It was strange to set foot on the university campus again. Even with my hood up and sunglasses on, I felt too exposed.
What was even stranger was seeing Callum look so human. He’d disguised himself for our outing — no wings, no claws. He’d shrunk his towering height to a somewhat modest six foot two inches. But his eyes were the most shocking change. Caramel-colored pupils made his boyishly handsome face look even younger.
He had offered to go to the library alone, but when I asked what he would do if the librarian refused to give him access to the Leighman Company records, he said, “Then I will persuade them to cooperate.”
Knowing that Callum’s methods of persuasion were likely to involve death and dismemberment, I made the decision to go with him then and there.
“I never said I would kill your little librarian friend, Everly,” he said, as we made our way across campus. It was the third time he’d tried to assure me, and the third time I was not even slightly convinced to the contrary. “Persuasion can take many forms. Mild torture is far more effective than death.”
Stopping abruptly, I turned and looked at him, folding my arms. “No torturing either! This is why I came with you. You think you can handle every situation with violence.”
He looked at me skeptically. “Every situation can be handled with violence. It’s not a theory; it’s a fact.”
Stepping closer, so I could maintain eye contact with him, I said, “No torture. No violence. Behave yourself.”
A shadow flashed over his eyes, and his lips stretched into a grin. “As my lady wishes. I’ll be a perfectly well-behaved boy.”
Somehow, I doubted it.
Despite my fears of being spotted by someone who knew me, walking into the library still made my heart flutter with happiness. The familiar sights and smells, the polished wood shelves warmed by the late afternoon sun, the roasted-coffee aroma of the library cafe — God, I’d missed this.
“Oh, good. It’s just William today,” I said, as we lingered in the entryway and I took a careful look around. Callum craned his head toward the librarian’s desk, not being even slightly subtle as he stared.
“You mean that small boy with spectacles?” he said. “What’s good about him?”
Small boy. I barely stifled a laugh. Will was twenty-three years old and gangly, certainly not small. But it was rather satisfying to hear the hostility in Callum’s voice. It validated my decision to come with him, first of all. But it was also an ego boost to have this powerful demon with the good looks of a high fashion model sounding jealous over me.
“He’s my friend,” I said, clasping his arm to draw his attention back to me. He was glaring at Will as if the man had insulted him, and I reached up to turn his face toward me. “Stop staring, you’re going to scare him.” When his eyes narrowed even further, I grasped his jaw, shaking it as I insisted, “No torture. No murder. Behave.”
“Your rules are cruel.”
But he made an obvious effort not to stare as we approached the desk, and Will finally looked up from his paperwork.
“How can help — holy shit! Everly?!” Will leapt out of his chair so fast he nearly tumbled it over. “You’re — Oh, thank God, you’re alive! I’ve been so worried, everyone has been so —”
Pressing a finger to my lips, I leaned over the desk and whispered, “Please be quiet, Will. No one can know I’m here.”
Lowering his voice to a stage whisper, Will cautiously peered around and finally noticed Callum standing beside me.
“Victoria said you vanished,” Will said, slowly breaking his glaring contest with Callum. “She said you…well, she thought you were having some kind of mental breakdown.”
“Victoria doesn’t know I’m here and I need to make sure she doesn’t find out either. Whatever my family has told you, please trust me that they’re lying.”
His eyes searched my face, wide with concern. “I knew they treated you like shit. I’m so sorry, Ev. If there’s anything…anything I can do to help you…”
Callum made a sound that was either a scoff or a laugh, and Will’s eyes darted between us suspiciously.
“Who is this?” he said, the distaste obvious in his voice. I stepped closer to Callum, putting myself between the two of them.
“This is Callum,” I said. “He’s my…uh…”
“Fiancé.” Callum brushed past me, extending his arm to Will and engulfing the man’s hand within his own. “Pleasure.” He hardly sounded pleased.
“Fiancé,” Will repeated, glancing between Callum and I. “Right. I’m Will. Pleasure, I guess.”
Callum did indeed make Will look very, very small.
“Listen, Will, I don’t have much time,” I said, getting between them again before they could start spitting at each other like angry cats. “I’m looking for some old documents from the 1890s. Building plans from Leighman Mining Company. Is there anything like that kept here? Even in storage?”
Will appeared deep in thought for a moment before he sat again and rapidly typed on his computer.
“We do have documents from Leighman Mining,” he said. “They’re not categorized though. Seventy-seven preserved documents in a single file, stored in…” He frowned. “The rare books depository. That’s odd.” He chewed his lower lip. “Look, Ev…I want to help, I really do, but I could lose my job letting you in there.”
“I know. I hate putting you in this position, I just really need your help. We need your help.” Encouraging him to play nicely, I gave Callum a sharp nudge with my elbow.
My demon sighed. “Yes, Mr. William, if you could assist us, that would be just peachy.”
It took considerable effort not to wince at that, just as I’m sure it took Callum considerable effort to say something at least vaguely polite.
Luckily, William didn’t take much to convince.
“Okay, okay. I’ll be right back. I’m going to get the key and tell Sarah I’m going on break.” He left his chair and disappeared through a door marked EMPLOYEES ONLY, leaving Callum and I standing side by side at the desk.
“My fiancé?” I said, the moment Will was out of earshot. “That sounds so serious. It would have made more sense to say I’m your girlfriend.”
Callum growled with irritation. “You humans and all your various terms for your lovers make no sense. Calling you my girlfriend would imply a lack of certainty on my part, would it not? A lack of commitment?”
“Not necessarily. Some people stay boyfriend and girlfriend forever, and are entirely committed to each other.”
“Regardless. Fiancé carries the significance I wanted it to. Makes the point clear.”
“What point is that?”
“That you’re mine.” He crowded my personal space, pressing me against the wall as he caressed the back of his hand against my cheek. “Does that sound a bit too serious? I own your soul, darling. And unlike some others of my kind, that actually means a significant amount to me. Do you understand?”
Breathless, I nodded.
“Perhaps I haven’t done such a good job of reminding you,” he said, looming over me as my world shrunk until it was only him and I. “That I own you, body and soul, and always will. Humans do have difficulty with the concept of forever, after all. Doesn’t sit right in your sweet little heads, does it? But I’ll set you right.” He gave my chin a little nudge and grinned when my words came out as nothing more than a squeak.
Someone softly cleared their throat, and we turned to find Will staring at us.
“I’ve got the key,” he said, face significantly redder than it was before. He kept shooting Callum distrusting glances. “Follow me. We’ll take the staff elevator.”
Being in a small, enclosed metal box with Callum was no easy feat. A thrumming tone reverberated from him, like the pulse of the universe itself. He put his arm around my shoulders, holding me close to his side, which only increased the intensity. My heart beat harder, my mouth salivated. The air was heavy, crushingly hot. Will’s back was to us, and I cautiously lifted my eyes to glance up at Callum.
He had a nasty grin fixed on his face, staring at the back of Will’s head. He was doing this on purpose.
By the time the short elevator ride had stopped, Will was rubbing his temples and wincing in pain.
“Just a little headache,” he said when I looked at him in concern.
We were in a narrow hallway on the library’s third floor. We passed a few open doorways, and although the interiors were not lit, they looked like offices: hulking wooden desks, leather chairs, walls lined with books.
We reached a solid wood door at the end of the hall. It was equipped with a pin padlock and a large metal keyhole. Will stepped ahead of us and withdrew a thick key from his pocket, turning it in the lock before he typed four numbers into the pad.
“This room doesn’t get many visitors,” he said. “Many of the books are delicate, so they’re under glass.”
The door creaked as it opened. North-facing windows allowed gentle light into the space, a tidy room with rows of display shelves holding books under glass. Filing cabinets lined the far wall, and a staircase led to a small upper level, covered with larger bookshelves.
“The plans are in here, supposedly,” Will said. “They’ll be in a folder, most likely. Unless they’ve been laminated, in which case, probably in a binder. Unfortunately, the computer didn’t list a shelf number.”
“Thanks, Will. We’ll be quick, I promise.” I clasped his arm in thanks and saw a storm cloud descend over Callum’s expression. “We really appreciate the help.”
“It’s no problem.” Will stared at Callum as the demon brushed past him, headed toward the filing cabinets. He lowered his voice, leaning toward me as he whispered, “He’s not really your fiancé, is he? You don’t have a ring.”
“It’s complicated,” I said. The less he knew, the better. “He’s keeping me safe. You don’t need to worry about me.”
He didn’t look convinced, but he nodded in acceptance anyway. “Okay. I guess I’ll head over to the lounge and grab a bite to eat. I’ll check back with you afterward. Just be careful with everything.”
As he left us, shutting the door quietly behind him, I joined Callum at the filing cabinets. He already had a drawer open, rapidly flicking his fingers through the numerous papers within.
“That boy desires you,” he said, shutting the drawer with a bit more force than necessary.
Surely, he didn’t think Will was any kind of threat to us — whatever “us” meant. Callum’s affection for me was frighteningly obsessive but strangely sweet; I wasn’t sure if he viewed me more like a pet, a toy, or a partner.
I wasn’t even sure how to ask him. Considering he literally owned my soul, it felt silly to try to define what we were by human standards.
We were bound to each other for eternity. The sheer magnitude of that was hard to contemplate. But then Callum would do something like introducing himself as my fiancé, and suddenly I was left wondering what exactly he meant by it.
Was he merely being possessive? Or was he trying to use unfamiliar human terms to make a point he didn’t have other words for?
“Will is sweet,” I said. “And just a friend.”
“I didn’t say he wasn’t sweet. I said he desires you. He wants to fuck you, darling.”
Lightly swatting his arm, I gasped out, “Don’t be so crude. Christ, Callum.”
“Oh, is it don’t be crude now?” His volume lifted, purposefully. In that small space, a regular speaking voice was like a yell. “That isn’t what you were saying last night.”
“You’re being loud —”
“Good. I want him to fucking hear me.”
Suddenly, Callum pushed me back against the shelves. He planted his arms on either side of me, the wood creaking under the force of his grip as he caged me in. I simply folded my arms as I looked up at him.
“Is this a tantrum, Callum?”
“Hardly. This is a reminder of who exactly owns you. And it’s not sweet, friendly William.” He brought his sharp teeth close to my ear as he said, “It’s me. It’s fucking me that’s tethered to you. It’s me that can mark you up, it’s me that gets to touch you.”
Then his teeth were on my neck. Kissing, sucking, and then biting. My determination to keep silent shattered in an instant, as a desperate gasp was wrenched out of me.
“I thought you weren’t the jealous type.”
“Oh, certainly not, love. I’m very welcoming and generous to guests. It’s intruders I have a problem with.”
“Will is hardly an intruder, he’s…he’s…Oh God —”
“Mm, what was that? I’m having trouble hearing you.” The bastard gave me a sharp-toothed smile as he wedged his thigh between my legs. The pressure alone was enough to make my breath shudder. I ground down against him, hips rocking back and forth in a desperate attempt to chase more stimulation.
He’d made me like this. Desperate, lost in need, greedy for more.
“He’ll hear us, Callum,” I whispered urgently, shaking my head even as I kept grinding on him. He was barely touching me and it was driving me wild. His arms were still planted firmly on either side of my head, but I was grateful for the cage. I wanted it to tighten, to crush me, to force me to give in.
“We don’t have much time,” I gasped, and Callum chuckled.
“I suppose I’ll have to make it quick and dirty then.”
Phantom hands wrapped around my throat. Glaring into the demon’s eyes, I tried to maintain my composure, at least as well as one could while grinding against his thigh. My attempts to control myself only made him laugh more.
“Look at that cute little glare,” he teased, as those phantom hands pressed all over me and pinned me to the shelves. “I don’t blame William for wanting you. A beautiful woman like you…people should be crawling after you like dogs.”
“That’s what you did for me last night,” I groaned.
He lifted my chin, capturing my lips in a knee-weakening kiss.
“That’s right, darling,” he whispered. “Last night I crawled for you, and tonight, I’ll crawl for you again. I’d drag myself through broken glass on my hands and knees if that’s what you wanted. No matter the pain. Regardless of the degradation. The harder it is to please you, the more I’ll try to succeed.”
He turned me, face toward the shelves, his hands caressing appreciatively over my body before he gripped my hips, and said, “I’m going to fuck you right here in the library. You’d better pray to whatever God will listen that your sweet little friend doesn’t walk in on us.”
He peeled off my jeans and tossed away my shoes. He kissed every inch of skin he laid bare, his teeth leaving sharp, stinging bite marks everywhere he went. It wasn’t long before I was covered in reddened marks, in little bruises left by his mouth and gripping hands.
He smacked my ass, and I moaned, looking back at him with wide eyes.
“Did that hurt?” He spanked me again.
Instead of whimpering in pain, I gave a lewd, exaggerated groan and arched my back toward him. His caramel-colored eyes instantly darkened, and his claws came out as he hurriedly turned me to face him again.
“Do you really think it’s wise to taunt a demon?” he growled.
“It gets me what I want,” I said, daring to be cheeky.
He lifted me suddenly, my back leaning against the shelves with my thighs gripped and spread by his hands. His claws pricked dangerously at my skin as he angled his cock, nudging his thick head against my entrance. He pressed in slowly, and every time I thought I’d taken his full length, I was wrong. By the time he was fully inside me, my toes were curled and every breath was a desperate pant. The stretch of him ached, every sensitive nerve consumed by a storm of exquisite pain.
“There’s my good girl,” he whispered. He shifted his hips back, easing out of me slowly. “How pretty you look with your poor little pussy so full. Remember to snap your fingers if you need to, darling.”
A phantom hand pressed over my mouth, locking my lips together. Invisible fingers twisted in my hair, holding my head back so I couldn’t turn away from the dark voids of his eyes. He thrust into me, hard enough to make the shelves behind me creak and several of the books to jolt forward. My sharp whimper was muffled, but I froze when I heard the door creak open.
“Just checking in! Found anything yet?” Will’s voice sounded muffled, as if he had a mouthful of food, and I held my breath in panic. God, if he came back here and saw me like this, I would die. Just melt into the ground and never recover.
Callum brought his lips dangerously close to mine, still fully-sheathed inside me. The phantom hand over my mouth retreated.
“Answer him nicely, Everly,” he said. “Tell dear William that everything is fine.”
My words were a tangled knot, my brain incapable of cohesive thought. I couldn’t meet Callum’s gaze and speak without my words shaking, so I squeezed my eyes shut tight and said, “Not yet! We’re, uh…working on it.”
“All right, well, I’ll help you look after I finish eating.”
The door clicked closed again, and the invisible hand squeezed back over my mouth. I opened my eyes, only for them to roll back as Callum thrust inside me. Long, slow strokes that had me shaking with every inch, whimpers rising in my throat but stopped by my sealed lips.
“I’m sure you wouldn’t want him to see you like this, would you? Legs spread, cheeks so pink. You’re practically dripping on the floor.” He brought his mouth even closer to my ear. “I’m not going to stop until you’re a mess in every possible way.”
More invisible fingers grasped at my throat and caressed beneath my shirt, teasing at my bra. My body jolted as my nipple was squeezed, then tugged.
I groaned before I could silence myself. The hand over my mouth tightened.
“Ssshhh, sshh, now. Don’t be loud. William might hear you. I imagine the poor boy’s face would be as red as yours if he saw this.” His phantom touches were massaging my clit, his cock stretching me with every thrust. “But if he glimpsed us, I couldn’t just let him walk away. Perhaps I’d have him use his tongue on your clit while I fucked you.”
His lips brushed lightly along my neck, and he increased his speed. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? Such wicked thoughts in your deceivingly innocent mind. I would love to suffocate him with your pussy. Let him drown in it while I watch you fall apart. Perhaps I’ll let him eat you after I’ve filled you with my cum. While he’s busy with your pussy, I’ll take your anal virginity too.”
The fantasy his words was building was too good, too filthy. I’d always thought Will was too sweet for anything of the sort, but who could say no to Callum? Who could resist when he turned those eyes on them?
Callum kept talking, winding me up even more. “I’d have to punish him for snooping. I’d have to whip the poor boy while he ate you out. You’d get to feel every little cry with his mouth on you.”
That broke me. I groaned shamelessly as I came, not even the phantom hand enough to muffle me. He laughed as he fucked me, every thrust drawing out my pleasure to a peak that stole my breath.
I became utterly limp as he used me, his movements more urgent now that I was weak with the afterglow.
“Fucking hell, you’re more exquisite every time.” His voice was little more than a breath as he eased me down from his arms. I leaned heavily against him, my legs shaking, my panties barely hanging around one ankle.
Callum leaned down, holding out my underwear so I could step into them. He pulled them up to my hips, saying, “I love the thought of you, so full of my seed. Dripping with it.” His hand rubbed between my legs, teasing my overly-sensitive clit. He kissed me softly, slowly. “Let’s hurry up and find those plans before Will returns, or I might decide to make that little fantasy of yours come to life.”
