Page 23 of The Mating Fire
“I have my reasons.” Unsmiling, he advanced. “You’re here until I wish to let you go.”
In the depths of his deep brown eyes, she saw desire swirling, and dark intentions. Harper backed up until she hit the bed. His gaze flickered to the mussed sheets, and he gave a slow smile.
Seducer. Strong and willing to take whatever he wished, he had her in his sights. Harper scrambled to the room’s other side, her bare feet making slapping sounds against the cold tile. An image sprang to mind, their naked flesh slapping against each other as they tangled in bed…
Harper flung out her hands as he stalked closer. Blue fire billowed out from her hands, smacking into him like a flame thrower.
The flames swirled around him, and he reached out a hand, seemed to snatch them out of air as a cat would capture a bird. His fist closed around them, and the fire vanished.
Not burned, not scorched. Nothing.
He nodded slowly. “Good. Your powers are fledgling but there.”
“What do you want with me?”
“I’m not going to hurt you. Not unless you wish it. I’m quite good at fulfilling women’s fantasies.” His knowing smirk indicated he could see into the darkness heart of her, know her intimate thoughts and desires.
“Who are you?” she demanded, glad her voice remained steady.
He gave a little bow. “Jared Griffin. I seldom frequent the bar scene, thanks to the witch who cursed me.”
Cursed? What kind of curse? Everything seemed surreal.
“I remember you from the bar, but I was last at the volcano and …” Her voice dropped. “I saw a demon that terrified me.”
For a moment a shadow crossed his expression. Then the same hard look came over him.
“The demon you probably remember is a tenth level demon and with your blowing smoke and flames up his ass, you woke him up.”
His deep voice sounded ominous. “And he’s quite hungry.”
Taking another step toward her, he jammed his hands into his pockets. “As you are, I can imagine. You’ve had quite an eventful night and coming into your magick expends plenty of calories you must replenish in order to keep up your strength.”
Head pounding, she pressed her fingers to her throbbing temples. “Why am I here?”
He spoke slowly, annunciating each syllable. “I told you, I brought you here until I tire of you. As it happens, you’re safehere from the demon at the volcano. My castle is a refuge. He cannot invade my home unless someone here invites him.”
Jared shrugged. “Rules of hospitality, I suppose.”
“How? This place… the snowy mountains… we’re not in Java anymore.”
“Peru.”
Good heavens, her headache grew worse. “How did you get me here?”
His heavy-lidded gaze met hers. “I suppose I could lie and tell you we took my private jet. I teleported you here from Java. I have magick as you have, only we are different.”
Harper stared at him. “Different?”
“I’m an incubus demon. A sex demon.”
He announced this as if telling her he was a financial analyst.
This was crazy. Trapped here with a sex demon and discovering she had magick powers?
It was difficult enough to digest the fact the people who raised her weren’t her parents and her real mother and father were dead.
Her head pounded and her stomach roiled. She was a scientist, studying to be a volcanologist and this was a fantasy brought on by too much work. Harper pinched herself. Closed her eyes. Opened them.
