Scotty nodded and glanced over at Raika. “Short version: I slept with Blade to save his life,” she explained. “Now, our entire team is falling apart, and I asked Aleka for advice on what to do.”
“Wow.” Raika reached for a pretzel bite, spearing one with a pointed black fingernail. “But that’s easy. Fuck Mace.”
“That’s what I said.” Aleka grinned. “See? I told you it could work.”
“Yeah, well, Mace and Blade agreed.”
“No way.” Aleka’s eyes shot wide. “You’re kidding.”
“Nope.”
“Damn.” Raika smiled darkly, the tips of her fangs glinting in the torchlight that contributed to the restaurant’s hell theme. “You’re playing with fire, girl.” As if on command, flames flickered in Raika’s eyes for a few heartbeats before winking out as if they’d never been there. Scotty was just glad she could control it now. Raika’s teen years had resulted in a lot of burn injuries, scorched furniture, and full-blown fires.
“This could either be a giant success or the biggest mistake ever.” Scotty groaned. “What would you guys do?”
Raika swallowed her pretzel bite. “I’m his aunt, so I wouldn’t go the sex route. Butyoushould ride Mace like a bucking hell stallion.”
Scotty scowled at her friend. “But you’ve always said he’s an ass.”
“He is.” Raika shrugged. “But I respect his ruthlessness. And let’s face it, he’s a Seminus demon, so he’s got to be godlike in bed. You’ll have a great time. I mean, as long as he’s wearing a ball gag and you don’t have to listen to him talk.”
Now, Scotty was picturing him with a ball gag, his fangs penetrating the ball, his cock penetratingher.
She took a few gulps of her ice water, but that didn’t stop the perspiration from beading on her brow.
“I’d meet him in a hotel,” Aleka said, reaching for her drink. “You can’t take him home, because, duh, Dad. And you definitely can’t do it at his place.”
Scotty agreed with not taking him home. She had a house with all the privacy she’d need, but her parents rarely knocked when they came over. Plus, her father had a way of knowing everything that went on within the boundaries of his island.
“Why not Mace’s place?” she asked. “All the bedrooms are soundproofed.”
“You didn’t do it in Blade’s bedroom,” Aleka pointed out. “So, to be fair, you shouldn’t do it in Mace’s. The compound needs to be off-limits, because if this thing goes south, you don’t want anything to taint their living spaces.”
Sometimes, her sister made sense—more than sometimes, but Scotty would never admit it.
“So…let me get this straight,” Raika said. “After you and Mace do the deed, you think everything will go back to normal? You’re not going tohave feelings for either of them?”
“That’s the plan.”
Raika laughed, a deep-throated, head-back laugh that made her corset bounce and her breasts practically pop out. Every male in the place was staring and drooling.
“You are so naïve,” she choked out between laughs.
“Oh, yeah? And what makes you an expert on relationships? I’ve never seen you with a male. Ever.”
They waited for the server to deliver the pizza and plates. When he left, Raika snagged a piece.
“I don’t date,” she said. “I don’t have time. Too many bad guys to catch.”
Poor Raika. She’d been cursed by Heaven to capture the worst demons her father had released. She had a quota, and if she didn’t meet it, the harsh punishment left her in agony for hours.
“Still,” Aleka began, “I can’t believe you’ve never met someone who interests you.”
“Never.”
“Not even a little?” Scotty prodded. “I don’t believe you.”
Raika scrutinized them both, and Scotty wondered if Aleka’s skin felt as flayed as hers. No one could maintain eye contact with her for long, not without increasing discomfort, and Scotty was relieved when Raika finally glanced down at her glass of bloodwine.
