The day after Mira took Nieve and met Rey for a girls night out, she couldn’t help puzzling over whether she should see Paul again. When she thought of the things he’d described they could do together, the temptation was almost irresistible.
Which was the problem. Who was seducing who here? Paul was a mortal. One who was a vampire’s servant, yes, but still a mortal. Shouldn’t she be the one singing her song to draw the stray to her drowning pool? Of course she should be, she told herself.
When Paul called the next Saturday evening, Mira confirmed she was available for Sunday. He agreed to pick her up at her apartment in Santa Fe around lunch time. She packed up a few things, called for a driver, and was on her way out of Remy’s mansion when she was intercepted.
“Going out tonight, ma petite?”
Mira stopped and turned, a little smile on her lips. “I thought I would go home tonight, master. Paul has agreed to see me tomorrow. He’ll pick me up at the apartment.”
“Did he? Or did you agree to his request to see you?” Remy said with a slight smile. Mira loved her little games. He’d tolerate them so long as they remained that way.
“So I’d like him to think,” Mira said.
“Remember that you play this game with the servant of a dangerous vampire. I would not have you endangered. Convince me this is a wise course of action.”
Mira replied, “There can be no gain if there is no risk, master.” She took a step to close the distance between them and went to her knees. She took his hand in hers. “You will be prince of this city one day. It’s master. I know it. Allow me to help you make it a reality by giving you an edge over your enemies.”
He took his hand away. “Do not ‘handle’ me, ma petit. I know the risks better than you.” As he watched her he wondered if she would defy him if he forbade this. Then he’d have to punish her and he wondered how long that would be effective, or if he’d be forced to break her. That would be… unpleasant for all concerned. There were ways to protect what was his other than telling her no.
“Yes, master,” Mira said, looking dejectedly at the floor.
He raised her chin so she would look at him. “Go and have your fun then.”
Mira got up, flashed him a smile, and headed out the door.
Remy sighed as the door closed behind her, then removed his cell phone and touched a few buttons. “Lucas? Clear your schedule for tomorrow. I need you to do something for me.”
When security called up that she had a visitor at her apartment the next day, Mira took the elevator down to meet her caller. When the doors slid back, Paul was graced with a vision Mira dressed in a fantastic little blue dress. The color on her was somehow as attractive and sultry as red on another dark-haired, curvy woman. It had a deep neckline and ended above the knees. She wore no jewelry, not even rings or bracelets, though Paul thought it incomplete without at least a choker. She had put on very little makeup, but what she did have accentuated the redness of her lips and the near-black of her eyes. She was gorgeous and in his mind deliciously vulnerable.
Mira noticed his jean must be getting a little tight and her smile of greeting broadened. “Hi Paul”, she said, injecting just the smallest touch of her Voice, and was rewarded with seeing his eyes dilate. “From your expression, I take it that you like the dress?”
Paul cleared his throat. “Wow. Yes, I like. I don’t think the soft lighting of that club the other night did you justice, and I still thought you were amazing then.”
“Amazing, huh?” Mira laughed gently. “All I did was hang around with you then.” She deliberately brought up what they’d done behind closed curtains and was rewarded by his secret smile as he led her out of the lobby.
“What did you have in mind today?” she asked as they stepped out onto the sidewalk and began heading toward the car park.
“I thought I’d take you to a place I think you’d enjoy,” Paul responds casually. “A lot like Spike’s on fetish night, but potentially a lot more fun.”
“I’m all for fun,” she said.
As they walked, she took measure of him out of the corner of her eye. In the daylight, Paul was still a handsome man. That was a bonus, because this whole thing would be a drag if she’d decided he wasn’t attractive. But then she reminded herself that he could be fun and interesting regardless what he looked like. She told herself she knew she was a shallow person, but at least she tried to be a little better than that. He was dressed in a nice button-down shirt with long sleeves (the spring day was cool, something Mira often forgot to account for when she chose he clothing since she rarely felt cold as part of her nature). He paired with dark blue jeans and wore an expensive windbreaker, mostly unzipped, on top of that.
“Eventually they came to his car. It was a nice foreign one, an Altima she thought. It wasn’t ostentatious, but it had extra luxury appointments that she noticed once he’d let her in and seated her. The seats were a soft leather and everything was shiny and clean. Even the floor mats were free of sand, grit or leaves.
As Paul pulled out of the lot she remarked, “Nice car. You must make a pretty good living?”
“I do all right.”
“What do you do?”
“I’m in human resources,” Paul said.
Mira winced inwardly.
“You said you used to waitress,” Paul recollected. “What do you do now?”
“Nothing much,” Mira said, “other than fortune telling stuff. You know, put on a show, tell people what they want to hear, make some money.”
“So it’s just fake?”
“For those that want it to be, yes,” Mira said. “It’s real enough for those who want to believe. The smart ones take the truth of what I show them and do something useful with it. Make their lives better, or whatever makes them feel good.”
“What do you mean, for those who want to believe?”
“Some people need to believe in things like fate or destiny. They want to know that what’s happened to them was beyond their control, that it wasn’t their fault, but that they can do something to change it,” Mira said. “Reasons for visiting a fortune teller are as varied as the people themselves.”
“What about those who go to you, expecting to hear horrible things in their future?”
“They get what they pay for, typically,” Mira said. “And that beats waiting tables.”
Mira settled back in her seat, noting they were heading into Mythic now. “So do you do this kind of thing frequently? Meet someone at the club and decide to…”
“Try a second date?” Paul said with a smile.
“Yeah, something like that.”
“Not really,” he replied. “But I had a lot of fun the last time. More than I usually do.” His hand moved from the steering wheel to rest lightly on her leg, his fingertips perhaps a smidge too low on the inside of her thigh to be completely polite.
Mira put a hand on his long enough to show she liked it were it was. “Me too,” she said with a mischief-filled smile. She wanted him to feel comfortable with her.
Some minutes passed and they drew closer to Paul’s destination. Then Mira asked, “What’s your favorite kind of thing to do?”
“Depends,” he said. “Are you talking about driving, or sports?”
“I mean with regard to sex,” Mira said.
Paul chuckled. “Sex can be a kind of sport.” He smiled, and his fingers caressed her skin but did not move any higher. “There are a lot of things I like to do with sex. What we did at Spike’s is near the top of my list of fun. What’s your favorite kind of thing to do, sexually?”
“Keeping in mind there are very few things I don’t like, there are some things I think are especially exciting,” Mira said. “I like surprises, and you definitely had surprises for me at Spike’s. I like challenges, and to challenge my partner, too. I enjoy some roughness, but no blood, no breaking things, obviously.”
“Pain can be good,” Paul agreed, “but not when it overshadows the pleasure.” His hand moved casually up her thigh, like he had every right to be doing that, until his fingers reached where her legs were pressed together because of how she was sitting.
They came to an intersection, and he turned the car one-handed with ease onto a tree-lined street. The houses on each side were large and expensive looking, but with little to no front yard, just like so many houses in Mythic proper were. Halfway down the block, he turned into a driveway, drove through a mini-tunnel, and pulled the car into one of five parking spots in the walled yard behind the house.
“This boring looking place,” Paul said with a smile, “is actually a very exclusive club, that caters to those with interests like ours, what we had a small taste of at Spike’s. It is a safe place, where we can explore to our libido’s content, with nobody to judge us or stop us because of the misguided belief in what we’re doing is ‘wrong’.”
“Good. That sounds really good,” Mira said. That Paul had access here was fascinating. Leo himself didn’t strike her as the sort of person to go to a place like this, so she suspected this was really all Paul. Xavier’s mortal slaves of course have experience with the kind of things they’d been hinting at, but not Leo. Her curiosity was piqued and she was already looking forward to fostering a sense of trust between Paul and herself.
Once they got out of the car, she joined him at his side as they approaching the club. As a mansion, it had the perfect sense of Victorian deviance Mira had only rarely experienced.
He led her up the back stairs and knocked three times on the heavy-looking door. After a moment, it opened to reveal an older gentleman dressed as an butler.
“Good evening sir,” the butler said with a slight bow as he let them into the house and closed the door behind them. “It’s good to see you again. It has been quite a while since you’ve visited us.”
“Thank you, Gardener,” Paul said to the man. “It has been a while. Is the Green Room available?”
“I’m afraid not, sir. However, the Blue Room is, if it would suit your needs.”
“Excellent,” Paul replied with a pleasant smile. “It certainly would. I’d like the usual tray sent to the room immediately.”
“Of course, sir,” Gardener said with a nod. The man started to walk into the house.
“No need to lead me up,” Paul said to the man. “I remember the way.”
“Yes, sir,” Gardener replied with a little bow. “I will go see to the tray.”
Mira looked around curiously as they went, taking in a sweeping staircase that was curled around the great room just beyond the entryway. Red carpet provided a non-slip surface. The wood railing looked polished, old, and cared for. The hardwood floor the echoed just a little as they made their way to the stairs shined darkly and she imagined barefoot dances at midnight beneath a crystal chandelier shining like stars.
She expected baudy displays of figures in sexual positions or at least nude statues lining the halls, but none of this was present in the public areas. It remained on the inside what it appeared to be on the outside; a grand, luxurious home.
“Something wrong?” Paul asked as he started up the stairs, his hand in hers.
“Nothing at all. This place is really beautiful Paul! How did you find it?” she wondered.
“Through a friend of a friend,” he replied, leading her to the right when they reached the top of the stairs. Their voices and footsteps seemed unusually loud, and then Mira realized despite the number of cars out back, she and Paul’s actions were the only ones she could hear. She suspected the rooms might be soundproofed. Perfect.
When they arrived, the door was open and Paul led them inside. She stepped in and turned to face him with her deep, dark eyes and red lips. Her look beckoned him for a little warm up before the butler arrived.
It didn’t take a trained eye to see the larger bulge in his very well tailored pants. He took a step forward, but then there was a light knocking on the doorframe. A young, fairly attractive woman in a sedate maid’s uniform stood in the doorway, holding a covered tray. “Here is the tray you requested, sir,” the woman said with soft respect.
“Put it over on the table.” Paul made no attempt to disguise the lust in his voice, though Mira wondered if it should not have been greater. She wasn’t losing her touch, was she?
The maid placed the tray on the table, and with a slight curtsy, retreated and closed the door behind her. Paul walked over to the table and removed the tray’s lid to reveal a large plate covered with fresh oysters, nestled in a bed of ice, along with a few other smaller dishes containing other finger foods well suited to the night’s potential events.
Mira practically gasped with delight. Her eyes were suddenly fastened up the treats on the platter, releasing him from their seductive grip. The worry about losing her touch, for now, evaporated in the thrill of the moment.
“You love seafood, too?” she asked.
“I wish I could,” Paul said with honest regret on his face. “But I can’t eat them. I hoped you would like them, though.”
Mira recognized some people were really allergic to shellfish. She turned to him, “Aw, you are so thoughtful. I do love them. If that was a guess, it was a very good one.”
A firm believer in the reward system, she stepped to him, close but not touching. He was taller, not surprisingly, so she had to look up. It was clear she was offering the kiss, should he wish to plunder his reward.
He bent his head down and conquered her mouth, taking it with dominating force and only the faintest hint of pain, while maintaining only that point of contact between them. She let him take his prize as he wished, for as long as he wished. Her lips were parted, mouth accepting.
For one achingly needful moment, she poised on the precipice of using her dark fae magic to weaken him, to make him vulnerable and sleepy, to take what she wanted of his body and leave him to pine after the moment she gave him…
Old habits die hard and she fought it away. That wasn’t the game today. She was no longer a nymph of a lonely pond, luring men to their doom for her pleasure and her master’s. But he was a mortal. Unlike Remy, unlike other lovers in which the instinct to steal away didn’t trigger, his presence was pushing that button.
Her body trembled as she wrested control from her instincts. It was easier to forget what she was and go with the tide of sensation when restrained. It was easier to tell herself she was like a mortal.
She looked back into his eyes and knew he read her tremble as excitement and didn’t care.
“Why don’t you eat,” he said, more a command than a question, and took her by the hand to the elegant chair next to the tray table. His other hand moved to her back, a light but seductive along her spine from the nape of her neck, down over her rump, with a light little tease of his fingertips on the join of her thighs as he sweeps the skirt of her dress down so she can sit properly.
She leaned over to catch the scent of spices used with the oysters and felt his eyes run over the line of her body as she did. Here they used a wine-based sauce, she thought, mild and with cocktail sauce on the side. They’d been opened and broiled that way with the sauce added right in the shell. She knew the flavor would be just enough to add a little adventure to the natural flavor of the shellfish. She picked one up and expertly, silently sucked the meat into her mouth. She sighed with pleasure, sitting back and chewing slowly. She let herself focus on the flavor and sensations, closing her eyes as she ate the next and the third.
She carefully dabbed at her lips so not to smudge them, then washed it down with a drink of water followed by a generous mouthful of the provided champaigne. This purposely done out of consideration for Paul.
“Would you mind standing for a moment?” he asked. “I believe I need to fix something with the chair. No, it’s alright. Just stand where you are and enjoy a few more oysters. It’ll just be a few moments.”
See link if you want to see the NSFW details of their encounter.
Sanitized version
Although Mira didn’t realize it, she failed to win control of the situation. Despite her natural siren-like abilities, Paul proved he was far better at taking control of sexual encounters than any mortal she’d ever met. Her pride had taken a small blow at that, but his intensive ministrations kept her off balance and soon, happily at his mercy. She learned that his mix of pain and pleasure was a huge turn on for both of them; so long as he was dominant. Mira found she was happy to let him assume the role.
But just when she was at her most vulnerable, Paul deviously plied her with drugged wine. She had no idea she was speaking her thoughts aloud when she answered his two most important questions. She told him Remy had plans to topple Nayeli, the current vampire master of the city. The answer to his second question was perhaps more revealing as she admitted that she and Remy were Bound together. For this, he “rewarded” her with overwhelming sensations that he hoped would cause her to forget their little Q and A. Combined with the drugged wine, it was practically guaranteed to work.
end of sanitized summary
He would be content with what he had now. Perhaps, when Leo destroyed Remy, his master might give her to him as a reward. But for now, she was still bound in the chair, ready and willing participant. Paul smiled. “Let’s see how far you can be pushed, and how many more times I can make you scream like that before you must be returned to your master.
At mention of her ‘master’, Paul thought he detected a flicker of concern, so he made an effort to distract her. It wasn’t hard — give her more sensation and she quickly lost track of her thoughts.
He was good as his word. Distracting her by making her scream with pleasure and even pain was both effective and satisfying for him. But there were still some questions he had. It might be now or never.
It was helpful to make her feel she was having an effect on him, too. And after he had her turn over and fastened down again, it he didn’t even have to lie to her face. He fucked her with any manner of toy he wanted and she took it like a bitch in heat.
She asked if he’d always known what she was and who her master was and he told her yes. That was even the truth. When she asked what Leo was doing and if Paul intended to get information from her, it was easy to tell her that Leo no longer considered his old rivalry with Remy a priority and that he wouldn’t do anything to compromise Mira’s position. He said so as he made her scream again. He relished the lie.
He gave her some more drugged wine and she sucked it down, unaware the sluggishness in her body and the heaviness of her eyelids had little to do with exhaustion or too much play, then asked her more questions.
The rest of her answers were less dramatic: Yes, she and Remy were frequent lovers. Yes he kept her near him most of the time and yes she thought he closely watched over her the rest of the time one way or another. She didn’t seem to know any deep details of Remy’s plans not because he didn’t trust her, but simply because she really just paid attention to the big picture and those things that directly concerned herself. Most frustratingly, she seemed to know little inside information on Remy’s coterie at all aside from their sexual orientation.
His final question was about whether Remy intended to do anything against Leo. Mira was unaware of her own response, but it she was very clear to Paul. “My master has more important things to do than deal with Leopold. Therefore, I will hunt Leo down myself and burn him to a cinder for taking advantage of me.”
The temperature began to rise sharply as Mira’s drifting mind focused on burning her hated persecutor to death. Paul began to sweat and he realized he was out of time. He put aside asking any further questions and managed to recover control by distracting her with a soothing massage followed by more of his expert ministrations.
It was late in the afternoon when their adventure had come to a natural conclusion. Mira took twenty minutes to recover her strength and Paul had the satisfaction of seeing she was giddy from the experience. The drug had been weak and it was fading, but he saw she was rather tipsy still, probably due to drinking the wine too fast on top of it. From his point of view, things had gone perfectly.
The giddiness Mira felt would wear off and the prospect of returning home to see Remy was exciting. She felt successful. Paul had confided that Leo was not interested in pursuing their rivalry, so wasn’t that good news? She knew he had asked some inappropriate questions, but she was certain he hadn’t learned anything from her.
The only thing that concerned her a little was that Paul had known what she was and that Remy was her master. He’d said he’d always known that she served Remy. That he’d also known she was a nymph with the ability to snare men with her voice meant the Leopold might have told him. He’d have had to learn it somewhere.
If anything worried her about the afternoon, it was that. Remy might be upset because it showed Paul knew more than she thought he did going into this. She’d taken a much bigger risk than she’d thought she had been. It was a thought sobering enough she was steady on her feet when it was time to leave.
Paul led her out of the mansion toward his car. Her hands had one of his, her fingers twined in his. It was a very human thing to do, but she didn’t care. She had a feeling, though, a kind of finality. It felt like she might not see him again and it made her a little sad.
*** Section break: Ambush ***
They were attacked before they could make it to Paul’s car.
The big man that leaped up on top of his Altima was immediately family to Mira. “Tlaloc,” she growled.
Mira shoved Paul behind her, an action that surprised him and offended him at the same time. He gripped her shoulder to assert his control of the situation but two things happened. First, Mira shrugged him off. Second, Tlaloc began to shift into something…. monstrous. Furred and with massive teeth and yellow eyes. The sight was terrifying and Paul couldn’t help the step back he took.
“One way or another, you’re coming with me,” he snarled. His speech was slurred by the shape of his muzzle.
Mira’s reaction was to leap onto the hood of the car and attempt a martial throw. But Tlaloc knew his stuff. He blocked her grapple, reversed it and threw her to the ground.
She rolled over and flung a hand at him. Tlaloc screamed as he erupted into flames. When the popping sound was heard, Mira realized someone was also shooting at Tlaloc, though they seemed only to have winged him.
At that point, Tlaloc realized he didn’t want to fight while on fire and being shot at by an unknown gunman. He leapt off the car, but was blinded by flames that hadn’t yet finished devouring his fur. Mira snapped to her feet and cut off his escape route as another shot slammed through a nearby car window.
Paul ducked low and ran for his car. His roof was dented but he was able to open the door and jump inside. Meanwhile Mira’s battle continued while Paul watched in surprised fascination.
They traded blows but neither gained the advantage. Tlaloc was having to duck the shooter, but he taunted Mira. “Where is your power now, creature? I will drag you or your corpse before my queen — it is your choice!”
“Shut it,” Mira said, and continued to call upon her control of water elements to destroy him. When her power touched him next, Tlaloc’s body withered and he screamed.
When the next bullet winged Tlaloc, it only distracted him, but it threw him off enough he couldn’t get his jaws to close on the elusive nymph. She continued to call upon magic, aiming for his heart, and it was clear she was doing horrific damage to him. But it was the final bullet that hit him high in the back and spun him around that dropped him.
Mira wasted no time jumping on him and getting her legs around the dying man’s head. She was about to twist and break his neck when she felt Remy stir deep in her thoughts.
“Ma petite. You have been busy today. Are you hurt?”
“No master,” Mira murmured aloud. “Though Nayeli’s new plaything, the were-jaguar Tlaloc thought he could take me to his master. He was wrong. I would kill him now, master.”
“No. Leave him. If he lives he could prove useful, but dead will give us nothing. And may expose you to those who find him.”
Mira paused, and Remy could sense a sudden nervousness.
“You are not alone.” It wasn’t a question. He knew.
“Yes, master.” She didn’t look over where Paul had taken cover in his dented car.
“Paul. He saw you?” She didn’t say anything, so he knew he was correct. “Do not concern yourself with it, ma petite,” Remy sent. “And leave Tlaloc. I’d like to see you now.”
He was rising early tonight. Her pulse quickened again. “Yes, master,” she replied.
Mira stood and walked calmly to Paul’s car. She leaned down as he rolled down the window. “We should get out of here,” Paul said.
She looked him in the eye and knew he would betray her. She leaned on the door so he could see her face clearly. “You should run, Paul. Get out of this city and never come back.”
Paul’s blood ran cold, but he kept his poker face. “I can’t.”
Mira looked at him and nodded. “Goodbye, Paul.” She stepped away from his car and watched him start up. She was still watching him when he pulled out of the drive.
When he was gone, she found her cell phone in her little purse and began walking. She called Remy, as it was easier and she didn’t look like a crazy person talking to herself. She gave him her location, then walked to the street and down the block. Her disheveled state drew looks in this neighborhood, but she stayed away from people until someone came to pick her up.
She never saw the shooter that had helped her fight Tlaloc, but she saw the van that came to clean up the mess.
She did feel bad about Paul. She was pretty sure he wasn’t going to see Leopold or anyone else ever again. But in addition to the delicious sex, she had managed to learn that Leo wasn’t pursuing the rivalry with Remy anymore. At least, that’s what Paul had said.
As lost in her thoughts as she was, the drive back to Remy’s mansion in the limo seemed short. The staff directed her to a room in the south wing. It was one of Remy’s play rooms.
She’d prepared a number of apologies in her mind for the way she’d left a mess and let Paul see her use power, and was still trying to think of something that would get her out of trouble when she entered the room.
A firm, cool hand grabbed her by the throat and pinned her to the wall. Remy casually kicked the door shut with a foot, then pressed his lips hard against hers in a forceful, aggressive kiss. Mira gasped in surprise and fear as he dragged her away and put her roughly on a high, padded table where he began to work his way down, addressing each little bruise and red mark Paul had inflicted with a lick and a little bite of his own.
Though she had been sated and the fight with Tlaloc had left her further drained, his unexpected fervor fired her seemingly boundless libido again, her body reacting with more passion than she thought she could have managed.
Still, he detected a sluggishness to her movements and growled impatiently. He pricked his thumb upon a sharp, extended incisor, and brushed her lips, making them red and glistening with his blood before he pushed his thumb into her mouth and let her taste the succulent power that ran in his veins. Mira moaned in delight and grabbed his hand. He let her have what she wanted for only a few moments, before pulling his hand back and pushing her head back against the cushion.
He tore away her dress to better see what required his attention. Every mark and every bit of sensitive skin received his intense attention, even the few superficial bruises she’d received in the struggle with Tlaloc. The euphoria brought by the taste of his blood made her especially pliable and he used that to his advantage.
The sex that ensued wasn’t love, though Mira chose to think of it as him making love to her. Remy’s drive was to assert his power over her. It wasn’t jealousy that drove him, but the need to reestablish that she belonged to him. The heady power of his blood burned in her veins as his touch fired her passions. He took her and wouldn’t stop until she begged for release by crying out his name.
This only temporarily sated the mood he was in. His connection to her, the Bond, meant he could feel what she felt when she didn’t filter it out — and she wasn’t very good at that unfortunately. This caused him… dreams of a sort. He doubted she would complain when he came to take her again the next few nights. From his point of view, it was her fault he needed to do this in any case.
He left her some time after she’d passed out. Even a nymph’s body had its limits after all and it was late in the night. After the day with Paul and the night with him, she’d be weary to her very bones, even with his gift of blood vitae he’d shared.
Besides, Remy needed to see if his new prize had survived. Lucas awaited at the holding facility.