Page 58 of The Crown of Nyx

There was something oddly nice about standing beside someone who would so easily be able to throw me around. Now, Elias certainly could. And I knew the others were pretty strong—Maeve did have that vampire strength on her side.

But Damonlookedit.

I shook my head of those thoughts, forcefully shoving them aside as the demon dragged me from the dressing room and into the bar. My stomach tightened uncomfortably as I took in the change of scene on the stage. Damon managed to cover most of my view, but there were chains involved this time. Lots of them. Maybe a cage?

Before I could stare in morbid curiosity, Damon moved me towards an empty booth in the back of the club. He managed to angle me away from the other demons gathered around us.

“I want you to sit on my lap. Keep your back to the stage,” he instructed, sliding into the booth.

I glanced between him and the table attached to it. “I think you underestimate the size ofbothof us. There is no way I’m getting between you and the table.”

But as the words left my lips, the table split into two smaller cocktail tables either side of his body. “Is that better?”

I blinked at the pair and shook my head. “Great,” I muttered, moving to stand in front of him. He kept his eyes locked on mine, holding his hands out for me.

Play the game, I reminded myself.This literally means nothing.

Still, I felt icky climbing onto his lap, straddling his hips so my core was nestled right against his…bulge. But the male didn’t even blink. There was no reaction other than for him to bring his arms around me, so I was forced to sit flush against his chest.

“There are demons watching us,” he whispered, brushing his fingers down the length of my spine. I shuddered, electricity running down my arms at the touch. “Pretend you are enjoying my company. Remember: sex is our currency here. Pleasure is what we barter. And keep an eye out for anyone who appears to not care.”

I gritted my teeth and slowly turned my head in the direction of another booth. There were several demons sitting there, all in different stages of undress. They were definitely taking the whole ‘pleasure’ thing seriously, because they were helping each other out. There were hands between thighs, tails working dicks, and a whole lot more.

I tore my eyes away and shook my head. “I literally have no idea what to do,” I hissed, digging my fingers into his shoulders as the creatures on the stage cried out. “I don’t know how topretend.And why do I need to keep an eye out for someone who doesn’t care?”From what I could tell, there were plenty caring too much.

“Then treat me as if you would a suitor,” he whispered. “There are creatures at the bar. Watch them.”

My eyes strayed to the row of bar stools behind him. “What am I looking for?” Irritation burned a path from my stomach to my throat as I chanced another look around. Shadows thickened the exterior walls where more booths sat—occupied, from what I could tell based on the magic coming from their direction.

The bar was full, and the patrons, like everyone else, were helping themselves to the pleasure thickening the room.

All except two.

They watched with dark stares, but they didn’t whip out dicks or touch themselves. They were dressed in suits, but their faces were on display, and they weren’t demons.

Both were mages; one elemental, and the other mirror, if their magical signatures were right.

I tore my eyes from them to meet Damon’s stare. “The two mages behind us,” I whispered. “They aren’t doing anything.”

“There should be lights beside them,” he murmured, gripping my hips sharply. “They measure whether the demons around you have paid enough for your time. Whether you have paid the price for being here. Are their lights on?”

I swallowed hard, glancing up again. “No,” I replied carefully. I only noticed then that the other tables had blinking lights, and so did the demons at the bar. But the two mages were dark.

Damon simply cocked his head, smirk turning into a smile. “They don’t care.”

A shiver rolled down my spine. “And they’re my gift?”

My mind raced. Especially with the knowledge that Dante could be in the Underworld making a deal with the demon king, I wondered if Mistress had delivered me his messengers.

Damon smoothed a hand up my spine, the other remaining on my hip. “Mages rarely spend time down here.”

I bit my lip as I tore my eyes from the demon holding me. I glanced back up at the mages with new eyes. Now that I knew what to look for, I felt it: the wrongness of their magic. It trickled through the space, corruptive in the way it radiated from them. They even held themselves like they were better than the demons—untouchable.

“If you want them,” Damon whispered in my ear, “go take them.”

My eyes narrowed on the mages as I crawled off Damon’s lap. He rose like a dark entity behind me as I stalked towards the pair, whose eyes were locked on whatever played out on the stage. The giant demon remained one step behind me as I came to a stop.

“You have two seconds to decide who you’re more loyal to,” I said, keeping my voice low. Dark eyes snapped to me and widened. My magic rose beneath my skin, electrifying and pulsing with a different kind of need.

---