City of Thorns by C.N. Crawford

Chapter 14

Today was D-Day.

I wasn’t actually clear what the D stood for in the World War II version, but for me, it stood for demon, and possibly disaster. It was the day I’d be entering the demon world for real, leaving the safety of Orion’s apartment. Most terrifying of all, it was the day I’d meet the demon king who’d severed his father’s head and stuck it on a gate.

What kind of outfit did one wear for an introduction to a regicidal, patricidal demon king?

I frowned at my new underwear, which looked barely large enough to cover my nipples and ass. But I was, after all, a succubus now. Might as well get used to it. And with a little jolt of satisfaction, I realized I was actually quite comfortable standing stark naked in this glass-walled room.

Among the dresses, there were some more casual clothes, too. Black leather leggings, sleek pantsuits, little skirts and tops. But Orion had suggested that for my grand entrance back into the city today, I was supposed to dazzle people. Apparently, all eyes would be on me.

I plucked a camisole from the bed, one with sheer black lace and embroidered snakes. Its neckline plunged below the breasts at the center. Dark, sexy, demonic. I slid it on, and just as I’d expected, it barely covered my nipples.

I picked up the tiny matching panties and slipped into them.

Then I scanned the dresses. Lots of black, gray, gold. All of them were revealing in some way—tight bodices, slits all the way up to the hips, plunging backlines, short hemlines. First, I picked up a pale silver gown in a Grecian style, with a high waistline and delicate crisscrossing ropes around it. But the neckline went right down to the waist, and I wasn’t sure I was ready for that.

Instead, I chose a short, silky red dress with a fitted top and long sleeves, and I wriggled it over my hips. It had a looser skirt, but the fact that the hem stopped just below my ass was definitely new to me. Then I slipped into a pair of thigh-high boots, which had small enough heels that I should be able to walk in them reasonably well.

When I turned to look at myself, I had to admit I looked hot as hell. With the boots on, I only had a small amount of skin showing—the tops of my thighs and my décolletage. And yet, somehow, this was a much sexier look than I was used to. My hair had dried, and it hung in waves over my shoulders, orange on red. It wasn’t a bad look, I thought.

Fully dressed, I pulled open the door to the living room. Orion was still sitting on the sofa, leaning back with his arms unfolded over the sofa. And he was still as death, eyes burning like stars as he took me in.

Inhaling, I crossed closer to him. He slowly stood, his gaze boring into me. Dark magic whipped the air around him, and a low growl rumbled from his throat and skimmed over my body. I wondered if he was thinking of when I’d straddled him yesterday.

Then a wicked smile ghosted over his lips. “Good. You look like a succubus. Let’s just see you move like Mortana one last time. I know you have confidence in your body in some ways. You can land a punch—I saw you take on those mortal fucks.” His eyes had an otherworldly silver sheen. “That man who cornered you outside the brewery—was his name Jack Corwin?”

I’d forgotten how much he knew about me, as I’d spilled nearly all my secrets. “That was him.”

“After everything he did to you, why would you tell me to stop hurting him? When I was twisting his mind with pain?”

He was doing that dominating demon stare that made me want to submissively drop my gaze. But I held his stare because Mortana would hold it. “I’m a normal person who doesn’t want to watch someone’s brain melt on the street. It’s that thing called empathy. Even when you hate someone, you don’t enjoy seeing them tortured.”

“Empathy?” His eyes looked icy, cruel. “Sounds tedious. I’m glad I was never cursed with it.”

“Exactly how many people have you killed in your life?”

He moved around to my side. “I’d love to tell you about each one just to see the horror cross your pretty face, but we have only a few hours left to work on your hunched posture.”

I frowned. “Did you say hunched?”

“We’ll try one last thing. I’m going to trace my finger up your spine, and as I do, I want you to straighten your back along with it. Lean into it, square your shoulders.”

Already, I could feel the power of his magic tingling over my skin. When he touched my lower back, I nearly gasped at the pleasurable sensation. Just the feel of his fingertip on my back, through my dress, was like a hot, electric vibration through my body.

“Close your eyes. Let your shoulders relax and fall back. Imagine a thread pulling the top of your head toward the ceiling.” With exquisite slowness, he stroked upward. My body responded to his touch, spine straightening, pulse speeding, and skin burning.

Holy moly, Rowan. Remember, this is just a job. And the bit about him being a demon. And also the bit about how he threatened to murder Shai.

As his finger brushed my nape, my neck lengthened. Then, with a touch light as a feather, his finger grazed back down again, and heat radiated from every point of contact. He let it rest between my shoulder blades. “Lift your chest. Raise your chin. You’re proud of your beauty. It’s part of your power.”

My breath sped up, and I felt him move behind me, his hands going to my hips. I fought the insane impulse to lean back into his powerful body.

“Move your hips forward a little,” he said quietly. “Open your eyes now.”

I opened my eyes, already feeling different with my new posture.

“Perfect.”

With graceful movements, he crossed in front of me. His beauty was deeply and unfortunately distracting. His gaze flicked to my mouth, and with a jolt of embarrassment, I realized I’d been licking my lips. A blush crept over my cheeks.

He cocked his head, his cheek dimpling with a sly smile.

I actually felt sexy for once. And now, I liked thinking of his eyes on me, on the naked tops of my thighs…in fact, I had the most inconvenient desire to show him my whole body.

I strutted across the room, swaying my hips like he’d showed me a million times, one foot in front of the other.

“Good,” he murmured. “Now turn to face me.”

I spun around, my curls bouncing. His stance was casual, hands in his pockets, shoulders relaxed. But something about the way his eyes burned, the way his jaw looked tight, told me that he wasn’t actually calm at all. What was going on beneath that calm, easy exterior? Rage? Lust? Still trying to stop himself from ripping out my heart?

And where had he slept last night?

Whatever the case was, he was looking at me like he wanted to devour me.

“What next?” I asked.

“Now, when you walk back to me, try pretending a droplet of water is slowly moving from your neck down between your breasts. Trace it with your fingertip.”

I started walking again, like a cat, and I moved my fingertip from my throat, down my chest. It was just like martial arts, wasn’t it? Figuring out how to move my body in the right way.

I stopped when I could feel his hot magic skimming over me. Getting closer than I was now, looking into his eyes, felt like it would be too intense.

He raised his eyebrows. “Very good,” he purred. “You need to always communicate through body language that you want to fuck someone. You make it clear through innuendo, eye contact, and touch.”

I tossed my hair behind my shoulder.

“That was cute, but for starters, you have to stand closer than three feet. You know, like you did yesterday.”

I swallowed hard, then walked closer to him. I stared up at him, imagining how it would feel to have his hands all over my body. Just a job, Rowan. This is just a job.

Amusement glinted in his eyes. “Now you’ll need to lose the deer-in-the-headlights expression. Try a half-smile, an arched eyebrow.”

I contorted my face on one side.

He grimaced. “Oh, no. Don’t do that. Remember, you are a gift.”

I let my face relax, then tried the smug expression.

His gaze brushed down my body. “Closer. Show vulnerability. Tilt your head back to show me your neck, like you’re allowing me to bite you again, like you’re inviting it.”

This close to him, his sensual power was washing over me like a wave. I found myself staring into his endless eyes, my pulse racing. My nipples pebbled under the silky camisole. What I really wanted was for him to bend me over, pull down my panties, and stroke me—

Stop it, Rowan. He’s not even human.

I knew what was happening. My id was taking over—the stupid, animalistic part of my brain that would fuck everything up for me if I let it. But maybe my id was what I needed here.

“Good,” he said quietly. “You’ve got the eye contact down, now try using your sense of touch a little as you talk to me.”

I reached out and touched his chest. I bit my lip as I traced my fingertips over the soft material, feeling the hard muscle beneath.

“You forgot to talk,” he said quietly.

Ah. That was because my mind had gone totally blank.

He was very convincing at looking at me like he wanted to rip my dress off, but that was the job, wasn’t it? He’d said that he’d try acting like I was sexy.

He reached for my arms and lifted them up, wrapping them around his neck so my body was pressed against his. As I reached up, my short hem rose behind me, and the warm breeze rushed over my upper thighs and the bottom of my ass.

Heat swept through my body. This was flirting? This felt positively indecent, and a hot pulse beat through my core. Looking into his eyes, I felt like I was going to plummet into a dangerous abyss.

My muscles clenched.

Demonic killer. Back away now, Rowan.

I pulled my arms from his throat, my jaw clenching, and looked away. My heart was pounding out of control, which was unfortunate, because now I knew he could hear it. “Okay, enough of that.” I swallowed hard. “I think I’ve proven that I can put on the Mortana act.” I plastered a smile on my face. “Why don’t you show me around the city?”

“You’ll need to stop blushing first.”

I smoothed out my hair. “Fine.”

“Have you memorized the map?”

I nodded. “I think so.”

“Just remember that if you drop the Mortana act by accident,” he cautioned, “you will end up in a pit of fire.”

“Great way to help me relax.”

But underneath the nerves and the fear, I was actually thrilled. Today, for the first time—after all these years—I was finally going to get a look inside the City of Thorns.

I was going to find my mom’s killer.