Good Intentions 3: Personal Demons (16 page)

The door closed.

Hands slipped around his hips and found his groin. Breasts rested against his back. He felt lips on his neck, just below his ear. “As much as I adore them, I so love this moment when we are finally alone again,” Lorelei whispered.

“This moment where you’re behind me and I’m staring at the door?” Alex joked.

Her hands seized his wrists. She pushed her trusting lover up against the door, stepping in close to keep her body against his. “Yes,” she hissed.

Alex laughed. He felt his own breath bounce back from the door against his face and laughed at that, too. Her hands roamed. One of them went up his side underneath his shirt. The other deftly slipped between his waist and the door to unfasten his belt. “Okay, that works.”

“Sometimes I wonder if I push too much,” she confessed, her lips brushing against his ear.

“We’ve both got our safe words.”

“No. It’s not that.” Her fingers slipped under the seam of his boxer briefs. “It’s when I advise you and our friends. When I speak from experience. It’s the age gap that others sometimes point out…when only one of us is present,” she noted with a dry hint of disdain. “No one ever brings it up when we are together, which says more about them than it says for us. But it is there.”

“I think it’s hot.” He could feel his body succumb to her touch. It wasn’t like he had reason to resist. The trembling anticipation felt good.

“So many men would find it galling. Frustrating.” Her voice grew thoughtful. Slightly, but noticeably, her arousing touch receded. He didn’t feel her breath on his ear. “I’m sure you’ve heard this. If not about me, then about other men in their relationships. That they’re whipped. That their women ‘mother’ them.”

“You worry about that?” he asked. “I didn’t think you worried about anything.”

“Even I have my doubts sometimes. One might say it is the difference between confidence and arrogance. At least I hope so. I know your desires. I know your love. Yet I don’t know your every thought.” Her head leaned against his. He felt her breath on the nape of his neck. “Have you not heard such things?”

“Sure.”

“Does it not bother you? Not out of concern for what others think, but…do you never feel this way?”

“No,” Alex said. “What if our roles were reversed? What if I was the older and wiser guy trying to give my young hot girlfriend advice based on experience? Would it even be a question? Nobody would think twice. That tells me it’s not about age at all.” He shrugged, but only a little, not wanting her to back further away. “But you already know that, right?”

“Yes,” she said. “I’m not used to men knowing it.”

A grin spread across his face. “Turns out us Millennials can be pretty enlightened compared to old folks.” She laughed out loud, leaning her head against his. It only made him grin wider. “Don’t lie,” he teased. “You know you like that about me.”

“I do, Alex,” she agreed. “You’ve no idea how much.” Her touch grew intimate again. He could feel her fingers against his skin at his groin…and the brush of her tail as it, too, slipped beneath fabric to slide against his skin. “Alex,” she whispered into his ear. “Do you trust me?”

“With my life,” he answered easily.

“Good.” Again, she demonstrated both her strength and grace, this time in quickly turning him around to push his back up against the door. She held his arms against the door, one with her hand and the other with her tail. Her other hand stroked his chin.

His heartbeat grew stronger. Though never one to overlook Lorelei’s beauty, he felt intensely conscious of it now. Her glamour left him nearly aching. So did her intense stare.

“Do you remember our first time…master?”

His breath came out heavily. “Of course.”

“As do I.” Her lips brushed his open, leaving him defenseless against a kiss that he felt certain could drown a man. Her passion could kill. It had killed countless people before him. Lorelei could wield her beauty as a weapon—one that had brought countless others to ruin. She turned all of that ability on Alex, as she had so many times for months. Knowing he was safe with her in no way diminished the thrill.

He’d worried in their first time together that he was playing with fire. Now he knew that was exactly what he’d done. He also knew he had nothing to fear. The fire loved him.

The tongue that invaded and caressed his mouth withdrew. Her lips released him, as did her hand and her tail, yet his back stayed pressed against the door. Lost in her kiss, he hadn’t noticed as she’d unbuttoned his shirt. The nail of her index finger extended into a sharp talon, which she effortlessly used to cut away his undershirt. Her gaze held his the entire time, until she broke the loving staredown in favor of kissing his neck.

That kiss trailed down his body, as did the touch of her fingers. He didn’t move. As he said, never forgot their first time together.

Lorelei sank to her knees. Alex felt his nerves tremble with anticipation, but his body didn’t shake. He held still as those soft, skilled fingers took hold of his hardened flesh and easily stroked him to great pleasure.

Her eyes turned up toward his as her lips and tongue made their first contact against his shaft. Alex breathed heavily as he fought to keep his eyes open. He watched her hands work him, watched her tease him with soft lips and kisses, and then groaned as her mouth enveloped his flesh with ecstasy.

She indulged him for a long time, knowing exactly when to slow and when to change her technique to deny him release. He never protested. His lover only wanted to prolong his pleasure. They played this game often. As much as he enjoyed having the roles reversed, and as good as he’d gotten at it himself, Alex knew she’d always be the better player.

He didn’t mind.

“Standard casino smell: cigarettes, old people, and regret,” grumbled Alex.

The constant high-pitched tones from the slot machines hit him almost as hard as the scent from the moment he walked in with Onyx and Molly. He recognized the fake sounds of jingling coins piped in around the slots to raise the players’ hopes. At the center of the main floor, under a high ceiling painted with fantastically swirling clouds of a nighttime sky, Alex saw a bar and tables for card games. Restaurants and other diversions were laid out around the edges of the vast floor. As with the other casinos he’d seen, most of the space seemed dedicated to slots.

The place seemed lively and busy. In truth not even half the patrons were elderly, but Alex’s memories refused to give up their hold on his attitude. Anyone who looked old enough for a senior citizen’s discount seemed to be there specifically to reinforce his negative emotions. So did every glum, dreary face sitting in front of the slot machines.

He never understood how anyone could find this entertaining.

“How many casinos have you been in, Alex?” asked Molly. She wore her usual goth-punk clothes and leather jacket. Onyx walked beside her, foregoing her typical black dresses for slacks and a dark silk shirt under her black frock coat. Neither of them wanted to impress more than they wanted to be prepared for trouble.

“A few. Been a long time, though. Not since my parents divorced. We went to Vegas a couple times on ‘family trips.’ I wound up looking for my dad on the casino floor more than once. Security always caught me ‘cause I was little and obviously didn’t belong there, but even getting caught still meant I’d find his ass.”

“Did your dad have a gambling problem?”

“Not really. Casinos were just a lure for his
actual
problem.” The leggy waitress that passed by with a polite smile reminded him of how closely they shared that trait. Still, as his head turned and his eyes followed her, Alex corrected himself. It wasn’t a shared
problem
. Sex wasn’t a sin. His father lied, cheated, and hurt people who loved him. Alex lived a very different life.

“This is as good a chance for a last-minute gut check as any,” said Molly. “Are we ready?”

“I’m ready,” Onyx confirmed.

Alex patted the pockets of his jeans. He’d made sure to keep an iron nail in one pocket at all times ever since the witches told him it helped ward off magic. Tonight he carried one in each pocket. The two weapons hidden under his leather jacket with some magical help from Onyx were still tucked in place, too. “I’m good to go.”

Onyx glanced past his shoulder toward the card tables. He’d made a point of not looking that way once they arrived, but she had a subtle enough line of sight to look without making it obvious. They were set for the meeting. Back-up was nearby. Onyx took in a long, slow, deep breath and released it to steady her nerves. “Okay. Let’s do it.”

* * *

“Ah can’t tell y’all how happy ah am t’ be out with all y’all tonight.”

Taylor looked up from her cards with a quizzical frown. Seated on a stool on the other end of the blackjack table, Drew caught her gaze. “Give it a second,” he said. “You’ll catch up.”

She looked over at Wade, eyes narrowing in continued confusion, and then blinked again in sudden understanding. “Oh. Wow, you’re right. Now I get it.”

“Whut?”

“What you said,” Taylor elaborated. “I get it now.”

“You’ve gone full hick on us again, bro,” Jason told him.

“Yeah, ah know,” Wade admitted. “It’s whut happens whenever ah go home for the holidays or whatever. Mah accent comes back in spades. Hell, they even give me lectures on how ah’m talkin’ all wrong.”

Most of the crew dressed for a night out, though they stopped short of getting fancy. Even Taylor stuck with nice jeans rather than a dress. The only exception was the woman seated between her and Wade, who arrived in a sleek black dress and heels. “I find you perfectly articulate,” Lorelei assured him. “Eloquent as always.”

“Shit, that’s sweet of you to lie to me,” he said with a puppy dog smile. “Don’t worry, y’all, it’ll fade back t’ normal.”

“You’ve been back for over a week,” observed Drew.

“Ah know, but ah been talkin’ to a couple cousins a lot on Skype since mah trip, so the transition’s takin’ longer this time.”

“The transition to what?” asked Taylor.

“Back t’ usin’ the same west coast accent y’all use.”

“He’s got this idea that we have accents,” Jason explained for Taylor and Lorelei. “Been a thing for him since middle school.”

Drew scowled. “Dude, whatever. We sat through that same video in high school about regional differences. Everybody has accents, even us. And Wade ain’t never picked it up. His southern just gets easier to understand.”

“It’s true,” Wade agreed solemnly. “An’ then mah southern kin get all bent outta shape when ah go back an’ can’t talk right.” He looked to Taylor as if to confess the worst crimes of his past. “They tell me ah use ‘y’all’ as a form of address to parties singular
and
plural.”

“So?”

“It’s supposed to be plural. There ain’t no ‘you all’ if’n there’s only one of ya.”

Lorelei frowned skeptically. “And yet I’ve heard it done countless times.”

“Maybe, but didja ever
challenge
a southerner on that point?” Wade shook his head. “Don’t do it.”

“This is from the same people that brought us ‘should ought’ and ‘would ought,’” noted Jason.

Lorelei looked down at her cards with a smile. “I so enjoy your company.”

“Is that a slam?” asked Jason.

“And also the truth.” She looked up then, glancing around the casino floor beyond the card and table game area. “They’re here.”

“How can you tell?” asked Taylor.

“Trade secret, I’m afraid.”

Jason glanced over to make sure the dealer was distracted before he leaned in and asked, “Is it a karmic metaphysical demon connection to his soul? Or is it a sex thing?”

“I’m afraid the details would cause you spiritual harm,” she answered mildly.

Her companions nodded and said in unison, “Sex thing.”

Lorelei sighed. “And here I wasn’t planning to humiliate you all for at least the first few hands tonight. Alas. Plans change.”

“Heh,” laughed Wade as the others groaned. “
’You all.’
Like that’s any way to talk.”

* * *

They passed the cashier’s windows along the far wall from the entrance, a bank of elevators leading to the hotel attached to the casino, and more diversions. Eventually they came to a roped-off hallway leading to a ballroom. Two large men in suits stood at the velvet ropes, looking as pleasant and casual as if they were merely blocking off an out-of-service bathroom.

“We’re here for the seminar,” Molly told them cheerfully.

“One moment, ma’am,” said one of the men. The other turned away slightly and murmured something into his wrist.

Onyx snickered. “He called you ‘
ma’am
,’” she teased.

“Hey there, ladies,” called a deep, easygoing voice behind them. His Jamaican accent was unmistakable. Alex and the witches turned to see a tall, handsome black man approaching. He wore a suit under his tan trench coat, though he didn’t wear it much like it was intended. Alex saw no tie. His shirt was unbuttoned halfway down and only half of it was tucked in. Somehow, he made it look good, too. “Guess they lettin’ anyone into this party, eh?”

“Hi, Hector,” Molly replied brightly. “I was hoping we’d see you here.”

Alex watched as the tall man greeted his companions. He saw smiles all around, but no hugs. Nothing more than fist-bumps. Hector sized up the witches, the suited guards, and Alex with easygoing glances that a less vigilant man might’ve overlooked.

Naturally, that left Alex wondering in which if any of his previous lives he’d learned to watch for such things. He couldn’t remember anyone ever teaching him how to read dangerous people, but he had no doubt this was a dangerous man.

“Hector, this is Alex,” Molly continued. “He’s kind of our plus-one for tonight.”

“Ah. Gotcha. Nice to meet you,” said Hector as they shook hands. Alex noted something new in his eye in that moment. Hector sized him up, to be sure, but something in that look suggested he gave Alex a lower priority than rest.

It worked for Alex. That was his job for tonight. “You, too,” he said, and otherwise kept his mouth shut. Best to follow Onyx and Molly’s leads. This was their party.

“So I imagine you got a personal visit along with your invitation?” Hector asked the witches.

“Yeah, we did,” said Onyx. “Kate visited you, too? Gave you the ‘neutral zone’ pitch?”

“Nah. Jin dropped by my place last week. He talked about their safe space idea, but didn’t mention how anyone plans to enforce it. Maybe we all dogpile the first person to step out of line, but that ain’t much different from what we’ve got now, you know?”

“Ugh. I hadn’t even thought about that,” Molly admitted. “I skipped right past enforcement and started worrying about this inevitably leading to a power-hungry government or something.”

“That won’t happen ‘til there’s a reason to tax everyone,” said Hector. “Although they could always hire someone to enforce their neutral spot, an’ whoever does that has to be paid somehow, right?” He flashed her a taunting grin. “Am I makin’ you feel better yet?”

“Yeah, you’re a real pal, Hector,” she grumbled.

As the witches chatted with Hector, a pair of dark-haired women emerged from the ballroom doors. Alex recognized the older woman as Kate from the descriptions Molly and Onyx had given. Her clothes and demeanor reminded him of the attorneys he used to work for.

Her companion, however, seemed closer to his age, with her hair tied back into a ponytail and her clothes a little more casual than Kate’s. The denim jacket, fingerless gloves, and wary gaze all put a rugged edge on her attractive looks. Alex guessed she might be Native American like Kate. Given her demeanor and her posture, the memories of the men he used to be categorized her as someone who could absolutely kick his ass.

“Ladies. Hector. Glad to see you,” said Kate as she came to the other side of the velvet rope. She glanced only once at Alex, then to the witches. “Is he with you?”

“Yeah,” answered Molly. “This is Alex.”

Kate nodded and turned to the security suits. “They’re clear, thank you,” she said. The men unhooked one end of the rope from its base and brought it out of the way. “Please come in,” Kate said, gesturing for the guests to follow her back to the ballroom. “Almost everyone is here. We’re only waiting on a few others.”

“You’re screening everyone yourself?” asked Onyx.

“We have good security help, but not everyone knows how to spot Practitioners or their work,” Kate explained casually.

Alex said nothing as they crossed the hallway. By the time they made it to the door, Kate’s companion drifted from her side to come within arm’s reach of him. He turned his head and offered a polite, curious smile. She said nothing. She also didn’t hide the fact that she was watching him.

He turned his eyes front as they came to the doors, wondering if he was supposed to be subtle about the “I know you’re watching me” game. Then the ballroom doors opened and suddenly he had other things on his mind.

The ballroom offered far more space and seating than its occupants needed. Several round tables were arranged in a semicircle in the center of the room, with a projector and canvas screen arranged to the front and center. A few dozen men and women in respectable clothes chatted in scattered groups. No one carried an owl on their shoulder or leaned on an ornate staff, let alone openly brandished wands or wore robes and big hats. If Alex didn’t know better, he might have thought he’d walked into an actual seminar.

Everyone seemed cordial and polite enough. Alex even saw many signs of genuine warmth. It wasn’t until his eyes fell upon a well-dressed, middle-aged couple that he detected some animosity. She was blonde and bespectacled, wearing a fancy cream-colored dress and gloves. He wore a dark suit with a purple shirt and ascot of all things, and in keeping with the horrors Onyx had warned him about, the guy’s grey beard included no mustache. From the stories the witches had told him, Alex pegged the two as Hypatia and Archimedes—or at least, that was what they wanted other Practitioners to call them. Behind them stood a burlier man in a dark uniform and hat appropriate for a limousine chauffer.

The two older Practitioners and the driver didn’t look their way, instead focusing on the smaller group nearby. They hovered at the edge of a conversation waiting for a chance to break in and join the group.

Onyx seemed to spot them in the same moment as Alex. Her hand drifted back to squeeze his before falling away again.

“Seems like most of the people I know in the area,” said Molly. “Kate’s people are here, Jin’s guys are here, the Grecians, the Evergreeners, Olympia’s douchiest…are the Light still coming?”