Burn

“No, I’m not,” Harper confirmed, impressed that he’d sensed it.

Knox felt an unexpected tingle of amusement at her typical imp response – vague and evasive. Apparently she was, for all intents and purposes, an imp. “Sit,” he invited, gesturing to the chair opposite his. Before taking it, her unusual eyes did a quick sweep of the room. And he knew that, in that small moment, she had assessed what was of value, the most likely places for a safe to be positioned, and every possible exit. It would be instinctive for a Wallis.

He noticed that she didn’t make a sound as she moved – another imp trait she had mastered, despite not being one of them. “What are you?”

Watching as he melted into his chair, she parried, “What are you?”

Oh, that little bit of fire made his demon chuckle. Like Knox, it didn’t have much time or respect for weak, frightened little lambs. This female clearly wasn’t easily intimidated. He could have pushed the matter, but he found that he liked the idea of watching her, studying her, and solving the mystery for himself.

Harper was surprised to see his mouth twitch in amusement, since she’d expected anger. Knox Thorne made her think of a jungle cat that was choosing to behave for now but whose mood could change at any given moment. Regardless of that, she was stupidly wondering if his short, ebony hair was as silky as it looked. Yeah, well, she’d never been all that smart.

Seeing that the huge window offered a perfect view of the combat circle, Harper guessed he’d watched her duel with his she-demon. “Look, if this is about Mona, she got what she deserved.”

“And what is it exactly that she ‘got’?” No answer. “Your touch can cause soul-deep pain,” Knox guessed. A rare ability.

“Very good.” It had always been effortless for Harper to do it. Whenever she felt angry, threatened, or frightened, a dark protective power instinctively built inside her and rushed to her fingertips, making them prickle. As a child, it hadn’t been easy to control. Now that she was an adult, she was able to push the power back down if necessary.

He drummed his fingers on the desk. “If you believe she deserved soul-deep pain, I’m assuming Mona did something I need to know about. Tell me.”

Be a tattletale who whined to people’s Primes? “No.”

“No?” Knox echoed with disbelief.

Evidently, he wasn’t denied things often. Well, Harper did like to introduce people to new experiences. It was more of a calling, really. The air chilled as his eyes very briefly bled to black, communicating his inner demon’s displeasure at being refused; hell reigned in those dark pools. A frisson of apprehension tingled down her spine.

“If one of my demons has done something they shouldn’t have, I need to deal with it.”

She shrugged. “It’s been dealt with.”

“That fight was personal. Tell me why.”

The guy was seriously tenacious. “Ask Mona.”

“I’m asking you.”

“Shame for you that I won’t answer, huh.”

His demon was impressed by her. It liked that she pushed back, and believed she would be delicious prey to hunt. Not a weak, defenseless prey – no, she would be entertaining. “So very stubborn.”

“Yes.” It was indeed one of her best qualities.

It was right then that his instincts told Knox…“You’re a sphinx.” He knew it as sure as he knew that this greedy ache to possess her wasn’t going anywhere.

Oh, points to the Prime. “I am.”

No wonder she was so obstinate, Knox mused. Like a bird, sphinxes were winged, swift, graceful, and could be challenging to pin down. Like a lion, they were strong, fierce, brave, and would single-mindedly trail, stalk, and run down their prey. In short, there wasn’t a more elusive, daring, persistent demon than a sphinx.

Rising to his feet, Knox rounded the table and came to stand in front of her. She quickly stood, meeting his stare boldly. At that moment, her eyes changed again as the misty gray swirled and became a silvery violet. It was fascinating to watch the transformation. “If you’re not going to answer my questions about Mona, you can answer another. Are you involved with the male demon that’s with you?” Knox didn’t share, and he intended to have Harper Wallis.

She frowned. The guy sure liked to throw out random questions. “Why do you want to know?” Both she and her inner demon stilled as his eyes again bled to black. The demon living inside Knox was staring back at her, and it was fucking chilling. Those eyes…they were so cold, menacing, and old. The temperature of the room seemed to drop five degrees.

The demon covered the remaining distance between them and spoke in a flat, disembodied voice as it lightly tapped her cheek with one finger. “Answer the question, little sphinx.” So much silken menace in those words. “No more evasiveness.”

The entity was admittedly a scary fucker, but Harper would be damned if she’d let it intimidate her. Nobody, nobody, got to play with her like she was prey. “My private life is exactly that – private. But I’ll share with you if you share with me. What are you?”

After a long, tense moment, that erotic mouth curved on one side. The obsidian eyes weren’t so cold now. They glinted with challenge and amusement. Then suddenly the demon retreated, and she was once again looking at Knox.

“Your demon’s not prepared to answer that one then, huh,” said Harper. “Now who’s evasive?”