Seducing the Succubus (18 page)

A blush crept up into Noah’s neck and face and he nodded, but didn’t turn to look up at her.

Jez wasn’t sure what his reaction meant, but she knew then that if Noah ever was forced to watch her have sex with someone else, she wasn’t sure
she
could go through with it.

Damn, Jezebeth
.
Get a grip, he’s a human
.

Her inner voice made sense, but she shoved it aside and concentrated on the comforting cocoon of warmth that filled her, the warm pressure from Noah, and the deep sleep that beckoned to her.

“Night, Jezebeth,” was the last thing she heard from Noah as she drifted off to sleep.

As consciousness slowly
filtered back to Noah, he noticed he was spooned against a very warm and very naked woman. He took stock and found he was still fully dressed.

A deep breath filled his lungs with the tantalizing pomegranate and honey scent that always clung to Jezebeth, and his cock hardened inside his jeans at the realization that it was her supple body that lay just in front of him.

Liquid warmth filled his chest as he listened to her deep, even breathing, and he allowed himself a few minutes to enjoy the wonderful sensation of being close to her.

When Jezebeth was awake he was constantly reminded that she was a succubus, but like this it was easy to imagine that she was just a woman. A very attractive, desirable woman who was a constant surprise, keeping him on his toes and never doing what he expected.

He smiled as she murmured in her sleep and shifted more comfortably against him. She pulled his arm tighter around her stomach and relaxed back with a deep sigh. Her soft hair against his face was like warm silk, and he rubbed his nose against the soft mass, breathing deep.

What was his big hang-up with her being a succubus anyway? It wasn’t as if he’d ever cared that the women he dated were virgins or not. True, several millennia of sex with others, and not just humans, was probably part of what pricked at his pride. But if she didn’t sleep with them, she’d die, so did his moral hang-ups really apply in this situation?

He sighed and enjoyed one more long moment of just holding her close, her comforting warmth seeping contentment into him with every slow breath.

Noah forced himself to open his eyes and chase back the last vestiges of sleep.

He found they were still inside the Djinn’s cave lying on some type of soft mattress. No pillow sat beneath his head, but whatever they lay on was covered in purple satin.

He wasn’t sure where the Djinn had gone, or if they were vulnerable to attack, regardless of the Djinn’s promise. But he was reluctant to move and not only wake Jezebeth but end their time spooned together like this.

He decided to compromise. He’d look around, but before he did, he gave in to the urge to place a quick kiss against the back of Jezebeth’s left shoulder. Her skin was silky and tempting against his lips, but he forced himself to pull back and not linger.

He sat up slowly, pulled his arm out from under her, careful not to jostle her.

She murmured again and then rolled onto her stomach, revealing the most perfect shapely ass Noah had ever seen. Her back was smooth and lean, her long, dark hair spilling around her as she leaned her cheek on her forearm. She looked like a beautiful sculpture come to life, and a sudden urge to kiss his way over every inch of exposed skin surged through him.

He tightened his hands into fists against the compulsion. He wasn’t sure if she’d push him away or not, but he still wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to find out. He still needed to work out his misgivings over her being a succubus before he started anything.

He swung his legs off the mattress, stood, and turned in a circle to look around him. The rust-red color of the walls was dimly lit by what appeared to be the glow of moonlight that filtered in from somewhere high above him. The cave seemed entirely empty except the queen-sized velvet purple mattress that sat in the middle of the floor with Jezebeth still sleeping soundly on top.

Something shimmered on the far side of the cavern, catching his attention, and he glanced at Jezebeth to make sure she was all right before he went to investigate. Her back rose and fell in even intervals and one hand was curled under her chin, a childlike gesture that made him smile.

He walked slowly toward the far wall alert for anything that might jump out at him. It was a bit too late to wish he’d thought to ask the Djinn to bring all their gear when it had whisked them out of the truck. Not that Noah had known what to expect then anyway.

He scanned the cave for anything out of place, but other than the shimmering near the far wall, everything seemed entirely normal. The closer he got in the murky darkness, the more the area looked like oil floating on water, but in midair.

He reached out to touch it and the form suddenly brightened, becoming the Djinn.

Startled, Noah jumped back and stumbled over the uneven floor. As he lost his balance, he reached back to cushion the blow as he fell, and braced himself for the impact of landing on his ass.

When no painful impact came, he glanced back to see the trailing tail of the Djinn wrapped around his feet to cushion his fall.

Wary of the Djinn’s jovial mood, Noah stood. “My name’s Noah, not human. And thanks.” He gestured toward the Djinn’s tail. “What’s your name by the way?”

The Djinn pulled his tail back as if he’d touched something hot.
“Why?”

Noah held up his hands palm out. “I like to be called by my name and not my species, I just thought you might like the same thing.”

The Djinn crossed large ephemeral arms over his chest and glowered down at Noah.
“Anyone who knows the true name of a Djinn may command him.”

“I apologize. I wasn’t trying to gain any control over you.” He cast around for some way around this particular rule. “How about if I give you a nickname? Would that name give me power over you?”

The Djinn pursed his lips and tapped one see-through finger against his bearded chin. “
No, I think it’s only my true Djinn name that has power
.
What did you have in mind
?”

“How about Max? A nice, generic name. Easy to remember, and it would keep us from having to call you ‘Djinn’ all the time.”

“Max.”
The Djinn tried out the name several times, saying it different ways until it rolled off his tongue in repetitions so fast that to Noah it sounded like a thousand voices speaking inside his head at once. Finally, the Djinn smiled, the area where his mouth would be was a large gaping hole that allowed Noah to see the wall behind the creature.
“Very well. You may call me Max.”

“Great.” Noah nodded. “All right, Max. Can you tell me how long we’ve been out and how Jezebeth and I ended up on that mattress back there?”

He nodded his large head once and Noah resisted the urge to make a comment. Didn’t anyone in the supernatural community know how to nod more than once? He wasn’t sure why that one mannerism irritated him, but it really did.

“When the agreed four hours was completed, Jezebeth was asleep, so I created the mattress and laid both you and her on it. Within a few minutes she’d changed back into her current form.”
He straightened to an even more impressive height.
“Djinn always keep their word, and I would not violate our time agreement, even though I was reluctant to finish.”

After waking up next to Jezebeth, Noah knew exactly how Max felt. “How long has it been since you’ve had Djinn companionship?”

Max’s entire form rippled as if there were signal interference on a television.
“Nearly three thousand years.”
His voice was quiet and pain-filled.

“Wow. I can’t imagine being able to endure that. You’re a much stronger creature than me.”

“A Djinn warrior should use the millennium of solitude from our kind to contemplate how he can best be of service to our race.”
The words tripped off Max’s tongue easily as if he were reciting something he memorized.

Noah wasn’t sure what to say to that, so he tried to find something to take them on a different conversational path. “How long ago were the four hours Jezebeth agreed to complete?”

Noah grinned at the very specific answer. This guy would make a great character in one of his books. “Do you know what a writer is in the human realm?”

Max nodded once and Noah bit back his reaction.
“When I was phased with the succubus I saw inside her mind that you write stories to strike fear into others.”

Noah grinned. That was an interesting way of describing it. He’d have to remember to turn that into an author branding statement or byline. “Something like that, yes. I think a Djinn would make a fascinating character in one of my books, but I haven’t done much in-depth research on your kind. Would you mind answering some questions?”

Max’s ghostly lips curved and he sank down toward the floor giving the appearance of sitting.

Jezebeth
woke to the soft sounds of Noah answering the Djinn’s voice that whispered inside her mind. By the familiar way they were chatting, she imagined they’d been at it for some time.

“So what’s with all the tales of Djinn and genies stuck in bottles? What’s the real story with that?”

Booming laughter echoed inside her head, and she winced at the sudden increase in volume.
“It was only a story written to poke fun at a Djinn who had angered a storyteller. Unfortunately, the story caught on and became like a myth. Now no one believes the truth.”

Noah laughed. “Seriously? Talk about the power of the written word. Would you mind if I used that in a story?”

Jezebeth sat up, the soft mattress beneath her shifting with her as she moved. Noah and the Djinn stood near the far wall talking in hushed tones, which echoed back to her inside the cave—and inside her head, thanks to the Djinn.

The Djinn laughed at Noah’s comment and reached out one diffuse hand to slap Noah on the back, nearly knocking him off his feet.
“Absolutely! Perhaps between us we can make the truth known once again, hu—Noah.”

“You know, Max, you’re a very interesting being. Maybe once all this is done I can come back and we can talk some more?”

Jezebeth frowned and froze.

Max? How in the hell had Noah gotten the Djinn to reveal his true name, and more important, who had ever heard of a Djinn warrior named Max?

Jezebeth held her breath, afraid Noah would question the Djinn beliefs, which would be tantamount to an insult of epic proportions.

“No worries, Max. You did capture us, remember?” Noah patted the Djinn’s arm, laughing when his hand pressed halfway into the arm before stopping. “After all, we both have reputations to keep up, right?”

A booming laugh echoed inside her head like a rubber pinball on overdrive, and Jez winced until the sound finally died away.

“Jezebeth.”

She glanced up to find Noah watching her, his stormy gray gaze like a physical touch against her skin.

Awareness sizzled between them, tightening her nipples and sending a rush of silky moisture between her thighs until she realized she was still naked and he was fully clothed. For some reason that made the tension ratchet even higher.

She concentrated and clothed herself in jeans, a comfy cotton pullover, and a light sweater to protect against the chill of the cave that she hadn’t noticed until just now.

She knew the Djinn hadn’t meant to imply that succubi didn’t honor their bargains, but that in his own way he was thanking her for the comfort those four hours provided. Jezebeth smiled. His words had softened but not alleviated the tension that had sprung up between her and Noah. “I can see why Djinn would crave such a thing. I don’t think I’ve ever experienced anything quite so comforting.”

A knowing chuckle tickled inside her brain.
“If I’m not mistaken, the comfort you and Noah shared when our time was done looked no less comforting than the Djinn way of things.”
His form rippled with his amusement.

A blush flowed up Noah’s neck and into his cheeks, something she could only see because of her succubus night vision.

Jezebeth didn’t remember returning to her favored form during the night, or even ending her four hours as a Djinn. Disappointment filled her that she also didn’t remember cuddling with Noah. She strongly suspected it was an experience she would’ve enjoyed.