Arousal.
The reality hit me in the chest, eliciting the monster inside of me, awakening him, and I hated it. Not because she didn’t smelldivine, but because I knew it was in response towhatI was, and nothing more. Just once, I wished I could walk into a room and someone would be excited to seeme.
“It is,” I said as I tried to stuff down the disdain and self-loathing I felt at the moment. I didn’t want to seem rude, after all, being as I’d been rather abrupt when we first met.
Realistically, I could have anyone I want, and I know that. It wouldn’t be difficult to flex my power, use it to my advantage. Elevate my target’s desire and feed on it like a chocolate fountain.
But I didn’t want to do that with Violet. I didn’t want to manipulate a woman to feed my hunger, nor did I want to manipulate a woman into my bed anymore.
The last time hadn’t ended so well...
And then the little mixblushed, clamoring on about how I must not remember her.
As if I could forget her penetrating gaze or her sinful curves, or the most intense orgasm I’d ever felt because of her.
It was clear to me at that moment, Violet did not know the depth of her own power—both as a beautiful woman, and also as creature of magic.
Her energy was damn near impossible to ignore, and it was warm and bright, a beacon to my own twisted darkness. I felt inexplicablydrawntoward Violet in all ways that mattered. And like a glutton for punishment, I was remiss to turn away.
My cock twitched as a gust of wind escaped through my fingertips, rustling her skirt.
This woman will surely be the death of me.
“How could I forget you, Violet? You nearly put me six feet under,” I answered, shifting my position in the unsettling hard chair if only to avoid drawing attention to the growing thickness in my uniformed pants.
Get a hold of yourself, Bane! You are better than this!
Though the Gods, it seemed, had either one hell of a degradation kink, or a dark sense of humor, because that was the moment Violet perfumed the air with a fresh waft of sinful desire, her body heat rising in temperature.
When I’d gone into heat all those years ago, the markers of desire had been startling and difficult to get used to. Feeling the shift of temperature, the heat that radiated outward from others bodies, the smells that would turn me on, hearing the faint whimpers or stifled moans... it was part of the transition. Part of the game.
But I’d gotten used to walking into a room and being everyone’s fantasy. Sensing their desire was normal. I’d become numb to such things, really. It wasn’t often I acted onmyimpulses. Just because everyone desired me most of the time didn’t mean I reciprocated such things.
What I hadn’t gotten used to, was walking into a room withmy fantasy, hot and ready for my taking...
Gods, it would be so easy to cultivate that desire and...
I should have never registered for this fucking class. I am truly a glutton for punishment.
And because the Gods truly must hate me for what I’d done, Norman Chee, resident pain in my ass—and my ex Wanda’s new bi-curious boy toy—decided he was going to jump on the chance to hit his quota for pissing off people he shouldn’t today.
Just the sight of him and his handsy little suckers teasing and tickling Violet caused my vision to go red.
And not in a pleasurable way.
Wanda nonchalantly watched the event like it was prime time television, clearly not bothered. After all, the siren favored beautiful women as well, something I knew firsthand from our shared trysts. Which was why she left me in the first place. To chase the tail of a brighter, prettier fish, but I digress. Sure, we had fun, but it wasn’t like I was in love with her or anything, but Norman Chee is a massive downgrade.
Even if he does have extra appendages.
“I am so unprepared for this,” Violet sighed, pulling me from my melancholy thoughts. I watched as she spilled Norman’s bag of runes on the table.
“It’s okay, I didn’t join this class until recently, so you’re not the only one,” I said, my voice much steadier than how I felt at the moment. I watched her fingers trace the carvings in the abalone. Go figure the kraken would chisel out iridescent shells to make his divination tools.
Could he be anymore stereotypical?
“I mean, I’ve never even seen anything like this before, so how am I—”
I watched in awe as tiny fractals of purple magic flowed where she touched the carvings.
