Succubus Kiss The Complete Series Read online

  “Tomorrow night. A dinner date. Somewhere fancy.” Luke’s fierce blue eyes brightened as he wiggled his brows. “Afterward, we can part ways or continue the night, whatever you want. I’m only interested in dinner and a lovely conversation with you.”

  Sage shifted on her feet. “What’s the catch?”

  “There isn’t one, gorgeous. I merely want to spend some time with you.” The smug smile melted off his face and a more sincere look appeared.

  Sage glared at him. “You’ve spent plenty of time with me before.”

  “Oh, I bet he has.” Dex chuckled. It was another reminder that he knew something I didn’t.

  “Were you two an item before or something?” I asked, not wanting to be in the dark about their history any longer.

  Sage snapped her head to face me. “Date? No. Never.”

  “I do wish though.” Luke grinned like a Cheshire cat.

  “Okay?” I was lost.

  “Luke used one of his spells on Sage a few years ago at a Halloween ball here in the city.” Dex smirked. “I don’t know all the details, but—”

  “He put one of his damn spells on me, and made me look like an idiot the entire night in front of every supernatural there,” Sage snapped, making it clear she hadn’t forgotten or forgiven him.

  “That’s being a little dramatic, but yeah.” Luke shrugged. “I did put a spell on her that made her kinky as hell and want no one except for me. It was the absolute best night of my life. Too bad the stuff wore off at dawn.” He frowned.

  Sage was across the room in a flash. Her hand darted out and slapped Luke across the face. His head snapped to the side so quickly, whiplash was a distinct possibility. “You ass. Stop dragging up bad memories.”

  “Jesus, woman. That hurt.” Luke rubbed the side of his face. A red handprint was already swelling.

  “It was supposed to,” Sage bit out. She placed her hand on her hip and narrowed her eyes. “One dinner date. Nothing more. Now tell us where to find Lexy.”

  “Georgia. She’s in Avalon Bay, Georgia,” Luke muttered, sending a jolt through my body.

  One state over. My breath seemed to bottle up inside my chest as I processed the knowledge. From the reluctance and skepticism Luke had harbored toward us, I wasn’t sure we would get anything out of him. Now that we had, my wraith-free future seemed promising.

  Chapter 9

  “Avalon Bay, Georgia? Where’s that?” Dex asked, reading my mind.

  “It’s hundreds of miles away from Newvale, hours really, tucked somewhere along the coast,” Luke said, sounding like a sarcastic ass.

  The excitement and hopefulness that had poured through me moments ago disappeared at his words. Why couldn’t she live an hour or two from here?

  “I’ve never heard of it.” Randal smoothed a hand along his jaw as though trying to place it.

  “It’s a little tourist town. She wanted to be somewhere near the ocean, but without too many supernaturals.” Luke massaged the area where Sage had slapped him. “Lexy gave up on magic. Good luck getting her to do anything for you.”

  My breath hitched in my throat. I’d forgotten about that. How could she help me if she had given up magic? “Why? Why would she do that?”

  A heavy feeling settled in my stomach that only intensified when the wraith moved through my chest. I swore it seemed to grow at the news, as my only chance of being rid of it died.

  Luke shrugged. “Hell if I know.”

  “Don’t act so clueless,” Sage insisted. “You do know.”

  He lifted his eyes to hers. Sadness pooled through them, surprising me. He seemed too cocky and arrogant, content and at ease with his life to be capable of such feelings.

  “Lexy wasn’t cut out to have the type of power she possesses.” He picked up a pen from his desk and tapped it against the palm of his hand. I wasn’t sure if it was a nervous habit, or if he was bored. “She should have been born with my gift, not hers. The women are supposed to be the nurturers, not the men. That’s how it always is with witches. For whatever reason, we were born different, destined to be an anomaly of the witch world. It was something I was willing to embrace, but she wasn’t.”

  I didn’t see the logic. How was her gift not viewed as being nurturing? “Taking away something that’s harming me qualifies as nurturing.” My words seemed to suspend in the air, breaking up the weird tension filling the room.

  “To you maybe, but when you factor in all the things she can take—memories, love, sickness, pain, wraiths—it doesn’t compare to what I give,” Luke boasted. He pointed the tip of his pen at me to emphasize his words.

  What a smartass.

  “She still seems to be the one with power to do the most good, especially when you put it that way,” I insisted.

  “Why don’t you try to explain that to her when you see her, then?”

  “I will.” It would more than likely be my bargaining chip in getting her to help me.

  “So when are we headin’ to Avalon Bay?” Dex asked me. I could tell from the look on his face that he was serious.

  “I’m not sure.” I needed to figure out exactly how far away it was first.

  “I can cover your shifts at Spark for a couple days,” Sage insisted. “But only if you fill me in on what you find out.”

  “Okay, and thanks. I will.”

  “Promise?” Sage narrowed her eyes at me. “I mean it. I want to know when you find her and exactly what she tells you.”

  “Got it. I promise.” I nodded.

  “I can reserve us rooms in Avalon Bay. I’m sure there are many hotels and inns since it is along the coast,” Randal added. He gave my hand a gentle squeeze, and my heart seemed to expand as I glanced not only at him, but at Sage and Dex as well. For the first time in my life, I had people besides Bree and my dad who truly cared about me.

  This was happening. Soon I would be asking Lexy for her help. Daydreams of how I would go about it played through my mind while the others worked out the details of when the best time to leave would be. First, I toyed with the idea of her saying yes the second I asked. Then I shifted my thoughts to the relief I would feel when I was finally free from the wraith. While it hadn’t been inside me for long, I still knew it was there. It was something foreign hanging out inside of me.

  Then my mind drifted to the possibility of her saying no, she didn’t practice magic anymore. I thought of how I would convince her to help me, if that ended up being the case.

  A hand clasped my shoulder. The grip was firm, yet gentle, but it startled me from my thoughts nonetheless. Luke had crossed the room without me having noticed. “If she tells you no, don’t force her. She had her reasons for not wanting to practice magic any longer, and I have to ask that you respect them.”

  I looked up into his unsmiling, humorless face and shivered at the level of somberness reflected in his blue eyes. “I’ll try.” It was the best answer I could give.

  “Trying won’t work for me. I need a yes or no,” he demanded. “An honest yes or no.”

  I held his stare, unsure if I could give him the answer he wanted to hear.

  “Please,” he pleaded. “Respect her answer if it happens to be no, and find someone else.”

  Conflicting emotions warred within me. “Yes,” I heard myself whisper. “I will.”

  Deep down I knew I would. Regardless of how badly I wanted the wraith out of me, I wouldn’t force anyone to help me if he or she didn’t want to. I wasn’t cruel ora monster, and I’d be damned if I let this thing change that about me.

  “Thank you.” Luke released his grip on my shoulder, straightened the collar on his shirt, and started toward the door. “I should get back to my guests, but you are all more than welcome to hang around for a little fun, if you like.” He winked.

  “Nah. I’m good.” Sage answered first.

  Now that I knew the history behind Sage’s dislike of Luke, I wondered if maybe it was an act. While I understood she was pissed he’d used a spell on her against he
r will, I wasn’t so sure she hated everything about what had happened, or even him.

  We filed out of Luke’s office and made our way through the crowd of people. My eyes zeroed in on the woman in the tub; she was still bathing using slow movements.

  Luke settled into his original chair with an exaggerated casualness and propped his feet up on the edge of the stage. “I’ll see you tomorrow night, Sage.” He smirked.

  “How could I forget?” she huffed.

  “No idea.” He jutted his chin up, and his smile grew.

  “Please tell me that when you find his sister you’ll ask for a love vanquishing spell for me,” Sage grumbled as we all walked away. “I’m totally using it on him if she gives you one.”

  “I don’t see why you’re so turned off by him.” I leaned in closer to her, hoping Randal wouldn’t hear what I was about to say. “He’s actually really attractive. I figured he’d be just your type.”

  “No,” she was quick to say. “My type is tall, dark, and handsome. Not arrogant and so into himself he has to stop and stare each time he passes a damn mirror.”

  Unease slithered through me as I realized her description could be used to describe Randal. It dampened my already unsteady mood. Randal’s hand found its way to my lower back, like always, as he helped to steer me through the thick crowd standing around the first stage we’d passed upon entering Love Potion #9. The couple was still going at it—lost in a mixture of lips and hands, stroking and caressing one another. The same red and pink rose petals that had been splayed around the bathtub on the main stage were also sprinkled in a circle around them now. I wondered if I had somehow missed that tiny detail before, or if it had been added by someone recently.

  “I think I remembered why I don’t come here often,” Dex suddenly said. “It’s because this place is sensory overkill.” His hand came up to rub against his forehead as though he were fighting the beginnings of a headache.

  White lights pulsed to the beat of the song playing as gold and silver glitter started falling from the ceiling.

  “I can understand that,” I murmured.

  After we stepped outside, I inhaled deeply. The cool night air felt wonderful against my hot skin. I rolled my shoulders, letting my pent up tension release.

  I’d come to Love Potion #9 looking for answers, and had gotten exactly what I wanted. Now I knew where Lexy was, but that didn’t mean I was any closer to getting rid of the wraith. I owed the little bit of knowledge I had obtained to Sage though.

  “Thank you, Sage,” I blurted.

  “For what?”

  “For agreeing to Luke’s terms, even though you didn’t want to.”

  “You’re welcome.” She pressed her lips into a thin line. Her eyes drifted to Randal for a moment before coming back to mine. Was she expecting him to say something as well? “We’re friends, and that’s what friends do for each other,” she added when he still hadn’t spoken.

  “Well, I’m beat.” Dex stretched his arms above his head and yawned. “I don’t know about y’all, but I think I’m gonna head home and get some sleep.”

  “I think that is a good idea.” Randal snaked his arm around my waist. “I’m sure everyone could use a little sleep before our trip tomorrow night.”

  I wasn’t sure what terrified me more, returning to my car and finding Sam still dazed and confused in my passenger seat, or the thought of sleep.

  Sleep won out.

  My hand moved to press against my heart as the cold sensation of the wraith stirring fluttered through my chest. Clips from the last time I had attempted to sleep flickered through my mind—the dark room, the shadow man, his ice-cold touch.

  I chewed the inside of my cheek, wondering how long a person could last without sleep. I hoped that I would be able to last until meeting with Lexy, because there was no way in hell I would willingly fall asleep any time soon.

  The nightmare had seemed far too real, as if I were meeting the true-life wraith.

  A shiver crept along my spine.

  Chapter 10

  Sam was no longer inside my car when Randal pulled up beside it. I was grateful, because I didn’t want to explain what I had nearly done to him. Not to Randal. It would ruin the purity he claimed I possessed, even as a succubus. My teeth nipped the tip of my tongue as I wondered if having a wraith inside of me had already ruined his theory.

  “Would you like me to follow you home?” Randal shifted into park and then repositioned himself to face me. “I can stay the night as well, if that’s something you want.” His expression softened. Was this his way of making up for not staying the last time?

  “I’ll be okay. Thank you for the offer though.” I hoped he didn’t take my refusal the wrong way. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to be around him. I wasn’t even angry with him anymore. I just wanted to be alone. “I need a little time to process everything.”

  Randal smoothed one of his hands along the steering wheel. “Okay, I understand.”

  I hated how deflated he sounded. If he knew me better, then he would know when it came to things of this nature, once the initial shock wore off, I preferred to be alone. I wasn’t the clingy, needy type.

  “Honestly, that’s the only reason keeping me from asking you to stay. I’m not upset with you or angry, if that’s what you’re thinking.” I flashed him a small smile to prove my case. “I would tell you if I was. I promise.”

  The corner of his mouth lifted upward. “Good to know. I truly am sorry for the way I handled the situation the other night.”

  “It’s fine. Don’t apologize, please.”

  He nodded. “Good night, Kenna.” He leaned closer to me, letting his gaze fall to my lips.

  The thundering of my heart could be felt in my throat. I knew what was coming, and I welcomed it. “Good night.”

  Randal’s lips pressed against mine, soft and warm. His tongue teased my mouth after a few brushes of his lips, willing it to open wider for him. Once I did, he invaded my mouth, demanding and rough. The desire to be closer to him burst through me. I was straddling his lap before I could think much on the movement, my hands roaming through his thick hair. I lost myself in the moment, in him, in the feel of his groin, suddenly throbbing and hard as it pressed against my center, in the taste of his mouth on mine, and the scent of his cologne.

  I rocked back and forth, enjoying the friction I was creating. The steering wheel dug into my spine, but I didn’t care. I was right where I wanted to be.

  As I pulled his bottom lip between my teeth, a low groan spurred from deep within him, setting my blood on fire and heightening my arousal tenfold. Randal’s hands slipped beneath the fabric of my shirt until they were splayed against my lower back. The skin there tingled at the heated feel of his touch. Icy pinpricks stabbed through me as the coldness of the wraith raced to meet his touch, feeling as though it were claiming me as its own.

  Randal released me abruptly, leaving my lips feeling swollen. Rejection stabbed through me, swift and painful.

  “I’m sorry.” His words were breathless and sharp. “We shouldn’t be doing this right now.”

  I shifted my gaze to look past him rather than at him, the sting of rejection heating my cheeks. This was not something I was used to feeling. “You’re right.” I slipped off him and back into the passenger seat without another word. My hand gripped the handle of the door, and I didn’t hesitate in opening it. “I’ll see you tomorrow night. Sleep well.”

  “Wait. That sounded all wrong.” He reached for my wrist as I was slipping out of the car.

  “It’s perfectly fine. Don’t worry about it.” He’d felt the wraith underneath my skin, got grossed out, and stopped. Wasn’t that what had happened? “Good night. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

  I closed the door and started toward my car.

  Randal waited until I was behind the wheel with the engine started before he pulled away. I didn’t shift into drive right away. Instead I leaned forward against the steering wheel and cried. Fat droplets
fell from my eyes as the sting of rejection and the events of the night caught up with me. The scent of Sam invaded my nose, causing even more tears to fall as I remembered how I had lured him in and then nearly killed him. I had broken virtually all of my rules and let the wraith fuel my actions.

  Gripping the steering wheel tighter, I purged myself of all emotion. Sometimes a good sob was all a girl needed to get a damn hold of herself. Mine was long overdue.

  When I finally made it home, I couldn’t wait to slip into a pair of leggings and pour myself a glass of wine. I set my stuff on the catchall table beside the door and headed to my bedroom to change. Once I had pulled on my favorite lounging outfit, I reached for a hair tie from on my dresser. My eyes drifted to my reflection while I piled my hair on top of my head in a bun. I looked like shit. It was a good thing I hadn’t invited Randal to stay and our moment hadn’t gotten too hot and heavy. Granted the redness rimming my eyes was from crying, and the dark circles beneath them were from exhaustion.

  An involuntary yawn slipped past my lips. I blinked a few times and slapped at my cheeks to wake myself up. I wouldn’t allow myself to fall asleep; I was too afraid.

  Padding barefoot down the hall, I headed for the kitchen. I had decided on a mug of black tea instead of wine when something lying in front of my door caught my attention. I paused, knowing it hadn’t been there when I walked in. I stared at it. From where I stood, it looked like a note or a picture.

  Prickles of unease slipped over my skin as I walked toward it. My brows furrowed once I realized it was a picture. I picked it up and felt my heart sink to my toes because it was a photo of Sam and me kissing.

  I remembered the sensation I’d had of someone watching me. Apparently, I had been right. Flipping the picture over, there was a little note written in unfamiliar, swirly handwriting. My heart thundered in my ears as I read the message.

  Randal deserves better than a slutty succubus.

  Who the hell had left me this? I slung open my front door, ready to find out, but there was no one there. Slamming the door shut, I locked it and headed to my kitchen. A glass of wine was exactly what I needed now. Screw the black tea.