Among Demons : A Siren's Voice

Ch. 22 : Relatives, Drinks and Games

*Lora Nex*

It didn’t take long for my knee to fully heal after Nick poured more of the healing potion over the cut. It was incredible to watch the angry looking gash over my knee slowly heal over until it was closed, leaving me with the same tingling, pinching feeling I had felt in Nick's truck. Though my mind instantly returned to that heated moment on his backseat when he first applied the weaker version of it on me. My face once again burned up as some not-so-innocent thoughts flitted through my mind.

He had, once again, spread his fingers over my leg, touching as much of me as he possibly could with that one hand. His voice dropped to a very low and softly raspy tone that made me shiver. And his hazel-green eyes were dark with a heat that spilled into my lower belly, making more naughty ideas pop into my head.

I was thankful at that moment that I couldn’t make much of a sound at all. Knowing that I was more than lightly to squeak or maybe even moan a little with what that man was doing to me.

Devin, thank her beautiful heart, made a point to step in and annoy her brother, distracting him from me again so I could get ahold of myself. Though I wasn’t really helping my case at all. Especially after I had clung to him when he appeared, seemingly out of nowhere after Nyla had helped me escape from those Hunters. The very sight of him, the soft worried sound of his voice, had me racing to him for comfort. Nick made me feel safe and made it possible for me to calm down faster than I would have, had I been alone. And after all the closeness, teasing and clear flirting going on between us, I was sure everyone knew that we both felt something.

But with everything else hanging over me… my nephew's safety, that damned Hunter ‘Mitch’ and his unsettling need to recapture me, and the unknown connections to those Hunters that circled back to my mother and sister…

It just made everything complicated in my mind.

“She’s here!” Nyla called out, coming over to grab hold of my hand and pulling me out of the sectional in the lounge. “C’mon.”

Now that I was fully healed, I was able to walk around again without feeling any pain or discomfort. So, since yesterday afternoon, I had been joining Nyla back to her home or to different Hotels to greet and welcome her family members. They were steadily arriving for her wedding as the days ticked by, with some meeting her fiance for the first time when she’d go to greet them. And Nyla, having grown a bit attached to me now as her big day came closer and closer, wanted me to be with her as well when more family members arrived.

“She’s growing more anxious.” Devin had told me last night after dinner. “Nyla latches on to people for comfort a lot of the time. But since Danny is helping out with his portion of the wedding, Sammy and Izaak, always busy with their kids and work, and my own wedding, still in the works…” She shrugged, smiling as she looked over at the happily laughing Fay. “She was bound to lean on you and Nick a bit more. And want to keep you around a bit more too.”

“Nick, Nick, Nick!” Nyla shouted once the doors to the elevator opened. “She’s here!”

He smiled and nodded from his lazy lounging against the reception desk he leaned on. He held a file that he slowly closed and set aside, looking amused as I was dragged along behind her. His hair, still an elegant mess atop his head, made him look so very handsome. And the light green Tee he had on brought out the hazel-green swirls in his eyes.

Dammit, why was this man so unbearably sexy to me?

“What’s her name again?” He asked, smoothly freeing my wrist from Nyla’s firm but gentle hold, replacing her fingers with his.

“Arima!” She said with a smile, bouncing on her feet.

He nodded and glanced over at me, making me smile as Nyla turned to walk through the doors and hold them open for us.

“Ari!”

Nyla’s sudden excited shout made me jump, looking over to see her racing out into the parking lot. The heavy wooden door that Nyla had been holding was let go as soon as she ran off, swinging back towards me. I wasn’t prepared to catch it at all, choosing instead to brace myself for when it hit me. But Nick stepped closer to me without a word, his arm shooting out to stop the door as it came at me.

I turned to him in the small space we stood in, smiling and mouthing out a ‘thank you’ before stepping out and away from the door. He’d simply smiled back and released the door once we were clear, resting a hand on my shoulder that slowly slid across my upper back, under my hair, and settled on my other shoulder. I leaned into him a little, hiding a smile as we walked towards Nyla and a woman that was a tiny bit taller than her.

“Guys!” Nyla called out, turning to face us while still holding the woman's hands. “This is my cousin Arima Floss.” She turned back to the smiling woman whose solid sapphire eyes and strawberry pink hair confused me. “Ari, you remember Nick, right? And this is our new friend Loralyn.”

“Yeah, I remember.” The woman said with a friendly smile. “Good to see you again Nick.” She then turned to me and smiled a little wider, those bright sapphire eyes glinting happily in the morning sunlight. “It’s nice to meet you, Loralyn.”

I nodded and smiled, feeling a little awkward since I couldn't speak.

Nick gave my shoulder a squeeze, making me turn to look at him. He smiled down at me just as his sister appeared on his other side.

“Ari! You made it.” She stepped up to Nyla’s cousin, giving her a hug.

Soon, calm and friendly chatter started between the three women, making me smile and giggle a bit when they started poking fun at each other. Nick chimed in here and there, rolling his eyes when both Nyla and Devin turned on him. Nyla’s cousin seemed to be used to their banter as she stepped back and watched them, smiling and shaking her head when she locked eyes with me.

I learned, a little while later, that this Fay was a tough and highly trained Demon woman. In fact, she was one of the more highly trained Enforcers working for the Matron of the NorthWest, which stunned me completely. I also learned that Arima had a habit of hiding her ringed eyes with contacts, since she sometimes had to blend in with Humans on assignment so she didn’t call attention to herself.

Not long after meeting her, Devin and Nyla shooed Nick away and pulled me along with them, confusing me a bit as all four of us jumped into Devin’s car. They all talked about the many different comfort foods they were excited to have, the unique mixed drinks they wanted to share and the kind of games they wanted to play. Nyla paused in the middle of all the talking, smiling to me a little guiltily before explaining what was going on.

“I hope you don’t mind.” She started, looking at me pleadingly. “But I wanted all of us to have a little girls night tonight before we all went over to the venue again to add the finishing touches tomorrow.”

I smiled even bigger, feeling excitement build up inside me as I smiled and nodded.

I’d never had very close friends growing up, so I barely had much experience with friendly group activities and outings. The few times that I’d been out with Nyla, Devin and Sammy had all been fun, full of laughs and made me feel even more welcomed and connected to them. It was all so new to me, this sense of belonging, that I was more than ready to spend the night at Nyla’s place. And that excitement climbed even higher when I met more of Nyla’s female cousins and a few young nieces already waiting outside her small place. Sammy joined us just as we all crowded into the four bedroom house, carrying bags upon bags of chips, dips, and endless sweets of all kinds.

Music soon began to play softly from the large speaker system in the living room while Sammy and Devin began to make several fruity mixed drinks for everyone. Nyla snuck away into her and Danny’s bedroom, coming back out with a bright white sash with the word Bride written in glittering gold on it. One of her cousins pulled out a toy crown with a tiny tulle veil attached to it, slipping it into her hair just as we all grabbed a shot glass being handed out.

“To the lucky lady tying the knot!” Devin started, speaking loudly and raising her glass to the air, smiling brightly. “You’re the most amazing friend, family and confidant!” Several women hooted and whooped at this, making me giggle a little. “I’m so happy that you found your happiness, seeing you so utterly blissful with a man that loves you for you.” Nyla beamed at her words, her ringed eyes glistened with obvious happy tears. “I love you so much, Ny. Don’t you ever forget that you’ve got me in your corner for anything and everything that comes your way.”

“Here, here!” Arima shouted, jerking her shot glass up into the air a little higher before throwing the drink back without hesitation.

Everyone else followed suit, smiling, laughing, or adding their own little words of love for Nyla before they too downed their drink. The rest of the afternoon and night was spent in a blur of chaotic laughter, endless drinks and two rounds of food deliveries.

Games and drinks kickstarted the fun, with everyone breaking into teams to play a very funny few rounds of charades. Each round ending in painful peals of laughter when someone would guess something completely wrong or the player miming acted out something that just looked weird or wrong. The drinks didn’t help either, since Sammy and three of Nyla’s older cousins kept everyone's glass full as we played, being the only ones with kids at home, as well as the designated drivers for everyone staying in a hotel.

A few drinking card games and several rounds or beer-pong later, and everyone was a stumbling, tipsy mess.

That was when the more…. Personal questions started.

“How's that new boyfriend of yours?”

“Oh, so you have a crush on so-and-so?”

“How did you and your man meet?”

“You’ve been together for how long?”

The questions and teasing started out innocently enough, but soon, with the help of more drinks, those questions and answers got much more personal.

“He hates wearing a condom… and I prefer him raw.”

“I just love it when he gets a little rough with me… just pin me down and take what you want.”

“You should’ve seen his face when I wore the new nightie I bought… f**k, I wish I could replay that whole night over and over again.”

“Oh, I love my big, bad and bulky man… he just knows how to worship. Every. Single. Inch, of me.”

I nearly choked hearing Devins words, my cheeks burning so hot that I was amazed that I didn’t simply pop. It didn’t help that Devin locked eyes with me, winking and shimmying her shoulders a little. Nyla also added her own little snippets about her fiance, blushing a little when her cousins pressed for more information after she hinted at a few things before wagging her brows at us all.

Thankfully, neither Nyla, nor Devin brought up Nick and the completely transparent attraction that was happening between the two of us. So I was able to escape the teasing and pressing questions that followed.