Chapter 13

Nothing like telling the woman he wanted to seduce that she had killed her own parents.

Sagging into her chair, Harper broke down sobbing.

Damn, this was not his intention. He'd planned a light lunch, perhaps flirting and coaxing her into relaxing. Instead, she was left stricken and shocked.

He didn't know what to do. Emotional distance was his game, not emotional intimacy.

But when he saw her, weeping and distraught, he instinctively needed to comfort her. Her tears were a hammer upon the cold stone he called a heart. Made him squirm and feel helpless.

All he could do was offer his arms and a place to release her pent-up sorrow.

Jared picked her up in his arms and marched upstairs with her. No protest from Harper, who curled into him as if he were the last safe place on earth.

With extreme care he laid her on the bed, unzipped the pink and purple ankle boots and tossed them aside. Exhausted from her outburst, she closed her eyes.

Knowing she needed a reprieve; he murmured a sleep spell to lure her into deep rest.

"You will have only pleasant dreams, happy memories of the ones who bore you. You will sleep and awaken refreshed and peaceful," he whispered, brushing away a lock of black hair from her cheek.

She looked helpless, her face pale against the sheets, salt droplets clinging to her long black lashes. Enchanted he reached over and touched one. His finger came away wet, and he trembled inside with rage and some other unknown emotion.

He stepped onto the balcony outside her room.

Jared assumed his incubus form, and flew up to the castle turret to think. Cold air batted at his face, a hard slap of fresh reality.

His incubus form had leathery wings ending in sharp tips, short but prominent black horns atop his head. His black hair was shoulder-length, flowing like silk. A leather loincloth covered his substantial sex.

Muscled and powerful, he looked menacing to males, enticing to females. Jared flexed his biceps, tightening the metal armbands engraved with ancient spells to enhance his powers.

In this form, he turned into mist, and invaded women's dreams and thoughts, coaxing them into seduction. If they truly wished it, he would awaken them and morph into his human/Skin body and pleasure them for hours. After several hours of excellent sex and plenty of mind-bending orgasms, they would fall asleep once more, smiles on their faces.

Then Jared would fly away, sated himself, for a little while. Yet the restlessness always plaguing him would return after a while, so he kept seducing women in pursuit of finding… something. Peace? Joy? Fulfillment?

After several decades, he gave up searching.

When the witch Serena had cursed him after a failed seduction, she sentenced him to become a beast no one would find alluring, only terrifying. He could no longer assume his incubus form after midnight. Instead, he became a horrific and terrifying monster.

So much for enticing women.

For the first time, his cursed beastly form wasn't a concern. Harper was.

The demon seeking her,if he drained her, could become a powerful weapon to destroy humans, even Others.

And you.

The mocking voice inside him, the one that still clung to a glimmer of conscience, reminded him of his own vulnerability. Jared didn't believe Harper was his soul mate. Hell, he doubted such things existed, at least for him. But it was clear Harper was in need of strong protection until she learned to harness and control her considerable magick.

Let's not mention you find her incredibly cute, and sexy.

Shut up.

He considered his options. Her powers needed to be truly tested, but here in his castle? Jared dismissed the thought as he flexed his powerful wings.

What if she turned against him? Harper might be powerful, but he held more power and knew how to use it.

As long as he took her someplace where the demon couldn't find them, and it was long before midnight before he shifted into a monster, it would work out.

The castle was safe. Secure. No one could touch her here. He'd claimed the temple and turned it into a castle, a structure for splendid isolation, with views of the mountains ringing the stone building. He wanted for nothing here.

But at times, it grew unbearably lonely.

Harper as his soulmate, a woman who wouldn't find his appearance after midnight horrific and shrink back in terror? Unlikely.

But he liked her grit and courage. She deserved a chance at life, a chance to beat the demon wanting to squeeze and drain her like a juice box.

You like more than her courage. You want her and that bothers you.

Jared had to admit, it did bother him. He was a sexually experienced incubus, and seducing women was no longer an art. More of a mindless task, a repetitive one much as chopping cucumbers (he winced at that analogy) for a cook preparing a salad.

Not with Harper. She stirred him in a way no woman had done in hundreds of years. He wanted to get inside her, not only in a sexual way to claim and possess her body as he'd done with countless women he'd seduced, but to see what intrigued her. What drove her, what made her…

Happy?

Jared shook his head, scowling at the idea. Look at him, getting all sentimental. That wasn't an emotion he liked, or needed.

A crisp wind ruffled his hair. Clean, pure earth smells lingered in the air, pleasing him. He gazed into the distance, his vision sharpening as he studied the men hunched over pickaxes, turning the soil as they worked in the fertile fields.

Stretching out his wings, he surveyed the tiny village below. Seldom did he circle around the humble mudbrick homes or the sturdier cement buildings with their tin roofs, for he did like the people there and didn't want to scare them.

But he had an urgent need to meet with Xavier to find out details on how Harper's family died. She deserved answers and he was determined to give them to her.

His housekeeper, Jallu, already had orders to serve them a sumptuous meal tonight. Initially, Jared had planned a sweet seduction, intended at discovering what turned Harper on and discover more about this intriguing woman.

Then he blew it by making her cry.

Idiot. Did you have to tell her she caused her parents to die?

What the fuck is wrong with me?

He flew down to the village and landed. A bored alpaca turned its long neck and regarded him, and then returned to chewing its meal. Its tan and white baby scampered over to Jared. He petted its head and then headed for the nearest house.

No mudbrick here. Jallu's family lived in a simple, but sturdy concrete home with bright gold walls and colorful hand-woven textiles covering the furniture. They even had electricity, and a simple LED bulb hung above the living area.

More out of not wanting to scare them than politeness, he knocked on the door. A young woman answered. The baby sleeping in a textile sling she wore over one shoulder awakened and began to fuss. Her wide gaze roved over Jared's incubus demon form, and she squeaked, retreating inside the small living area.

An elderly woman with strong features, a roadmap of wrinkles on her careworn face, came out of the kitchen, drying her hands on a towel.

Unafraid, she bowed before Jared. The younger woman peered at Jared as he strode over to the crying infant. He tickled the baby, who cooed at him, and the mother relaxed.

A little.

"My lord Jared. I am honored." Jallu gestured to a bowl on the wooden kitchen table. "May I serve you some quinoa? We were about to eat."

He spoke in the Quechua dialect used by all the villagers. "I need you at the castle tonight to prepare a sumptuous meal for my lady guest only. I shall not be joining her. Serve the meal in her room. Be certain the meal contains a good amount of beef."

Jallu bowed her head. "Yes sire."

When she raised her head, he frowned. For a moment she seemed familiar, as if the elderly visage were a mask and another woman lurked beneath it.

Although he had no time to investigate, he hated deceit. Jared rumbled in a deep voice intended to stir fear.

"Jallu, I pay you a good wage to cook and clean for me once a week, more than all the men working in the village earn annually. I ask fidelity in return. Do not lie to me."

Walls trembled, pottery on the kitchen table rattled with his thunderous voice. The young mother holding her baby squeaked and ran into another room. Jallu simply nodded.

Head bent once more, Jallu mumbled. "I would never intend to deceive you, my lord. It will be done as you request."

Gazing around the room, he assessed their condition. Though quinoa was a typical dish for the villagers, he knew meat was better and much more expensive. Jared turned, conjured several large bills of currency from his vast bank account and turning, handed them to Jallu.

"For the mother and baby, to keep up their strength and medical visits. Let me know if you need more."

She took the money from him, and again, he saw a glimpse of something in her dark eyes. Approval?

Didn't matter. He had a wizard to find and question.

Jared headed for the door. Outside, he spread his wings and flew to a mountaintop he knew Xavier liked to frequent for meditation and reflection.

As he flew there, he reflected on his quandary. He needed answers on how Harper's parents had died, answers he wanted to give her. This warred with the solitary part of him that balked at anyone getting close to him.

Close to him and the monster he became every night at midnight.

All these decades he'd spent alone in his castle, he didn't need a woman by his side. A soul mate.

Not even to save his sorry ass.

To her surprise,instead of dining with Jared that dinner, a woman dressed as a French maid delivered a tray to her room. Harper hid her disappointment. She wanted to drum Jared with questions about her past, and why her parents had died.

How she had played such a devastating role in their deaths.

The servant bringing her meal was pale and lovely, with dark hair twisted into a bun in the back, long legs and a perfect figure.

"May I serve your meal?" the woman asked in perfect English.

No trace of an accent, but for a slight lilt.

"I thought I was dining with Jared," Harper told her.

"He's indisposed this evening. He asked for me to help him."

Oh, help him how? Annoyed, she gestured to the table by the French doors. I was wrong about Jared. He's a player. That woman is not a maid. Probably his mistress.

Gliding over to the table where she and Jared had shared breakfast, the maid set the silver platter upon the surface. She fussed over the teapot and fiddled with a fine bone china cup.

"I daresay tea would be soothing with your meal. The castle gets so drafty," the maid said.

Looking at the woman's short skirt, Harper sniffed. "Depends upon what you're wearing."

She went to the table, glancing at the maid, her jealousy rising. "I didn't know Jared kept a staff.'

"He doesn't, but for me." The woman pulled a seat out for Harper. "I made a Latin fusion dish, with ropa viega, which is a Cuban dish of shredded beef. I also made yucca with a touch of cinnamon, black beans and rice and mixed vegetables. Jared said you're a recovering vegetarian who needs protein, so the rice and beans and vegetable mix has plenty of that if you desire to skip the meat."

Don't be a bonehead. The woman is nice. "That was thoughtful of you. Thanks."

She placed the white linen napkin from the tray onto her lap. Harper picked up a fork and speared a little of the shredded beef and tasted it. The tomato sauce, onions, cumin, peppers and spices flavoring the meat made her realize what she'd missed bypassing meat.

Harper ate more. "Have you worked for him a long time?"

"I was once one of Jared's… conquests." The woman shrugged. "A failed one that went wrong. Now I help him out when he requires a servant. Though I do so under disguise, and he fails to recognize me."

The woman leaned close and gave a conspiratorial wink. "Men can be clueless, you know? Even a 234-year-old incubus demon."

Harper's jaw dropped. "He's… you know what he is?"

"Of course I know. I wouldn't have let him seduce me otherwise. I am a powerful witch."

As if to demonstrate, the woman flicked a hand at the logs on the fireplace. They ignited, casting a warm glow on the stone hearth.

"It is cold outside, and I thought you could use the fire."

Stunned, she stared at the woman, wondering how many more Others she'd encounter. "Who are you?"

"I'm Serena. But don't tell Jared my real identity." She pressed a finger to her lips.

Harper traced the edge of the fine bone china teacup. "Seems unlikely you'd be able to fool that one."

"Seems unlikely for several things with Jared, but he does have his vulnerabilities."

A pretty flowered pot, steam wafting from the spout, lifted into the air and hot tea poured into Harper's cup. "I thought some chai tea would help you relax."

"Thoughtful of you." Harper watched the teapot return to the silver trap, though Serena didn't touch it.

The woman's powers were amazing.

You have untested powers of your own, Jared had said.

"I also brought your cell phone. Jared had it downstairs. I do think he meant to return it to you eventually."

"Cell phones probably don't work here, with these walls."

"Oh, the internet works, despite the stonework. Jared installed satellite internet. "

Serena rattled off the password and Harper plugged it into her phone. She found her email and beamed. "It works!"

"Of course it does. Silly."

Harper tried the yucca. Delish. "If you're one of his failed conquests, why do you work for him and conceal your true identity? Revenge?"

"No, I already had my revenge. You might call it a guilty conscience. I'm here to coax destiny along, into making it work out."

"In that outfit?"

Serena laughed. "No, this is not what I usually wear. Jared thinks my name is Jallu, one of the women who lives in the village closest to the castle. I come here once a week through the secret entranceway to clean and cook for him. I think he gets bored and enjoys the company. I tell him about the tourists my grandchildren have seen visiting Machu Picchu. They aren't really my grandchildren. The real Jallu is visiting family in Colombia and has been for the past year. I paid her well to assume her place and her family has come to enjoy my company because they want for nothing."

Harper found it hard to believe this woman with her elegant looks and powers could fool Jared.

"What secret entranceway?" Perhaps she could find a way out of here, and leave.

Serena looked sly. "One you will have to find on your own. But it exists, if you truly wish to leave Jared."

Go where? Maybe to the village, hitchhike to an airport.

Don't you want to see what kind of powers you really have?

The thought of leaving faded. First, she had to test her newfound powers, discover a way to protect herself from the demon Jared mentioned.

If the demon really existed. Yet she knew he did, for the terrifying phantom she'd glimpsed back at the volcano had made her blood run cold and her heart race in pure panic. It stamped itself on her mind as surely as a victim could never quite forget being buried by an earthquake.

Harper turned her attention to Serena, who knew more about Jared than she did.

"What's he really like? Does he seduce women at night all the time?"

Serena folded and unfolded an extra linen napkin. "He once did, as a nightly pleasure. He's quite handsome and charming and irresistible to women.

"Jared thought nothing of entering a woman's mind, culling out her darkest and most secret fantasies and then using them to seduce her. Then he would discard her like day-old trash. It's what made him both nasty and bitter. I decided to teach him a lesson by cursing him. He hasn't had sex since the day I placed the curse on him."

Fascinated, she set down the teacup. "An incubus who hasn't had sex in nearly one hundred years?"

Serena nodded. "I believe so, except for self-pleasuring. He used to get magazines in town before the internet came into being. I guess even an incubus needs a little visual stimulation now and then."

She couldn't help but ask. "How did he seduce you, if you're such a powerful witch?"

Her voice dropped to a confidential whisper. "He didn't. But a word of caution, he may try to seduce you. Do you have fantasies he could use to his advantage?"

Against her better judgement, she found herself daydreaming. Maybe even being dominated so she could no longer control how the sex would play out. Jared calling the shots, and she submitting to them…

Her imagination strayed to an image of a muscular Jared sprawled in a large chair, naked by the fire, his legs splayed open, his heavy sex dangling.

He crooked a long finger at her. Unsmiling, awaiting her as if she were obedient to all his commands.

"You know what I want," his deep voice purred. "Surrender all your inhibitions to me, Harper. Let me be your master in bed as you lie beneath me, and my cock will give you pleasure such as you have never known."

Unable to form words, she could only nod. Jared pointed downward. "On your knees."

Waiting for her as she dropped to her knees before him like a subject before a king and bowed her head, her mouth encasing him and feeling the turgid flesh between his legs turn hard and ready to plunge deep inside her…

She opened her eyes, embarrassed to find herself wet with arousal, her nipples aching and hard. Serena gave a knowing smile.

"It's perfectly natural to daydream of sex being around an incubus as powerful as Jared. Even the castle walls vibrate with his power."

Serena winked at her. "Maybe I should have brought you a vibrator instead of dinner."

"N-o, I'm hungry, just that it's warm in here." Harper fanned herself with a hand.

"It can be."

Time to change the subject. "What is your appearance when Jared sees you?"

Stepping back, Serena waved a hand. All her previous arousal fled like a bucket of water on a fire. The woman standing before her looked like a sweet old lady dressed in a colorful costume.

"This is what Jared believes I look like – an elderly Peruvian woman from the nearby village whose family considers him as a god."

Serena did a slow turn, like a fashion model. "Like it?

"It's lovely." Harper studied the woman's attire. "Is this a traditional costume?"

"You mean native? Of course. The skirt is a Polleras, which are usually made from wool because of the cold climate." Serena fingered a black and red belt. "This is a Chumpi, a traditional belt that is used by women to close the skirt. It comes from the Quechua tongue. The jacket is a Jobona, a Peruvian wool jacket."

"You look very nice. Better than that maid's outfit."

Serena laughed. "I daresay the maid's outfit is not as comfortable. I never wore it before."

"Then why wear it for me?"

The women's watchful gaze sharpened. "I wanted to see your reaction."

Harper didn't need it spelled out. "To see if I was jealous." Pride made her shrug. "I don't care."

"You can't fool me. I know you do. I'll stop by in an hour to pick up your tray. Or you can leave it outside your door, and it will be taken care of later."

As the witch shuffled toward the door, she turned and added, "You will let me know if you change your mind about that vibrator?"

Harper blushed.