he’d be running the other direction as fast as he could move. This out-of-control desire usually indicated a demon had met his mate, and Marax wasn’t ready for that, not now. Not when he was still trying to come to terms with the new responsibilities heaped on him at the same time as he dealt with grief over the disappearance of his father and older brother.
But while demons could have sex or fall in love with anyone, they could only mate with someone who was at least half demon themselves. Chloe didn’t have that much demon blood; he guessed she was about a quarter. He could take her to bed and not worry about being locked to her for the rest of his life.
Her fingers began to stroke his nape and Marax shuddered. “Chloe,” he murmured next to her ear. “Watch how far you push me. I want you, and demons find it difficult to maintain total control.”
“I know. Emotion makes it hard to think.” She licked his throat. “So why don’t you just feel? That’s what I’ve decided to do.”
Marax closed his eyes and battled himself. He wanted her, but he shouldn’t take her to bed. He knew that. She was willing now, but what about afterward? What about when she found out what he was really doing at Infinity tonight? She’d want his head on a pike. Quarter blood or not, no demon male underestimated the ferocity of a female demon who felt wronged.
Maybe if he told her the truth before—
Chloe’s hand slipped between their bodies and cupped his erection, her thumb rubbing the head through his trousers. “Stop thinking. I have,” she told him.
The last of his common sense fled—he’d deal with the repercussions later. “How far away do you live?”
“Half an hour.”
He cursed. “I can’t wait that long to have you. How do you feel about having sex in the alley?”
She pulled back far enough to look into his eyes. Chloe must have realized he wasn’t joking because some of the heat faded. “I’m not doing it on the street where anyone can see us.”
“Fair enough, but you have two choices,” he said. Marax cleared his throat, trying to rid his voice of the thickness, but it didn’t help. “Either stop stroking me or think of somewhere we can get to in less than five minutes. That’s about how much longer I can hang on before I have to fuck you.”
Hearing fuck froze Chloe midsway. Normally, that word left her cold, but coming from him it sounded sexy, not insulting, and she let herself fall deeper into the moment.
No boundaries.
For years, she’d controlled the part of herself that was demon and she was tired of it. Why limit herself to a dance when she wanted more? With Marax she could unleash her nature, give it free rein because nothing she could do would scare or injure him. That knowledge was nearly as seductive as imagining him moving deep inside her.
He quirked one side of his mouth enough to make a dimple appear again. “That’s right, Chloe—claw me, bite me, take me as hard as you want—you won’t hurt me.”
Releasing his cock, she put both hands on his waist to anchor herself and leaned back to meet his eyes. “You’re reading my mind.”
“No, you’re projecting to me,” he corrected. “Do you want me to block you?”
Did she? But mind-speak was part of being a demon and Chloe wanted the whole experience. A night to be exactly who she was without limits, not even ones that were self-imposed. “No. If I’m transmitting, you can listen.”
“Good, but we still need to find somewhere private. Now.”
They’d dropped all pretense of dancing and just stood there, moving against each other. “My car?” she suggested, but it was half-hearted.
“I’m six-three and you’re what? Five-ten? And you think we can have sex in a car?”
“Five-nine,” she corrected, but he was right. They’d probably end up in traction if they did it in the back seat of her coupe. Chloe tried to recall where the nearest hotel was located, but it was hard to think when Marax kept pressing his erection into her. He hit a particularly sensitive spot, and with a gasp, her eyes slid shut and she arched firmly into him.
She felt the warmth of his breath near her lips, and blindly she lifted her face to his. The kiss began with surprising gentleness, but Chloe was beyond that. Opening her mouth, she invited him deeper. Marax tasted like scotch and the smoky, earthy flavor seemed exactly right for him.
Chloe lost herself in the heat. There was nothing but him, the strength of his arms, the rub of her tongue against his, the solidness of his erection against her body, the—
His muscles went rigid and his head came up, yanking Chloe back to the present. The club. She’d forgotten they were standing in a crowd of people. She glanced around, but thankfully no one appeared to be interested in them. What was Marax—
Then she realized he was mind-talking with someone.
“What?” she asked. He ignored her until whatever telepathic conversation he was having ended. As soon as his focus returned, Chloe repeated, “What?”
“Infinity has rooms upstairs that they rent by the hour. I reserved one for us and have directions on how to reach it. Don’t worry,” he added as he stepped back from her and took her hand, “it’s clean—I asked.”
As he gave her a gentle tug, she fell into step beside him. “What if they lied about that?”
“Then I’ll do you against the wall.”
His voice was low, intense and insanely sexy. Every time he spoke it affected her like a caress. It took a few seconds for what he’d said to register and Chloe felt her knees go weak. She could see it, feel it. The cool plaster at her back, Marax’s hot, hard body pressing into her front. Bare skin. Heated kisses. Her thigh around his hip. His—
There was a roaring in her ears and she couldn’t manage to make her vocal chords work, so she sent her words to him instead. Maybe we could do that, too, if you’re up for two rounds.
Marax stared down at her, and when he realized she was serious, the red behind his eyes became stronger. “I’m a demon,” he said and picked up his pace.
Chloe’s lips curved. She was taking that as a yes, but then demons did have passionate natures. For years she’d been fighting to keep hers in check, but not tonight, not with Marax. She gripped his hand tighter.
He used a shoulder to cut a swath through the throng and take them deeper into Infinity. As they neared the back, a vampire brushed past, handing off a passkey to Marax so smoothly that Chloe nearly missed it. A few more steps and they were through a door and into a corridor that was much quieter. The elevator was around a corner and opened the instant he pressed the button.
As soon as the door closed behind them, Chloe turned to Marax and kissed his chin. He didn’t take her up on the invitation, although his body all but vibrated with need. “Why?”
“Camera.” He leaned in closer. “I’m not offering you up as entertainment for bored security
