"It's Knox Thorne."
Raini's mouth dropped open. "Seriously? Huh. I sure didn't see that coming. But I don't understand why you wouldn't want him as your anchor."
"He's a control freak. I'd make him crazy."
Raini snorted. "You'd make any guy crazy. It's a gift you have, and I envy you for it."
Probably because it would never matter how hard Raini tried to repel a male, they would be drawn in by her sinful curves, flawless skin, innate sensuality, and piercing amber eyes – all succubae had a body that screamed sex, it was part of the package. A package that Raini always covered with casual, non-revealing clothes, since she didn't like attention much.
"This is a good thing," insisted Devon. "Knox is incredibly powerful. Having him as your anchor would be like the ultimate form of protection. Given that the demon world can be brutal, protection is nothing to sniff at. And I seriously doubt anyone would even consider harming you if they know they'd have Knox to deal with."
Raini's brows drew together. "I have to say, it would be a heavy weight to carry the responsibility of keeping who's potentially the most powerful demon alive mentally stable."
"Thanks for pointing that out," said Harper dryly.
The succubus smiled sweetly. "You're welcome."
Harper wanted to strangle both she-demons. "There's one thing that you guys aren't considering. Being his anchor would make most people hesitant to harm me. I stress most. He has a lot of enemies. I'll bet some of them would be either stupid enough or angry enough to hurt me just to strike out at him."
Devon tilted her head, conceding that. "Consider this, though: our lair is small and mostly contains imps. Imps live for pissing people off. If your grandmother wasn't so damn crazy that she almost destroyed the Golden Gate Bridge when a lair in San Francisco decided to challenge ours, we would have had way more trouble. In other words, we're always in danger. Knox would bring you less problems than more. And just think, you might learn the mystery of what breed he is."
Harper shook her head. "I wouldn't have access to his thoughts unless he wanted me to."
Anchoring minds was like joining two spheres where they intersected only slightly, still remaining separate entities while making each other psychically stronger. The anchor bond didn't allow them to hear each other's thoughts, sense each other's feelings, or uncover each other's secrets. It wasn't emotionally intrusive.
"Yes, I know that," confirmed Devon impatiently, flicking one of her long, ultraviolet ringlets over her shoulder. "But most anchors spend a lot of time together, they need it. Being around him might give you some clues as to what he is."
"Personally, I think you should totally bond with him," said Raini.
"You'll have serious protection, and you'll be stronger and more powerful. He'll probably be pushy, but you're no pushover. So it's all good."
Was it? Harper wasn't so sure. Everything in her life suddenly felt off kilter.
"You can't tell anyone, okay. Especially no one from our lair or my family. This situation is… delicate."
Raini and Devon both nodded solemnly, but Harper wasn't reassured.
The fact that her ex then waltzed inside the studio didn't at all improve her mood.
Royce was good-looking in a rugged, cowboy kind of way. Their brief fling had ended after he cheated on her. She couldn't say she was heartbroken, since their relationship had been rocky at best. Royce believed she was too independent, which was true. She was very headstrong, used to not needing anyone. She could admit that she was also pretty guarded and tightfisted when it came to giving her trust.
Yes, she had her flaws and she knew she needed to work on them. But Royce had wanted to insultingly 'fix' her and mold her into someone else, which quite clearly pointed out that they weren't what the other needed. The fact that he'd slept with someone else only supported that theory.
Still, he'd been pissed when she ended the relationship. She couldn't figure why, nor could she figure why he'd be so spiteful as to have his sister ban Harper and the girls from entering the café across the street that his family owned.
Being around him was like remembering how she'd once studied a little quantum physics – she'd recall that she spent time out of her life on him and just have to ask herself… why?
Sighing, she turned to face him while the girls flanked her. "What are you doing in here?"
He held up his hands. "I just want to talk."
"About the fact that you had us banned from the café?"
"It wasn't like that."
"It totally was."
He sifted a hand through his brown hair, making it stick up everywhere. "So yell at me."
Harper blinked. "Huh?"
He flapped his arms. "Yell at me. Curse me to hell and back. Demand I fix the situation."
As understanding hit her, she gaped. "You did it for a reaction?"
"I wanted to know if you still care for me." He flushed when Raini and Devon snickered.
Unreal.
"Why would you even care? You fucked someone else."
"I've apologized for that a million times." He inhaled deeply. "I miss you, all right."
"You should. I'm fucking awesome."
Exasperated, he insisted, "You must still feel something for me."
"Sure." She tilted her head. "Irritation. Anger. Disgust. Oh, and pity."
She stilled as something odd happened: another mind slid against hers. It 'felt' familiar, felt like—
She peered over Royce's shoulder as the door slowly swung open and a rich, insanely hot fucker strolled into the studio.
Knox's eyes swept his surroundings before honing in on Harper like a laser. Her body melted, her inner demon instantly shot to alertness, and the pressure to bond with him once again slammed into her. She breathed through it all, doing her best to remain composed.
Royce turned and then stiffened in apprehension. Even humans recognized the danger in Knox, though they couldn't know that he was a preternatural being. She sensed Raini and Devon not only stiffen with nervousness, but melt with arousal at the sight of him; both reactions would be instinctive.
"Harper," Knox greeted simply, though there was a wealth of intimacy in the one word. "Time to have that talk."
"Who are you?" demanded Royce.
Knox looked at the human male who stood a little too close to Harper than he liked. Close enough to suggest they knew each other intimately. That wasn't something Knox liked either. His inner demon loathed the human on principle.
"I'm Knox Thorne."
"Royce Yardley." He pointed one finger at Knox. "I've heard of you, you own most of the—"
"Harper and I need to talk, Mr. Yardley." Knox moved aside to clear the doorway – an act that told Royce to leave. Looking a little befuddled, the human did.
Raini leaned into Harper as she quietly said, "I'm at risk of swooning from that dominant vibe he's got going on."
Harper rolled her eyes. "We'll use the office," she told Knox.
She headed straight for the back of the studio, hearing his confident footsteps following her.
Finally inside, Harper thought about standing behind the desk to put some space between them, but that stank too much of fear. So instead, she remained in front of it, arms folded across her chest.
He stalked towards her, but didn't invade her personal space. His unflappable confidence was apparent in the way he just stood there looking like he owned every inch of the space around him. His power and strength radiated from him, impressing her demon and drumming at Harper's skin.
"I won't ask how you know where I work."
He'd probably done some research on her the moment he realized she was his anchor.
Knox almost smiled at her defensive posture. Apparently his little sphinx wasn't entirely comfortable with the anchor situation. Initially, he'd also been a little uneasy. As a Prime, he was always surrounded by people. He was used to being responsible for others. Used to supporting and protecting them. But it wasn't intimate; there was still personal distance between him and his demons – even between him and his sentinels.
A relationship with an anchor, however, wouldn't allow much distance. They would be intimate on a psychic level, and they would most likely play a large part in each other's lives.
With the exception of his sentinels, Knox didn't have people in his life. Existing around his life, yes. But not part of it.
He knew by the force and depth of the protectiveness and possessiveness that hit him hard on realizing she was his anchor that it would be different with Harper.
Knox hadn't known if he was ready for 'different.' Unlike most demons, he hadn't been eager to find his anchor. He didn't believe he needed one. Didn't see how having one would improve his life. But as their minds had briefly touched and he'd realized what she was to him he'd thought… Mine.
Simple. Primal. Instinctual. And the feeling didn't seem to be going anywhere.
After taking some time to consider it all and become accustomed to the idea, he was no longer uneasy. It was as simple for him as it was for his demon. This female belonged to him, was meant for him, and it was his role to protect her.
Harper, on the other hand, didn't appear so agreeable.
"You're hesitant to bond."
"So should you be. For someone like you, I'll be a total pain in the ass."
"Someone like me?"
"And be honest, I'm not at all what you imagined your anchor would be like, am I?"
They couldn't be more different, had totally different lifestyles.
She was definitely unexpected, but that wasn't at all relevant to Knox. "I'm probably not what you expected either, but it doesn't change anything."
As he studied her manic, brown eyes, his enhanced vision picked up something that immediately agitated him. "You're wearing contact lenses."
He wanted to look into her unusual eyes, watch them change color.
"Obviously. I have to hide my eyes from humans. Anyway, back to this anchor thing. You're powerful enough all on your own. You don't need me or anyone else to make you stronger."
"Oh, little sphinx, do you really think I can't sense how powerful you are? In any case, that doesn't matter. I don't want you for power. Or even to stop me from turning rogue."
"Then why?"
"Because you're mine. I don't walk away from what's mine."
Filled with restless energy thanks to the pressure in her head that was swelling and becoming painful, Harper began to pace. "Look, it wouldn't work out."
The comment vexed his demon, but Knox decided to be patient with her – sensing that any bulldozing would make her more determined to keep him at bay.
He'd let her list her issues and then he'd address them, because there wasn't a chance he'd leave her alone.
"Why do you think that?"
"I don't know you, granted, but I can sense that you like control and having your own way all the time. You'll try that with me."