The Darkening by Robin T. Popp Page A

seductive smile, stepped inside. Darius followed somewhat cautiously, glancing back when he heard the red door to the bar open. He watched a couple walk through, but they didn't spare him a second glance as they moved directly into an open room and closed the door.
    He turned back to follow the pixie and found her waiting inside the room, her eyes alight with desire. It fueled his own eagerness.
    "I'm Daphne," she said, moving toward him with a seductive swaying of her hips.
    "Darius," he said, wrapping an arm around her waist when she was near enough for him to pull her close. He kissed her, but it wasn't as exhilarating as kissing Lexi. He tried not to think about it.
    "I love these tattoos," she said, tracing the outlines of several, sending shivers across his skin. She slipped her hands across his shoulders, easing off his duster. He needed no further urging and quickly undressed.
    By the time Darius was naked, he looked up and saw that she'd already slipped out of her clothes. For a full second, Darius stood in stunned silence. It had been so long since he'd laid eyes on a nude female form that, for a minute, all he wanted to do was drink in the sight of her.
    The young pixie, however, had different ideas. When she pressed her supple body against his, Darius lost all capacity for rational thought. The next several minutes were spent in a tangle of limbs until Darius, barely able to control himself, picked her up and carried her to the only piece of furniture in the room-a bed.
    As soon as he laid her down, she opened her legs and pulled him to her. He entered her in a single
    thrust, nearly groaning aloud from the sheer pleasure of being buried deep inside her.
    "You feel so good," she sighed, running her hands over his chest. Then she trailed her fingers through his hair, and he closed his eyes, tipping his head back, enjoying the feel of it.
    The first prickle of power almost went undetected. It started at the tip of her fingers where they touched his head, and spread slowly down through the rest of his body until every nerve tingled as if on fire. A ringing started in his ears, and he was vaguely aware of the woman talking, though he felt no compulsion to listen.
    Pain and pleasure rode him just as he rode the woman beneath him. As his climax drew closer, the ringing in his head grew worse and his heart started racing faster than his exertions warranted. So much so that he thought it might burst from his chest.
    His climax was nearly upon him when he finally recognized what was wrong.
    He knew he should break contact, but even as he tried to find the strength to do it, she tightened the muscles sheathing his member. His orgasm ripped through him, tearing a roar from his very depths. A thousand tiny bright lights burst in his head.
    And then everything went blank.
    In the wee hours of the morning, well before dawn, Daphne began her journey through the tunnels beneath the Crypt. The evening had been a surprising success.
    She thought back to the tattooed man full of untapped energy and smiled. He'd been oh, so talented in bed. If she'd been human, there would have been no keeping up with him. Fortunately, that hadn't been
    a problem, and the experience had been rewarding in more ways than one. Glancing at her hand, she saw the way it glowed, lit from within by the living magic she'd siphoned off the man.
    Amadja would be pleased. Perhaps there would be even more sex in it for her. The thought carried her through the remaining tunnels to the set of heavy double doors at the other end.
    Upon her approach, two vampire sentries opened the doors and she went inside to where the great demon lord sat on his throne. He was impeccably dressed all in black. It drew attention to his golden eyes and ebony hair, perfectly combed back. Daphne found Amadja sinfully handsome, but she couldn't help a little frown at the sight of Tain, who sat sullen and preoccupied beside the demon. It wasn't that the redhead was ugly, for he was, in