Fear hung over the alley behind the fancy bar. The slim, dark-haired woman, whose name Callan had told me was Mi-ri, stood with her back pressed against the pale stone wall. She had clasped her slender hands in front of her, presumably to stop them from shaking, and was staring at the ground in front of Callan’s boots.
“If you have come to finish the job, could you please give me until midnight?” she asked, her voice soft. “My shift ends at eleven, and I need to find someone to look after my cats.”
“I’m not here to finish the job.”
Her dark eyes shot up to his face, and hope bloomed behind them. “You’re not?”
“No. But you owe me a life debt, which means that whenever I come calling, you answer.”
Hope still clung to her features as she nodded. “I know.”
“Good. So as long as you keep holding up your end of the bargain, I will hold up mine.”
“I will.” Her shoulders relaxed a little, and she blew out a long breath before looking up to meet Callan’s gaze again. “What do you need me to do?”
“I need your particular skills for a job. It shouldn’t take more than a night. I’ll let you know when and where later.”
She nodded. “I’ll be ready.”
“Good.” He jerked his chin towards the back door. “Then you can go back to your shift.”
Relief shone on her face as she bowed her head and then slipped back into the kitchen. Callan hadn’t told me exactly what history he had with these people, but based on the interactions tonight, it wasn’t hard to guess. I wondered what they had done, though. As we started back towards the busy boulevard on the other side of the building, I made a mental note to ask him about that at some point. Now that we were making an effort to share information.
I couldn’t even describe how relieved I had been when Callan had blurted out the exact thing that had been going through my own head earlier. It was very comforting to know that I wasn’t the only one having difficulty adjusting to our new relationship. It helped a lot to hear that he was struggling too, and I was very glad that we had decided to figure it out together, because that meant that I could keep calling him out on his bullshit without feeling like I was messing us up.
It felt as though a great weight had at last disappeared from my chest, and I drew in a deep breath as we joined the flow of people on the wide street.
“Come on,” Callan said as he started back towards the bridge. “I’ve had enough of the stiff upper side. Let me show you what Malgrave is really all about.”
Warm night winds played in my hair as we made our way through Malgrave’s north side and towards the river. It surprised me to realize that quite a lot of people from that side were moving in the same direction as us, as if they were also heading down to Levi’s south side for the evening. And they were. The Bridge of Life was teeming with people when we crossed it.
I looked out across the short stone wall that served as a railing. Stars glittered in the flowing dark water below. But the crowd was moving quickly since none of the guards were checking papers for any of the people heading to Levi’s side, so I tore my gaze from the River of Souls and followed Callan as he led us across the bridge and then back into the Entertainment District at the heart of the south side.
Music washed over me as Callan pulled open a red door deep in our target district and motioned for me to step inside. The warm night wind was replaced by even warmer air that smelled of flowery perfume, but I couldn’t see anything beyond the cramped hallway and a stairwell leading downwards.
I glanced back at Callan. He gave me a nod and placed a gentle hand on the small of my back, nudging me towards the stairwell. I started down the steps.
The music grew louder with every step downwards. I couldn’t isolate all the instruments because it was such a jumble of notes, but strangely enough it wasn’t unpleasant. Piano and string instruments and something like flutes mixed together to create a cheerful yet at the same time highly seductive tune. I breathed in the fragrant air as I reached the final step and looked out across the room we had ended up in.
It was massive. The floor spanned what had to be the buildings next door too, but walls had been erected randomly throughout the space. It created small nooks and private areas where people…
My eyebrows rose as I cataloged what people were actually doing.
About half of the men and women here were dancing on the open patches of the floor. In pairs, groups, or alone. And they danced with such wild abandon that I couldn’t help but smile. It was as if they truly didn’t care what other people thought, as long as they were having fun.
The other half were engaged in other… fun activities. From what I could see in a few of the closest nooks, they were making out or even outright fucking there behind the semi cover of walls and fluttering red curtains.
“This is what Malgrave is all about, huh?” I asked as Callan came to stand beside me.
A half smile curled his lips. “Yeah. Malgrave, or at least Levi’s half, is the place where people come to live. To dance and laugh and drink and fuck without having to worry about what is proper and acceptable.” He swept a hand towards the people all across the room. “Look at them. Do you see anyone here who looks embarrassed?”
I studied their faces. Only radiant joy shone there.
“No,” I admitted.
“Then let’s join them. We’ve been fighting nonstop for weeks, Audrey. Let’s take a fucking breath.”
“Alright.” I let out a long exhale and then nodded. “Alright.”
The crowd shifted around us as we made our way deeper into the room. There were a couple of bar areas spread out between some of the walls where people laughed loudly while toasting to anything and everything.
“I don’t know how to dance to this,” I said as I turned to face Callan.
“Me neither.”
I laughed. But then that strange music washed over me again and started pulling at my body, urging it to just move. Throwing my annoying sense of perfectionism to the wind, I just raised my arms above my head, tilted my head back, and started swaying my hips.
My dress swished around my legs as I moved. It wasn’t at all in tune with the music, but I wasn’t sure if it was even possible to be in tune with this kind of music, so I just danced.
Oil lamps with glass domes in red, orange, and pink hung from wires across the ceiling, painting the whole room in those hues. I smiled up at them as I let the music flow through me, and that tightness in my chest loosened even more. When was the last time that I had just taken a break like this?
A laugh bubbled from my throat. Tipping my head back down, I met Callan’s gaze. He wasn’t dancing. In fact, he was barely moving at all. Instead, he was staring at me as if I was the most magnificent thing he had ever seen.
Heat flared into my cheeks.
“What?” I asked, a smile tugging at my lips.
“You’re stunning,” he simply said.
Locking my hands around the back of his neck, I pulled his mouth down to mine. He tasted as intoxicating as ever, but with a slight added hint of that pink sparkling wine we had drunk earlier. I laughed against his lips and then released him. My hair rippled down my back as I threw my head back and danced as if no one was looking.
It was an incredible feeling. A room full of people, and yet no one was really paying attention. Everyone just had fun in their own little bubbles while adding to the wonderful atmosphere. Callan didn’t really dance, but he moved a little at least. Mostly he just watched me. And when those dark eyes of his drank up every swish of my hips, I realized that he had probably done this for my sake. He knew that I had been feeling tense and uncertain and annoyed earlier, and this was his way of trying to remedy the situation. And damn if I didn’t love him even more for that.
Reaching up, I was just about to wrap my arms around him again when someone bumped into me from behind. I stumbled a step forward and had to brace myself on Callan’s muscled chest to keep my balance. After straightening, I made another attempt to pull Callan’s mouth down to mine.
Someone knocked into me again.
Anger shot through me. While brushing my palms together, I whirled around. A very drunk-looking guy was dancing far too close to me, and he bumped into me a third time as he jumped. I placed a hand on his back and gave him a shove while discharging my magic.
He stumbled forward while letting out a cry.
The people around us didn’t think much of it and just kept dancing, but I could read the agony on the guy’s face as he stumbled away. It wasn’t that much of a surprise, though, given that I had just sent poison into his pain receptors.
Callan chuckled behind my back. Grabbing me by the wrist, he pulled me away before the guy could turn around and start looking for the source of his pain. I let an evil laugh roll off my tongue as we disappeared into a shadowy alcove before he could spot us.
Red curtains fluttered as Callan pulled them shut behind us. With that, and the three solid walls on the other sides, we were completely hidden from view in the small space.
“You vicious little poisoner,” Callan said, his voice full of wicked approval, as he backed me up against the wall. After hooking a few loose strands of hair behind my ear, he leaned forward and stole a kiss from my lips before that smug chuckle danced over my skin again. “Are you ever going to tell me what that move does?”
He had drawn back so that I could meet his gaze, but he was still standing close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from his body. Resting my head against the wall behind me, I locked eyes with him while I considered for a few seconds. Again, sharing secrets wasn’t something I normally did. But Callan was no longer my enemy.
“I send my poison straight into the skin to manipulate the pain receptors,” I said at last.
Callan let out a low whistle while raising his eyebrows. “Damn. That really must hurt like hell.”
“So I’ve been told.” A sly smile spread across my lips, and I gave him a quick rise and fall of my eyebrows. “Wanna feel?”
Hesitation flickered in his eyes.
I chuckled and shot him a look full of challenge. “Don’t tell me you’re scared?”
“Of you?” He drew his hand along my jaw before grabbing my chin and leaning closer. “Never.”
“Oh, you should be.”
“Then go ahead. I doubt you could make me even take a step back.”
An answering grin brimming with challenge slid home on his lips as he released me and instead spread his arms. I raised my eyebrows at him. When he only continued staring me down, I chuckled and shook my head at him.
“Alright.” I shrugged and then brushed my palms together. “It’s your funeral.”
I knew that he was expecting me to reach up and place my hand on his arm, so I moved one of them as if I was planning on doing just that. And while he was distracted, I placed my other hand against his thigh. Poison poured into his body.
He sucked in a shocked gasp of pain, and his leg buckled. Stunned surprise pulsed in his eyes and mingled with the lingering pain as he crashed down on one knee.
“Fuck,” he swore. Glancing down, he rubbed the side of his leg where I had touched him. “Damn, that move was fucking lethal.”
“I know.” I drew my hand along his jaw before placing it under his chin, tilting his head back so that he met my gaze again. A victorious smirk curled my lips. “Now, while you’re already on your knees, why don’t you use that arrogant mouth of yours for something better than empty boasting.”
His eyes glinted in the red and orange candlelight from above. “Oh, the things I could do to you.”
I tightened my grip on his chin and raised my eyebrows expectantly. “I’m waiting.”
He let out a dark laugh and shook his head at me. But then his fingers skimmed my ankle.
A shudder rippled through me as Callan drew his hand up my calf. I released his jaw and leaned back against the wall as he continued pushing my dress upwards.
The moment I let go, he leaned forward and placed that wicked mouth on my skin, kissing his way up my leg. A throbbing sensation started at my core. Closing my eyes, I blew out a trembling breath as Callan hooked his fingers over the edge of my panties and slid them down until they were resting on the floor. My pulse thrummed in my ears.
Grabbing the back of my knee, he lifted my leg and draped it over his shoulder as he shifted forward. His lips brushed against the inside of my thigh. Another pleasant shiver rolled through my body.
“Empty boasting, huh?” he said.
It made his warm breath dance over my exposed pussy, and I drew in a sharp breath. “Yes.”
“We’ll see about that.”
For a few seconds, he did nothing. Every part of my body went on high alert, anticipating his next move. Just when I was about to open my eyes and tell him to fucking start already, he drew his tongue over my sensitive skin.
It sent a jolt through my body, and I had to splay my hand against the wall to keep from losing my balance. I squeezed my other hand hard, holding the skirt of my dress firmly at my waist.
Pleasure pulsed through me as Callan teased his tongue around my clit. I forced out a breath. Every stroke of his tongue sent lightning skittering over my skin.
A moan spilled from my mouth as he took my clit between his lips. Drawing back again, he swirled his tongue around it before going back to teasing in spots right next to where I wanted his mouth.
I tightened my grip on the skirt as something like a whine slipped out of my mouth. My whole pussy throbbed, and I ached with the need for more.
As if in answer, Callan rolled my clit between his lips and then worked his tongue in a way that had me gasping up into the ceiling. He kept going.
A violent shudder coursed through my body as his devilishly talented mouth stimulated just the right spot. I forced out controlled breaths as pleasure built inside me. Callan tightened his grip on my leg, keeping it draped over his shoulder, as he continued his teasing torture until I thought my mind was going to shatter.
Another pitiful noise tore from deep inside my chest.
Callan’s tongue toyed with my clit.
My breathing was coming in fits and starts.
His lips brushed over that perfect spot at the absolute perfect time.
Release exploded through me.
I groaned as my pussy trembled with that sweet pleasure. Callan reached up and braced his other hand on my hip, helping me stay upright as my limbs trembled. His name fell from my lips as I dug my heel into his back for support while the orgasm washed through me and drowned out the rest of the world.
The music started trickling back in as that wonderful bliss slowly faded. My heart slammed against my ribs, and I sucked in a deep breath while keeping my back against the wall to steady myself.
Soft fabric brushed against my legs as Callan pulled my panties back up. After placing a soft kiss on the inside of my thigh, he gently pulled the dress from my clenched hand and smoothened the skirt back down. Then he rose to his feet.
Still leaning against the wall, I at last opened my eyes.
Pure victory and smug arrogance lined his sharp cheekbones as he braced his forearm on the wall next to my head and leaned closer to my face. His other hand slid down my side and wrapped around my hip.
“And how was that move?”
I let a sly smile drift across my lips. “Lethal.”
“Mmm. And the empty boasting?”
“Maybe a bit less empty.”
He laughed, his breath dancing across my flushed cheeks. “I’ll take it.”
Stepping back, he turned around and then pushed the red curtain aside. People danced and laughed and kissed without hesitation or embarrassment there outside our small nook. I let those enticing notes from the multitude of instruments wash over me again and beat in tune with my pounding heart.
Callan flashed me a grin that promised trouble and held out his hand to me.
“Come on. The night is far from over.”
