Alistair’s Bed by Susan Hayes Read Free Book Online

him. And I thought demons were all pointy ears and tails and horns? Or is that all wrong too?”
    Alistair laughed. “There are many different types of daemons, and yes, some of them have very strange and often terrifying appearances. Would you still think I’m perfect if I had pointy ears or horns?”
    “I suspect it would take more than a tail or Mr. Spock ears to mess with your looks.”
    “Good.” He scooped another morsel from the tray, this time feeding her. “Then one day I may show you my horns.”
    “Wait, you actually have horns? Keri nearly choked as she spluttered in shock. “Oh now you have to show me.”
     
    *****
     
    Alistair found he was enjoying himself, laughing and teasing the beautiful woman in his lap. There had been women who had invited him into their lives before but he’d never wanted to do so.
    He had always craved pleasure and sex, not laughter and flirtation. He set those thoughts aside with a mental wave of the hand. He’d been alone too long, that was all.
    “If I show you my horns, what will you do for me? Hmm?”
    Keri appeared to consider his question for a moment before making her offer. “I’ll show you my world.”
    “You can’t do that, for I cannot go more than five paces from this accursed bed. The world is denied to me Keri, both yours and mine.”
    “Well, I can’t help you with your world, but I can help you explore mine. Things have changed since last you were here, and I think I know a way. But first you owe me the rest of your story, and I still haven’t seen these horns.”
    “How can such a pretty little thing be so demanding?” Very well, I agree to your terms.” Alistair leaned down and slanted his lips over hers, kissing her until they were both breathless. When he lifted his lips from hers she opened her eyes and gasped softly.
    “Horns.” She murmured in amazement and lifted a hand, pausing it near his cheek.
    “May I?” He nodded and she brushed her fingertips over one, her gentle exploration sending a bolt of heat straight to his groin.
    “They’re the same color as your hair,” she observed as she let her fingers continue exploring, following the curve until it ended in a sharp point almost lost in his dark hair. “I don’t think you’re perfect anymore. Now I’ve seen these, I think you’re smoking hot.”
    Laughter rumbled up from his chest and he felt a rush of satisfaction flow through him as he leaned in and whispered. “I take it that’s a good thing?”
    “A very, very good thing.”
    “I’m glad you like them. I’ve never let one of your kind see them before. No mortal but you has ever seen me as I truly am.”
    “I’m honored,” she finished her examination and flashed him a pleased smile. “It seems odd, but now I really believe you’re a dem— er, daemon and not just a very strange man.”
    She settled herself deeper into his lap and let her head rest on his shoulder again. “Now, how did you get here?”
    “My father is a powerful daemon, and I was the first son born to him in a millennium. He made sure I lacked for nothing and was given the best teachers and training he could arrange. I mastered the art of shifting between planes when I was still young, only a hundred or so years old. I reveled in my abilities and spent the next century exploring every part of your world, growing stronger but not much wiser. That’s when Cora sent her summons and captured me. I had been warned time and again that human sorcerers were dangerous, too powerful for all but the strongest of us to face alone. The spell she acted like a lure, and I foolishly thought I could handle her. I was wrong, and she kept me for her entertainment for another hundred years before she disappeared and I was left alone.”
    “For her entertainment? You mean you and she—” Keri trailed off and gestured vaguely to the bed.
    He shook his head in the negative. “If she had let me get that close to her I’d of killed her with my bare hands. Using