Heart's Redemption (MxM)

Chapter 30 ~ Sam

"Hey, I think I'm getting the hang of this!" I say, excitement making my voice a little shrill. "Ian—Ian, watch!"

Staring at myself in the bathroom mirror, I concentrate and then observe with delight as my skin darkens to a deep shade of gold and my eyes turn the black-red of blood. When I smile, my canine teeth and the ones right behind them are longer and sharper than usual, and my fingernails thicken and lengthen into short, slightly curved claws.

The rest of me remains the same. No wings erupt from my back, and no horns adorn my head. My hair stays short, and so does the rest of me—my body remaining pathetically petite.

Ian stands behind me, frowning slightly. "And you can turn back, too?"

I nod, concentrating again, and watch as my appearance returns to a more human state.

"It's sort of like flexing a muscle. It feels kind of tingly, too, like when your leg falls asleep."

"Can you go all the way?" Ian asks.

I consider. "It takes energy, but I think so. Wanna see?"

He glances around the confines of the small bathroom. "Maybe not right now. Your demon form is...sort of big, after all."

I notice a slight tinge of color across his cheeks, and feel a little skip in the beat of my heart.

Last night, I'd half-expected to lose him. I'd thought that with the pact fulfilled, his interest would fade. Instead, I feel bound to him more strongly than ever.

When he'd possessed my body, when he'd taken me as completely as one person can take another, I'd felt everything I'd ever wanted to feel—in any of the existences I could remember: desired, claimed, protected, cherished, consumed—loved. In a human relationship, those kinds of feelings in that intensity would probably be unhealthy—hell, even for an incubus it was a little insane—but I was too far gone to care.

I turn to him now and he sets his broad, rough hands on my waist. I'm wearing only the loose cotton sweatpants Cass lent me, and my upper body is bare. I shiver as he slides his hands up my back, clearly savoring the feel of my skin, and smile up at him.

"Maybe next time I can 'go demon' before we have our fun. Switch things up a bit."

He draws a quick little sip of breath, and I realize he likes that idea.

Huh. Well, I'm nothing if not versatile.

I reach up and run my fingers through his short, red hair, across the scratchy stubble on his jaw and chin, and then across the broad, strong expanse of his shoulders.

"I think I must've used up my life's worth of luck, finding you," I say, and stand on tiptoes to kiss him.

Something flickers across his face at my words, and he returns my kiss with only a light press of his lips.

He has trust issues, I know.

Not with me, but with himself. He's still afraid he's going to hurt me, still hasn't forgiven himself for whatever mistakes he made in the past.

It's how I'd known the instant I'd laid eyes on him that he was my mark: there were so many cracks in his heart, I could slip right in. Of course, at the time I was just desperate to get away from Karin's dogs and escape the clutches of his slimy grasp.

That's where the luck came in.

"I mean it, Ian," I say, smoothing my fingers over his brow. "Forming a bond with a random guy I met in a roadside bar could've turned out pretty badly for me. Instead, it was you. I don't know the guy you used to be—I only know who you are now. You're gentle, and loving, and protective. You care about people, and you go out of your way to make others feel accepted and safe. You're a good man, and I love you."