I couldn’t help but feel like we were in some kind of holding pattern. I thought we’d taken a big step when Roy had come to my office and told me he wanted to make things official, that he wanted to be my boyfriend, but then he’d proceeded to take another two steps back, and I didn’t know if he was scared of what he was getting into, or just losing interest.

  I really hoped he wasn’t losing interest.

  I got that dating a succubus could be… a lot. We were pretty voracious partners, and for most people, too much of our attention could be, well, fatal. But Roy had more life force than ten human men put together. I was pretty sure I couldn’t make a dent in that life force even if I was actually trying to.

  Which just left losing interest.

  A sadly all too familiar situation for me.

  Guys usually didn’t look at a succubus for long term commitment. We were the play things—the toys that no one took seriously.

  Roy pulled me out of the spiral of my thoughts by brushing his thumb between my eyebrows and gently smoothing the furrow there. When he saw he had my attention again, he smiled, the harsh lines of his face softening.

  “Hey,” he said, voice surprisingly gentle. “Don’t overthink it. I’m sure they’ll be happy with whatever refreshments you offer them.”

  Little did he know my thoughts had nothing to do with refreshments. Or at least, not refreshments of a literal sort.

  I managed to drag up a weak smile, as I shifted my mostly empty basket to the other arm. “So, what brings you here?”

  Roy lifted his own basket, the bottles and little containers of spices rattling against each other. “If you recall, I make the Half-Moon’s special mustard sauce myself… after hours.”

  “You’re still doing that?”

  He nodded. “Hey, it’s a secret recipe, I can’t trust anyone else with it.” He winked, and I couldn’t help but laugh. “I saw you over here,” he continued. “And I wanted to come over and say hi.”

  “Oh, well… hi.”

  He laughed and then I laughed and then we just looked at each other for a few seconds and I felt dumb. I cleared my throat at the same time he cleared his.

  “It, uh, it sounds like you’re going to be making a pretty big purchase if you’re going to be getting enough fertilizer and water for a whole colony of dryads and nymphs,” he started as I nodded. “So, I should probably grab my truck and bring it around… help you load up.”

  I opened my mouth to protest, not wanting to be an imposition when Roy clearly had his own things to do, but paused, biting my lower lip. The truth of the matter was that I was definitely strong enough to load everything myself and with the 4Runner, I could fit everything I needed into the back.

  And yet, Roy had offered, and I wanted to take him up on that offer, if only just to see him, to spend time with him.

  Not to mention, it looked like it was going to rain, and succubus or not, it was no fun unloading stuff in the rain.

  I couldn’t keep my eyes from drifting to one of Roy’s arms and noticing how the way his bicep strained at the fabric, like it was trying to break free. I had to swallow carefully or risk drooling on myself.

  Being in the small confines of his truck cab was going to be no problem. No problem at all.

  “Thanks, I really appreciate it,” I said quickly.

  Roy grinned, already reaching for the cases of water stacked up on pallets on the floor.

  “Uh,” I glanced around. The grocery store wasn’t exactly empty. “Shouldn’t I go grab a cart or something?” Most human men couldn’t lift that much, even one as big as Roy, who stood closer to seven feet than he did to six.

  My inner succubus purred at the reminder. She had my fingers twitching, wanting to run my hand down the ripped muscles of his chest, wanting to lick the salt of his skin before traveling further south and licking other things. Really, she was incorrigible. Incorrigible or not, she liked that Roy was so big, so strong. So did I, really. Actually, there really wasn’t anything about Roy I didn’t like.

  “I guess so,” he grunted, annoyed.

  I almost laughed at how close to petulant he sounded. Usually, Roy was pretty good about faking human when out in public. It wasn’t like him to show off his strength when there were mundanes around. He was now in control of the supernatural council of Haven Hollow, and was one of the people meant to enforce keeping supernatural things under wraps. I guess it got frustrating sometimes, always having to pretend to be less than you were.

  I grabbed a cart, and Roy helped me load it with all the goodies I needed for my open house. It was kind of fun doing our shopping together, domestic almost. I tried not to look too far into it, though, but it was hard.

  I was putting so much effort into playing things casually that I almost missed it when Roy spoke again.

  “Sorry, what was that?” With any luck, my voice came off as distracted instead of flustered.

  Roy didn’t seem to notice either way, his big body easy and relaxed. “I said, doesn’t the haunted house attraction up on the hill open tonight?”

  “Oh, yeah, it does.”

  Right.

  I’d completely forgotten about it until Roy reminded me.

  Marius and Mihaela had been working pretty much around the clock with the rest of their team which was now up to twenty-some-odd-people, getting the old Colonial set up and ready to open its doors. I hadn’t been inside it since the day they’d signed the paperwork, but there were a lot of changes apparent even from the outside. I still wasn’t entirely sure how they’d put up a fresh coat of paint on the exterior and somehow made it look more weathered than it already had. More like ‘artfully distressed’ instead of dilapidated, like buying jeans with holes already in them.

  Roy grunted, nodding. “We should check it out, later.”

  “Oh.” I couldn’t help my surprise.

  “After we get your stuff settled, I mean.”

  I hesitated, turning the offer over in my head, trying to examine all the angles. On the surface, it could just be a friend thing, but it sort of sounded like a date. Truth be told, it was a more romantic invitation than any of the previous outings we’d shared. Maybe Roy was expecting me to be spooked by the haunted house so I could cringe and shriek and hide in his arms? Wasn’t that why human guys took their dates to scary movies?

  Whatever his reasoning... it actually sounded fun. And I couldn’t say I wasn’t curious as to what the vamps had done with the place. And it would be good for business to show up on opening night, in support of my clients.

  “Unless you… already have plans?” Roy asked and I could tell there was more to his question than appeared on the surface. It was there in his expression, the way his eyes were hanging on my response.

  “Oh, no I don’t have plans.”

  “Then?”

  “That sounds fun,” I said, aiming for casual, but not indifferent. “Sure, let’s do it.”

  Roy grinned, and my breath caught a little in my throat.

  Tobias really is the sensible choice, I found myself thinking, and I wasn’t sure why.

  Tobias was nice, and good looking, and I believed I could care about him if I allowed myself. Maybe I could even love him.

  But Roy was… well, Roy was Roy.

  My whole body came alive when he touched me, like there was electricity under my skin. He’d seen all of me, at my best, at my worst, and he’d never flinched. If he decided he was now bored, that he didn’t want to deal with me and the emotional mess that was my life, it was definitely going to crush something in me, but I’d survive. I knew I’d survive because I always did. I was used to heartbreak—where relationships were concerned, heartbreak was all I’d ever known and yet here I was, still breathing, still living day after day.

  Yep, if things ended with Roy, I’d survive. Just like I had every other time.

  Chapter Five

  In spite of the low hanging clouds threatening to douse us all in a cold rain, there was a huge line of people waiting outside the haunted house, eager for their turn to walk through.

  “Are you excited?” Roy asked as he looked down at me from his immense height and offered me a smile.

  I gave it back to him. “More nervous than anything else.”

  “Says the demon.”

  I laughed at that and nodded. “Says the demon.”

  As to the Colonial, the grounds had been completely transformed—now we stood in front of a graveyard to one side, complete with large and looming skeletal trees (at least five of them), an owl in one of the trees that wouldn’t stop hooting as he overlooked at least forty tombstones, twenty above-ground tombs (some of them even gated in ornate, wrap-around iron) and a large mausoleum that had to be eight feet tall and ten feet wide. There were spotlights throughout the cemetery, creating an eerie green glow that was exaggerated with the low spreading fog that went off every minute or so.

  The other side of the Colonial was dominated by a huge corn maze that stretched as far as the acre the property sat on. I could already hear people calling out for help and see a few red flags waving in the air in defeat—evidence that quite a few of them were already lost. I couldn’t imagine how it was possible that the vampires had managed to grow so much corn so quickly but had a feeling they’d called on the Autumn Fae to help with the task.

  Between the corn maze and the house stood a little, pointed shack out of which a few teenagers were selling hot apple cider and cider donuts. The line for refreshments was almost as long as the line to get into the house.

  As to the Colonial, itself, it didn’t look much different than it had the day I’d taken the vampires on a tour of the place. Eerie lights flickered through the dusty windows, and creaks, moans, and the occasional roar or scream leaked through the walls for the crowds outside, building the excitement before any of us ever actually set foot inside.

  I couldn’t stop grinning, even as I huddled in folded arms and knew I was about to get the pants scared off me (even as a demon, I was still a pretty big coward). Marius and Mihaela had worked so hard on the place and completely transformed it (at least from what I could tell on the outside) in a matter of weeks. Not only was I blown away by what they’d been able to accomplish in such a short amount of time, but I was also happy for them that their investment appeared to be paying off.

  In an attempt to help them as much as I could, I’d set them up with my usual contractor, a dwarf named Andor who hailed from the mountains of Scotland. Andor ran a construction business with his family in Moon, which was just a few towns over from Haven Hollow. Not only had Andor helped with the construction of the haunted house attraction, he’d also made sure the house was structurally secure, with no risk to any mundanes or monsters, alike. So, even though on the outside it looked like a stiff breeze would bring the whole thing down as if it were a wobbly house of cards, there was no chance of anyone falling through the floor or having the roof cave in on them.

  And that was in a word, a relief.

  It sure did look creepy from out here, though. The cracked, filthy windows had tattered curtains wafting in them, looking ghostly in the fading light. The recessed door was like a gaping mouth in the shadows of the wrap around porch. Maybe if they were lucky and the rain that was still threatening broke through, it would bring some atmospheric thunder and lightning along with it.

  By the time we actually reached the door, the sun had set completely, and the air was getting colder. I crossed my arms tighter over my chest, trying to conserve my heat, but even with my white parka, that was a tough sell. Funny how we were in the middle of July and yet it was as cold as it was.

  Interestingly enough, the weather in Haven Hollow often plotted its own course. While the rest of Oregon might experience decent temperatures, it would be raining in Haven Hollow and usually never vice versa.

  Regardless, I sure hoped all the people crowded inside the Colonial would keep the place warm, even with the door open and the broken windows taken into account.

  Roy glanced down at me, frowning slightly. “Are you cold?” He was already shrugging his jacket off his ridiculously massive shoulders before he finished his sentence.

  I lifted my arms like I was trying to hold him off, feeling a little flustered all the while. “No, no, please, it’s my own fault for not dressing more for the weather.” The only reason I was wearing my parka was owing to the fact that I’d left it in Roy’s truck the last time we’d spent some time together—which had been over a month ago. Otherwise, I was dressed in black yoga pants, tennies and a white, form-fitted t-shirt.

  Roy snorted, draping his plaid wool button-down over me like a cloak. “It’s not your fault—you know how the weather is in Haven Hollow. One second it’s a warm July day and the next second it’s a downpour.” He breathed in deeply and I wondered if he was taking notice of my perfume—I’d worn his favorite. “Besides, you know me—I don’t get cold. Made of tougher stuff than that.” He chuckled then, and the sound warmed me even more thoroughly than his jacket did.

  I still wanted to protest, but his coat was warm and it smelled like him which made me want to wrap myself in it even more tightly. I just couldn’t resist pulling it around me and snuggling down into its folds. When Roy smiled and looked away, I discretely tugged the collar of the jacket up to my nose and inhaled deeply. The scent made my toes curl and my inner succubus purr. That smell was all him and it was all man. Well, wild man.

  In the past, I’d tried to explain Roy’s scent to Poppy and Wanda, but I’d just never found the right words. And even though I’d figured Poppy would know what I was talking about—because she’d dated Roy right before I had, she didn’t understand it either. She thought he smelled like the forest, which he did, but there was more to it than just that. Roy’s scent was like brownies, or bacon, something rich and delicious that you just couldn’t help but want to taste. Umami, that was the word the cooking shows called it. Sweet and salty and savory, and utterly irresistible. If Roy could have bottled that smell, I bet he would have made a killing.

  Now that I’d had a taste of that Umami, I never wanted to stop. And I knew if I allowed myself, Roy could become my drug of choice. The strength of his hands, the wide span of his shoulders, the delicious scent of him, and the life force that burned beneath his skin like a tiny sun. I could want it forever and forever after that.

  And that realization was both exhilarating, and pants-wetting terrifying. To be that wound up in another person? To consume, and be consumed by them? It was all I’d ever wanted and never in a million years thought I might actually get. Not that I had Roy because I didn’t—not by any stretch of the imagination and truthfully, I figured I was closer to not having him than having him. But that didn’t change the fact that Roy was the total package, all wrapped up in a glittering, sexy bow of man.

  If we ever managed to build something serious, to the point that we moved in together and if I were living in that scent, surrounded by it, I was pretty sure we’d do nothing but have sex all day long, day in and day out.

  My inner succubus raised her head, growling low in her throat like a pleased lioness. Sure, non-stop sex might sound absolutely perfect to her, but I actually wanted more from my life than utter hedonism. Sad but true. If all I’d wanted was a constant sex buffet, I could have had it with a snap of my fingers—after all, I was a succubus.

  And just like that, standing there, wrapped in Roy’s jacket with his arm draped casually around my shoulders, I was thoroughly fed up with all the uncertainty. This hot and cold, back and forth dance was going to drive me absolutely crazy—the second-guessing myself was already doing a very good job of just that.

  It had taken me a long time to realize it, but I deserved better than someone who wasn’t even sure if he wanted to be with me. And that was when I decided, right there on the crumbling cement walkway of the old Colonial haunted house, that I was going to get a straight answer out of Roy. I was going to get an answer regarding what he wanted, and if he didn’t want what I wanted—a real, honest to goodness relationship, I was going to have to walk away, even if it killed me.

  I just couldn’t go on the way we were, not knowing if this was anything serious or just a passing fling. I had to guard my heart, or I was just going to get hurt, yet again. And I knew that wasn’t what Roy wanted—for me to get hurt. Regardless of what we were or weren’t, I knew Roy cared about me. He cared about me, at the very least, as a friend. And he always had. Yes, he might care about me only as a friend but he still cared. Heck, he’d been the one to comfort me after all the other bad breakups in my past—he’d been there for me more times than I was strictly comfortable remembering.

  But I still had to know where the two of us stood, one way or another.

  It really didn’t help my new found determination when Roy’s big hand slipped down to the small of my back as we stepped forward to finally buy our tickets from the table directly in front of the Colonial. The heat of his palm soaked into my spine, sending a little shiver up my back. Warmth pooled in my belly, thick and syrupy sweet, and I had to firmly remind myself this was a family-friendly attraction.

  I swallowed hard, trying to get some moisture back into my suddenly dry mouth. The trick was to distract myself somehow—distract myself from Roy’s overwhelming presence. It wasn’t exactly an easy task though, and I glanced around for something to draw my attention away from how his thumb was low enough to brush against the skin of my back, beneath the hem of my shirt.

  A chorus of giggles started up behind me, and I glanced over my shoulder to see what was going on, grateful for the interruption though trying not to be obvious about it.

  There was a group of college-aged girls standing behind us, all laughing and chatting, eager for the safe spookiness of the haunted house. At the center of their group was a guy who was younger than the rest of them, probably not any older than sixteen or seventeen, though he was easily a head taller than the girls surrounding him. He appeared decidedly uncomfortable about how the girls were draping themselves on him.