6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Mari never felt more desired than when she was dancing with Rio. He moved like sex incarnate and the hungry way he watched her made her tingle all over. He touched her everywhere as they moved to the beat, but she especially loved when he held her close with his hand on the small of her back, his fingers stroking her through her clothes as if desperate for even more contact.

The way he moved his hips should be illegal in public, and probably was outside the city limits. Her magic was vibrating inside her when he grabbed a handful of her ass and drew her even closer, encouraging her to bump against him with every sultry step. By the time the fourth song ended, she was ready to rip his clothes off and climb atop him no matter who was watching.

She grabbed his hand and started to pull him off the dance floor. Rio tugged her back into his arms and leaned to kiss her, his hand cradling the back of her head as her lips parted to allow him entry. The prick of his claws and the roughness of his tongue let her know that he was as turned on as she was. When he finally pulled away after what felt like an hour of plundering her mouth, he bit her lower lip. His eyes glowed golden as he grinned down at her before he nudged her back toward their seats.

Cisco's appreciative gaze slid over the two of them like he was undressing them in his mind as he lounged at their usual table. "I certainly hope you're done, because after watching the two of you practically have sex on the dance floor for twenty minutes, I'm going to need one of you on my dick very soon."

Rio chuckled and stepped away from the clawed hand that tried to coax him into Cisco's lap. "Let me go check in with Willow and then I'm ready to go." He stopped to kiss Mari first, and then Cisco, before heading for the elevator.

A server came over with a drink for her, a handsome blond man wearing a leather harness and incredibly snug leather pants. He looked vaguely familiar, but Mari couldn't put her finger on where she'd met him. "Thanks," she said with a smile.

When he didn't move off, she glanced over toward him again. "I thought you might come find me after your father died," he said, his blue eyes sad.

"Excuse me?" He really did look familiar, but his name escaped her entirely. Where did she know him from?

"Wow, really?" The blond's expression twisted into hurt. "I didn't think I was that forgettable."

"Fuck," Cisco said, standing up. "Dante, you're on our tab tonight and we need a room." His tone didn't leave any room for argument.

How did Cisco know him?

Dante tilted his head with a question he kept to himself. It took him a moment to find his voice. "Of course." He turned on one bare foot and stalked away.

"What in the fuck is going on?" They had barely discussed bringing anyone else in, and now Cisco was ordering them a room with a complete stranger. She was as adventurous as the next sex witch, but she liked to be involved in the decision at the very least.

"You're going to have to trust me, Mari. This isn't a discussion we want to have out here." He looked her way, his eyes pleading. "I fucked up. I'm going to fix it, but we need to be somewhere private."

"You didn't even ask him if he wanted to. That's not like you."

Cisco looked offended. "That is not what this is about."

"Well, he certainly thinks it is. You just said we were hiring him for the night."

Cisco growled. "Hells, of course he does."

Dante came back after a few minutes.

Standing, Cisco held out his hand to Mari. She took his offered hand and let him help her up. "This isn't a playdate." Cisco glanced toward Dante. "We've got something we need to talk about and I don't want to do it out here."

Dante's eyebrows rose. "Am I not your type?" His voice carried a hint of amusement.

Cisco paused to appraise him slowly. "You're absolutely my type and maybe another night I'll show you exactly how much, but seriously, not about that."

Dante grinned, showing off his dimples. "Okay, I'll try not to be offended. What's this about then?"

Cisco wrapped an arm around Mari and turned toward the elevator. "What floor are we on?" Cisco asked, changing the subject.

"Fine." Dante exhaled. "She put us on three."

Hyssop greeted them when they arrived at the glowing neon "This Way to Subspace" sign. They could have been Willow's twin but for a slight difference in the way they wore their hair. "Nice to see you both again." They lifted their arm with a flourish in the direction of the elevator. "Head on in." They twirled their hand and said something in a language Mari didn't recognize.

When the doors opened, their room was beyond, decorated in deep red with plush fabrics and comfortable furnishings.

"Send Rio up when he's done upstairs," Cisco instructed.

Hyssop nodded. "Enjoy," they said with a smile right before the group stepped through the portal.

Magic shimmered against Mari's skin as she passed from the main floor into the private room. She hadn't been in one of these before, and she wasn't quite sure what to expect.

Cisco passed his hand through his hair, unsettling his curls. He went to the bar immediately, pouring each of them a very healthy drink. "Everybody grab one. You're going to need it."

"Oh, this is a fancy bourbon problem." She glanced at Dante with a small grin. "That can't be good." Accepting the glass he offered her, she took a sip, letting the aroma fill her head for a moment before swallowing.

Dante looked between them. "I'm not supposed to while I'm on shift."

"Trust me." Cisco pushed the last glass his way before lifting his own and taking a big gulp. He gestured for them to sit.

"Seriously, what's going on, Cisco?" Mari asked as they all moved toward the seating area. She took a single chair, and Dante sat across from her on a loveseat. "You're starting to make me nervous."

"I fucked up. With everything that was happening, I forgot to take care of something." He exhaled a harsh breath and focused his attention on Mari. "You had me take your memories of one of the parties last year."

"What?" She stared at him, incredulous. "That makes no sense." She paused to think. "Wait, yeah. Now I remember you." She gestured toward Dante. "You were at one of my father's parties. But you told me he passed?" she asked as she turned back toward Cisco.

"Holy shit." Dante shook his head. "You're serious?"

Cisco took another large gulp that emptied his glass. "He didn't pass. You met in the powder room. And then when I came back after you were very upset."

"What the fuck?" Dante stood. "You gave me the cold shoulder, told me to leave and never come back, knowing you were going to just erase me?"

Anxiety twisted Mari's gut. Could she have done that? She definitely didn't remember it that way.

Cisco made a calming gesture. "What she said to me was that you had made her understand what it was like to be adored, and she couldn't live her life knowing that was possible for her."

Dante looked up at the gargoyle, pain twisting his face. He glanced toward Mari, his expression stricken. "That's so fucked up."

Mari clutched her hands together in her lap. She didn't remember any of that, but she could imagine that if she'd had an experience where she'd felt that much, it was a choice she would have made.

"You have no idea what her life was like. I did what she asked because that's what she needed. If you have to be mad at someone for this, it should be me."

"I'm not mad at anyone," Dante said, sitting again heavily. "I'm fucking sad. It was a beautiful experience and I feel awful that it hurt her so much that she had to escape from it."

Cisco walked toward Mari and crouched in front of her. "Do you want the memories back? You don't have to take them. We can just go forward as we are."

She had a hard time meeting his eyes, but she finally managed. His face was concerned. "It must have been really lovely to upset me that much?"

Cisco nodded, lifting one hand to rest on her knee. "It was."

Dante exhaled an exasperated sigh. "So she doesn't remember, but you do?"

Cisco flicked a sympathetic glance Dante's way. "When I take the memories I hold them as if they were my own."

Mari put one hand on his chest. "I want them back."

Cisco straightened slightly, moving his hand to hold the back of her neck. "You're sure?"

Mari took a calming breath, and then nodded. "It's unfair to him, and unfair to you."

"When I restore the memories, you're going to feel exactly what you did when I took them. It will pass, but it's likely to be very upsetting."

She was twice as certain as she had been before that she did not want the memories of the night of the ritual on her sixteenth birthday back if that was the case. "I understand."

"Why don't we just go forward as we are?" Dante asked. "It sucks, but the idea that you'll be hurting again sucks more."

Mari showed him a sad smile. She already knew it was going to be awful. He was so kind. Of course he'd made her feel cherished at a time in her life when she'd desperately needed it and also couldn't accept it without putting his life in danger. "I need to know."

Cisco's fingers curled around the back of her neck. She stared into his all-black eyes and tried to relax. The touch of his magic was comfortable and familiar, even though she was filled with anxiety about what would happen. The memories flooded back suddenly, and she had to relive all of them in an instant from start to finish.

The flirtation she shared with the charming unicorn. The sex that was better than anything had been to that point. The easy affection that she had never felt before in her life. Her heart broke all over again when she had to push Dante away, and then once more when Cisco told her she was already adored, just before he wiped the night from her memory. She choked on a sob as she leaned forward, clutching her stomach.

Saints, it was awful. The crushing certainty that she would try to find Dante, knowing that her father would kill him, but that she wouldn't be able to help herself because he'd been exactly what she needed. The affection that had been denied to her for her entire life had dropped into her lap, and she knew at once that she couldn't ever have it again without risking his life. Her shoulders shook with sobs that only got worse when she remembered the devastation that had shown in Cisco's eyes.

Cisco pulled her into an embrace, wrapping his arms and his wings around her as he pulled her from the chair to hold her against him.

Mari had no idea how long she cried, but when she was done, much later, she felt empty. She wiped at her face and tapped Cisco's chest so he would let her go. He placed her delicately on her feet.

"Thank you," she said, raising one hand to touch his cheek. "I'm sorry you had to carry that. It must have been hard."

He smiled a little. "It made your life easier."

"But it made yours so much more difficult."

Cisco held her hand to his face. "Like I told you that night, I lived with it every day, no matter what."

She sighed. "I love you."

He kissed her hand. "Siempre, mi amor."

"Can you give us a minute?"

Cisco nodded. "Of course. I'll be outside if you need me." He turned on one clawed foot and walked to the door, nodding at Dante on his way out.

Once the door closed behind him, Mari looked at Dante. "I'm sorry I did that."

He met her eyes after a long, awkward moment. "I can't pretend I understand, and it hurt my feelings a lot when you didn't call, but I hope you know that hurting you was the last thing I ever wanted to do."

"It wasn't you; it was him." She took a breath. "I knew that I would try to find you, because you'd given me a taste of something so beautiful, but if I went after you there was only one way that was going to end."

He nodded, but there was still a wounded look in his eyes. "I wish you'd told me."

Her lips trembled when she tried to smile. "You would have tried to help me."

He let out a soul-deep sigh. "Yeah, I would have."

"And that would have made everything so much worse."

He grumbled. "Okay, I get it. The whole situation was fucked up, and neither of us could have fixed it."

"I'm sorry that I didn't come find you after he died."

"I'll admit it was a little bit of a hit to my ego, but not your fault since you didn't actually remember." Dante smiled, his dimples flashing. "I hope now that you do, you might have chosen differently."

"I would have looked for you, eventually, although the last few weeks have been kind of a whirlwind."

"Ouch." His eyes sparkled with mischief. "Right to the quick, every time."

She grinned, catching his playful mood. "Only because kissing it better after feels so good."

His laugh was warm and rich. "You're right about that."

An idea of a way she could potentially solve a problem and spend more time with this sexy unicorn suddenly occurred to her. "So, you work for Esmé?"

He nodded. "When she asked for volunteers to come fill the vacancies over here, I raised my hand first thing. A shameless attempt to see you again without breaking the promise I made to you."

The fact that the promise clearly meant so much to him convinced her it was at least worth asking. "And you're a submissive for hire?"

"Yup. A full list of my services is available on the app." He winked. "But I'll give you the highlights. Not much on my no list aside from pony play."

Mari nearly choked on a laugh. "No. People do not really ask you for that?"

"Oh, honey, you would be surprised how many." He rolled his eyes. "Frankly, it's offensive. One guy asked if he could wear spurs while he fucked me."

Once she got another fit of giggles under control, she straightened her shoulders. "And could I hire you, like long term?"

Dante tilted his head. "Not a thing I would usually say yes to, but I'm intrigued."

She swallowed back the embarrassment that rose, though she couldn't help the blush that heated her face. "There are things I want to explore, and Cisco said he would teach me, but I have reasons for not wanting to go down that road with Rio."

He searched her face for a long moment. "Considering everything I've heard about what went on here before Esmé took over, I'm not surprised."

"I'll have to talk it over with them, but I think they won't have a problem with it. Plus, it will give you and I a chance to start over, maybe?"

Once again, he showed her a dazzling display of his dimples. "I'd like that."

A knock on the door interrupted them, followed by Rio peeking his head in. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

Mari smiled. "Yeah, I'm good. Come in, Cisco too."

Rio moved inside and sat on the foot of the large bed that was the centerpiece of the room.

Cisco stood next to him and placed a casual hand on the back of his neck. He glanced slowly over Mari and then Dante. "Looks like you two have started to resolve things?"

Mari nodded. "I wanted to know how you both felt about hiring Dante to help work out the stuff with my magic that we've been worried about?"

Rio's eyes flicked to Dante and then back to her. "I don't know him as well as you and Cisco, but I trust both of your judgments."

"Seems like a good solution, since you're already familiar with him," Cisco said. "That something you're interested in helping with?" he asked Dante.

"She hasn't really explained much about what would be involved, but I think so." A blush made his cheeks glow. "I'm drawn to her. I have been since that night."

"We'd be exploring how being dominant impacts her magic. What sorts of things she likes, specifically related to pain."

Dante looked her over, a slow smile curling his lips. "Sounds like my kind of sexy experiment."

Mari's magic hummed, pleased that he wanted to experience the part of her that she didn't quite understand, even if she was a little afraid of it. Cisco picked up on the change in her demeanor at once, a hint of his fangs showing as he took a step closer to Dante.

Without saying a word, Cisco's body language shifted, somehow standing taller with a subtle flare of his wings though that seemed impossible. Dante looked up at him without lifting his chin, the very picture of surrender even though Cisco hadn't asked for anything of the sort.

Cisco chuckled in a low rumble. "Vibe check passed."

"I can offer you a free sample, if you like," Dante suggested. Though his voice was steady, Dante was all but begging to be put on his knees.

How did she know that? Mari didn't have any idea. Something about the angle of his head and the relaxed way he held himself that spoke to that deeper part of her.

"I held her memories for more than a year, I know exactly how talented your mouth is." Cisco searched his face. "I'm going to make you wait for it."

"Fuck," Dante said with a pleased flash of his dimples.

Cisco smirked. "I'll go talk to Esmé and clear your schedule." He turned and headed for the door. "You're welcome to move in if you like," he said over his shoulder just before walking out.

Dante watched him go with a long exhale. "Oh, he's one of those control Doms." He gave a wry shake of his head. "I'm in so much trouble."

Rio laughed. "Yeah, he's the real deal."

Dante nodded to him. "Nice to meet you. Officially, I mean. I'm Dante."

Rio stood and went to offer him a hand. After they shook he said, "Rio. You're one of only two Manhattans I ever gave out, so I'm glad you treated her right."

Dante sent Mari a confused glance.

She waved a hand. "It was how he used to let me know if he thought my potential hookups were a good idea or not. Be glad you weren't a Tequila Sunrise; I probably would have run."

"Ugh, grenadine." Rio wrinkled his nose.

They had an easy conversation for the next little while, until Cisco came back saying that he'd straightened everything out with Esmé.