Page 38 of Beneath the Watching

He and Micha stared at her, causing my hackles to rise. I’d keep her from them if it was the last thing I did. The urgency to remove my woman from the surrounding madness continued to rise but I couldn’t leave without instigating a battle of my own, not until the two men took their own leave.

In the order of hierarchy amongst my kind, they were near the top of the food chain.

Micha spoke up just as Ramone pinned a guard to the wall with a sword. “Tell no one you saw us,” he ordered, tossing a casual glance Mabel’s way, needing to say nothing further of the consequences of disobedience. “Tomorrow, Stefan.”

A metallic screeching reverberated through the hall as Mabel trembled in my arms. Ramone had become so enraged that he’d begun to succumb to the lesser, base form of the demon he was. He lay on the floor, wrapped in iron chains, with his mouth stretched open full of razor-sharp teeth.

The two men vanished without so much as a flicker of the atmosphere. Immediately, I grabbed Mabel and hurried us back to my living quarters and settled her on the couch in my receiving room.

Benjamin and Jack lingered in the room, bringing her water and a dish of pasta, fussing over her with the blankets and amusing me. They were behaving uncharacteristically affectionately, with a paternal air. I wasn’t sure what came over them, but I didn’t feel threatened, and I wasn’t going to complain. The more people looking out for her, the better.

“What...what happened? What was that noise? Did that man make it?” Mabel stammered, placing the bowl of food down on the table and swapping it for the glass of water.

I sank onto the cushions beside her and grabbed her cup after she sipped some of the liquid, setting it down on a coaster. “He did. He was banished and Ilya took possession of Kiara.”

Her big eyes peeked up at me. “But why can’t I speak with her? It might help.”

I rubbed my chin and leaned back. “It would draw attention, and I’m not willing to risk that. To risk you. And Ilya doesn’t want interference, the situation is too delicate. Free will, and Kiara has to make up her own mind.”

She pondered my words for a moment. “Free will doesn’t exist here.”

Mabel was sharper than I gave her credit for. “Guided free will.”

She tilted her head. “Then it's not free will.”

I stood up and held out my hand. “The laws here will take some getting used to.” She took my hand and followed me to the bedroom. “You’ll learn more as we go.”

I pushed the doors shut and locked them behind me, waving my hand over the mechanism and spelling it for extra security.

“Are you sure it's okay I sleep in here? Where will you sleep?” Mabel glanced between me and the bed, smoothing her hand down the front of her dress.

Stepping closer to her, I clasped her hands and threaded my fingers through hers. I pulled her arms up and took another step before releasing her hands, forcing them to splay against my chest. “How much do you like this dress?” I asked her, my voice low.

She tried to look down, but I’d closed the space between us, grabbing her hips. “It's beautiful, I love it, thank you for getting it for me,” she said, keeping her gaze lowered.

“Mm. I’m about to break your heart.” I rolled my hands up her sides and traced the bodice of her gown with a finger, pleased at the sound of her intake of breath. I hooked the top edge of her dress, and curled my other hand around the lace, slowly tearing it down the front. The noise of the fabric ripping echoed through the room, and she gasped. It was the sweetest sound I’d ever heard, and I determined then and there I’d never hear the end of her delicious cries.

Her mouth hung open as the material pooled around her feet. “What kind of priest are you?”

I let out a short laugh. With everything that had transpired, I was surprised she still remembered I was an unholy man. I waved my hand over the lump of material, directing it to repair itself while Mabel watched, wide-eyed.

After removing my tie, I began unbuttoning my shirt as she stood motionless in front of me, clad only in a G-string. Her breasts hung freely, having been supported by the corset of the gown, with rosy nipples just begging for my teeth to sink into. Saliva gathered on the back of my tongue. My senses were heightened by the delicate fragrance of her desire hanging suspended in the air. I could only imagine the crimson aura streaming around the lower half of her body.

It killed me I couldn’t see it.

Slowly, I removed my belt all the while keeping my eyes on her. The drag of leather against fabric resounded through the space as she backed away. I let her. Where was she going to go? I wound the band around my fist and removed the rest of my clothing before stalking forward.

She scooted onto the bed and began crawling, her ass swaying back and forth as she tried to make her escape. Snatching her by the ankle, she let out a yelp and I dragged her back to me. “You told me once that you don’t sin.” I grinned at her. “I’ll deliver absolution for your disobedience anyway.”

I wanted to punish her for taking control of me, for making me vulnerable and weak. At the same time, I wanted to give her the experience of pain assuaged by pleasure and free her from the confines of her mind in a way that healed us both, gave the two of us what we needed. She needed to feel free. I needed to feel in control.

She began panting, her eyes wide. “Are you crazy? What are you going to do?”

Her chest was heaving, but her pussy gave her away. Her undergarment was soaked, and I had to swallow before I could speak again.

“Even if you repent, it's too late. I’ve got you precisely where I want you.” The only thing she had done wrong was to unwittingly draw my attention one fateful evening at the casino, but I loved how nervous she became whenever I referenced my priesthood.

I lowered myself to the edge of the mattress and yanked her the rest of the way over, her ebony tresses splayed across the bed, begging me to knot them between my fingers. Lifting her easily onto my lap, I arranged her onto her belly as she continued to wiggle.

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