“Get Paris to the house. Now!” I barked into the phone before throwing it against the curb in frustration, shattering it.

I had awoken to a world of pain, but nothing prepared me for the acute agony that took hold when I saw Lilah lying beside me, blood pooling from her wounded arm. It was more than an ordinary injury. As an immortal, the bleeding should have stopped within a matter of seconds, with regeneration beginning soon thereafter. But the black blood mixing with Lilah’s had stopped the healing process. One look and I knew that the creature lying in wait for us must have been a fury.

Its poisonous fangs and claws could bring down even a powerful immortal like me, which was likely why it had been chosen as my assassin. And now Lilah had been caught up in my web, slowly being crushed on the wheel right along with me. She must have fought the fury off. If she hadn’t, I’d be dead.

When I’d realized the nature of her injury, I’d phoned Bartholomew and called on a favor from Paris, though my vision went red from the very thought of what was about to happen. I gathered her up in my arms and began walking toward my arrondissement, ignoring the pain that fired through my body.

It seemed like hours before Bartholomew finally arrived in his Mercedes to pick us up, though it was mere minutes.

“Did you get Paris?” I lay Lilah in the backseat, cradling her head in my lap. She was fading fast, the color already drained from her fair cheeks.

“Yes, master. He will be meeting us at the house.” Bartholomew shot Lilah a worried glance before hurrying back to the driver’s seat.

“Quickly, Bartholomew!”

Bartholomew didn’t disappoint, cutting through the minimal traffic and making it home swiftly. He pulled into the courtyard, and I jumped out of the backseat, hugging Lilah to me as I raced up the stairs. Paris was standing in the foyer, appearing as if he’d come straight from some glitzy club—his blond hair gelled back into an immaculate coif and his Armani suit fitted to his imposing frame. He seemed about to make a flippant remark, but when his eyes lighted on Lilah, his look changed to one of desire, his fangs lengthening. It made me want to punch him until there was nothing left of his face, but I needed him. Needed a vampire to save her.

“What’s the deal?” Paris took a step closer to Lilah. I teetered on the brink of flying into a rage. The incubus within had been quiet while I had been holding her. Now it seemed like it wanted to pummel Paris just as much as I did. As if it were protective? Impossible.

I didn’t have time to reflect on my twisted inner workings. “I need you to drink her.” The words burned through me as I positioned Lilah on the fainting couch in the sitting room.

“My pleasure.” Paris flicked his tongue over the tips of his fangs.

My hand was around his throat in an instant. “If you kill her, there will be hell to pay. Understand?” My eyes had changed to ember, but I wanted the power of the incubus behind my words, needed the threat to reach home in Paris’s heart.

“Let up. Jeez. I won’t kill her.” Paris avoided the incubus’s gaze. “But this means we’re square, right?”

I didn’t hesitate. “If you save her, your debt to me is paid.” I hated losing a favor of this magnitude—Paris was extremely valuable to have under my thumb—but I would have paid the price twice over to save Lilah’s life.

“What happened to her?” Paris eased down beside her. As he reached out to position her neck, I growled low in my throat. Mine.

“Fury venom.” Bartholomew twisted the signet ring round and round on his finger.

“But that could kill me.” One of Paris’s hands strayed to Lilah’s midnight locks.

“You will do this or you will be at my beck and call for the rest of your life.” I could barely contain the urge to rip Paris in half for touching Lilah.

“You won’t die from it. You’re too old.” Apollo had appeared behind me. “Just get on with it. Roth’s got it bad for that little filly.”

“I can see why.” Paris let his gaze rake over her body. Before I could snap his neck, Paris had struck at Lilah’s throat, quick as a snake.

She let out a whimper, her eyes still closed. Paris moaned against her flesh, sucking her with relish. I flexed my fists and once again moved to take the vampire’s head off, but Apollo put a strong hand on my shoulder. “Let him do this. If he doesn’t, she’ll die.”

I stayed in place, though the incubus railed against my inaction, trying to claw its way to the surface. I’d never felt this type of possessiveness from the incubus before. Never known it to want one woman in particular. The demon’s need to protect Lilah mirrored my own. Could I dare hope the incubus would be satisfied with Lilah, and Lilah alone?

When Paris finally pulled away, licking his lips with satisfaction, I pushed him back and sank down beside her, holding her limp hand.

“Did you get it all out?” I inspected the small puncture wounds on Lilah’s alabaster throat. Paris had done no more damage than he had to, for which I was grudgingly grateful.

“Yeah, I don’t feel so hot. But her blood. Man…” He ran a hand over his mouth as his gaze once again took in Lilah’s reclining form.

“One more word and it’ll be your last,” I growled. And I meant it.

“Come on, lover boy. Let’s go see if we can pick up some eurotrash chicks who’ll do anything for an American.” Apollo affected a Yankee accent. He clapped Paris on the back and led him from the room.

I paid them no more attention, my whole being focused on Lilah. She was still out, but the pink bloom was steadily returning to her cheeks. I breathed a sigh of relief, not realizing how on edge I’d been until now. The thought of Lilah dying had been a shock to my system, one I wouldn’t soon forget.

I lifted her from the couch with ease and took her to my bedroom. There was no way I was letting her out of my sight until she could stand on her own two feet again.

“Anne,” I called down the hall.

As I smoothed her hair, Anne and Corinne appeared in the nymph’s doorway. “What happened to her?” Anne asked, approaching and inspecting the bloodied wound on Lilah’s arm.

“Fury attack. She’ll live. I need you to help me bathe her.”

“I can take care of that. It would be my pleasure,” Corinne purred from the doorway.

“No,” I didn’t care how cross I sounded. “I need someone to take care of her, not prey on her.”

“Suit yourself.” Corinne smirked before retreating to her room.

“Anne, I need you to help me as much as you can. Let’s strip her and get her in the bath. We need to wash the wound and make sure all the venom is out.”

“Okay.” She began unbuttoning Lilah’s pants. Ordinarily, I would have been especially pleased to have Lilah in my bed, about to get naked. But all I could think about was the wound she’d endured for me.

“Be as gentle as possible. I’ll get the bath running.” I felt a modicum of trust in Anne. She was a gentle nymph who’d only recently reached her immortality. She hadn’t lived long enough to be embittered by fate, unlike Corinne.

I ran a warm bath for Lilah and undressed, showering off before returning to the bedroom for her. I didn’t realize how badly I’d been wounded in the accident until I saw so much of my blood disappearing down the drain. If Lilah hadn’t been there, hadn’t saved me, the fury would have killed me as easily as crushing a bug. That’s what came of me ignoring the incubus’s needs and refusing to take Anne or Corinne on the night I brought Lilah home. I was weaker than I should have been.

“Shall I leave you now?” A surprising timidity colored the tones of Anne’s voice.

“No, I want you here in case she wakes, so she’ll know I wasn’t trying anything.”

Anne followed me into the bathroom and took a seat on a bench near the door. I sank down into the warm water, settling Lilah between my knees, her back to my chest. I couldn’t ignore the beautiful curves of her body, her supple breasts that would be just more than a handful, and the enticing curls at the juncture of her thighs. But I controlled myself, keeping Lilah away from my thickening shaft. She needed me to be a gentleman, and that’s exactly what I was going to be, even if it killed me.

I poured water over her silky hair, lathering it up and rinsing until the shampoo was gone. Then I soaped up a loofah and set to work on her body, carefully washing the now-closing wound on her arm before wiping the remnants of blood away from her ears.

Anne watched with wonder as I cleaned Lilah. “I’ve never seen you like this.”

“You’ve seen me naked in the tub plenty of times,” I deflected, knowing full well that’s not what she meant.

“No. You’re naked in the tub with a beautiful woman and you haven’t gone incubus. He’s in there, but he’s working with you instead of against you.”

“She’s clean,” I said gruffly. I didn’t know what it meant either and didn’t feel like discussing it. “Grab a towel. I’ll lift her and you’ll dry her.”

She dropped the conversation and did as I’d said, drying Lilah off and wrapping a towel around her hair. I carried her to my bed, snugging her between my sheets before drying and dressing myself. Thankfully, my erection had gone down enough so I could tuck it into the waistband of my pajama bottoms.

I dropped a quick kiss on Anne’s forehead. “Thank you for that.”

“Of course.” With one last glance at me, Anne took her leave.

I lay down next to Lilah, though I was careful to stay on top of the covers. I couldn’t risk being so close to her bare body, couldn’t trust the incubus to stay under control.

Her breathing was steady and even, and the pallor was gone from her skin. The incubus relaxed inside me, curling up like a watchdog to guard Lilah for the rest of the night. I didn’t recognize its actions, had never felt this sensation before. It was as if the incubus and I wanted the same thing. But perhaps this was nothing new—the incubus craved the chase, and Lilah had been giving it the toughest of its life. She seemed utterly immune to my charm, which both irked and excited me. I’d seduced every woman I’d ever touched—many with no more than simply giving them a look or crooking my finger at them. But Lilah… She was something different. She was give and take instead of all give as I’d come to expect from females.

The thought of her standing against a fury with nothing more than a paltry dagger made my lips curl into a smile. She was much tougher than she appeared. I traced the runes on her neck, though I still couldn’t discern which god’s service she’d been in. The fact that she’d been in service at all spoke of her mettle—gods warred against each other almost constantly. No doubt she’d been to battle more than a few times in her life. I imagined her on the battlefield, her dark hair flowing out behind her as immortals clashed for supremacy. My gaze strayed even lower, to the swell of her breasts beneath the sheets, my heart quickening at the sight and the incubus purring with approval.

I sighed deeply and wrenched my gaze back to her face, peaceful in sleep. It was foolish to think Lilah could ever return my affections. She’d been disgusted by my vulnerability in the catacombs. In answer, I’d sought to distance myself from her by lying about the kiss, but even now I could taste her on my tongue, a sultry sweet flavor that left me wanting more. I feared I would always want more.

She stirred toward me in her sleep, seemingly seeking the rays of the moon that filtered through the window. Or perhaps seeking me? Her hair had come loose from the towel and curled around her face and shoulders in ebon waves. Her dark lashes were like lace lightly touching her lower lids. Had she not been injured, I would have been unable to resist her. My shaft ached and I again took in her gorgeous form. To lick the buds of her nipples and taste the sweetness between her thighs. I stopped myself from thinking about it before I was too far gone. The incubus grumbled in my chest but didn’t push it any further. I placed my hand on hers and settled in to watch her, having to satisfy myself with just that touch and nothing more.

My wounds had taken a toll, as drowsiness overcame me fairly quickly. Even an immortal as powerful as I was couldn’t cheat death forever, and the close calls required rest to regenerate.

I closed my eyes and remembered the feel of her yielding to me in the club, opening her lips so my tongue could penetrate. The incubus and I fell asleep and dreamed of her, only her.