wrong with her having a good time?”

“Nothing, if she didn’t always do crazy shit when smashed. The last time I gave her drunken ass a ride home, she wanted to go skinny dipping. I said no. Then she wanted to go to church. I said no. Then she wanted to break into the zoo to ‘see some fucking penguins.’ Again, I said no. What else would I say?”

Tanner chuckled. “In case you’ve forgotten, she’s an imp. They specialize in irritating people. But I don’t think you’d get half so frustrated with Khloé if you weren’t fighting how much you want her. All that pent-up sexual need must be messing with your head.”

It was messing with everything—his concentration, his dreams, his resolve to not give into it. Still, he said, “I don’t get involved with women who mean something to the people in my life—you know that. Khloé is the cousin of one of my Primes. It’s not wise to shit where you eat.” Which was why Keenan also never got involved with women from his lair.

“You think we can’t sense how close you are to breaking that rule for her?” asked Tanner. “What’s holding you back? Does your demon dislike her?”

Keenan snorted inwardly. The dark entity within him was cold to the bone and had time for very few people, but it wanted to outright own Khloé Wallis. It wanted to collect this bold, vibrant creature—there was simply no one like her. Who didn’t like to collect the unusual?

“My demon likes her just fine,” said Keenan.

“If you’re worried that things might be awkward between you afterward, there’s no need,” Knox cut in. “As my mate says, Khloé doesn’t do ‘awkward.’ And she’s not likely to want more than sex. She doesn’t seem to be looking for a relationship any more than you are. In fact, she seems to quickly tire of any guy she dates.”

Yeah, Keenan had noticed that. He couldn’t deny that it pleased him. He could be a selfish, possessive fucker when it came to her.

“Seriously, what’s really holding you back?” pushed Tanner.

Keenan rubbed a hand over his jaw. “You know what powers I have as an incubus, right?”

The hellhound nodded. “You can infuse lust into people, implant thoughts and images into their minds, and incite sexual desires that only you can satisfy. You’re in total control of their lust and pleasure, which means you can heighten and prolong orgasms while feeding on their sexual energy.”

“Right,” said Keenan. “I’m also in complete control of my own lust and arousal, so I don’t get hard unless I want to … or, at least, I didn’t until she came along.”

Tanner’s brows shot up, and Levi let out a low whistle.

“You’re saying you can’t control how your body reacts to her?” asked Knox.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.” Keenan had heard of such a thing happening to other incubi, but it was a rare phenomenon—one he hadn’t thought he’d experience. “It’s like she’s living, breathing Viagra to me.”

Not once in all Keenan’s centuries of existence had he ever felt so … aware of another person. Whenever Khloé’s attention settled over him, it was like an electric shock to his senses. The sexual chemistry that pulsed between them was as dizzying as it was intoxicating, and it never failed to make his dick jerk to life.

“Surely it’s refreshing to naturally experience a normal bodily reaction,” said Levi.

Yes, it was, but … “I don’t trust it. Not even a little bit.”

“And you don’t like that she makes your infamous self-discipline go right out the window,” Knox guessed.

“No, I don’t,” Keenan admitted. He liked to be in control of his world. Liked consistency, certainty, and predictability—things he’d lacked as a young child when he’d lived on the streets with his mother; things he’d continued to lack during the years he’d spent in Ramsbrook House.

On leaving the shithole, he’d sworn that no one would have that level of control over him again. He obeyed his Primes, but he didn’t follow them blindly. He was very much his own man. But Khloé … yeah, she had power over him.

It felt alien. Wrong. Uncomfortable. It felt as if she’d turned his own body against him; as if she’d stripped aspects of his gift from him. “At first, I thought she was doing it on purpose. I thought she had an ability that allowed her to overpower mine. But it’s clear that she has no idea she’s doing … whatever it is she’s doing.”