"Smoky obviously knows his demonology. Raksasas are masters of illusion," Morio said. "He was just making certain I'm not the demon taking the shape of someone you know and trust."
I blinked. "I hadn't thought of that."
"Well, you should," Smoky said. "You and your sisters have to start thinking the way your enemy thinks—cunning and devious and without compunction. The demons certainly won't cut you any slack for sloppy thinking. Know this, Camille: They are ruthless. Demonkin make dragons look like choirboys. They enjoy pain, they enjoy torture, and they suckle death like a baby suckles its mother's teat."
He paced the room. "I don't like you being involved in this. The Elemental Lords caused this entire situation when they gave away the spirit seals, and they refuse to take responsibility for cleaning up the mess. I have no truck with any of them, save for the Harvestmen and the Queen of Snow and Ice." He paused. "I'd say dump the entire problem in their laps."
"You really think that's feasible? That they'd even blink? Most of the Elemental Lords don't give a crap about humanity—"
Smoky held up his hand as I started to protest. "I know, I know. You can't… or rather you won't walk away. As misguided as I think you are, I admire you for it." He turned back to Morio. "Tell me, you say you smelled a demon. Did you, by any chance, catch wind of the fragrances of orange and jasmine? And, perhaps, sugar vanilla?"
Morio frowned, squinting. After a moment he nodded. "Now that you mention it, yes, I do remember those scents. They were everywhere in the shop. An odd combination, like a perfume that was on the verge of crystallizing. Too sweet," he said. "It was too sweet. It cloyed on the tongue, smelling like it was on the edge of decay."
"Then rest assured, you have a Raksasa on your hands." Smoky opened the drawer on the end table nearest him and pulled out a pipe, tamping it full with herb from a leather pouch. He leaned back and motioned to me. "Camille, light my pipe, if you will."
With a glance at Morio—I never did things like that at home—I shook my head. "You know smoke of just about any kind bothers both Delilah and me." But I crossed to Smoky's chair and knelt by his side. "No smoking inside while I'm here. I have to insist. Please," I added.
"This is a side of you I've never seen," Morio said, an odd look on his face, like he might actually find the idea of me playing the submissive girlfriend appealing.
"Don't get any ideas," I muttered, flashing him a snarky grin.
"Oh, I always have ideas when I'm around you," he quipped back.
Smoky cleared his throat and put away his pipe. "Not a problem."
"Why did you say we definitely have a Raksasa on hand?" Morio leaned back in his chair, sipping his brandy.
Smoky shrugged. "Those scents, or rather, the combination, is their natural fragrance. Here, Earthside, it can easily pass as a perfume, so most people wouldn't pay it a second thought. The only reason I know is because when I heard you might be facing one, I called in a few favors and gathered what information I could."
He said it as calmly as he might have been giving us the weather report, but both Morio and I turned to stare at him. I threw myself into his lap and wrapped my arms around his neck.
"You meant to help us all along! You were just stringing me along." I planted a kiss on his lips and pulled back, suddenly finding myself staring intently into his eyes.
A long lock of his hair unbraided itself and reached around to encircle my waist as he gently returned my kiss. "You like to think so, don't you? I was just curious, perhaps?" But his kiss had told me everything I needed to know.
Suddenly aware that Morio was watching us, I started to get off of Smoky's lap, but Morio held up his hand. "Don't get up on my account," he said. "I can see you… have come to an understanding."
Smoky met Morio's gaze, and his lip curved up to just the slightest degree. "Don't forget, I witnessed your first tryst with Camille here in my woods." He let out a low huff. "I know perfectly well that you and Trillian love this woman, and you know perfectly well that I intend to do my best to steal her away. But that may take some time, and in the meanwhile… I'll be on my best behavior."
Once again feeling like the Invisible Girl, I pushed my way out of his lap and parked my hands on my hips.
"Excuse me, but in case you haven't noticed, I happen to be in the room. And believe it or not, I can hear every word the two of you are saying. I wasn't so quick to point this out to Morgaine and Titania, because they're both off their rockers and might just take a notion to blast me into smithereens. However, since I doubt either of you has the balls to chance it, you'd better listen up! You will stop referring to me as anybody's property, you will acknowledge my presence, and you—are you laughing? You'd better be listening to me!"
Smoky and Morio broke out in full-blown howls that echoed through the chamber.
I'm serious! I don't find this funny in the least—"
"The woman has a point," Smoky said, ignoring me and speaking to Morio.
Morio shrugged. "I suppose so, but it's more fun to watch her get all apoplectic. She can fly into a fury, I warn you."
"I'm all too aware of that, but her delights make up for the tantrums." Smoky reached out and ran his finger down the outside of my thigh. I could feel his energy through the dress, a series of miniature lightning bolts sending off warning signals through my body that a welcome intruder was near.
"Knock it off, both of you—"
Smoky's laughter died away as he leapt to his feet, swept me into his arms, and turned to Morio. "Since she refuses to be owned by one man, what do you say about showing me some of her favorite tricks?"
Sputtering, I tried to squirm out of his embrace. "We need to talk about the Raksasa. You have to tell us what you know."
"After." Smoky held me fast.
"Who the hell do you—" But then I stopped. A dragon, that's who he thought he was. And he was right. And I had promised him a week on his terms. I stopped fighting.
"Fine, you want to have a play date with both of us, I'm down with that. But Morio has to agree, and you have to promise not to hurt him."
Smoky shrugged. "I never intended on harming the fox. It's your Svartan lover I'd like to teach some respect."
Morio looked at Smoky, then at me. "All right," he said slowly. "I'll join you. But know this, dragon. I'm part of her triad, and that triad includes Trillian. I owe my allegiance to Camille, first, and then to Trillian, not you."
And with that sobering thought, Smoky carried me into the bedroom with Morio following.
Chapter Seventeen
As Smoky swept me into the bedroom, I began to rethink the idea. The whole situation seemed rife for misunderstanding and somebody getting hurt. Which would be bad. Very bad.
I glanced up at Smoky. Maybe he was trying to please me, to compromise a little so that he could come into my world and be with me? Right… get a grip, I told myself. Dragons didn't like to share. So why the hell was he accommodating Morio? There had to be an ulterior motive lurking under that reptilian heart that I fancied so much.
And if I was totally honest with myself, I knew I could handle a lot, but both a youkai and a dragon? At the same time? Was I that good—or at least, that resilient? A sudden flock of butterflies took up residence in my stomach, and they weren't the good kind.
Smoky set me on the bed and stood back. He glanced at my face, then at Morio, who had paused by the doorway. No one said anything for a long moment, then Smoky sat down next to me and began to undress me. I let him slide my dress down to my waist, and then he leaned down and began to kiss the length of my neck.
Morio slipped in behind me and gently ran his hand up my arm as he moved my hair aside, pressing his lips to the center of my back.
I shivered at the touch of their lips. Maybe not such a bad idea after all. Oh, this was going to be good. Terrifying, but good.
"See, you won't miss Trillian at all," Smoky said, breathing heavily as he ran his cheek against mine.
Bingo! I knew it. I pushed away from both of them. "I know what you're up to, and you can just stop it right now!"
"What?"
"I'm quite delighted to be in your bed, and I wouldn't have any qualms about spending the night with both you and Morio, however…" I looked over at my youkai lover. "Morio is part of my relationship with Trillian. They complement each other, they've accepted one another. They are my men. And you're trying to cut Trillian out by inviting Morio to play with us."
That was it; that was what felt wrong. This was Smoky's way of sliding in between Trillian and me.
The look on Smoky's face told me I'd been right. I tensed. Was he going to blow up because I'd figured him out? Retaliate, perhaps?
Morio smoothly stood and put himself between the dragon and me.
Smoky gave him an icy stare. "Move. Now."
"Not until I know you aren't going to hurt her." Morio stood his ground.
Smoky looked like he wanted to send him flying but, after a quick look at me, he let out a long breath and relaxed. "Then it looks like Camille will be the only one sharing my bed," he said, his voice cool. "You shouldn't try to cross the land in the dark. I know you're a talented shifter, but there are energies stirring in the wild with which I do not recommend tangling. You may sleep on the sofa. Don't interrupt us."
Morio looked back at me. I nodded. "It's okay. Everything will be fine."
He was at my side in an instant. "Enjoy your night. I have no doubt that Smoky will ensure you are both safe and satisfied." As usual, he remained calm and collected. Thank the gods for small favors. Trillian would have been duking it out with Smoky by now.
As Morio closed the door behind him, I felt a little jump in my heart and realized how much I loved the youkai. Trillian was my oath mate, bound to me for the rest of our lives even when we wanted to smack each other silly. Morio had won his way into my heart through a quieter—but no less potent—way. When the time came, I'd tell him how I felt. I suspected he already knew.
Smoky watched the door shut and then turned to me. "Camille, I want you to listen to me. Don't answer. Not yet. I know you love them. I know you refuse to choose between them and that each one brings something to your life the other can't. But, Camille… I'm offering you the whole package, in one person. One man."
"One dragon," I said, shivering. "Please, can we talk about this later? If you force me to choose, I guarantee you won't like my response. And neither will I, because I don't think you'd take it very well."
But as I gazed into his frost-shaded eyes, a flicker of uncertainty made me wonder. "Smoky, I don't even pretend to understand why you've chosen me to be your mate. You're… a dragon. I can't give you children, I'll die long before you. Look at everything you've seen and experienced."
"Your father loved your mother," he said simply.
I swallowed. That was true, but this seemed so… so different. "All I know is that you're incredible. When you touch me, I forget where I am. I forget what's going on out there with the demons and the war, and everything that's horrible." I pointed toward the door.
"And that's a bad thing?" he asked, looking confused.
"No!" How could I explain so that he'd understand? Or maybe he did, and just didn't want to acknowledge it. "Smoky, I feel safe around you in a way I've never felt before, even if I don't particularly feel safe from you. Don't make me choose. Don't try to break my oath to Trillian, because I don't want to walk away from you. And I will, if it comes to that."
"Then let me make you forget your worries. For now." He leaned down and kissed me, and all words were forgotten as my dragon took me to bed and made love to me again, and again, and again.
When I woke at first light, Smoky was sitting in a chair in the corner. He was staring at me so intently that I thought something might be wrong. But when I asked, he just shook his head.
"Just watching you sleep," he said.
I climbed out of the tangled bedcovers and stretched. Smoky held out his arms, and I walked over and slid onto his lap. I thought he was going to suggest another romp between the sheets and tried to think of an excuse. He'd worn me out the night before, and I felt like I'd be walking bowlegged for days. As much as I enjoyed sex, I didn't think I had it in me for another go this morning. But instead of motioning to the bed, he just pointed to my bag.
"Pack. While you dress, I'll make breakfast." And then he was out the door, shutting it softly behind him.
By the time I washed up and dressed, Smoky had fried up eggs and sausage and more potatoes. Morio was setting the table, and he glanced at me. I gave him a wan smile. If this had been one day with Smoky, I couldn't imagine what a solid week would be like. I'd probably forget my name by that point. After we ate and returned to the living room, Morio wandered over to the edge of the cavern.
"Where does the cave lead to?" he asked, staring down into the ravine.
Smoky shrugged. "To a series of underground tunnels. There's an exit that I can fly out from in my natural form. And if I should choose to alter the vibration of the portals, I can enter other realms from there."
"All of your exits and entrances are protected, aren't they?" A sudden image of demons storming Smoky's lair assaulted me.
