I threw on a baggy, long sleeve shirt the color of blood over my black lace underwear, then settled into bed for the night. I made my usual cup of tea in the tiny kitchen and grabbed my book I didn’t get to finish reading, ready to just relax the rest of the night.

The day had been slow and would probably be tomorrow, but I was still on edge after Milo’s touch. We’d been around each other so many times over the years, yet never once had I felt that spark lighting my skin on fire like I had today. Not since that first night with Orrin. What the hell did that mean? Sure, I thought the guy was sexy as all get out, but I knew we weren’t compatible. I wasn’t even sure he felt that way about me. I’d ask Turk what he thought, but then I’d never hear the end of it. I so wasn’t about to call my mother. Goddess knows, that women would only begin lecturing me on the importance of following base desires like she did. I didn’t know how she managed to have a harem at her beck and call at all hours. While the thought of so many gorgeous men worshipping me and giving into my every need sounded appealing, I wasn’t sure that was something that’d work with me.

I was a natural introvert. I preferred my space and kept my social circle small. Besides Turk and the occasional visit from Milo for my nefarious deeds, I really didn’t talk to anyone else. I had the occasional conversation with repeat customers. Then there was Rose, another witch who runs a botany shop down the street. Our relationship bordered on frenemy, though. We both pretty much could only handle small doses of each other. She was girly, outgoing, and extremely competitive, while I was her opposite in every way. I actually think she coined the term ‘Bitchcraft’ when referring to me in the witching community. Though, the jury was still out on the truth behind that rumor. Not to mention, she belonged to a coven. If there was one thing my mother and I had in common, it was the desire to never be in one. The leaders of the covens would claim it was all about family, coming together to practice their magic and giving a helping hand to each other. We knew better. It was all about power. Mother had plenty of it, and I was still figuring out how to even get to mine. I didn’t need a bunch of other witches and warlocks sticking their nose into my business.

Nope. I was perfectly fine as a lone witch. As I flipped through my book, I smiled down at Toast as I scratched between his ears and listened to his purring. He wasn’t so bad when he chilled the Hecate out and just took my affection. This was all I needed.

Just as I was beginning to relax, a familiar wave of magic wash over me. I was immediately alert and cast my book to the side. It was the only warning I got before a certain Incubus popped into my room in a flash of red light and black smoke. Toast immediately jumped up with a screech and ran from the room. Well, tried to. He hit a wall on the way out, before diverting himself into the hallway. Poor Toast.

When Orrin and I made that deal together, we agreed upon us having a warning system before he either popped in or I began summoning him. He would send out a wave of his power, or I’d send out what little wave I could. We both knew what it meant and were always in tune when it happened.

He swatted away at the smoke and gave me a Cheshire grin that almost had my panties melting. He always had that effect on my body. I wasn’t sure if it was because he was so fucking good looking, or if it was just the pheromones his body gave off. That was a happy little gift given to Incubus demons.

“Hello, little witch.” The deep, baritone of his voice was husky with need the moment his silver eyes dragged across my pale, exposed legs. His tongue flicked out, wetting his full lips. He waved his hand at the door, closing it, and locking it. I shivered with anticipation.

Orrin was sex in a suit tonight. That was the easiest way to explain it. I loved when he wore suits.

His long raven hair fell just above his shoulders and was pushed back out of his face. His slightly pointed, fae ears were gauged large enough that he could fit a cigarette through the black, tunneled gauges in his lobes. Tattoos crawled up his neck from beneath the light grey, button-up and charcoal colored suit jacket. His skin smelled of fire, cinnamon, and warm sugar on a daily basis. From what he’d told me, his scent changed to whatever his sexual partner liked most. I apparently liked the smell of cinnamon rolls. Go figure. It totally made me understand a little more why I always had the desire to lick him. You know, besides the fact his delicious, slender body was built like a rock and covered in ink beneath his clothes. His eyes were a stark contrast to the dark features of his brows and the clean, cut beard that was ever present on his face.

It took me a moment to find my voice. Sometimes, the sudden blast of pheromones his body gave off, fogged my brain and took a moment to shake. “To what do I owe the pleasure?” I asked him, my voice a bit breathier than I intended. Could you blame me? I dared any girl not to quiver with desire the moment they set their eyes on him.

His perfect, white teeth appeared, grinning at the way I responded to him. The light of my bed side lamp reflected off the silver stud pierced through the bottom of his bite worthy lip. He slowly swaggered over; his movements as fluid and light as the smoke he appeared in. My chest heaved slightly as he sat on the edge of my bed and laid his hand on the other side of me, holding his weight up and locking me into my position on the bed. I knew those hands intimately. The words ‘LOVE HARD’ tattooed across them were impossible to ignore anytime his fingers were splayed across my naked flesh. Heat traveled the length of my leg when his forearm caressed ever so softly against my skin.

“Pleasure is your answer, little witch. Are you free tonight for me, or is this book,” he gently extracted my book from my hand and looked it over, before tossing it onto the floor. “-more interesting than I am.”

The way his brow arched ever so slightly up, countered with the slight movement of his mouth as he slid his tongue along his teeth, had me mentally begging for him to touch me.

I responded to him by lifting my right leg and running my knee slowly up and down his arm, reveling in the heat it gave off. His eyes tracked the movement for a breath of a second, before he descended. I’d barely seen him move. One minute he was angled over me, the next he straddled my hips.

“I do love how you never have to use your words to answer my questions,” he rasped; his words laced with desire. His words weren’t necessarily needed. I could feel his desire quite perfectly through his slacks. He leaned over and rested his hands on the metal bars of my bed frame, bringing his mouth down to skim along the side of my neck, then resting them against my ear. “But let’s see if I can make you scream for me,” he whispered seductively, sending a shrill of fire through my body.

He sat upright and pointed both index fingers up, then made a swirling motion. Black smoke-like tendrils appeared out of nowhere and slithered through the air towards me. I’d seen this magic of his before and knew not to fear it.

The tendrils floated around, edging closer and closer, until they snapped out and wrapped across my wrists that rested by my sides. Unlike the warmth that radiated from Orrin, these felt cool against my skin.

He continued moving his hands, directing the tendrils to bring my arms above my head. Quicker than a snake, the tendrils crashed together, binding my wrists tight. Slow and steady, they brought my wrists back down to the metal frame and tightened there, making sure I couldn’t move them.

I tested them, but they didn’t give. A knowing smile stretched across my lips. Orrin mirrored the smile and slowly began sliding his hands across my stomach, gliding his palms along my skin as he sent out pulses of power. Power that traveled throughout me in bursts and sent pleasurable tingles to the most sensitive areas. I moaned as my core began to throb, but forced myself to keep my eyes open, watching his satisfied grin.

While distracted by the pulses, I didn’t notice until it was too late. He raised his hand and revealed a blade made of the same smoke-like substance as the tendrils binding my wrists. While most women would certainly start freaking out as to what he may do to them with that blade, I simply glared at him.

“Don’t you dare, Orrin,” I growled out, fighting through the pleasurable pulses he was still sending through his other hand.

Of course, he ignored me and sliced through my sweater. Apparently, it was too fucking normal to just undress me like any other person would. No, he had to ruin my favorite clothes. I should’ve said something before, but I was too excited to see where the tendrils would go tonight after what he did last time.

“Orrin! You ass! I loved that sweater!” I shouted at him angrily.

He simply shrugged and swiped his hand to dissipate the blade, then slammed both hands down onto me, rocking my body with a far more superior pulse of bliss. My back arched, and my eyes slammed shut as I cried out. Fuck that feels so good!

His time of slow torture seemed to be at an end. He whipped off the silky, cobalt tie from his neck and laid it over my eyes, tying it tightly to prevent me seeing. I felt him climb from me and heard the tell-tale signs of him undressing. A swish of fabric. Shoes being kicked. Buttons snapping. A zipper sliding down.

Heat pooled between my legs at the anticipation. I both loved and hated when he did this to me. But by the Goddess, he was meant to be a demon of sexual pleasures.

The bed dipped, and I felt him slide between my legs. His hands grabbed the edges of my lace panties and slid them hastily from my legs. He grasped my ankles and yanked me down, hard enough to surprise me, but not hard enough to hurt. His muscular shoulders slid beneath my thighs just before I felt his heated breath blow across my core. He drew in a deep breath.

“You are by far my all-time favorite snack, little witch. None have ever smelled as tantalizingly sweet as you,” he breathed out huskily, making me squirm with anticipation of how close his mouth was to where I wanted it. Needed it.

He didn’t keep me waiting. He dove in and devoured me. My hips bucked with the sudden onslaught of his powerful tongue. I didn’t know how, but he managed to fire off smaller pulses through his tongue to me, amping up the pleasure tenfold.

“Orrin!” I cried out his name, lust heavy on my tongue.

His hands kneaded along my legs and hips, pulling me harder into him as he bit and sucked at my sensitive folds. My body was erupting with electricity. My blood rushed through my veins. Sweat coated my chest as I shook with wave upon wave of ecstasy.

He wasted no time lifting his head from between my legs and crawling up my body, leaving a trail of burning kisses along my skin as he went. I felt the hard planes of his sculpted body sliding against me, wishing he’d let me see him. Thankfully, I’d seen him naked so many times, I could pretty much imagine it anyway.

His mouth crashed down onto mine at the same moment he entered me, swallowing my deep moan.

“I told you I’d have you screaming,” he said with a smile against my lips, then lifted himself and thrusted hard into me. One hand held his weight while the other grasped the back of my knee, lifting it to his side and pulling me harder into him.

“This doesn’t make up for my sweater,” I gasped out as he hammered into me faster and harder. “But fuck don’t you dare stop!” I was immediately hit with the wave of my climax. I pulled hard at the tendril shackles at my wrists, riding the euphoria of what Orrin had done to me.

He kissed me again, ignoring my comment completely, and pushed into me slower and deeper, not yet satisfied at just giving me one amazing orgasm. His tongue tasted both of me and that smoky sweetness that was entirely him. The cool metal of the bar through his tongue clicked against my teeth. Our mouths warred against each other in rhythm to his thrusts. I bit his lip when I felt the second wave coming on; his hand gripped my hip almost painfully.

Together, we groaned out to the Goddess in our mutual release, crashing into oblivion together.

He collapsed on top of me, giving a slight wave of his hand to release me of my bindings. I let my arms drop uselessly to the side as our breathing heaved in tandem.

My body shook with the aftershocks, but I noticed something odd. I wasn’t nearly as tired as I should’ve been. This isn’t right. I should be barely able to keep my eyes open. I ripped his tie from eyes and stared down at him. His head was pressed against my chest, and his arms were wrapped around my torso. His warm body was relaxed, and a sigh of contentment escaped his lips

Is he fucking cuddling me?

“Orrin. Why am I not as tired as usual?” I asked him breathily, my tone warning him.

Without answering, he slid off my body and raised himself up to a sitting position, turning his legs to hang off the bed. He refused to give me eye contact and just ran a hand through his long hair, then grabbed his pants from the floor, slipping them up his legs.

“Orrin. Hello. Answer me,” I grated out.

He stopped what he was doing and finally turned his eyes to me. What I saw wasn’t the usual wicked, confident grin. Instead, his expression was one I hadn’t seen on him before. Vulnerability. I didn’t like it.

“I didn’t feed from you,” he stated nonchalantly. There was no guilt in his tone. No cockiness. No confusion. He meant to not feed on me and wasn’t the least bit sorry he didn’t.

“Why the fuck not?” I asked, completely confused about this turn of events. He’d never not fed from the sex we’ve had. While this felt like every time between us, I knew the moment I saw his expression that it meant something different to him this time.

He averted his eyes and shook his head, before angrily standing as he finished dressing himself. I watched him, stunned, as he buckled his slacks, then slipped his arms through his pristine grey shirt. He didn’t button it though, leaving his inked torso on complete display as he rounded on me and growled.

“Shit, Christi. I can’t keep doing this anymore!” His tone was angry, but I sensed a waiver of sadness beneath it.

I wanted him to just smile and tell me this was a joke. But by him using my name instead of his ‘little witch’ endearment, I knew he was being absolutely serious. This wasn’t a joke at all.

Suddenly feeling vulnerable myself, which I fucking hated, I grabbed the sides of my torn sweater and wrapped them around my bare chest, curling my legs to hide the rest of my nudity. “What do you mean? Clearly, it’s not the sex you’re talking about, since you were just all over me. So, I’m gonna need you to clarify.”

His body was tense, and his jaw clenched. He watched me, seeming to be gathering his thoughts. I waited as my confusion ramped up in epic proportions. Now he suddenly decides to stop talking? Orrin loves talking!

Finally, he sighed. “I want more than this.”

“This?” I asked, arching my brow. Then my face fell flat. “Do you mean anal?” I tried to hide my worry behind humor. Like always. “Because we discussed that. It’s not happening. Not now, not—”

“Christi!” He interrupted, his hands lifted in a ‘what the hell’ gesture. His usual composure had all but left the building now. He shook his head and ran a hand down his face. “Fuck! Do you ever take anything seriously?”

I kept my mouth shut. I’d say my mother always told me not to lie, but that’d be a lie. She’d always said “Christi, if you can’t think up a good enough lie, then just shut up.” I wasn’t one to really take her advice normally, but this specific set of advice seemed like gold right now.

He leered at me, frustration evident in the crease between his brows. “I’m trying to tell you that I can’t be just a roll in the sheets for you anymore. The deal we made was fun in the beginning, and fuck knows being buried between your legs and feeding from you is as close to heaven as a demon like me could ever get. But it’s not enough for me anymore.”

I felt my throat tighten and blood rushed to my head as my panic finally shined through. I leapt from the bed and stood to face him. “No. No, no, no! You promised me this would always remain a mutualistic relationship. You scratch my back, I scratch yours. That was it. I never agreed to feelings!”

I felt like my head would explode any minute. I couldn’t tell if I was angry or just freaking out. I didn’t do relationships for a reason. I didn’t want them. I liked my mostly solitary life and depending on only myself. I’d spent too much of my life watching my mother go through men rapidly after my father abandoned her. I couldn’t depend on anyone but me or I’d risk turning into her. The reason I’d stayed with Orrin this long, was because we worked well the way we were. I thought I’d never have to worry about all this feeling shit. Sure, I cared about him. But more in a I didn’t want him to get hurt or die kind of way. This…this way out of my realm of comfortable. I did my best to hide the hurt of what I was about to do. I didn’t want him to see this affected me far more than I wanted it to.

“I know,” he ran his hand through his hair again, chewing his lip ring between his teeth, before sighing sadly. “I know what the deal was and I’m sorry. I may be a demon that feeds on sex, but, little witch, I’m not heartless. I have feelings and those feelings are for you.” He waved his hands between us. “I feel things when I’m with you that are so strong and palpable, I can’t think of anything else when I’m away from you. I can’t change that, and I don’t want to.”

He went to touch me, but I recoiled. Hurt flashed across his face and he drew his hand back. I couldn’t do this. It was too much. This was it. I couldn’t let him feel more when I couldn’t offer him what he wanted. I cared enough about him to end this now, before it became too much more for either of us. But it had already become more for him.

“You need to go.” My words were thick and heavy. I didn’t want to hurt him, but I had to. Even in his wicked ways, Orrin deserved better. Better than me. With my commitment and abandonment issues, I was in no way good enough for him.

He stood there for a moment, his lips tight and silver eyes searching, hoping that I’d take it back. But I could only stare ahead with my arms crossed, waiting for him to make a choice.

He snagged his tie and suit jacket up, then kissed my cheek. “One day, little witch, you’ll see,” he said gently, his breath hot on my cheek. “You’ll figure out that it’s not your mind that controls your magic; it’s your heart. I hope you find me when you do.”

Then he was gone in a flash of red light and black smoke, his sweet and smoky scent lingering in the air and on my clothes.

A stabbing sensation struck my chest when he’d said those words. What did they mean? I wasn’t heartless, and he knew that, even with the sting of my rejection that was rushing through him. What did my heart have to do with this? I understood witches used emotions to rule their magic, but it wasn’t like I hadn’t tried that before.

Fuck. This was so not how I thought tonight was going to go.