Page 11 of Hers to Claim

“I’m looking for someone to teach me about being a sex witch. My father kept me isolated. You’re only the second one of our kind that I’ve sat this close to.”

Pricilla nodded thoughtfully. Her eyes unfocused for the space of a few breaths. “You’re tethered to the wards here. So, you really were the battery that kept his empire running. I’m guessing that wasn’t your idea?”

Mari decided honesty was the best way forward, especially if she would be working with this woman for a while. “He did that when I was too young to stop him.”

“If he wasn’t already dead I might try to kill him myself.” Venom dripped from Pricilla’s sensual voice. “That’s no way to treat a young sex witch.”

Next to Mari, Cisco grunted his approval.

“I need to know more about my power,” Mari said. “There’s so much I don’t know. I have some books, but it’s not easy to learn anything beyond the theory that way.”

Pricilla smiled. “Some things you can’t learn without getting your hands dirty.” She gave first Rio and then Cisco an appraising once-over and then smiled wider. “Though I’m guessing you know a little about that already.”

Cisco grinned, showing his fangs. “Oh, she definitely does. How about you?”

Pricilla’s small shiver at the gruffness of his tone was all but imperceptible. She returned her gaze to Mari. “I don’t play in other witch’s playgrounds without permission.”

“Cisco is free to play with whomever he would like,” Mari said with a confidence she hadn’t felt until the moment when the other sex witch had assumed she was in charge.

“I’m afraid I’m a one-sex-witch kind of guy,” Cisco drawled without missing a beat.

Pricilla leaned back in her chair with a delighted laugh. “I’ll take the job. Whatever increase in magic I help you gain, I take five percent of.”

“And if there’s no increase?” Mari asked.

“I get nothing. But I’m not worried about that. There’s a lot of untapped potential here.” Pricilla’s eyes wandered the room briefly. “Basilio was in it for the quick fix. I would guess he didn’t know a lot about your kind of sex magic either, which is probably why he didn’t want you properly trained.”

Mari had suspected much the same thing. “Sounds like we have an agreement, then.”

“We can have a law witch draw up the contract and sign it tomorrow, if that’s not too quick for you. The one you and Esmé used is fine with me.”

Mari nodded. “The sooner the better.”

For the first time, Pricilla looked not completely comfortable, her gaze dropping to the floor for a moment. “I’ll need a section added to codify a magical safeguard.”

Mari tilted her head. “Why?”

“She’s a submissive,” Cisco said. “She’s worried you might be more like your father than any of us are aware.”

Mari looked between them, but neither of them seemed eager to be more direct. “I’m going to need someone to break that down.”

“Your mother was a submissive,” Cisco explained. “She stayed so long because she was addicted to feeding his needs.”

Pricilla smoothed her skirt with both hands in a gesture she must have found calming. “If you have tendencies similar to his I won’t be able to protect myself from you.”

Anger made Mari clench her fists. Why had no one told her? She glared at Cisco out of the corner of her eye. He was still keeping secrets from her to protect her. “Of course. Whatever you need to feel safe.”

“She’s not like him,” Rio said, his voice quiet. He hunkered in his chair like he was uncomfortable with the conversation. “I would know.”

Pricilla looked at Rio, as if for the first time, then she nodded. “That makes me feel better.”

“We’ll do the section with your safeguard,” Mari insisted.

Pricilla breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you. This is why sex witches don’t touch each other until the rules are established. It’s too easy for us to get caught up, especially when dominance dynamics are significantly different between us.”

It surprised Mari that the other witch thought their levels of dominance were so far apart. She hadn’t experimented much with being dominant. She’d never felt particularly dominant.

Even as she had the thought, some of her experiences with Rio came to mind. Where she’d given him an order without even thinking about what she was doing and he’d complied. But Rio was so deeply submissive that Mari had been sure it didn’t mean anything, until Pricilla had taken one look at her and seemed so sure of exactly the opposite. Pricilla had even assumed that Cisco deferred to her—and he had, a few times. Though, he’d also said he’d worship at her feet forever if she asked him to. It was all so confusing.

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