Midnight's Master

Chapter 8

When Holly woke the next morning, sunlight blazed through the windows, too bright and hard, and she blinked, trying to adjust her eyes to the sight and remember where she was because this was not her room and-

And a tongue licked over her sex.

Holy mother of -

She shoved up on her elbows as memories of the night before flooded back through her mind.

Niol.

Sex downstairs.

Sex upstairs.

More sex.

Oh, yeah.

His black head was between her thighs. One strong hand held each leg spread. Open wide.

He was tasting her. Licking. Taking his time. Sucking. Stroking with that clever tongue.

He growled against her core and the vibration had the back of her knees tingling.

His tongue thrust inside her.

Damn.

She climaxed. A hot, hard explosion that broke through her body.

Her eyes were on him as she came. His head lifted. He licked his lips, taking the last of her essence into his mouth. That wicked tongue-

His eyes widened as he stared at her and she could only shudder.

What a hell of a way to start the day.

So much better than her clock radio.

And that hadn’t even given her any bad memories. Hadn’t made her think of-

No. She wouldn’t go there. Not now.

As the contractions of her inner muscles faded, she reached for him. The guy was more than ready to go, definitely aroused and turnabout was more than fair-

“What the fucking hell?” Niol’s eyes narrowed to chips of black ice. He shot up the bed, grabbing her arms and glaring down at her.

Holly’s mouth dropped open. Tender lover to pissed demon in two seconds flat. “Niol, what are you-” His fingers dug into her arms. “You’re hurting me!” And he was. A too tight, too hard grip.

His hold eased, just a fraction, but the look on his face became even darker. Uglier. “What kind of game are you playing?”

Was the man insane? Holly could only shake her head. Her body still vibrated with pleasure. Her thighs trembled and Niol looked at her like he hated her.

Great sex. Best night of pleasure ever.

Now the morning from hell in a split-second change.

Was this what life with a demon was like?

“Answer me. I see you now.”

Uh, he should have seen her the entire time. Her chin came up. “Take your hands off me.” She wasn’t sure what was happening, but she was getting…scared.

Her heart wasn’t racing from passion anymore. No, that pumping came from fear. Because the air in the room had thickened again. The lamp on the nightstand was shaking as if-

The lamp exploded, sending shards of glass flying in the room.

Holly yelped and jerked away from Niol.

“I see you,” he said again, a muscle jerking along his jaw.

“Yeah? Well, big damn deal.” She jumped from the bed, yanking the sheet up and wrapping it around her body. Being naked was all fine and dandy until your lover had a freak-out after some oral sex.

She could pick ’em. “I see you, too, asshole.” Every muscled, naked, furious inch of him.

No, uh-uh, not gonna get distracted. The guy was flipping out-and she needed to get out .

She turned, storming for the door.

“You’re a demon.” Soft.

Her jaw dropped. No way. No. Way. Holly glanced over her shoulder. “What is your problem? You know I’m-”

“I saw your eyes when you came, love. ” Not a term of endearment then. More of a sneer. “Can’t hide anymore.” The mirror near the closet shattered.

She shook her head. “That’s impossible.” Not the broken shards of glass. His accusation. “I’m human.”

“Fucking lie.”

And she realized that sex with a demon could be very, very dangerous.

Niol bounded across the room and locked his arms around her.

He was losing control.

Niol knew it. He could barely hear Holly’s voice, telling him he was crazy, that he was screwing up what could have been something great-

All he heard was the thundering beat of his heart and the roar of fury that came from his soul.

Demons had souls. Demons could love.

Demons could hurt.

Her eyes were grass green now, but he’d seen that flash of black when her face went slack with ecstasy.

Total darkness. Iris. Sclera. Everything.

Demon eyes.

The way his always looked.

The way a demon’s eyes looked without glamour.

A climax was a weak moment for a demon. Power fluctuated then. A glamour could slip, for a few precious moments.

As hers had slipped.

She’d played me. All along. From that first night.

No helpless human. Not by a long shot.

For a demon to be able to hide her true self from him, she had to be very powerful.

He, of all people, sure knew how dangerous a powerful demon could be.

What if it was a setup? Everything? Carl? Sam? What if she’d been trying to get close, so that I could be her next victim?

Shit.

He hadn’t been this angry, this fucking furious since-

Since he’d been twelve and his mom had dumped his ass on his grandmother’s doorstep. She’d been terrified of him, his power, and desperate to get away from her only child.

He’d begged. He’d pleaded. But she’d left him with a brown paper bag full of his clothes and the taste of salt on his tongue.

She’d driven away and never looked back.

“Niol.” Holly’s sharp voice jerked him from the past.

He blinked and stopped seeing the flash of red taillights disappearing over an old, broken road and saw Holly, face pale, lips red, as she stared up at him, a faint line between her brows.

“Let. Me. Go.”

No. Not until he found out what she-

Holly kicked him in the shin.

Swearing, he dropped his hold. What kind of attack was that? A demon wouldn’t-

“You’re twisted.” With a quick, snakelike move, she tightened the sheet around her, toga-style. “I thought we had-screw that.” She sucked in a deep breath. “I don’t know what kind of crazy shit you’re talking about, but I do know you just ruined the best sex I’ve ever had.”

The best sex I’ve ever had.

Her words calmed the fury.

It’d been the best he’d had, too.

And he’d sure had plenty of comparative experience.

But nothing like being with Holly. The pleasure had ripped through him-no, seemed to rip him apart.

And that’s why it had hurt so much when he’d learned the truth.

He’d had her body, thought he’d touched more in the darkness of the night.

Only to find out everything was a lie.

A trap.

“You’re good, I’ll give you that.” She’d slipped right under his guard, and he’d never even suspected.

“And you’re crazy.” Her gaze darted around the room. “Shit. Where are my clothes?”

Scattered.

“Why are you pretending? The game’s over.”

Her glittering stare shot back to his. “I’m not playing a game with you, jerkoff. I’m walking out on you. There’s a difference.”

She found her skirt. Yanked it up under the toga. Discovered her shirt near the door. He’d brought it up for her at some point in the night, trying to be a gentleman . Fuck that from now on.

Swearing, Holly pulled the shirt over her head, not bothering with a bra, and finally let the sheet drop.

Then she looked at him and shook her head. “I thought finding my fiancé with his face between a grad student’s legs had been hard. Hell, Niol, you’ve just ripped me apart.”

Tears gleamed in her eyes for a moment.

The taste of salt on my tongue.

She grabbed her shoes and flew out of the room.

And it felt like someone had punched him in the chest.

Niol took an instinctive step forward, wanting to go after her.

A lying demon.

Just like me.

No, no, Holly wasn’t like him. He’d been watching her too carefully, seen the way she interacted with others.

His teeth ground together.

He’d also seen the flash of her eyes.

Niol heard the thud of her footsteps pounding down the stairs.

Hell. As fast as he could, Niol jerked on a pair of jeans.

Then, no choice-he took off after her. The lady was fast. She was yanking open the front door, his car keys in her fist, when he caught her.

He slammed the door shut with the palm of his hand, caging her between the door and his body.

Her smell, that rush of lavender and the warm scent of woman, teased his nostrils.

Her back was straight, shoulders tense, and the soft locks of her hair brushed against his cheek.

For just a second, he closed his eyes and inhaled.

The memory of her in that pit of an alley flashed before him. Terrified eyes. Pale face.

Helpless.

Trapped.

The demon bastard had controlled her, nearly killed her.

Niol’s eyes flew open. That didn’t make a lick of sense. One demon couldn’t control another, especially not one as powerful as-

Holly turned, her body brushing against his, and her eyes stared up at him.

So green…

And lost.

I’ll be damned. Understanding dawned and had him rocking back on his heels. “You don’t know.”

Because no way, no way, could he have been that wrong about her.

He was never wrong about people. He could sense evil and deception-that was part of his nature.

He hadn’t sensed a lie from her. Still didn’t.

One demon couldn’t control another.

Not a full-blooded demon, anyway. But a hybrid-those rules didn’t apply with a hybrid demon.

The line was back between her brows. “Know what?” Holly licked her lips. “Niol, stop jerking me around. I’ve got enough crap to deal with-”

His mouth crashed onto hers. A deep, hard, I’m-taking-you kiss that-

Holly shoved him back a good foot.

Because he let her, not because she had any enhanced strength.

“I’m not the kind of girl who likes it when a guy plays asshole one minute and lover the next.” Her lip curled in disgust-no dimple-as her eyes narrowed. “Even when the sex is good.”

She doesn’t know.

Niol realized he had to tread very, very carefully now.

If he hadn’t been so pissed earlier, he would have realized-

The woman had been thrown into his world months before, a lamb to the slaughter.

Some reactions just couldn’t be faked.

He’d remember her fear in that alley until he took his last breath.

“I’m sorry, Holly.” The words were rusty and felt funny on his tongue. Because it was the first time he’d ever apologized.

Judging by the look on her face, she knew it, too. “Uh, run that by me again.”

“I. Am. Sorry.” He wouldn’t plead. Wouldn’t beg. Had sworn years ago never to do either again.

“Sorry you called me a demon? Well, you should be-”

“Not for that.”

Her lips parted.

“You are a demon, love. But the crazy thing is…I don’t think you even know it.”

She rubbed her hand over her eyes and growled. “I’m not a demon-”

He caught her hand, pulled it gently down, and kept a loose grip around her wrist. “Yes, you are.”

A startled laugh burst from her lips. “You’re actually serious. You believe-”

“I’ll prove it to you. Just give me some time.” An investigation of her background, her family history, would take a few days-maybe less, depending on who he hired and how much money he tossed around, but Niol knew he would find the proof.

He just had to look hard enough.

“I can’t be a demon, I think I would know-”

“I thought so, too,” he murmured.

“My parents would have told me, don’t you think? But they didn’t because they’re not demons. They’re perfectly normal people-” A shadow drifted over her face. “My dad was, anyway, but he had a heart attack and-” Her chin lifted. “He was an accountant, for goodness sake! And my mom, she’s an engineer at the car plant in-”

“Maybe she doesn’t know.” Maybe neither of her parents had known the truth.

Adoption, one possibility. Or maybe somewhere far back in the family tree, one of Holly’s relatives had been tempted by a demon in disguise. “Make no mistake, I know what I saw upstairs.” When he’d had her naked and open to him and he’d been seconds away from thrusting into that slick pink flesh.

Then he’d met her stare and the world had stopped.

And started again in a red haze of fury.

“You’re wrong.” A whisper. “ I’d know.”

He brought her hand to his lips. He’d screwed up with her, lost valuable ground, and he wasn’t sure how to repair the damage he’d done.

The idea of Holly betraying him-

It had shattered his control and let the fury rage.

“No, love,” now, spoken as the endearment it was, “you wouldn’t.”

And that was the whole damn problem.

Holly paced her office hours later, Niol’s words still spinning in her head.

A demon. The guy actually thought she was a demon.

Insane.

Ridiculous.

Wasn’t it?

But Niol wasn’t the joking type and the fury she’d glimpsed in his eyes had been all too real.

Because he thought I’d played him.

Shit. Holly stumbled to a stop. It just wasn’t possible.

Holy Christ…what if it were true?

From the beginning, she’d been so fascinated by the idea of demons, drawn, almost helplessly, back to Paradise Found.

Back to the demons.

Because she was one?

No. Not. Possible.

Her hand slammed onto her desk. She was grade-A human, through and through.

No matter what Niol thought he’d seen.

Someone rapped on her door.

Holly sucked in a cleansing breath and turned around. “Kim, do you have those tapes-”

Kim wasn’t standing in her doorway. She’d expected the intern, with the security tapes from the previous morning.

But the pretty brunette wasn’t staring back at her.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Holly snapped, her body jerking as if she’d been shocked.

And, yeah, she was pretty damn shocked.

Because seeing Dr. Zachariah Hall, blond hair perfectly slicked back, golden tan gleaming, blue eyes smiling at her-stunned her. He was the last person she’d expected-or wanted-to see.

The lips that had been tilted in a warm grin sagged a bit. “Holly…you aren’t still angry, are you?”

She growled. Finding her fiancé half-naked with his grad student hadn’t been one of her best moments. Or his. Jerk. “Uh, yeah, I am. And probably will be for the next, oh, twenty years.” Why the hell was the guy there? He’d tried calling her a few times after the breakup. She’d ignored him. Then, blessedly, he’d gone away.

Back to his classes and the nimble grad girls who would do anything for that A.

The smile was totally gone now. “I made a mistake. A onetime mistake.”

One time her ass. She snorted. “One time, twenty times,” which she believed more than the “one time” story. “You’re done in my book.”

He stepped toward her and closed the door behind him.

Her mouth dropped. “Uh, Zack, I’m not in the mood to talk to you-” Ever.

“I’m sorry I hurt you.” The words sounded sincere. His eyes looked sincere.

The apology was completely different from Niol’s. Very smooth and slick. Not at all awkward. Didn’t sound like the words had been dragged from him.

But she didn’t buy it, not for a minute.

And what about Niol’s apology?

Later.

“I’m sorry I wasted four months of my life on you. Guess we’re even.” Okay, that sounded like something a really cold bitch would say.

So call her cold.

And she’d always been a bit proud of being a bitch.

The faint lines around his eyes hardened. He wasn’t wearing his glasses today. Usually he saved those for his classes. She knew he thought they made him look scholarly, and he was all about the smart professor look.

Dr. Zachariah Hall was an associate professor in the biology department at Mellrune University in Atlanta. He spent his days lecturing to bleary-eyed students or writing really lame research papers.

And screwing students, too.

When she’d first met him, Holly had mistakenly believed the guy was a class act. Smart. Honest. Gentlemanly.

The wild spark she’d always longed for hadn’t ignited between them, but she’d figured she’d be able to live quite happily without that spark.

So she’d accepted his proposal over a lobster dinner one night, then found him having a hands-on experience with his student two months later.

Extra credit?

“I was scared, Holly.” Again, sounded sincere. Maybe it was. “I fell for you, hard and fast. I didn’t know what was happening to me, so I-”

She rolled her eyes. “So you decided to go down on another woman? Got you.” She did not have time for this drama. “Look, I don’t want to hear your explanations. I just don’t-” Care anymore.

Her breath caught.

Wow. That was true. She didn’t care. She rolled her shoulders and felt as if she’d just dropped a huge weight. “That was months ago, Zack. I’ve moved on and I hope you have, too.” Now she got to be the sincere one.

Less bitch. More-ah, what was she more of?

His perfectly chiseled jaw clenched. “You’re seeing someone else?”

Was she still seeing Niol? Even after his accusation?

What if it were true?

“I-”

Another knock at the door.

“Come in!” She would have welcomed just about anyone then, as long as she didn’t have to be in the room alone with good old Zack anymore.

Kim poked her head inside, and she was smiling. “You got a delivery.”

Not another one. Her stomach knotted.

The door swung open. The red roses spilled from the vase Kim carried, their lush scent tickling Holly’s nose.

She blinked. “Did you see who-”

“Oh, yeah.” Kim didn’t even seem to notice Zack. “Susie was at the front desk, but I caught a glimpse of him before the guy left. Real sexy, black hair, sunglasses-”

Zack cleared his throat.

Kim jumped. Okay, so she hadn’t noticed him.

Holly hurried forward and took the flowers. “Thanks, Kim.” The vase felt slightly chilled against her hands. Niol must have brought it right over from the florist’s.

Kim gave a little wave and ducked out of the room.

Holly carried the vase to her desk. There was a small white envelope nestled in between the bloodred flowers. Her fingers shook a bit when she reached for it.

She’d always been a sucker for red roses.

She opened the tiny envelope, pulled out the card.

“So there is somebody else.”

A bold black scrawl on the crisp card.

I’m a bastard, but you know that. But you don’t know what’s inside of you-waiting to come out. I do.

Let me show you, love.

Her fingers clenched around the card.

Demon.

Niol wouldn’t make a mistake like that. Everything she knew, every whisper of gossip she’d greedily caught all pointed to Niol being the strongest demon in the city.

He’d know if he was having sex with another of his kind.

I see you now.

Her eyes closed. Denial, yeah, option one.

But what if… what if ?

He’d be able to show her a whole new world. A world she’d been desperate to see from the beginning, like a kid with her nose shoved up against a shop window.

“Glad you’ve found somebody.” Gritted. Not sincere. “I-I won’t take up any more of your time.”

She looked up just as Zack stormed out.

Holly had his flowers and his note, the next step would be hers. She could bid his ass good-bye or she could step up to the plate and learn what secrets she kept, locked inside.

“I want a background investigation done on Holly Storm,” he told the man before him. A short, dark-haired charmer. Charmers were always the best at ferreting out information from the unsuspecting. And Giles…the guy was damn good. An investigator for the Other, he made a fine living by bending and breaking the law whenever he could.

Giles narrowed his gray-gold eyes. “Why’s that name familiar to me?”

They were in Giles’s office, a freakishly clean business in the middle of downtown Atlanta.

“She’s a reporter for News Flash Five.” And so much more.

“You wanna know if the lady likes to play in the darkness?”

I’m here to play. “I already know that.” His fingers flattened on the desktop. “I want to know about her family, her lovers. I want to know about anything unusual that’s ever happened in Holly’s entire life. And I want to know yesterday. ”

Because a new fear had begun to haunt him after he’d dropped off Holly’s flowers and then taken his time strolling around the station. No one had stopped him. Old Steve had sure given him a wide berth.

Holly was like him, Niol knew it. Even if she didn’t.

The impure will die.

Giles cocked his head. “It’s gonna cost you.”

“What else is new?”

“What am I looking for here, man? Point me to what you want-”

“Skeletons.” Demon skeletons. “Something tells me the lady has more than a few in her family tree.” They just had to knock ’em loose.

Holly was running late for her appointment. Again, dammit. If she wasn’t more careful, she’d start to get a bad reputation.

But before she’d left the station, she’d needed to follow up on the security tapes.

The follow-up had lead nowhere because the tapes were gone.

Not erased. Not unusable. Gone.

The guys at the security station had been rattled. The station owner had been alerted.

Someone was playing a game with News Flash Five.

With her.

More cameras would be installed. More guards hired. After the last bloodbath at the station, the higher-ups weren’t taking any chances.

So now, she was running fifteen minutes late for an appointment that she did not want to miss. The elevator chimed then the doors slid open and Holly hit the hall at a run.

A few moments later, she shoved open a gleaming wooden door, perfectly polished. Holly ignored the gold lettering and hurried inside, where she caught sight of the witch behind the desk.

And Vanessa really was a witch, or, at least Holly was about 90 percent sure she was. She’d caught the woman reading spell books the last time she’d been in the office and Holly was pretty sure she’d seen the redhead levitating her pen once or twice.

“Uh, sorry I’m late.” She hoped that didn’t merit being turned into a frog or something. With the Other, you just never knew. “Is…Dr. Drake still available?”

Vanessa raised her brow. “This is the second time-”

She winced. “I know. Sorry.”

The witch smiled. “Try not to make a habit of it, okay? She’s waiting on you.”

Holly exhaled. Great. Because she sure needed to talk to the Monster Doctor today. She hurried toward the doc’s inner sanctum.

“At least you don’t have a damn snake with you…”

Vanessa’s mutter had her hesitating with her hand over the knob. She glanced back. “Er, right.”

The door opened.

Dr. Emily Drake, known in the darker circles of Atlanta as the Monster Doctor, stood in the doorway. Her black hair was pulled back into her usual perfect bun. Her pretty features were calm, her green eyes curious behind the lenses of her glasses.

Looked like any other woman you’d meet in the city.

But Dr. Drake wasn’t any other woman. She had very, very special talents.

The lady only treated paranormal patients. Word on the street held that she could immediately sense any Other.

And she was heavily empathic.

No hiding from this therapist. Nope, no denial would ever work with her.

The doctor glanced at her watch. “Running behind, are we?”

“Seriously, you don’t want to hear about my day.” Demon heritage. Ex-fiancé from hell. Possible murderer/stalker.

Emily laughed and shut the door. “Oh, come on now, Holly, you know that’s what I’m here for-listening.” She motioned toward the couch and walked back to her desk. A small notebook lay in the middle of the wooden surface.

Holly crossed the room. The couch. Just looking at it made her nervous, and this was her sixth visit to the doctor’s office.

She’d originally come to see Dr. Drake because she’d been…desperate.

Carl had been the first to mention Emily’s name. The first to talk about just how the Monster Doctor had helped him.

She’d thought that maybe Emily could help her, too.

Holly hadn’t wanted to be helpless anymore. The world was full of beasts, predators-she got that. Both human and Other.

She never wanted to be as weak as she’d been in that alley. Not again. There had to be some way for her to protect her mind from those attacks. Some way…

And if anyone would know a way, Holly had figured it would be Dr. Drake.

So their sessions had started. Half-therapy, half-mind-shielding.

The weird thing-both parts were working.

Which was one of the reasons she hadn’t flipped out when she saw old Zack. Without Dr. Drake’s help, she would have tried to rip the guy a new one.

“I-I need to ask you some things.” Holly sat on the edge of the couch, feeling awkward. The first time she’d come into the office, she’d felt the same tension, but she’d bluffed her way through the forty-five minutes.

I know about the Other. She’d said that confidently. You don’t have to pretend with me.

Emily hadn’t spoken.

I know, and I’m here because I want to learn how to protect myself.

Emily had known about what happened in that godforsaken alley. Her lover, Detective Colin Gyth, had been on the scene within moments. Holly didn’t think there were many, if any, secrets between the cop and the good doctor.

The first time she’d come face-to-face with Emily, the knowledge of that dark night had been in the Monster Doctor’s eyes.

Emily had agreed to take her on as a patient. She’d started teaching her how to visualize shields for her mind-and to actually make those damn things work through a focused concentration that sometimes left Holly’s head aching and her heart racing.

And…more had developed in the sessions. Holly had found herself talking about Zack. Her parents.

Her brother.

Christ, the first time she’d talked about Peter, she’d bawled for an hour.

“You can ask me anything,” Emily said as she picked up her pen. “But keep in mind I’ll have my turn to ask questions, too.”

She always did. Sneaky questions that seemed easy enough to answer on the surface but were really designed to rip the scabs off all the old wounds Holly had locked inside.

She pulled in a deep breath of air. “Why-why did you originally agree to see me? You knew that I was a reporter, I could have just been scamming you-trying to get a story-”

“You’re not like that.” Instant response.

Those empathic powers? “You sure of that?”

A nod.

“ Why did you see me?” Holly repeated. The answer was very, very important.

“You need me.” One shoulder lifted, then fell. “I don’t make a habit of turning away people who need me.”

Hell, yes, she’d needed the doctor’s help-so she would never be helpless again. But…“I’m not like the other patients you treat.” She’d only seen a few of them, passed them briefly in the hallway. Not the chatting type.

All of the others were paranormals, while she was-was-

Emily’s eyes narrowed behind her glasses. “I’m not sure I’m following you, Holly.”

“You treat Other, okay? And I’m not. I’m just-” Human.

Right?

Silence.

Then Emily put her pen down and licked her lips. “I think I’m a bit confused.”

Join the club.

“Holly, despite what you may have heard, I do treat some human patients.”

Freaking relief. Her hand pushed against her chest. “Right, right, of course-”

A slow shake of Dr. Drake’s dark head. “But, um, you know you’re not human, don’t you?”

Good thing she was sitting down. Emily had the distinct feeling her knees would have done a Jell-O routine and she would have wound up on the floor. “Run that by me again?” A squeak that wasn’t her normal voice.

Emily snatched up her pen and scribbled a quick note. “You didn’t know…”

“I still don’t know.” Okay, so Niol had told her. Dr. Drake was telling her, but-but-

Christ.

But how the hell could she have gone through her entire life without knowing she was Other ?

“You don’t have much power, I’d probably label you as a one or two on the demon scale…”

Demon scale.

“But I knew from the first moment I met you, Holly, that you were Other .”

That hard thump-it wasn’t her heart. It was her world falling off its axis.