Page 78 of Insatiable

I shake my head. “I don’t think you understand what I want. Pretend we’re in a cheap burger joint. I want my food in paper bags, and the drinks in cups with more than a sip and a half in them. And no fancy cutlery. I’ll be eating these with my fingers.”

His expression tightens just enough for me to know I’m getting under his skin, and that’s exactly what I want.

Eventually, I have exactly what I asked for. My stomach is almost tearing itself out with hunger, but there’s something I have to do. I step through to the platform and summon it.

I’ve been Felix Barclay, billionaire, asshole ceo for long enough. Rowena made me see who I was and I don’t like it. Meeting Don only strengthened my resolve. I can’t be a better man for Rowena anymore, but I sure as hell can try to be a better person for me.

I step into my room, and the first thing I notice is the cage in the corner. Inside is a young girl, no older than sixteen, dressed in the same gold material as the demon staff, but the scraps of fabric barely cover her. It’s sickening, and the reality of this circle slams into me all over again. They’re catering to the worst kinds of people, and until a few weeks ago, I was one of them.

The girl looks up at me, her eyes wide with shock, trembling in her cage. It’s fucking disgusting. Without a second thought, I head to the wardrobe and pull out one of the robes. The lock on her cage clicks open, controlled by my portal, just like everything else in this hellhole.

I open the door and hand her the robe. “Here, put this on.”

Her eyes flash gold for a moment, and she steps out of the cage with a robotic movement, taking the robe and slipping it on. Once it's wrapped around her, her eyes return to their original warm brown, but the robe itself disappears. Hell magic? Of course they want her half naked and suffering. I pull one of the sheets from the bed and drape it over her and this time it seems to stick.

“Here,” I say, handing her a bag with a burger and fries. “I’m Felix. I don’t give a damn what the bosses here say. You’re not going to be my slave, nor my servant.”

She hesitates, her eyes brightening with a flicker of hope.

“Sit on the bed,” I tell her. “You won’t be going back in that cage again.”

Her eyes flash gold once more, and she moves mechanically toward the bed. It’s as if the magic in her compels her to follow my orders. Once her eyes fade back to brown, she smiles, looking relieved as she sits down. “Thank you so much. I’m Jen.” She pulls the burger from the bag, grinning wide. “I’m ravenous. This smells like heaven.” Her gaze shifts, unsure. “But... I don’t think I’m allowed to eat without your permission.”

What the hell have they done to her? She’s just a kid. “Just eat it. It’s yours. I got it for you.”

Her eyes flash gold again as soon as I say it, confirming what I’d already suspected. It’s every time I give her a direct command, every time I say something, she has to follow. That’s the magic—why she’s a slave here. Thankfully, her eyes return to brown as she tears into the burger.

I sit beside her, unwrapping my own meal. She’s right about one thing: it does taste amazing.

34

WHO’S IN CHARGE NOW?

QUINN

Holy shit! “Dade?”

I can barely breathe as his name leaves my lips, my heart pounding in my chest. There he is, trapped in a cage, his wings folded tightly around him in the cramped space, but his face… his face lights up with the most un-Dadelike grin I’ve ever seen when he spots me.

“Valentine!”

I don’t think. My feet move on their own, racing across the room so fast I nearly slip on the slick marble. Nothing else matters. The world shrinks to just me and him, and I can’t get to him fast enough.

“How did you get here?” My voice is breathless, almost shaking.

“My girlfriend happens to be a genius.”

His words are light, teasing, but I can hear the relief behind them. I fumble with my Hell Cell, unlocking the cage with trembling hands. The second it clicks open, I don’t hesitate—I throw myself into him, crashing against his body with a force that knocks the wind out of both of us.

Our lips meet in a desperate collision. It’s not soft, not gentle. It’s raw and hungry, every emotion we’ve buried, every fear and hope crashing together in that kiss. His hands are in my hair, pulling me closer, as if he’s afraid I’ll disappear. I feel the warmth of his wings as they unfold, wrapping around us like a shield from the rest of the world.

“Fuck,” I whisper against his lips, pulling back just enough to look at him. My fingers trace the line of his jaw, memorizing every inch of him, like I’m trying to convince myself he’s really here. “I thought I lost you.”

Dade’s eyes soften, his thumb brushing across my cheek. “You didn’t. You never will. I will always come for you, Valentine.”

His words are a promise, but there’s something more—something deeper. I kiss him again, softer this time, the taste of him grounding me in a way nothing else ever could. Each kiss is like a lifeline, tethering me back to reality, to him.

I pull him closer, my body melting into his as our kiss deepens. It’s fierce, burning with everything we’ve been through—survival, fear, love—and it makes my heart ache in the best way. The world around us fades, and for a moment, it’s just him and me, tangled in a kiss that says everything words can’t.

---