The Demon Creed (A Demon Outlaws Novel) (Entangled Edge) by Paula Altenburg

old man had not stirred from the house. Creed would have known, although he could not believe how stupid he was for misreading her.
    He did not blame her for this. He had pushed her too hard, and tried to sway her emotions too abruptly, with all the finesse of a teenage boy. He should never have tried to compel her in the first place, and could not explain to himself why he had, other than he had wanted her.
    He wanted her still. It made no sense to him. Nieve was fragile, and while not completely broken she was badly damaged, and would prove too much of a burden for any man. Particularly one in his position.
    Creed, however, could not disengage his thoughts from her. To complicate matters his demon, on edge from the moment he’d met her, refused to settle.
    Frustration coiled through his belly. He had always been a fool for women in distress. He had adored Raven’s mother, partly because she had been willing to love him as if he were her own son, but mostly because she had needed his love in return. Her mortal husband had not been kind, and Raven, half demon and bold, had not understood her timidity.
    One more thing about this evening troubled him immensely. Other than Raven’s mother, who had loved his father, no one had ever recognized Creed as being half demon before.
    Yet quiet, innocent, mouse-like Nieve had managed to do so.
    …
    Nieve closed the door as quietly as possible behind her despite the unrelenting terror that clawed at her throat. The house was still, and she thanked the goddesses for that. She did not want to attract Bear’s attention. He had expected her to be gone for the entire night and would not be pleased to see her back so soon. Despite the early hour, he must be asleep already. He was no longer a young man and would be tired from riding on the back of a sand swift all day.
    With a bit of luck she would not have to answer his questions until morning. At least she had found something he could use against the assassin.
    Creed .
    The name had to be someone’s idea of a joke. Demons did not live by creeds. They killed men and used women, luring them against their will even while inside their heads they were screaming.
    Leaning against the wall for support, she bent at the waist and tried not to be sick to her stomach. Memories, unwanted, washed into her thoughts, images she had tried to suppress for too long. She loved her son more than her own life. She wanted him back. He was hers, and had nothing to do with his demon father.
    But her fear of Asher’s father could not be restrained, and as the flood gates opened, her whole body shuddered at her recollection of every intimate detail of his touch on her flesh. She had never wanted him. She had known the things he did to her were wrong, and had not wanted to receive pleasure from them, but had been helpless against his allure. No matter how hard she had tried, Ash’s demon father had been impossible for her to resist. Not until she became pregnant.
    Tonight, she had let another demon touch her. Had in fact welcomed it. And she loathed herself for that.
    She despised Creed for it as well. His methods might have been different, but the result, very nearly the same. He had feigned gentleness and kindness at first, and then he had tried to lure her. But she was older now, and wiser. Possibly less attractive to a demon, too—because she had been able to resist Creed, which made her suspect he had not tried as hard as he might have if truly interested.
    She thanked the goddesses for that as well.
    She scrubbed the heel of a trembling hand across her mouth where his lips had been on hers, but the lingering warmth of him, and the spellbinding taste, would not be erased.
    The front of her dress remained undone. She fumbled with the buttons, the tips of her fingers numb and next to useless. In spite of everything, she could not forget his considerate words to her, and the offer of help. Tell me what Bear sent you to find out from me so I can help you