Sweet Temptation

God, she is sexy. Even in that i

I suddenly want all her clothes off.

The sound of Father coming down the stairs erases that thought from my mind. He knows by now I’m with a girl, but he has no notion of privacy.

When the door opens, A

“My apologies, son. I didn’t realize you had company.” He is still moving casually across the room, staring.

Before I can say a word, the politeness slips from his features and his eyes flash red. I look down at A

“I never imagined you’d care to entertain female Nephilim,” he grits.

Not good. Not fucking good. Neph can work together, but they are not to play together. Especially in the one-on-one way.

“I don’t normally.” I stand and move away, as if coming to my senses. “She caught me while I was bored and alone after practice.”

His face sours as he scents the air. “You will come up for tea. Both of you.” He leaves, and I ball my hands. Close my eyes. I want to punch something.

A

She reaches for her shirt and tries to put it on, but there are buttons missing from when I went all Incredible Hulk. I toss her my red T-shirt and she puts it on.

No girl has ever worn my clothes before, and it’s the embodiment of sexiness. I imagine her wearing it the morning after we’ve had an all-night shag fest.

I shake my head. What the hell is wrong with me? Father is waiting.

I lead her up the stairs to the sitting room, and I lean against the wall to watch helplessly as the wolf licks the fawn.

She maintains her norm of complete i

“. . . you reek of i

I nearly topple over in surprise, and Father laughs at the look of horror on A

Father smacks his knee in astonishment. “A sixteen-year-old Neph virgin! How do you expect to be a bad influence on humans if you aren’t behaving badly yourself?”

A

She was never out to kill me or test my loyalty. My God, she was truly drugged by that human boy! And probably was telling the truth about never having been kissed. How is this possible? It’s just my luck that I’d stumble upon her. If I’d known, I could have urged her to move far away from Father and other Dukes, but I was consumed by my own paranoid assumptions. I mean, really, what are the bloody chances?

Oh, fantastic. Now Father is pulling out his bag of recreational drugs, and A

I can’t let myself feel bad for her. Father knows about her now, so she’s no longer my problem. It’s too late for “should haves.” A

I will not feel bad.

My head snaps up when I hear Father say my name. He’s still talking to A

“Kaidan will take good care of you. He’ll have you working to the best of your abilities in no time at all. Don’t take too long about it, though. Learn what you need to, and get to work.” He turns to me and I stand straighter. “I’m expecting company this evening and you are to join us. Marissa is bringing one of her nieces.”

Acid rises in my throat. “Yes, Father.”

A

My mind is whirling when I return home from taking A

Her words tumble through my mind as I let myself in the front door of my house.

“What will happen if I don’t, you know, do all the stuff your father told me to? Because I’m not going to . . .” “I want to wait until I’m married . . .” “My mother was an angel . . . A guardian angel . . .” “What does it mean to be Nephilim?”

The girl is half angel, half demon. An anomaly. I’d laughed and told her she’s a walking contradiction, but truly I’m mesmerized. I keep wondering what it must be like to be both. It’s unheard of. And to be raised and nurtured by a human . . . wow.

And though it’s all fascinating, her stubbor

My thoughts are interrupted when I pass the sitting room. I stop dead in my tracks, shocked at myself for forgetting. Father is standing beside the leather sofa, where Marissa sits with a small girl at her side. The girl I’ve been dreading.

Fuuuuuuuck.

No, no, no. I want to scream and rail. This ca

She is just as young as the pictures.

“Come in, Kaidan,” Father says.

I do as he says, and I see Marissa put a hand on the girl’s leg when she whimpers. I can’t bring myself to look the child in the eyes.

“Kaidan, this is Marissa’s newest niece, Viktoria. We were hoping you could help ease her into her new life.” His words are so casual. I’ve heard them a thousand times. Though I’ve never liked this aspect of my “job,” I’ve never been repulsed like this.

I grab the back of my neck, trying to steady myself.

“She doesn’t speak English,” Marissa says. “But some things are universal, yes?” She and Father share a smile. “She is to remain a virgin, of course.”