Sex and Trouble (12 page)

83

Marilu Mann

He wrapped one hand around his cock. Even as she writhed under his mouth, smearing his face with her juice, he shouted out his own release as he pumped himself between his hand and his belly.

Feeling a shift in his body, a lightening of something he hadn’t even realized weighed him down, Ros nearly stopped his tender assault on Mari’s sweet clit. The chain bracelet around his wrist started to shrink so that it nearly cut off his circulation.

Suddenly it was gone. Whatever had been pressing down on him disappeared and Ros lifted his head to find Mari staring at her own wrist.

The bracelet that her father had put on him now resided on her arm but in a more delicate link than the heavy braid he’d worn. She lifted it up to him with a look of stunned wonder. “Ros?”

“The key. That is the physical manifestation of the key. Mari, we just had our second release.”

She gave a shy smile. “I know. I felt you. When I came, it felt like the whole world came into focus. Like I’d been seeing everything through a blur or something.”

Brushing back a stray lock of hair from her face, Ros felt her shift under him. His body responded immediately to the brush of her pubic curls against his shaft. He waited though. For some reason, he didn’t want to push just yet.

Her smile deepened. Then she dragged her hand down his shoulder to grasp his butt. When she squeezed, the glow of power surrounding both of them grew and with a ferocious grin, Ros raised up. Now he wanted to push, and push hard. Thanking his lucky stars to have been born a Hedonae, he massaged his shaft back into hardness. He drove his aching cock deep into Mari’s giving body.

Lifting her hips, Mari gripped the arms of the chair and shoved herself forward, meeting each of his thrusts with her own. He heard himself growling, felt his demonic nature coming to the fore and moved even harder. Mari cried out, grabbing his biceps as he leaned over her to suck one of those tender nipples into his mouth. Ros kept his hips pistoning into her, fucking her as though he’d die if he stopped.

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Just as his sanity seemed about to desert him, Mari tugged his head up so that she could kiss him. When they came up briefly for air, she stared straight into his eyes.

“Come, Ros. Come now.”

Never before had any female commanded his body. Never had he given in to a human in this manner. He was always the one in control of his own pleasure and usually his partner’s. Still, as she whispered the word “now” his body betrayed him.

Searing heat raged through his body and poured out of his cock into her welcoming warmth. Just as the first flush left his aching dick, he felt Mari tighten almost to the point of pain, felt her body pulse as she joined him again. Lightning seemed to streak around the room, pulses of light jumped from every corner of the room, giving everything a strange green glow.

Ros closed his eyes, trying to gain his bearings, knowing he was totally spent and trying hard not to crush Mari with the weight of his body. He had to focus to keep his human form as well. That was the second time she’d done this to him, wrung him out so well that his original body tried to come into the human realm. Demonae were not meant to be in the human dimension in their own forms. It caused them great pain.

Something they tried very hard to keep from inquisitive witches.

A harsh laugh rang out through the room and Ros lifted his head to find James LaPierre staring down at the two of them. In their excitement over finding the third key, they had never reset the damn protection wards. Thinking only of keeping his Mari from the other man’s unworthy gaze, Ros flung out a hand to draw concealment magick around the two of them.

LaPierre shouted “
Arrêt
!” Ros couldn’t move. The other man’s poorly accented French command shouldn’t have stopped him like this. What the hell was going on?

Then he saw the ring on LaPierre’s finger. Ros recognized it as one of Augustus’ rings.

Damn. Now he knew what LaPierre had stolen. A tool to augment his power. He strained against the invisible bonds but could not move.

Mari pushed at Ros. “What is wrong, Ros? Let me up.”

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She struggled to get out from under his body. Why wasn’t he moving? And how the hell had James LaPierre gotten back into her house? Mari realized they’d forgotten to reset the wards. Pushing against the immobile and obviously bespelled Ros, she managed to pry herself free. Mari got quickly to her feet. At LaPierre’s leering sweep of her nudity, she clothed herself in her tee and pants with her newfound power. She whirled to face him.

“Well, well, well. I see you have learned a trick or two from the incubus. I guess you weren’t just fucking him all the time.” The sneer in his voice didn’t chill her. The heat of anger burned as she narrowed her eyes. She heard Ros growl at the comment but LaPierre didn’t flinch.

Mari’s jaw clenched. “What are you doing in here? Get out!”

“No, I don’t think so, Mari. You see, I found a way to trap that dammed incubus and now I’m going to take what should have been mine all along. Your father’s power should have come to me! I’m the one who sweated beside him. I’m the one who played his errand boy for years. I’m the one who kept his ungrateful and unworthy children away for years. He should have taught me everything I needed to hold a demon. He should have given me this house and his power. It should all be mine and I’m not going to let some ridiculous little whiny bitch come in and take it away. I’ll find the keys to Augustus’ power and no one will stop me!”

Raising his hands, LaPierre started an incantation. Mari felt the darkness in his words. More importantly she understood them, thanks to the crystal on her neck. He was trying to kill her so he could get Ros and her father’s things. She felt ice run down her back. Looking at Ros, she made her decision. She might die, but he would not be enslaved to this man.

Mari raised her own hands. Digging deep into this newfound power and knowledge, she called up one of the spells her father had left for her. She looked at Ros.

His eyes were bright with pride at her use of power, but then he seemed to realize what 86

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she intended. He tried to shake his head. She ignored the slight movement. His lips moved but no sound emerged. She knew he was trying to tell her not to do this.

Mari held one hand out toward him. Her eyes grew moist as she spoke to him in his own language. “By all that I am, by all that I will be, everything in me wishes Rosier to be free.”

LaPierre finished his own incantation just as Ros’ body began to fade. She heard a primal scream. Ros was gone. James’ echoing shout of rage pulled her attention back to her own peril. A bolt of light shot from his hands and her skin felt like it was being peeled off by acid. She shrieked in pain as she fell to her knees.

Somehow she thought she hear Ros’ voice telling her to fight. She knew she imagined it when she heard him say, “No! No, Mari. Fight. Fight him, love.”

Mari took deep breaths, trying to manage the lasers of agony ripping through her.

She didn’t realize how much sending Ros back would drain her. Forcing herself not to strike out just yet, letting the power continue to build in her body while LaPierre walked toward her was hard. She focused on the fact that Ros was safe. She let that piece of information blunt the sharp jagged pain.

“Well, Marielle. You took my prize from me. You really are your father’s daughter, aren’t you? Smug little bitch. Just like your brother, you think you’re better than I am.

I’ll show you, just like I showed him. I’ll teach you to take what is mine.”

Her mind still reeling from his statements about Marcus, she didn’t expect the physical blow. His hand connected with her cheek, rocking her head to the side. The ringing in her ears echoed with a roar of rage that seemed out of place until she recognized the sound as Ros’ voice. Was he here? She looked at James coldly.

“You are nothing without my father’s power. Everything you have you took from him. That is why he threw you out. You stole from him. He trusted you. Why?”

LaPierre’s blue eyes were glazed with rage. “Why? Because he wouldn’t teach me what I needed to know. I had to kill those fucking demons. I am going to continue to 87

Marilu Mann

kill them until they’re all gone! I will have the power to do that once I drain you of your power. Then I will slaughter them the way they slaughtered my parents.”

The mad laugh he gave made her skin crawl. Warily she pulled herself to her feet.

James made no move to stop her. Once she was standing, she realized something. Sex with Ros had definitely unlocked the last block her father had put in place.

Somehow she just knew what to do next. But she didn’t know if she could. Her new knowledge told her the only way of defeating LaPierre other than killing him was to do what he’d threatened to do to her and drain his power. She had to let him get as close to her as she could possibly stand without throwing up.

He was oblivious to her thoughts. Like some bad movie villain, James ranted and raved about how he would kill the Hedonae and all of the Demonae. Mari ignored him, hoping that just like in the movies, his boasting would give her the opportunity she needed.

“You can go serve the fiends just like your brother. I’m sure they will find many ways to bring you the pain you deserve. You bitch. You could have had me but you chose a demon instead!”

LaPierre lunged at her, grabbing a handful of her hair, yanking her head back painfully. Mari focused on the swelling power as she let herself relax in his hold. Words tumbled out of her mouth. At the first phrase, James shouted as he tried to cover her mouth. Her next set of commands set LaPierre back on his heels. Completing the spell, she watched dispassionately as James slammed into the wall then fell to his knees.

“Marielle, please, no. You can’t do this to me.” His voice broke. “I must avenge my parents. I need to show those evil things that they cannot kill humans.”

“No, James.” She used a gentle tone. “Your mother brought her death on herself.

She tried to trap a Demonae. They are not our slaves. Your mother took a chance and your parents paid the price. I’m sorry for that, but I’m not sorry for you. You made your choices. Now I need to know. Did you kill my father?”

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The stark terror in his face was her answer. Mari’s hand curled into a fist. She raised her hand to finish him. This piece of filth. Her father had trusted him—trained him—and his thanks was to murder his mentor? She would destroy him.

Someone grabbed her wrist. Whirling, spell ready to disarm this new threat, Mari gasped in disbelief when she saw Ros standing in front of her.

“What? How did you get here? I sent you home!” The aggression and passion drained out of her, making her knees weak, and Ros’ strong arms came around her, holding her tight, giving her his comfort and his warmth. “You should be home, Ros.”

“I am, Mari-love. I am home.” His words made no sense and Mari shook her head.

Kissing the top of her head, Ros pulled her back against his body as they faced a shaking James LaPierre. Arms wrapped around his head, his whole body shaking, he was a pitiful sight, nothing like the confident man she’d had dinner with or the overbearing ass who’d barged into her home a few minutes ago. Suddenly she no longer wanted to kill him. Just to drain his power and get rid of him.

With Ros standing beside her, Mari recited the words that drew the golden pulsing ropes from James to her. The drain knocked James unconscious. She reached down to pull her father’s ring off his finger when Ros pointed it out. Then she sagged against Ros.

His voice brought her back. “Mari, Mari-girl, you have to finish this. You can’t sleep yet.”

Wearily, she opened her eyes. Lord above, had it just been a few minutes since she’d sent Ros home and drained LaPierre’s power? The activity caught up with her and Mari knew she’d have been on her butt on the floor if it weren’t for Ros keeping her upright. “What do we do now?”

“Send him home. He won’t bother you again.” Ros chuckled as he kissed the side of her neck. “You drained him, love.”

That was the second time he’d called her “love”. Shaking her head again, Mari focused on LaPierre. “James, go home.”

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Marilu Mann

With a shriek to rival any housewife seeing a mouse, the obnoxious man disappeared from her house, and hopefully from her life. Looking up at Ros, she suddenly gripped his arm.

“Oh my god! Don’t tell me I trapped you again? I didn’t mean to, I swear!”

“No, nothing like that. I came to help you, but you didn’t need my help. You took care of that vermin on your own. You really are the most powerful witch I’ve ever known, Mari. Your father would be very proud.” Ros hugged her tight.

“Why are you here?” She forced him to let go so she could look at him. He looked human, clothed again in all black, and even wearing shoes this time. Well, boots, really, but it was the first time she’d seen him in footwear.

“I told you. I came back to help you.”

“But are you trapped again?”

“No, love. Since I came voluntarily, I can go back any time. Nothing holds me here except my own will and you.”

“Me?” Mari gripped the neck of her top as though it was choking her. That seemed to make Ros hesitate. He dropped his hands and faced her uncertainly.

“Do you want me to go, Mari?”

“What?” Her grip tightened on her shirt.

Ros’ eyes narrowed. “If you wish me to leave, say so, but stop torturing that shirt.”

“Why did you call me ‘love’?”

“Because you are. Had LaPierre succeeded in draining you of your power, I would have come back here and made every effort to kill him. I’d have done anything I could to end his miserable existence if he’d hurt you.”

“You would have come back here to avenge me?” She knew her face had to reflect her confusion. Was Ros really trying in some roundabout way to say he loved her?

Though she’d denied to herself that she felt anything other than lust for him, she knew 90