Page 24 of Incubus with Benefits
I didn’t say anything right away. Just curled closer. “I know you had nothing to do with it. I don’t know exactly how I know, but call it intuition.”
“I need you to understand something,” he said, after a beat. “Delerium isn’t just a business. Yes, it’s a source of income. But that wasn’t why I opened it. I did it for other incubi like me. So they’d never starve again. Never have to wonder if their next conquest would end up being a power-hungry wizard eager to entrap them for the next century.”
I blinked, lifting my head to look at him. “That’s what happened to Prax, wasn’t it? I asked Penny once, but she didn’t go into detail.”
“Something like that.”
“You said starve,” I said. “I know incubi need sexual energy to survive, but I don’t really understand how it works.”
His arms tightened around me. “If our well of energy runs dry, we lose the ability to stay solid. We slip into soul form. And once that happens, it’s almost impossible to rebuild the reserve. We don’t die, not exactly. But we might as well be since we can’t interact with anything and no one can see us.”
“I didn’t know.” I swallowed hard. The thought of Julian or Prax fading forever into almost nothing, unable to interact with anyone, was chilling. “So the club is more than just pleasure. It’s survival.”
“It’s sanctuary. It was opened in memory of an old friend. His name was Justin, and he was like a brother to me.” He looked out into the room like he expected this friend to be there watching him, invisible to the world. “It’s rumored that even after an incubus fades away, they could still come back if they absorb enough sexual energy just from their surroundings. I’m not sure if he’s here, and I know it’s silly to believe it. But if he is, I hope this place is enough to bring him back one day.”
My heart wrenched for the incubus in my arms. There was so much more to Julian than I’d given him credit for.
“I hope so too.”
And as I cuddled into him, I knew I’d never look at that strobe-lit dance floor the same way again.
Chapter 12
Lily
Iwasparkedatmy usual corner table in Griselda’s coffee shop, laptop open, caffeine pumping through my veins, the names of missing witches staring back at me from my screen. They’d found one of the women, who’d only been avoiding her smotheringly overprotective family. I didn’t blame her, considering they’d gone to the police when she wouldn’t tell them which friend she was staying with.
That left three women still unaccounted for. All of them were witches who’d worked on that hostile portal.
I looked up at the brass moon-phase clock on the wall. Anytime now, Officer Hayes and Cooley should walk in for their daily cuppa joe.
Griselda’s coffee shop was a shrine to kitsch and caffeine. Everything screamed warm and cozy, a perfectly eclectic safe haven for a modern witch. The shelves were overflowing with mismatched teacups, crystal balls, and unique salt and pepper shakers. A framed photo near the counter showed the shop’s exterior from a decade ago, complete with a faded tarot-reading sign. Beneath the photo, a plaque announced to the world that Griselda failed at witchcraft but brewed a damn fine coffee.
I knew that to be a bald-faced lie, because as a witch, Gigi was stronger than me by far. Her magical oddities had long since spilled down from her apartment above the shop and taken over the cafe. It was the kind of place where I could dig into magical conspiracies without raising eyebrows.
I’d spent the morning digging into the lives of these three women. And just like Flint had suggested, every single one of them had been there that afternoon the witches of Darlington had gotten together and almost closed that creepy, swirling portal of doom. Coincidence?
Please, witch. I didn’t believe in those.
It wasn’t proof, but it was suspicious enough to make my inner sleuth senses tingle.
My laptop dinged and I looked back down at the screen. I was chatting with a user from theLet’s Talk About Hexforum,Moonshadow13, who was part of Marissa’s coven. She’d been cagey at first, barely responding beyond a few clipped lines. But once I mentioned that a rogue spell had knocked me out cold at Delerium, the tone shifted. The moment Delerium came up, she started messaging me in earnest.
Apparently, she’d been at Delerium with her that night, but had left early, and felt guilty she hadn’t been there. She was hesitant when I asked about Nathan, saying that she wasn’t sure it was him, but Marissa’s family, specifically her father, wouldn’t hear any of it.
I mentioned the portal, and judging by hertyping…status, she had a lot to say about it. I was still waiting for her to send her message when the chime to the café door rang, signaling a new customer.
I looked up at the sound of the bell, expecting Officers Hayes and Cooley. Instead, I got Steven.
Ugh. What the hell was he doing here? I’d never seen him in here before.
I looked over at Gigi, and she raised her brows in question.
Steven stood in the doorway. His hair was gelled into a helmet, and he wore a blazer that screamed This is the extent of my style. His cologne attacked my nose, overpowering the scent of coffee and cream.
He spotted me instantly, eyes lighting up in a way that told me all I needed to know: he was here looking for me. Which begged the question: how did he know where to find me?
“I thought I might find you here,” he said, strutting toward me.
