Succubus Unchained - Heather Long Page 0,75

to sit it out, to be neutral. He wants to give allegiance to no one. Eamon owns his clubs though. Gemma is on the move. Cyril is already hunting you.”

“Then it is only a matter of time for the others.”

Which was why Maddox and Fin were tracking them.

“You really don’t care that this turns to war?”

Alfred cut him an impatient look. “Of course I care. I care that it affects you. It affects them.” Then he looked to the bed. “That it will affect her. I don’t care about the rest of them. Not anymore.”

Tossing back the whole of his drink, Rogue considered his next words carefully.

“Ask.”

He shook his head slowly. “It’s not time yet for that question.”

They’d known each other too long for Alfred to push him on this. Some instincts had never faded in Rogue, and this was one of them. In time, the question would be needed. They did not need it now.

“Are you two fighting?” The sleepy voice looped around him and pulled his attention to where Fiona sat up on her elbows.

“No, Hellion. We were not fighting.”

“Not right now, anyway,” Rogue teased her. “We were only discussing the news.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Good news or bad news?”

“Both,” Alfred said. “Would you like Rogue to curl up with you, Hellion, so you can sleep a little longer?”

Containing his own reaction, Rogue merely waited.

“I’d rather have both of you,” she said. “Don’t you need rest, too?”

“No,” Alfred told her, but he put aside his drink and crossed to the bed anyway. “But I will stay with you if you’ll have me.”

When she flicked those green eyes to him, Rogue chuckled. “You never need to ask me, little sváss. I will happily stay with you. Though I think if you and Alfred are finally getting along, I shouldn’t intervene.”

She rolled her eyes then held out a hand. “I’m just tired. Apparently, shadow demons give the worst form of heart burn.”

Another chuckle escaped him, and he wasn’t alone in that. Alfred slid onto the bed next to her, and she curled against him but kept her hand out to him. Shedding the robe, Rogue slid in on the other side of her, then cupped her face to press a kiss to her lips.

She searched his face, lifting her own fingers to his cheek. “What’s wrong?”

Burying his concerns deeper, he shook his head. “Nothing.” He could almost feel the weight of Alfred’s regard, but Rogue kept his focus on Fiona. When Maddox and Fin first began their ridiculous plan to get her out, he’d not thought much of it or her.

Wild.

Unpredictable.

Untamed.

She was all of those things.

But she also had a heart, one she kept hidden behind traps and secured with her barbed tongue. Capturing her lips in another kiss, he poured affection into it, affection he hadn’t let himself feel in far too long. He had a wealth of it carefully stored away, and he would give all of it to her.

Fin had been right. She was perfect for them.

He could almost hear her throaty laughter as she declared she was a succubus, it made her perfect for everyone, but there’d been an element of hurt in there, too.

Finally letting her have a breath, he met Alfred’s gaze over her shoulder.

“Something is wrong,” she said with a sigh. Lying to her was not the way to do this, but they had too much to explain.

Lips against her shoulder, Alfred solved it for both of them when he said, “Yes, Hellion. We will tell you after you rest and we sort it out from greatest to least important. Much of it is politics…”

Fiona made a gagging noise and flopped back dramatically against the pillows. “Vampire politics suck.”

Mild surprise curled through Rogue, but when she let out a laugh at her very bad pun, he couldn’t help but smile.

“Yes,” he told her. “They do.”

A yawn split her jaw. She faced him as she turned on her side, and Alfred pulled her back against him, molding her back to his chest. Mirroring her posture, Rogue studied her as her lashes dipped. “I’ll need a scorecard,” she mumbled.

“We’ll try to do that for you.” If it was what he was thinking it was. If not, Fin would explain it, or maybe she could. Almost too swiftly, she dropped off again, and Rogue narrowed his eyes. “How much damage did it do?”

“Too much,” Alfred admitted. “But I think this is more. This is…trusting us.” There was a hint of wonder there. “I don’t know how