Virtue: A Knight World Novel (Fireborn Wolves Book 2) Page 8

  “Oh no, Jason.” If anything happened to him, Artemis would be so disappointed in her. He was her responsibility and obviously not in his right mind. She sprinted into his room, looking for anything that might give her a clue to where he might go.

  Next to his laptop, a box carved out of ebony sat on top of a pile of paperwork. She’d seen the snake on the lid before. Yes, the ring Jason had worn. She flipped it open. Empty, of course. Still, Jason had been toying with the box. Why?

  “Lost Things,” she read off the label on the bottom. It was worth a try.

  She reached for her phone. She was going to need transportation.

  “Are you sure you want to be dropped off here, miss?” the Uber driver asked. “This is a bad neighborhood. Real bad. I won’t be able to wait for you while you’re inside.”

  Selene heard a high-pitched scream from somewhere down the alley followed by running footsteps that faded with distance. She hesitated. Stacks of books with worn titles waited just inside the front window, only one that she could read from her seat—The Glory of the Dead. An antique doll’s head with a half-burned face leaned against the stack next to what looked like a human skull.

  “I hate the sign,” the driver said. “Look at the eyes. Is the little boy lost physically or lost in another way?” The big man shivered.

  “I… I don’t know,” Selene said, glancing at the Lost Things logo.

  “Well, it gives me the creeps. Either go in now or I’m charging you for the ride back. I’m not staying here another minute.”

  She apologized and tipped him a few dollars. Steeling her resolve, she hopped out of the midsize sedan and hurried into the shop. The bell above the door chimed, heralding her entrance.

  A man she was sure was a vampire turned from a shelf that held nothing but baskets of bones, sorted by size. He flashed her a little fang before resuming his shopping. The place stank of moldy parchment and bad taxidermy, but Selene shuffled deeper into the store.

  “You’re in the wrong place, angel,” a man’s voice said. He seemed to appear out of thin air beside her, dark and menacing. Not dark skinned, just dark. Black hair, black eyes, a complexion with olive undertones, and upturned eyes she couldn’t associate with any specific supernatural species or the human race. But his presence was dark as if the night air had become corporal beside her.

  “I’m no angel.”

  “But your soul doesn’t belong in this zip code.” His voice was burning cinder blocks.

  “I… are you the owner of this store?” She held up the box.

  “Now… where did you get that, angel?”

  “From Jason Fl—”

  “Shhh. We have a strict privacy policy here. I know of whom you speak. What business is he of yours?”

  “I’m supposed to be watching him… helping him. But he went crazy and left his apartment. I need to find him.” She lowered her voice. “He’s not in his right mind. He might not be safe. Do you know where he is?”

  The door chimed—the vampire leaving.

  “I know where I told him to go, but it is no place for you, angel. Jason’s vice needs to be fed, and with that dragon fae at large, there is only one safe place to do it.”

  “Where? Can I walk there from here?”

  “Not if you want to arrive with a beating heart.”

  Known for her even temperament, Selene wasn’t usually the type of person to act out. But she was tired and scared and woefully sick of the dark man’s cryptic language. In one slick motion, she plucked a dagger off a nearby shelf and brought it to his throat, violently gripping the man’s upper arm.

  “Enough,” she said with a growl. “Take me to Jason. Now! He’s my responsibility. Whatever this place is, I can handle it.”

  The man dissolved from her grip. One minute there, the next a pillar of black smoke that smelled of sulfur. He returned to human form a few feet away from her. She lowered the blade.

  He rubbed his shoulder where she’d gripped him. “No angel, indeed,” he murmured. “Very well, I will take you, but I won’t be responsible for the consequences.”

  Chapter 11

  Jason climbed the steps of Maison des Étoilles mechanically, awake but with arms and legs moving toward the bordello without any conscious effort. When he reached the door, it opened of its own volition. A slight figure with silky black hair and long pale limbs welcomed him inside. She was naked other than a grouping of starlike light that hovered over her nipples and dripped like icicles down her abdomen and between her legs. Fae magic.

  “Welcome.” The smile the fae gave him sparkled unnaturally in the dim light.

  “One,” he said. He handed her a wad of cash.

  She whispered something into a small microphone in a language Jason didn’t understand. “Is there a name you’d prefer to be called?

  “No names.”

  She bowed slightly. “As you wish. Follow me.” She led him deeper within the dark paneled walls and red velvet of the bordello. “We don’t ask your desires here at Maison des Étoilles. Every girl is capable of reading your thoughts. She will adapt the session based on your deepest fantasies.”

  “How adaptable are they?”

  “Within these walls, we can take on the form of anyone, man, woman, or beast. If you’d like multiples, one can become two, but any more require additional help. She’ll ring me if she can’t accommodate you.” The hostess gave him a wink.

  “One… woman is all I need. Thank you.”

  Opening a door for him, she fluttered her lashes in his direction. “As you wish. But please understand, our only goal is to please you. There’s no need to hide anything from us here. We are rarely surprised by our guests’ deepest desires.” She turned and swayed down the hall toward the hostess stand.

  He stepped into the room, the light from the hall extinguishing as the door closed behind him. For a moment, he was lost in darkness; then a red light clicked on, illuminating a four-poster bed with a gauzy white canopy. A curvy brunette slunk from the shadows, completely naked except for a black mask that covered most of her face.

  “Look at those amber eyes. Someone is hungry,” she said. “Very hungry. We won’t waste another minute.” She reached for his belt buckle, her full breasts bobbing with the effort of unbuckling it.

  She was good, he had to admit. This was what he desired. A fast, surgical coupling that would appease the wolf and give him control over his life again. It didn’t matter what she looked like or what she said or did. That wasn’t why he was here.

  Naked in a matter of minutes, Jason let his wolf take control. He spun her around and bent her over. The wolf didn’t bother with foreplay or asking her name or analyzing his desires. It was instinct. Dominance. Action. He was about to thrust into her when she turned her head, looking at him over her shoulder. Her mask disappeared and the curvy brunette transformed into a long-waisted beauty with caramel tresses and violet eyes that flashed in his direction.

  “Selene,” he murmured. The change in her appearance did nothing to quell his desire. On the contrary, it ignited a yearning deep within him. No longer did he want a quick fuck. He wanted to touch her. Wanted to feel her silky skin. He reached out, his fingers coasting along soft pale flesh.

  Her full lips parted in response, a moan spilling over that perfect pink tongue. She pressed her hips back, but he didn’t enter her. Couldn’t, although he wanted to. Not Selene. Far from being a pleasurable experience, touching the Selene look-alike triggered shockwaves that rolled through him like a ball of barbed wire. He could take her and it would satisfy his wolf’s hunger, but it would also shred him. She was too good. Too pure. And he wasn’t worthy. The heavy, sinking feeling in his chest had a name. It was shame, pure and simple.

  The Selene look-alike reached for him. “My, my, Selene is a lucky girl.”

  “Don’t do that. Don’t say her name.”

  The woman stopped. “As you wish. Would you like me to be more aggressive? Your thoughts are conflicted.”

  J
ason stared at her, torn between scratching his own skin off and taking her up on her offer. Fuck, he was screwed up. He pressed the heels of his palms into his eyes.

  Unexpectedly, the decision was made for him. The door flew open and light as bright as the rising sun flooded over his naked body. Soleil.

  “Jason, what are you doing here?” His brother’s ex-girlfriend entered the room, glowing like she’d swallowed the sun. And of course, in a way she had. Soleil, like all the women at the bordello, was celestial fae. Each had a planet or star that powered their existence. Hers was the sun itself, and the effect was extraordinary. “Do I need to call your brother?”

  “No. And I’d appreciate you giving me the same privacy you provide your other patrons,” he said, trying unsuccessfully to cover himself.

  “My other patrons don’t have a werewolf acolyte sitting in my foyer demanding to see them, with an incubus demon backup no less. He’s sniffing the customers. Some of my girls can feel him drawing on their energy.”

  “Selene is here?”

  “Indeed.” Soleil handed him his pants and gave him a pitying look. “You and your money are always welcome here, Jason, but please get dressed. I’m sure you understand. The incubus is bad for business.”

  “I needed a release. You saw how dangerous my vice can be, Selene. I might’ve hurt you if I hadn’t used the bordello.” Still could hurt her. His wolf, although distracted, had yet to be appeased.

  Selene didn’t say a word. She entered his apartment looking tired and smelling slightly of sulfur.

  “You shouldn’t have gone to Lost Things. That place is dangerous. A woman like you could get hurt.”

  “A woman like me?”

  “An acolyte. An innocent.”

  Selene tossed her purse on the sofa and retrieved a bottle of water from the fridge. “I’m not as helpless as you think.”

  “I don’t think you’re helpless, okay?” Jason took a seat at the table, feeling like a supreme asshole for everything that had happened that night. “I just think… what’s going on with me is a little out of your league. I don’t think this is going to work out. I need a different kind of therapy.”

  She strode toward him, leaning her hip against the side of the table, her round bottom coming tantalizingly close to the place his hand rested on the white oak top. Move his pinky an inch and he’d be touching her, feeling the firmness of her flesh taut beneath the fabric of her jeans.

  “I’m here for a reason, and I don’t give up easily,” she said. He heard her voice as if his head were under water. He pictured his hand stroking down her stomach. A growl rumbled deep within him.

  He licked his lips. His mouth had gone dry, bone dry. And her body shimmered like a cool glass of water. He squirmed under her violet stare, his gaze raking over her chest, her torso, her legs. Although it was clear she’d sensed him staring, she didn’t move, didn’t pull away. His wolf stood and his human body followed, rounding the table and pressing in close to her. His hands came to rest on either side of her hips.

  “What are you doing?” she whispered.

  “You’re a beautiful woman. I know you’re attracted to me. I can smell it.”

  “I’m here to help you. It’s time to begin your therapy.”

  “Right. Tapping into my soul. Shouldn’t we get to know each other first?” He licked his lips and lowered his face toward hers. Deep down, Jason knew he was crossing the line, but fuck if he could control himself. Her soft voice, the delicate bones of her face, everything about her was erotically female. And her innocence, that pinnacle of virtue he’d tried to avoid before, was a huge turn-on. She was untouched, an unclaimed land waiting for an explorer to plant his flag.

  “Jason, this isn’t…” She tried to slide out from between his arms. No way was his wolf going to go for that. His palm landed on her waist, her T-shirt bunching so that his hand touched a sliver of her skin. Heat scorched the narrow point of contact, electric sparks tingling through his arm and sending a wave of desire straight to his cock.

  He lifted her bottom fully onto the table, positioning himself between her knees. She leaned away from him, her mouth working as if she wanted to say something but couldn’t form the words. Bringing his nose close to her neck, he inhaled deeply. The sharp tang of her arousal was tempered ever so slightly by a whiff of fear.

  “Don’t fight it, Selene. It’s natural. I’m a male. You’re female. Just two people who need each other, taking solace from an unforgiving world in the safety of each other’s arms.”

  “No,” she said, but the word was flimsy and hollow.

  “Hmm? Your words don’t match the scent you’re putting off, darling.”

  “Don’t call me darling. My name is Selene.” She patted herself on the chest between their bodies. “I’m Selene, Jason. This isn’t you. It’s your vice. Don’t let it own you.”

  “What’s your vice, Selene?” He sniffed up her neck to her ear, so close her body heat seared his flesh. “You’re trembling. What is it that you can’t get enough of?”

  She stilled within his arms, serenity seizing her, filling her from the bottom up. Her violet gaze snapped to his and the blush bled from her cheeks. “Helping people,” she whispered. “I’m so sorry, Jason.”

  “Sorry for what?”

  Selene’s hands landed on his chest. He had a split second to notice the symbols painted on her palms, to wonder what they meant and how long they’d been there, before a shock rocked his body. His muscles seized as a hook seemed to slide between his ribs and dig into his heart. Unable to move anything but his eyes, his gaze locked on hers.

  “I didn’t want to have to do it this way. But you leave me no choice.”

  Chapter 12

  Selene’s vision blurred, everything vibrating like a plucked chord. The walls melted away, and her spirit left her body, crossing into a dark place of spiderwebs and flashes of light. Pulses of energy flowed along strands that crisscrossed around her. Memories. Jason’s memories. She was inside the core of Jason’s personality, every experience tangled around her like a puzzle begging to be solved.

  It was tempting to move toward the warmth coming from the light strands, but that wasn’t why she was here. Oh, she’d do that eventually. Find his anchor the same way Artemis had found hers. But today, she was searching for the source of his vice, a clue to the unfulfilled need that drove his addiction. She turned toward the darkness, the cold. A black tangle at the back of the web, hidden deep within the shadows of his psyche, made her shiver with dread. This was the source, the event that turned a simple, controllable desire for sex into an unmanageable monster that ruled Jason’s life. If he were to overcome his vice, he needed to face this darkness. As she approached, a chill coursed over her skin.

  It was true, he might have been able to find this trigger himself given years of therapy. But he didn’t have years. Whether he admitted it or not, he needed her. The faster he faced this darkness, the sooner he could walk fully in the light and the sooner he could free himself from Nickelova’s hold over him.

  Gently, she reached out and touched the root of the darkest thread. For a heartbeat, it felt rough between her fingers, like spun asphalt, and then she was inside the memory, standing in a college classroom.

  Most of the students were human, but she spotted Jason right away next to the only other shifter Selene sensed in the room. At the front of the lecture hall, a female professor spoke. “Everything we take for granted comes from somewhere. It’s a construct of our chemistry and our environment. What we consider sexual norms are simply those imposed on us by our community.” Her eyes fell on Jason.

  “Why is she staring at you like that?” the boy, the other shifter, whispered to Jason.

  “None of your business.”

  “Is there something going on between you and Ms. Matthews?”

  “Is there a reason you’re not minding your own fucking business?” Jason’s eyes darkened as he turned them on his friend.

  The friend chuckled
. “Dude, she’s hot but she’s twice your age.”

  “Still not your business.”

  The clock ticked to the hour. “Read chapter twenty for Thursday,” Professor Matthews said. “Jason Flynn, I need to see you about your paper.” She held up a stack of stapled assignments.

  “Whatever.” With a sharp look, the shifter next to Jason gathered his things and followed the others out the door.

  Jason stood and descended the stairs of the emptying auditorium, Professor Matthews tapping the toe of her red pump as he neared. “I’m afraid your work isn’t up to par,” she said.

  “I followed the rubric. Everything you asked for is there.”

  “Not everything.”

  “Tell me what’s missing. I’ll rewrite it.”

  “You know what’s missing.”

  He swallowed, hard.

  She gestured toward the door as a student entered early for the next class. “Come with me.” She led him out of the lecture hall and across the building to her office. Jason’s shoulders slumped, his expression like a lamb to slaughter.

  Professor Matthews closed the door behind him, the lock clicking into place. “Now, show me why I should reread this paper, Jason.”

  He dropped his backpack on a leather chair near the window, setting his cell phone on the seat next to it. “This has to stop.”

  “I’ll decide when it stops. Do you want me to reread the paper, or will you be taking an F?”

  Looking disgusted with himself, Jason snatched the paper from her hands and slapped it down on the desk. He grabbed her by the neck and bent her over until her nose touched the printed sheets.

  “No better time than the present,” he said. The hand that wasn’t holding her neck down hitched her skirt up to her waist and unfastened his fly. With a snap, he tore her panties from her hips and tossed them into the garbage bin near her desk. The woman moaned.