Page 25

Miri snorted. “Why do you think I’ve been hiding in my room after dinner? To reorganize my sock drawer? That’s my me time.”

That wasn’t all the curvy, little human had been doing in her “me time.” Nico had had no trouble smelling it on her skin.

“And coming all over Duke’s face?” he teased. “It that also your me time?”

“Noooo.”

Miri buried her flaming face in his shoulder. Her hot flesh burned against his neck. A fanged grin lit his face, chasing away the last of his unease. There was nothing Nico loved more than a flushed and flustered Miri.

“Is there a sign up sheet or something? Do I need to pencil myself in for a weekday slot?”

Miri laughed as she sits up “Stop.”

“I’m just saying… if there’s room on tomorrow’s agenda, there’s this one position I’ve been dying to try?—“

Miri clapped a hand over his smiling mouth. “You’re so close to being off this month’s schedule entirely.”

Nico lifted her hand away. “So, there is a schedule?”

Her plump lips slanted over his. Dull teeth nipped at his mouth before she pulled away.

“No more meltdowns for you and no more avoiding problems for me. Deal?”

“Deal.”

“And you need to apologize to Ace.”

He paused. “Do I have to?”

“Yes. He might be a clown, but he’s our clown, and you were a dick.”

“I’ll apologize… although, if I trip over his damned boots again, I’m cramming up this ass.”

Miri grinned. “I agree to those terms.”

He hugged her tight to his chest. He had no idea how she did it, but Miri was like a balm to his anxious soul. The unease wasn’t gone for good, but everything seemed much less dire with her in his lap and a little time away from the cacophony filling every corner of her house.

Her “me time” idea definitely had merit.

Nico loosened his grip on waist and leaned away to see her properly. Her golden-brown eyes looked past him and roamed around the room. Studying the artwork covering the walls, her eyes narrowed on a the sheet of flash designs. She nibbled at her lip.

“Do you want one?” Nico asked.

“I have a tattoo already.”

“I’ve seen it.”

And licked it. Snagging her skirt in his claws, the demon nudged the fabric up to her hips. His fingertips stroked the little red heart inked on her ass cheek.

“You could put something on the other side.” Nico traced his fingers over the curve of her ass to the other hip. “Here, maybe?”

Miri eyed the flash tattoos one more time.

“Sure. Why not?” She turned back to him, practically bouncing with excitement in his lap. “But I don’t know what to get.”

“Don’t worry.” Nico pressed a quick kiss to her lips before nudging her off his lap. “I know just what to put there.”

“Do I at least get a hint?”

“Nope.”

Bustling around the studio, the demon sanitized and prepped his station. Miri watched with wide-eyed fascination. Nico poured his ink and sat down on his stool.

Miri walked passed him to the cushioned table. The demon caught her wrist before she could wiggle her way up.

“Stand like this,” he ordered.

Nico nudged her feet apart and pressed a hand between her shoulder blades. Miri bent at the waist. Chest cushioned on the table, she folded her arms and rested her head.

Demon’s honor, he’d only been thinking about the easiest angle to place the tattoo, but as he caught sight of her short skirt doing very little to cover her ass, Nico was grateful for his short-sightedness. Now he just had to get through the small tattoo without a raging boner.

Easier said than done.

Miri reached back and flipped her skirt up over her back. She gave a little wiggle. Nico swallowed, his eyes locked on the lacy panties disappearing between her cheeks.

Then again, maybe this position wasn’t the best idea.

“Can you—“ Nico cleared his throat. “Can you stand like that for thirty minutes?”

“Sure.” The tempting human winked at him over her shoulder. “The table’s doing most of the work, anyway.”

Lucky table. He shifted on the stool, doing his best to ignore the tightness in his jeans. It was going to be a long thirty minutes.

Nico pulled on a fresh pair of gloves and sanitized the stretch of flesh. Eyes locked on his canvas, he focused on the buzz of the tattoo machine and started to work.

The outline was done in no time at all. Thank Gaia, the tattoo was barely bigger than a coin. Watching the ink grow in Miri’s soft skin was a test of his self-control.

“So… did they teach you this position in tattoo school?” she asked, breaking the silence.

“Tattoo school?” Nico snorted. “No such thing, baby.”

“Good. Because it’s highly unprofessional.” She lifted her head to raise an eyebrow at him. “You’d better not be bending any other clients over the table like this.”

Other clients? The only person he wanted to bend over anything was her. It didn’t have to be the table. The stool would work just fine.

Nico lifted the tattoo machine and slapped his gloved palm over her other ass cheek. Her little yelp was music to his ears.

“Shush. I’m trying to concentrate.”

Nico swapped to his shader and started to add color. Her butt wiggled as she scooted her feet together. Lifting the machine, he frowned.

“Miri.”

“Sorry.”

He went back to work. Every few minutes, he was forced to stop as she rubbed her thighs together. So much for standing still for thirty minutes.

“Stop wiggling or you’re going to end up with a random line on your ass,” Nico warned.

“I’m sorry!” She clenched her thighs tighter together.

“Do you need to sit down?”

“I’m pretty sure that would just make it worse.”

Make it worse? The demon watched as she shifted her hips and squeezed her thighs together. His dark brows soared. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one turned on by their impromptu session.

Using his teeth, Nico peeled off one of his gloves. His hand glided up her inner thigh and pressed between her legs. He nudged Miri’s panties aside with his fingertips.

Holy fuck. The desperate little human was dripping wet for him. Nico rubbed his fingers through the slick and teased the swollen bud at the top. She rewarded him with a moan and another wiggle.

“If you can be good and hold still, I’ll keep my hand right here for you,” Nico promised. “But if you can’t, you’ll have to sit on the table and I won’t let you come until we get home.”

“Fuck.” Her soft groaned tickled his ears. “Okay, I can hold still.”

“Good girl.”

One hand lightly teasing her pussy, he picked up his machine and hurried through the rest of the tattoo.

As Nico finished up the shading, he made a mental note not to let her go to another tattoo artist…

ever. He wasn’t sure if it was the rush of the tattoo or the fact that he was the one giving it to her, but no one else was going to put ink on Miri’s skin while she moaned like that.

Hell, no one else was allowed in the building while she was there. He would put up traffic cones and caution signs, if it meant he was the only who got to hear Miri whimper like that.

“Just a few more minutes, baby. I’m almost done.”

Thank fuck. The fingers between her legs were soaked and the zipper of his jeans was fighting a losing battle.

Nico wiped away the excess ink. A tiny smiley face with demon horns smiled back at him. Perfect.

He leaned over and grabbed a hand mirror off the shelf.

“Okay, take a look.” Raising the mirror, he grinned when Miri’s head whipped around to look at the reflection.

She laughed. “Did you really just put a demon on my ass?”

“Well, you seem to have a thing for horny devils.” Nico shrugged. “On your ass, in your ass, between your legs?—“

He pressed his fingers more firmly against her clit to make his point. The sweet human was well and thoroughly owned by demons—and now her ass had the label to prove it.

“I love it.” Miri blew him a kiss.

“You’re about to love it a lot less,” he teased. “I need both hands to finish up.”

Grumbling under her breath, she parted her soft thighs to let his hand escape. Nico turned his back and crossed to the sink. He allowed himself to lick the taste of her off only one claw before shoving his hands under the faucet.

Stupid sanitation rules. He would have happily stood there and lapped the sweet musky slick from his entire hand, but Nico was pretty sure Miri wouldn’t appreciate waiting for him to finish with her bare ass hanging out and her fresh tattoo exposed to the air.

Hands clean, he applied the aftercare to the little smiley face and smoothed the sticky plastic over the top.

“You’ll need to leave that on for twenty-four hours and?—“

“Tell me later,” Miri cut in.

Straightening up, she turned around and shoved him back a step. What—? Nico landed on the stool behind him and stared as Miri dropped to her knees in front of him. Her fingers were working the fly of his pants before he could wrap his brain around what was happening.

Nico groaned as his cock sprang free of the confines of his jeans. Miri’s small pink tongue licked her plump lips. Shoving her curls out of her face, she plucked her glasses of her nose and pressed them into his hands.

“Hold those for me.” Her hot breath teased the head of his cock.

The demon swallowed a growl and clutched her precious glasses to his chest. He’d hold up the whole fucking sky if it kept her hands on him.

Miri’s pink tongue darted out and licked the swollen tip. Arching his cock toward his belly, she swiped her tongue along the gold piercings on the underside. She teased the little barbells with the tips of her tongue.

“Fuck,” Nico groaned, his head falling back.

“I’ve been dying to do that since I saw them that very first night in my bed.”

Miri wrapped her lips around his cock and sucked him deep enough to bump the back of her throat. The air whistled out of his lungs. He forgot how to breathe as her hot mouth worked up and down the hard length.

If communication and tattoos got his sweet human this worked up, he’d happily read her the Gettysburg Address while he turned her ass into a patchwork quilt of tattoos.

Nico’s last thought as he slipped his fingers into Miri’s curls and watched her pull back to lick him like a lollipop—how the hell had he ever thought he could walk away from her?