Good Intentions (12 page)

“I didn’t expect it,” he began, “but I don’t want you to…I don’t want you to find out about it while we’re, um…” He couldn’t say “making love.” He still wasn’t sure if he could cal it that (and what a silly turn of phrase, anyway). That was a two-way street, wasn’t it? He didn’t want to just cal it fucking, though, or any other synonym that came to mind. “I don’t want you to suddenly taste this on me,” the young man finally managed. Naughty glee spread across her mouth in a grin. “I felt you much of the day.” He blinked. “Then you know?” “Not specifics,” she said, shaking her head. “But as you lust, I feel it. I told you. This is what sustains me. This, and pleasures of our flesh…yours much moreso than mine,” the succubus added while trailing a tempting finger down his chest to his waistline. She started smoothly unfastening his belt with that single hand. “I hunger for you in my own right, but the ritual increases my pleasure by sharing yours. Your desires become mine. I want for you everything you want for yourself.” “That doesn’t bother you?” “It feels rather exhilarating, actual y,” she grinned. “Lorelei, it was Rachel,” Alex admitted as gently as he could. Best to be direct about it, he figured. “She showed up to talk to me at school. I don’t want you to think I haven’t been sincere with you, because I’m so happy with you. But I don’t want you to find out the wrong way that I really like her, too.” The raven-haired beauty before him rose to bring her eyes closer to his. “You find the angel attractive?” “I do.” “Then you know,” she said matter-of-factly. “Know what?”

“You know what I learned last night, but you hadn’t consciously thought through. You have been quite distracted, after al . Alex, this is no shock. You’re as dazzled by her as you have been by me. She’s an angel. It’s no surprise.” “You don’t sound mad,” he ventured. Her shoulders shrugged without much concern. Without even looking, her hand resumed unfastening his pants. “I cannot say that I like her, because I do not. But your desire for her is understandable. She is a very pretty thing. I would greatly enjoy ravishing her myself, though I expect that would be a very different game for me than for you,” she smirked. “Your lust for her is different than your lust for me in some ways, but also very similar. In some ways your desire for her is stronger, but the unknown always has that advantage.” Lorelei’s eyes closed softly as she leaned in to kiss him. Alex accepted it, his heart soaring with surprised relief. He felt her grin as they kissed. When their lips parted, she said simply, “Never worry that I will be jealous of your desires. I want you to have her, too, Alex. If I can make that happen, I will .” Partial honesty isn’t going to cut it here, Alex knew. It could still lead to pain later. “I think it’s more than just lust.” “And that is different somehow from what you feel for me?” asked that seductive grin that brushed against his mouth. “I have felt much more than lust between my legs tonight. Much more than friendship.” Her hands pushed his pants down off of his hips. “I would feel that again.” Later, basking in the shared afterglow, Alex wondered how she’d made things happen so smoothly. It couldn’t have been his doing. One moment he’d been sitting on the ottoman, and then they were intertwined in one another’s arms, naked and relaxed in a chair that wasn’t built for two. It should have been terribly uncomfortable. Instead, they remained in the chair until well after sunset. She had crazy supernatural sex powers. That was al he needed to know. He gave it no more thought. “Thank you,” he sighed with a satisfied grin.

“I am yours for the taking,” Lorelei responded simply. “Always.” “I’m tempted, but I have to move,” Alex confessed. “Can’t stay in this chair forever.” “Oh?” One eyebrow rose curiously. Lorelei let him extricate himself from both her embrace and the chair to sit on the floor. She crawled over to him like she was ready to eat him, pushing him onto his back. He had no doubt that was on her mind. “Al we need do is change positions. So many different ways…” “Wait, no, no,” laughed her vulnerable partner. “We’ve got things to do.” “Do we?” She loomed over him on her hands and knees now, her hair fall ing around him in an intimate black curtain around their faces. “Magnificent as this has been, you cannot possibly be satisfied already. Not with me.” “I’m sure I’l get by. We need to get you clothes and stuff. Gotta work out how we’re going to handle the rest of the world. I can’t just hide you away as my naked sex slave forever.” “Master, one day, centuries from now, I will torment you with these silly things you have said to me while our bond was young. There will be great amusement at your expense.” Alex laughed happily, at his own expense, and then stopped short. “Wait, centuries?” * “I can’t imagine what a house like this must cost,” Alex blinked. He sat on his motorcycle with his feet on the pavement as Lorelei dismounted. She was clad only in a pair of sweatpants, sandals and his leather jacket. She could have ridden invisibly and said she didn’t need a helmet, but Alex didn’t want her wasting her power. He also didn’t want to get pul ed over.

“It sold for several mil ion not long after prices fell across the city,” came Lorelei’s nonchalant response. She handed Alex’s spare helmet back to him without looking. His motorcycle was parked on a winding, hilly residential street. Before them the ground rose up to a large house, still catching the rays of the setting sun. The garage seemed to have been dug into the hill so as to eliminate the need for a steep driveway. The only other access to the house sat at the front porch at the end of cobblestone steps leading up the hill . Normal y, Alex was reluctant to leave his helmets clipped to his bike. Seattle’s wealthy Magnolia neighborhood seemed like it might provide a decent exception to that rule. Everywhere he looked were homes that he figured would never be in his price range. The one before him, though, took the cake on this street. It may not have been the swankiest thing in the whole neighborhood, but the owner had clearly done well for himself…or herself? “Is this yours?” he asked hesitantly. “No. Though I could likely arrange something comparable if you like, given time. Alex,” she said, tilting her head towards him to indicate a change of subject, “I don’t know if you should fol ow me inside. It will likely not be pleasant in there.” He looked from her to the house and then to her again. She hadn’t given much detail on this “errand” that they were on. Alex had intended to take her shopping for decent clothes within the boundaries of his budget, and he was will ing to sacrifice for her. Lorelei’s happiness was well worth ditching his plans for what remained of his disposable income. Instead, she had said that she had resources that they could reclaim with relative ease. She hadn’t articulated what those resources were. It occurred to Alex that he could’ve simply asked, but if she really wanted to tel him, she would’ve. The whole thing bothered him more and more on the ride over. He wanted to trust her, and was inclined to do so, but this was uncharted territory for them. Many things, he had to concede, represented uncharted territory.

“Do you think it’l be dangerous?” The house looked deserted, but the garage was closed. No tel ing if anyone was inside and just being very quiet. Lorelei gave it a moment’s genuine thought, but shrugged. “No. That is highly unlikely. But again, it may well be unpleasant.” “How so? You haven’t told me what’s going on.” Hesitantly, Lorelei said, “This is where I was when that priest and his men summoned me in their ritual. One moment I was here, the next was in a summoning circle. You know the rest,” she said, looking down at the ground for a moment. “I do not look scarred to you, but I am.” Alex reached out to take her hand. She didn’t flinch, but didn’t really respond, either. “My feelings for you are genuine, Alex, but I am also not what I was before we met. The only way to explain it is that much of my…darkness was used to fuel the ritual that ultimately bound us. Just as the priest said. It is gone now, likely forever. Clearly that had some effect on my power as well . Happy as I may be to be with you, I must admit that I resent being reduced in such a way. “Inside that house, I was not so restricted. I had been fullfil ing my purpose when I was summoned.” “And you don’t want me to see that.” “I am worried that it will come between us, yes.” “Maybe we need to confront your past, instead? At least in some way?” His suggestion was gentle, but he could see the way it made her jaw clench. “Do you miss it? You still regret things, don’t you?” “My emotions are mixed,” she admitted. “You should not mistake my feelings for you as some window into my soul, Alex. I am freer now as your slave than I have ever been, and despite my loss of power that is precious to me. I am grateful to you, and my loyalty is genuine. Yet I despise my weakness. It is hard to distinguish these feelings from one another.

“I care for you. I mean no harm to those who are close to you—your mother, friends, associates. Nor am I randomly cruel…but none of that makes me a nice person. I am not much like you.” Silence held between the two of them for a long moment. Alex nodded toward the house. “Show me,” he said finally. The pair walked up the cobblestone steps to the front door, each fil ed with trepidation but resolved to face it. The doorknob was one of those keyless entry sets that Alex had only seen in office environments. Lorelei punched in the correct combination and entered after they heard the door unlock. Inside, Alex found vaulted ceilings and finely made wood paneling. Everything was quiet. The floors had new carpeting, the heater was on…and there was a faint, unpleasant smell at the front door. It was something akin to a nursing home. “feel free to take anything you like,” Lorelei said absently. “I suspect it won’t be missed.” She wasn’t especially loud, but she didn’t whisper, either. Alex fol owed her through the entrance and foyer to a spacious and well -furnished living room. Lights gradually rose as she entered. “Lots of nice artwork,” Alex noted. “Not real y. Much of this is overpriced junk,” she shrugged, looking the living room over. “What you see here is the decor of a man who wants expensive artwork simply to have it. This is not eclectic; this is collecting for appearances. There is no sense of his artistic tastes because he has none.” Alex sighed. “I’d never have known that. This is why I worry about boring you. You’re way more sophisticated than I’l ever be.” “Don’t doubt yourself. You are far more interesting than you realize. Ah.” Lorelei stepped over to a black glass coffee table that had been pushed away from the couch. On the coffee table was a small , expensive-looking purse, a small , discarded black party dress, and stains. Dried, white stains stood out across the dress and the coffee table.

Alex didn’t need much imagination to know what had gone on here. He considered that as Lorelei reached over for the purse, ignoring everything else, and double-checked its contents. That Lorelei slept with many other men was no secret. She had doubtlessly been as dirty and shameless with those other men as she’d been with Alex. Probably far dirtier, he knew, considering his youth and inhibitions. But he hadn’t really given it much thought. He didn’t stare. It didn’t take but a moment to conclude al this. What did require a few seconds was the search through his feelings that the moment instigated. Lorelei turned, looking at him through an unreadable poker face until he looked back at her and shrugged. “Are you bothered by what you see?” she asked. He paused, wanting to ensure he answered honestly, and shook his head. “No,” he finally decided. “Not especial y. I guess it’s better to confront this than to wonder, but no. I don’t think I’m bothered.” “Being told and seeing for oneself are entirely different,” Lorelei said, her voice still devoid of emotion. “I am, as I have told you, born to use the lusts of others against them. I have no shame, no inhibition, and I have had countless sexual partners. I am a true slut. Whore. Choose your term.” Again, Alex shook his head. “Don’t,” he told her softly. “I don’t like those words. Not used in anything but fun. They aren’t fair.” “Fair?” “A whore’s someone who provides sex for money. I don’t see the crime in that. That could obviously be rough business and I know it chews people up but I’m not going to judge. Anyone who’s really got a problem with a woman doing that should step up and offer her a different job. And ‘slut’ is a double standard. Why’s it okay for men to have many partners, but not women? That doesn’t add up. “I want to get laid a lot. Does that make me a slut? Maybe, but more to the point, should I be ashamed of it? And if I feel that way about myself, should I feel that way about others?”

Her stony expression softened. “You don’t sound like you are only nineteen.” He offered a smirk. “Hey, I’l be twenty in a couple months. Getting old and wise.” “And yet you worry that you are unsophisticated…I hope you are being honest with yourself.” “I think I am,” he nodded. “I admit you’ve changed my outlook, but I’ve crushed on girls who’ve been through more than a couple boyfriends. I wasn’t going to judge on that. I don’t think I feel jealous here…I don’t know. Is it bad that I don’t want you to be with other men? Unfair?” Lorelei shrugged. “Perhaps if we had to hold ourselves to strict standards. But we do not. I am not bothered, as I have said. You are the master.” A faint glimmer returned to her eye, along with that wicked smile. “And I am your slut.” She leaned in, kissed him on the cheek, and then her grim demeanor returned. “There is more. You’re sure you want to fol ow me?” “I am,” Alex affirmed. She brought him through the living room to the staircase and began to ascend cool y. He fol owed, noticing the foul smell s were getting stronger, but said nothing. They rounded the corner of the staircase, and passed several different rooms fil ed with nice but bland furniture. The stench grew ever stronger. Alex had al too good of a guess of what smell ed so bad. At the end of the hall were closed double doors. Lorelei reached for the doorknob, looked back to Alex with grim resolve, and then pushed the doors open. Inside was a dark, spacious master bedroom and the overwhelming scent of human waste and decay. Alex thought instinctively of holding his breath, then realized that was pointless and unlikely to last long enough. Lorelei entered without any hesitation or reaction. Alex decided he’d have to just suck it up as he fol owed.

He found a light switch and turned it on. The bedroom had a high ceiling and lush carpeting. To one side was a desk and chair. Another side held a walk-in closet with sliding mirror doors. The far wall from the entrance was al glass, with a sliding door to the balcony. An open doorway led to a bathroom fit for a rock star. The bed was king-sized, with dark blue curtains tied to the posts. Clothing was scattered around the foot of the bed, some of it on the floor as if it had been tossed aside for effect. Slacks, a man’s dress shirt, a tie. Lacy red panties and a bra. Lorelei strode past the bed on her way into the closet, coldly acknowledging none of it. The body lay in the bed, covered only by a silk sheet. He didn’t look like an old man, but he was clearly older than Alex. His face was so drawn and pale that it was hard to tel . Eyes closed. Blond hair. A couple days’ stubble. No shirt. An empty Evian bottle under one still hand. The pil owcase was stained with sweat, but the sheet that covered him was stained darkly at his hips with blood and fouler stuff. “I thought…” Alex mumbled, stepping closer. He was unsettled, repulsed and yet unable to look away. He knew from everything Lorelei had said that this must be some vile, awful man, but al Alex saw was someone who’d died in his apparent prime. “I thought they were supposed to waste away?” “Usual y,” came her indifferent voice from inside the closet. “Some push themselves too far too fast. The most egotistical are sometimes quicker to their end than others. He was especially foolish. He heard bones begin to crack and tried to laugh it off. I had no reason to argue his choices.” “Oh my God,” Alex breathed. It was an obvious enough joke: “What a way to go,” someone would say if this were on television. But al Alex could see was an ugly, slow death. The man must have lingered in pain for a long time. “What… what did he do?” Alex finally managed to ask. Lorelei stepped out of the closet. He didn’t look back at her, but felt her hand on his shoulder and her voice at his ear. “This is Raymond Cordingly. His fortune is built directly out of the life’s savings of others. He promised to shepherd them into a secure retirement and old age. The web of lies that he created and directed has left honest