Next-Door Incubus

“It looks like you’re alone,” he said. “Come on.” He nodded to the corner of the bar where I saw his roommates and Maria sitting in a booth. And—only because Kasey had disappeared and left me by myself—I followed him.

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CHAPTER 10

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Dani

Eros took my hand and led me to Javier, Zane, and Maria. I scooted onto the very end of the booth, next to Maria who was smirking at me.

She was wearing a sexy mermaid costume—a skintight green sequin skirt with two colorful seashells covering her breasts and a lilac-colored starfish pi

I adjusted the horns on my head and sipped my water.

Zane leaned against the table—his green elf hat nearly falling off—and raised a brow. “Is that water? How are you supposed to have any fun with that?”

Heat crawled up my neck. Truth was that I wasn’t pla

Maria wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me closer. “Dani’s going to have the time of her life tonight—with or without alcohol.” Her breath smelled like beer, but I was grateful for her. At least she didn’t tell them what had happened.

Throughout the night, I watched Maria flirt with Javier and Zane who each had a girl that I had never met before tucked under their arms and were whispering to them. The two girls and Maria were giggling at Zane’s vaguely pointed elf ears and trying on Javier’s plastic golden cross that was a part of his priest costume.

Eros, on the other hand, didn’t pay attention to any of them. He didn’t even try to flirt. Instead, he was gently tightening and relaxing one of his hands into a fist on top of the table. His ring glistened under the dim light, giving it a slight pink tint against his tan skin.

His gaze was fixed on me. But when I looked at him—even if it was for a moment—those green eyes would darken, and he’d look away.

I gazed around, trying to find Trevon or even Kasey, but they both seemed to have disappeared. Samantha was still behind the bar, pushing drinks to customers who were too drunk to stand straight. Bouncers were walking through the crowd every now and then. At one point, Maria even tried to drag me onto the dance floor with the rest of the group, but I declined.

Eros and I stayed at the table alone.

The girls were grinding against Javier and Zane, eyes closed slightly. Their skirts riding up their legs, hips moving so sensually. Partition played through the speakers, and a part of me wanted to get out there and forget about my worries. Let my body move with ease. Let loose with Eros behind me. His hands on my hips, pulling me closer. His lips against my ear, whispering something sinful to me.

I gnawed on my lip and glanced over at him. He was staring right at me and didn’t look away this time. His fingers grazed against the stubble on his face. “Are you thinking about me, Dani?”

My cheeks flushed, and I looked down. I wished I had the liquid courage to admit that I was thinking about him—had been thinking about him—and couldn’t stop, but I was a coward and I was taken by a man who would rather spend his night drinking in his office than see me dressed up for him.

I grabbed Mom’s pendant and glanced around the room, not being able to hold his stare. Trevon was leaning over the bar, chatting with Samantha, a half-empty glass in his hand. I sighed.

“No,” I said.

Eros leaned his forearms onto the table, biceps flexing. He picked up his drink and swirled it around, still staring intensely at me. “I hope you know that liars are sent to hell.”

I’d been si

“It’s good I’m not a liar then.”

He chuckled lowly and shook his head, pieces of his dark hair falling onto his face. “Dani, there’s a special place in hell for you.”

I shuffled up in the seat, dropped Mom’s pendant from my fingers, and leaned close to the table, breasts pressing into it. “And I bet it’s filled with demons that’ll eat me alive, right?”

His gaze traveled down my chest, then back up it. “They’ll tear you apart.”

My eyes lingered on his plump lips, hanging off of each word that he said.

“They’ll leave you trembling.”

I pressed my knees together.

He brushed his fingers against my cheek, his ring warming my skin, and lightly grasped my chin. “They’ll bite into your soft flesh.”

“They’ll make me scream, won’t they?” I asked.

He took a deep breath, jaw tensing. “Damn it Dani, they’ll make you do more than that.”

My God, I wanted him closer.

“Hell doesn’t seem that bad,” I whispered.

A stabbing pain split through my stomach. I placed a hand over it, hoping that it wouldn’t ruin this moment because I was about to do something so sinful and Hell looked way too appealing for me to pass up now. I was sure that Mom would’ve thought Eros was pure evil, but all I could think about was the growing ache between my legs and how he was the only one who could stop it.

His gaze dropped to my lips. He smelled so good.

Another pain pierced through the other side of my stomach. “Fuck,” I whispered, leaning back. I squeezed my eyes shut. This couldn’t be happening. Not again.

“Are you okay?” Eros asked, brows furrowed together. That lustful look in his eyes had disappeared. “You look pale.”

No. No. No. No. No. Not here. Not now.

He brushed his hand against my cheek, but I pushed it away. My stomach tightened, and I gripped the table, pulling myself to the edge of the booth. Everything suddenly felt weak. “I need to get to the bathroom.” I used all of my energy to stand, and then I doubled over onto the ground. My stomach churned. Bile burned the back of my throat. And it happened.

I placed my hand on the filthy bar floor, my arms shaking. Everything I had eaten earlier was now lying in a thick puddle in front of me.

A girl screamed when she stepped in it with her shiny silver stilettos. People scurried away from our booth, wide eyes fixed on me.

All I felt was a heap of shame and embarrassment. I stumbled to my feet and rushed to the bathroom before it happened again. Sweat was dripping down my back in this latex suit. My fingers were trembling. Tears were streaming down my cheeks.

I slammed the bathroom door and locked it. I grasped onto the sink, using all of my strength to hold myself up. And, again, I puked.

Why was this happening again? What was wrong with me?

Tears welled up in my eyes. Not only did I just embarrass myself in front of everyone here, but Eros too. One moment I was thinking about si

My mascara was rolling down my cheeks, leaving black splotchy lines. My hair was disheveled. Someone knocked on the door. “Dani?” Maria said. “Can I come in?”

I wrapped my arms around myself and leaned against the wall. I didn’t want anyone to see me like this. I just wanted to go home—where I should’ve been.

“Please open the door,” Kasey said a few moments later. I didn’t respond to her either.

Another pain gnawed at the inside of my stomach. I squeezed my eyes shut, hoping that it would go away this time, and thankfully it did. Tears raced down my cheeks. How could I go back out there tonight? I couldn’t. Maybe Trevon would let me hide in his office until the night was over. No way was I going to face all of those people—even for just a moment.

After talking myself out of jumping through the window and disappearing for the night that way, I opened the door, expecting to see either Maria or Kasey.