Sorrow listened to every word, watching me closely. He didn’t make a sound until I got to what had happened before I’d come to him.
“You orgasmed?” he burst out, standing up and grabbing me by the shoulders. “You felt human pleasure?”
“Yes, but didn’t you hear what I said? I ruined everything!”
Sorrow laughed sharply in my face. “Don’t you understand what this means? We can feel! I want that!”
I knocked his hands away, my power flaring. “Willow is mine! Don’t you dare go near her!”
Sorrow rolled his eyes. “I don’t want Willow. I want a human of my own. I want to feed off pleasure instead of other people’s despair. I can feel it, you’re satiated. It’s as if you’d feasted on a dozen men. I want that!”
“That’s the problem though,” I said, dropping my face into my hands. “I lost control.”
“Like a human teenager,” Sorrow said with a chuckle.
I groaned. “Help me! What should I do? I can’t lose Willow.”
“I’ll help you, but I want something in exchange.”
I looked up. “What?”
“I want to meet Willow.” He held up a hand before I could protest. “Not to try to take her away from you. I want to feel her. There might be someone out there like her for me. I want that.”
“You can’t touch her.”
“I get to shake her hand,” he countered. “And talk to her for several minutes.”
I considered his request. Wraiths couldn’t lie to each other. While we were here, it was easy for him to agree that he wouldn’t try to take her away from me and believe it. Once he met her, hemight be overwhelmed and attempt to draw her to him. He was better at talking and interacting with humans than I was.
It was a risk to let him near her.
Did I trust Sorrow? Out of all my brothers, I only trusted Pain more, but that was because I’d known him longer. I decided the risk was worth Sorrow’s insight and help.
“Fine, you can meet her and shake her hand,” I agreed. “But you have to help me first.”
Sorrow’s smile showed all his teeth and made his amber eyes glow a little. “Follow me. I know the perfect place to go.”
I didn’t expect to follow Sorrow’s mist to a mostly empty strip mall in the southern area of the county. We took solid form at the far end of the parking lot. After misting and traveling such a distance, my pants were dry, and my skin was clean again.
“This way,” he said, striding through the parking lot to a store with darkened windows. The red neon sign read Pleasure Palace.
“Your answer to my need is to take me to a sex shop?” I hissed, grabbing Sorrow’s arm before he could step inside.
“This isn’t simply a sex shop,” Sorrow said, pulling his arm free of my grip. “This is where Inola works.” He moved inside, and I followed.
“Inola?”
“Teo!” a tall, auburn-haired woman called out from behind a counter. “Nice to see you!”
“It’s good to see you also,” Sorrow said, opening his arms to let the woman rush at him. She was tall and muscled. She nearly lifted him up when she hugged him. When they finished hugging, she looked at me curiously. “Is this your brother?”
“Yes,” Sorrow said with a warning look at me. “This is Vie. He needs your expertise.”
Inola turned to me with a broad smile. “Nice to meet you Vie. How can I help you please your partner?”
I felt my eyes go wide. I wasn’t prepared for that question. “Uh, I, uh.”
Inola burst out laughing. “Oh honey, you really need me! Let’s start easy. Is your partner male, female, intersex, they, them, furry, or what?”
