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  He gives me an evil smile. “I never said I did.”

  My brows pinch in confusion. “But you said—”

  “That I wanted to hold you until you pass out.” He bends to put his face on level with mine. “Kind of like you did in the shower.”

  Embarrassed heat rises to my cheeks. I only lost consciousness for a few seconds. Shoving him away, I force my tired body to stand. “Nope, not happening.”

  “Your mouth says no, but your body clearly says YES.” He leers at the glittery word on my boobs, and a surprised laugh escapes me.

  I’ve never seen Tobias joke like this, and from the uncomfortable way he straightens, I think he’s doing it to boost my mood. It makes me all soft and mushy inside that he’d force himself out of his comfort zone to ease my mind.

  My bare toes curl against the hardwood floor. “Hey, Tobias, about what you said earlier...”

  Alarm flashes across his face, and he spins away. “Let’s go find Emil and Tac so you can rest easy.”

  I bounce after him out onto the landing. “Adie and Tobias, sitting in a tree.”

  “If you want me to kiss you again, all you have to do is ask,” he growls over his shoulder, and my lips snap shut.

  Yeah, I want him to kiss me again. I want him to show me more of this gentler side of him. But we’ll have time for that later once Tac’s safety isn’t in question, and we don’t have the remains of a nightmare creature in our backyard.

  When we reach Emil’s room, the ice demon doesn’t answer his door, and after a moment, we decide he’s not in and head the rest of the way downstairs to find it also empty.

  Tobias strides for the front door. “They must all be in the backyard.”

  In the entryway, we pause, and Tobias pulls on his fancy loafers, which look out of place with his bare chest and wet sweats. I slip into my neon-blue clogs, then we head outside.

  The chill in the air nips at my bare arms, exhaustion making me cold. I want to be burrowed into my nest of pillows right now, not traipsing around in the wee hours of the night. It takes physical effort to put one foot in front of the other as I follow Tobias around the house to the backyard.

  Emil, Kellen, and Landon all stand around the remains of the creature, their heads close in quiet conversation.

  Kellen spots me first and abandons the others to rush over, sweeping me up in a static-filled hug. “You’re okay.”

  “Yeah.” I rub my cheek against his. “I’m okay.”

  “I was so worried.” His nose skims along my neck as he inhales deeply. “Did Tobias give you enough energy? Do you need more? Should you be out of bed right now?”

  He hadn’t been this concerned when we faced the Hunters, and warmth fills my chest. “I’m okay. Really.”

  Cool hands touch my back, and Kellen reluctantly releases me.

  I turn to face Emil. “Is Tac okay?”

  “He’s fine. His saliva actually protects him from most things that can harm other people.” As he shuffles closer, my heart aches at the uncertainty on his face.

  Without waiting for him to make the first move, I throw my arms around his waist. His icy body relaxes against mine, his arms winding around my back. It’s not an apology for his earlier actions, nor a confirmation that he really does love me, but it’s a start.

  After a moment, he releases me and steps back. He exchanges a glance with Tobias that crackles the air between them with tension.

  Emil’s possessiveness is still an issue, but we’ll work through it.

  I leave them to deal with their differences and join Landon, leaning heavily against my mentor’s side.

  His arm slips around me. “You feel full of energy. Good. You should be sleeping, though. You need to let your body process. You did a lot of healing.”

  “In a bit.” I stare down at the gelatinous creature laid out of the ground.

  The black, industrial trash bag beneath it bubbles around the edges as the slime that covers the monster slowly eats through it. I shudder at the sight. That was me not long ago, and I thank Tobias for being there and helping me so I didn’t have to see what was happening to my body.

  I cuddle closer to Landon. “What is it?”

  “Something that I thought I locked away long ago.” He rubs my arm, soothing away the goose bumps. “It shouldn’t be here. It should be impossible for it to cross the barrier.”

  “When I told Julian about it, he said I was imagining things.”

  Landon stiffens. “You’ve seen it before?”

  I nod, head tipping back to stare up at him. “A couple weeks ago. I got stuck on the outskirts of Dreamland. It was there.”

  “There aren’t any outskirts in Dreamland.” When I open my mouth to protest, he shakes his head. “You were in the Between. It exists at the moment between waking and sleeping. When humans talk of night terrors, that’s where they are. Neither asleep nor awake. It’s why what they see then feels so real.”

  I frown at him. “Why didn’t you tell me about this?”

  “Because you shouldn’t be able to access it. No demon should.” Worry tightens his face. “It’s why we locked it there to begin with, then put it to sleep.”

  “But what is it?” I press.

  “Humans have called it by many names. We called it the Dreamer. It preys on humans and demons alike, cocooning them in a mist that slowly breaks down the body as it feeds. The victims don’t even know they’re melting at first. The slime numbs as it eats through the skin.” He swallows thickly. “It increases the psychic power the creature gains from the consumption, to have the food conscious as it’s consumed layer by layer.”

  My gut clenches. “And that’s what this is? It’s a Dreamer?”

  “No.” He eyes shift back to the creature. “This is a drone. It keeps the Dreamer fed while it sleeps. It only had a few when we trapped it, and we hoped they would die off without ready access to a food source.”

  Only a few? My pulse spikes. “There are more than a few now.”

  His attention jerks back to me. “What do you mean?”

  “When I was there. I saw them. Hundreds of them.” I shiver and hug my elbows. “They tried to trap me in a maze of fog.”

  “Hundreds?” His gaze grows distant. “But there would only be that many if—”

  “It’s awake, Landon. It tried to crush me before I escaped.”

  He turns to grip my arms, his expression serious. “How did you escape?”

  “I felt the guys. They were angry, and the emotions gave me a direction out of the maze.” My hand lifts to touch my chest. “Our contract. It links us together, and I used it to return to my body.”

  Shocked, his hands drop to his sides. “And the drone somehow followed you out.”

  My body goes numb once more. “But we killed it, right? So everything’s okay now?”

  “No. Everything’s not okay.” Landon turns back to the creature. “It will have left a path, a bridge for the others. This is only the beginning.”

  From the Author

  Adie’s (mis)adventures continue July 2019:

  Falling (Succubus Harem 25)

  The third installment in the Succubus Dreams Serial

  I hope you enjoyed Choices; I appreciate you reading it! If you liked the story, please consider leaving an honest review. Reviews help authors gain more exposure, which helps new readers find them easier.

  Leave Your Review Today

  Also by L L Frost

  The (un)Lucky Succubus

  Succubus Bargain

  Includes Succubus Harem 1-5

  The Offer | The Deal | The Terms | The Rules | The Gain

  Succubus Studies

  Includes Succubus Harem 6-10

  The Torch | The Blaze | The Inferno | The Vortex | The Breach

  Succubus Mission

  Includes Succubus Harem 11-15

  The Meeting | The Assignment | The Ambush | The Search | The Revelation

  Succubus Hunted

  Includes Succubus Harem 16-
22

  Sidelined | Charmed | Trapped | Cornered | Destroyed | Betrayed | Deceived

  Succubus Dreams

  Choices | Escape | Falling

  About the Author

  L.L. Frost lives in the Pacific Northwest and graduated from college with a Bachelor’s in English. She is an avid reader of all things paranormal and can frequently be caught curled up in her favorite chair with a nice cup of coffee, a blanket, and her Kindle.

  When not reading or writing, she can be found trying to lure the affection of her grumpy cat, who is very good at being just out of reach for snuggle time.

  To stay up to date on what L.L. Frost is up to, join her newsletter, visit her website, or follow her on social media!

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