Синтия Иден - Midnight Sins

Right after the bastard had made the mistake of touching her again.

Just a few more inches, and she’d have the knife. She knew the demon’s weak spots, and even if she couldn’t take him down, she could hurt him enough to get away and—

He lunged for her. Grabbed her right hand. Broke her wrist with a twist of his fingers.

She didn’t cry out. She’d stopped doing that years ago. Susan stared up into his black eyes and choked down the pain.

He yanked her up against him. “You’ve been playing without me, sweetheart.” He leaned in close, pressed a kiss to her cheek, and inhaled her scent. “I can still smell the blood on your skin.”

She’d washed for hours. Scrubbed until her flesh was sore. But those damn demons, they could smell a speck of blood from a mile away.

Or so the stories said.

Susan thought the stories were half bull, but one thing was undeniable—the demon knew what she’d been up to while he’d been watching other prey. “Tommy deserved to die.” He’d turned his back on her. Her. Tried to walk away and leave her behind.

No one did that. Not anymore.

And Tommy had sure changed his tune once she’d started using her knife on him. He’d been begging for her forgiveness then.

But she hadn’t been in a forgiving mood.

“Thomas Monroe wasn’t on my list, Susan.” His touch was ice cold.

She’d liked that in the beginning. Liked the chill and the rush that he gave her.

When they’d started killing, she’d liked him even better. It was only lately that she’d begun to worry about him, and to wonder—

What did the good-looking demon who carried the scent of sex and death have planned for her?

“He wasn’t supposed to die.”

“Yeah, well, he was on my list.” She should probably be playing this differently. Acting cowed. Scared.

Not her style, even though fear squeezed her heart.

The demon smiled down at her, and his scent thickened in the air around them. Helplessly, she felt her body begin to respond. Her nipples tightened. Her sex creamed.

“You were such a surprise to me, sweetheart.” He leaned his head toward her. Kissed her lips. Pushed her back even harder against the plastic phone. “So beautiful.”

His words were a lie. She knew it. Yeah, she was pretty. She’d used that physical appeal more times than she could count in the past, but he hadn’t wanted her because she was pretty.

He’d wanted her because she looked like the other woman, Cara.

She’d fixed that demon whore. Cara would be ending up in jail soon.

“You left evidence behind. Very, very sloppy of you, sweetheart.”

So she wasn’t as smart as he was. Not as good at cleaning up. “The cops don’t have anything on me.” She forced a smile. “They think it’s that singer, Cara. I just called the detective, you know, the one who’s been watching her at the club…”

His hand dropped to her throat. Caressed the skin. “And?”

“I-I told him that her alibi was crap. That the people at the club were lying.” Her heartbeat began to steady as hope raised its head. Maybe she could smooth the situation over with him. He wanted Cara to take the fall for the killings. She’d just given him the other woman on a silver platter.

Surely that made up for a little extra murder?

His fingers began to squeeze her throat. “You’re so fucking stupid.”

The pain of his steely grasp brought tears to her eyes. She blinked, trying to block the moisture from falling. She could get out of this mess. There was still time.

But her heart had started to race again.

“He’s screwing her now,” he spat the words at her. “When you called Detective Brooks, she was in his bed.” A laugh. Cold. Deadly. “She would have heard everything you said. She’ll know what’s happening now, Susan. She’ll start hunting you.”

“W-won’t…f-find…m-me…” Talking was hard with his fingers digging into her windpipe. She barely managed to gasp out the words.

Then his hand was gone and she dragged air into her lungs, sucking in the oxygen desperately.

“Of course, she will. Demons are very, very good at hunting. Almost as good as those fucking animal shifters.”

But that Cara, she was just a piece of fluff. Susan wasn’t scared of her. She’d cut the demon up, just like she’d cut Tommy—

He laughed at her. “You still don’t understand what you’re up against, do you?”

Now she was getting pissed. “I…understand th-that you…need me.” He couldn’t kill without her. She was the bait. The perfect setup. Though the demon might be furious, he wasn’t going to do anything stupid. “Look, I th-think…the rules between us…need to change.” The sex was great. Hell, sex was always great after a kill. And he’d been giving her money. Gotten her a nicer place.

But now the shift of power was about to turn, in her favor. Susan let a smile curve her lips.

His eyes narrowed. “Actually, Susan, I don’t need you anymore at all.”

Just like that, her fate was sealed.

She shoved against him, hard, seeing her death in the darkness of his gaze. The bastard laughed again and stepped back, and she managed to twist and yank her knife from its sheath. “You stay the hell back!” She had to hold the blade with her weaker left hand—no way could she use her right now.

“Aw, Susan, why do you want to fight me?” That charming, deceitful smile was on his face. She’d always thought humans lied well, but they couldn’t even come close to matching demons.

“Get out of my way!” He was blocking the entrance to the phone booth. But if she could make him move, she could run, maybe make it to her car—

It hit her then. His scent. Teasing her nostrils. Sex. Power.

No, damn it, no!

Helplessly, she felt her body respond even more to him.

“You don’t want to use that knife on me.” His voice became even deeper.

Damn demon power.

She hated demons.

The hand gripping the knife began to lower.

“Good girl.”

No. She’d stopped being a good girl the night her bastard of a stepfather had climbed into her bed.

“You want me, don’t you, Susan?” Still using that hypnotic power of his.

Her nipples were so hard they ached. Her legs trembled. She managed a nod.

“And you don’t want to hurt me, do you?”

Oh, but she did.

He lifted his hand toward her as he closed the space between them. His fingers trailed over her breast. Plucked the nipple. “Kiss me, Susan.”

Her mouth, open, met his. The kiss was far too hard, far too rough, and she felt the copper of blood on her tongue.

The she felt the press of his hand against her chest.

Right over her heart.

No! The scream echoed in her mind even as she continued to helplessly kiss him back.

His lips lifted. “I’m gonna drain you,” he whispered, and sounded like a lover with a caress in his voice. “Every drop of power from you—I’m gonna take it. Then I’m gonna leave your corpse to rot.” Another bruising kiss.

Then she felt it. The slow stir of magic in the air. No, God, no, she wouldn’t go out like this.

With every ounce of strength she had, Susan focused on her left hand. She just needed to break the demon’s power. If he lost his concentration, the pheromones would weaken, and she’d be able to fight more—

And not just twist and moan eagerly like a bitch in heat against him.

“Ah, Susan, you’re gonna beg me to fuck you, then to kill you.”

The fingers of her left hand trembled as they tightened around the knife.

Distract him. “I-I can still…help you,” she managed. “I-I can get…more men. Don’t—”