Lesbian Paranormal Romance | Fiction
Her Witch, Her Demon: Episode 4
Someone is super jelly
That evening, Meredith couldn’t sleep. She tossed and turned in her bed, her mind occupied by none other than Onyx Castle. What was wrong with her? She’d only known Nyx for two days, and yet the woman constantly plagued her thoughts. She couldn’t possibly be attracted to a demon, could she? No. It just couldn’t happen.
Her parents had supported her in everything. They supported her when she decided to go to art school instead of law school. They supported her when she came out as bisexual in her sophomore year. Her parents loved her dearly, Meredith knew that. But she was no fool to think that they would support her friendship, let alone a romantic relationship, with a demon.
Okay, why was she even thinking about this like she was going to bring Nyx home? They weren’t even dating. What the hell was wrong with her? She needed to sleep and stop thinking about this. Sleep didn’t come easy. But it did come.
The first thing Meredith heard the next morning was her mother’s loud piercing voice calling her from downstairs. That was enough to wake her completely.
“Jesus,” she muttered as she dragged herself out of her bed. She needed to move out. It wasn’t that she hadn’t tried that before. Her mother had accused her of trying to abandon them. So yes, she had no choice but to endure this invasion of privacy for now.
The aroma of congee, steamed buns, and bacon greeted her as soon as she walked into the kitchen. Meredith’s stomach grumbled loudly.
“Morning, Mami,” she greeted her mother who was setting the table. “What’s going on?” Why did she scream her name like she just witnessed a murder?
“You have a delivery, mija,” Mami said in Spanish, nodding at a wrapped box on the dining table.
Meredith raised a brow. “Delivery?” She didn’t remember ordering anything online.
Baba walked in, smiling widely. “Mei Mei.” He wrapped her in a bear hug. “Did you sleep well?”
She wanted to say no, which would be the truth. But then her father would ask her why and there was no way in hell she could say she was thinking about a demon all night, could she? So she simply nodded in response. Thankfully, Baba was more interested in the art fair than anything and Meredith was more than happy to oblige. He gushed about how he’d always known his little girl would do great things. For a moment, Meredith was grateful that her parents had left the art fair before they could meet Nyx. With how powerful Baba’s vital energy was, he probably would have sensed that Nyx was a demon.
“What’s this?” He took the box.
“Delivery for Meredith.” Mami narrowed her eyes in suspicion.
“I have no idea what it is.” Meredith took the box from her dad. “I didn’t order this.”
“You want to open it?” Baba asked. “Maybe there’s a clue inside.”
“Or a bomb.”
Meredith laughed. Her mother never failed to think about the worst-case scenario.
Meredith quickly tore through the wrapper to reveal a silver jewelry box with intricate markings adorned all over it. She traced her fingers over the design. God, this was pure art. Such impeccable craftsmanship. When she opened the jewelry box, her mouth hung open at the sight of the exquisite silver bracelet. Intricate markings and symbols, even far more exquisite had been tastefully engraved on the bracelet.
“Wow,” they all said at the same time, utterly in awe of the jewelry.
“Holy witch, is that platinum?” Baba gaped.
“Wait, what?” Meredith’s eyes widened.
“Let me see.” Baba took the bracelet and ran his thin fingers across its silvery surface. The bracelet levitated over his palm, his gray vital energy shrouding it completely. “My god, it’s really platinum.” His warm eyes exuded a mixture of concern and curiosity. “Mei Mei, who’s this from?”
Meredith looked inside the jewelry box. There was a small rectangular note inside. She silently read the contents of the note:
Last night was amazing.
-Nyx
Meredith froze. What in the actual fuck. Nyx sent this? What the hell was that demon thinking? And what did she mean by last night was amazing? All they did was admire art and talk about their passion. They were both artists — while Meredith painted, Nyx was into metal sculpture. Nyx’s love of art moved her to build the Castle Art Center, she had told Meredith.
Wait, did Nyx make this bracelet? Meredith hadn’t taken her too seriously when she said she did metalwork. If Nyx made this bracelet, then she was beyond talented. God, she was incredible…
Okay, that’s not the point, Meredith chastised herself. The point was that Nyx had sent her such an expensive gift for no goddamn reason. First, she pulled the strings to get Meredith a slot in the art fair. And now she was sending Meredith expensive jewelry.
How was she supposed to feel about this? She couldn’t accept it.
“Mei Mei.”
“Hmm.” Shit. She’d forgotten her parents were still here. “Um, it’s from a friend. Her name is Nyx.” The words came out even before she could stop herself. Calm down, Huang. Too much information.
Baba folded his arms, narrowing his eyes. Oh no. The man could smell bullshit miles away when he was in that stance. “Mei Mei, does your friend know that you’re just friends?”
“What?” Meredith gasped. “What does that even mean?”
“Look, I’m just saying,” he said. “This bracelet costs at least a hundred thousand dollars. And the craftsmanship feels too personal to be a gift for somebody you merely see as a friend. I just want you to be sure that you know where you two stand.”
Meredith was too stunned to speak. Nothing was going on between her and Nyx so this meant nothing, right? Except that Nyx is a demon. That stopped Meredith cold in her tracks. Demons didn’t just give gifts for no goddamn reason.
And then it suddenly dawned on her why Nyx had even bothered to invite her to the art fair in the first place. The demon had marked her as a potential mate, and sending her a gift was her way of wooing her. Hell no. She had to return this gift at once. Accepting Nyx’s gift would mean that Meredith had accepted Nyx’s advances. Her heart hammered in her chest, racing faster than a stallion. It was a good thing witches didn’t have super hearing or her parents would have long caught her.
“Mija, are you okay?” Mami took her chin and stared into her eyes. “You look pale.”
“I’m okay, Mami.” Meredith switched to Spanish. She stood up, suddenly losing her appetite.
“Hey, where are you going?” Baba called after her. “You should have breakfast.”
“I’ll eat later.” Breakfast was the last thing on her mind. Right now, she needed to speak to Alicia. Her best friend was the only one in her life she could talk to about this. “There’s something else I need to do.”
This was where it all began. The Union. Tonight, however, Meredith was here all alone. Alicia had insisted on coming with her after Meredith told her she was returning Nyx’s gift.
Ever since Meredith told Alicia about how that vampire had tried to suck her blood without her consent, her best friend had been wary of the Union. For some weird reason, however, Meredith was certain she would be safe since Nyx had promised her so. She couldn’t explain why, but it felt right. So, like a fool, she told Alicia she would be fine on her own. She had to do this by herself anyway. Reluctantly, Alicia agreed, but not after she warned Meredith to call her on the first sign of danger.
“I found an ancient teleportation spell in Gran’s attic,” Alicia had said. “Call me and I’ll be there in a second.”
Hopefully, there would be no sign of danger, thought Meredith as she approached the massive bouncer guarding the inconspicuous entrance of the Union. This time, Borg recognized her and immediately let her enter. Things weren’t so different from the last time she was here. Witches and demons and vampires and werewolves danced and stripped and kissed and fucked. She wove through the throngs of creatures, clenching her jaws at the booming electronic dance music. How the hell was she supposed to find Nyx?
Okay, she had to relax and think carefully. The last time Meredith was here, Nyx was watching her from upstairs. But Nyx wasn’t there. Did she make a mistake coming here then? Maybe the demon wasn’t here at the club. Nyx was a busy woman after all.
Meredith went to the bar and asked the hairy-faced bartender where she could find Nyx. Following the direction of the bartender’s clawed finger, Meredith found herself in a less crowded part of the club. The massive room contained a swimming pool full of naked people, a pool table at the other end, and a long red couch.
On this long couch sat Nyx surrounded by a bevy of gorgeous women. A barely dressed redhead sat on Nyx’s lap, resting her head on her chest, while Nyx grabbed the woman’s ass. Meredith’s grip tightened on her purse, the energy draining from her knees.
She inhaled and exhaled slowly. She was just here to return an unwanted gift. What did she care if women were practically throwing themselves at Nyx? Besides, was this even surprising? Nyx was stunning, wealthy, and powerful. She was also a demon, and everyone knew how overly sexual demons were. Whatever Nyx did was none of her business. She would return the gift and get the hell out.
After her internal pep talk, she sauntered towards the demons. But then she halted in her tracks when the redhead kissed Nyx passionately on the lips. A myriad of emotions she couldn’t make sense of washed over her as Nyx kissed the woman right back. Meredith’s eyes stung.
Okay, this was ridiculous. Why the hell was she so affected by this? It wasn’t like she and Nyx were together so why did she feel like shit just because Nyx was kissing another woman? How pathetic could she be?
When Nyx’s intense gaze suddenly fell on her, Meredith dashed out of the room. She couldn’t possibly let the woman see that she was close to tears. Everything blurred, the world closing in on her as she squeezed through scores of dancing people. Soon, she could breathe again when she found herself outside the club. She shouldn’t be here. Coming here was a bad idea. Just before she reached her car, someone appeared out of thin air, right in front of her.
Meredith’s breath quickened as she stared into the depths of those fierce yet warm hazel eyes.
“Why are you here?” Nyx’s soft voice almost broke through Meredith’s furious defense.
“Can you get out of my way?”
Nyx smiled, bridging the gap between them. Meredith wanted to move away from her, but she was too spellbound by the woman’s gaze. “Did you come to see me?” asked Nyx in that playful tone of hers.
Meredith sighed. She removed the jewelry box from her purse and shoved it into Nyx’s hand. “I came to give this back. What were you thinking sending me such an expensive gift?”
“Oh,” Nyx smirked, “will you prefer a cheaper gift then? I can arrange that.”
“I don’t want anything from you.” Meredith snapped. “Now why don’t you get back to your girlfriends and leave me the hell alone.”
Nyx smirked. “I don’t have any girlfriend.” Then in a more serious tone, she added, “I don’t have a mate either…well, not yet.” Nyx’s gaze held Meredith hostage and the demon’s intense gaze made her shiver slightly. Goodness, she hated how much this woman affected her. No one had ever made her feel this vulnerable; it scared the shit out of her. “Please accept my gift.” Nyx took Meredith’s hand and put the jewelry box back in it. “I made it for you.”
That stopped Meredith for a second. So Nyx made the bracelet. But why did she make it for her? They barely knew each other and demons didn’t just go about giving things to people, especially witches, unless they had ulterior motives. Meredith’s eyes must have betrayed her emotions because Nyx clarified, “If you must know why, then it’s because I like you. A lot.”
Meredith’s heart rate spiked, and for a moment she felt as though the insides of her vein had been filled with magma. But then the thought of Nyx kissing that woman snapped her back to reality like a bucket of ice water. “You like me? Oh yeah? Is that why you were kissing her? Those women were all over you and you didn’t even stop them.”
The words just came flying out. Shit. Now she sounded like the proverbial crazy girlfriend. Girlfriend? She and Nyx weren’t even friends yet. Why was she so jealous? Wait, am I jealous? No, she wasn’t jealous.
Nyx smiled. “Do you want me to stop kissing everyone else then?”
Yes. As selfish as it sounded, a part of Meredith hated seeing Nyx with all those women. She didn’t want Nyx kissing anyone else, touching anyone else so intimately, or loving anyone else. Shit, maybe she was jealous. Well, emotions were fickle and she had no control over them. But what she had control of was how to react when she felt them. So she said, “Do whatever the hell you want.”
Then she turned away from Nyx. If the woman wasn’t going to get out of her way, then she would walk home. But the firm and yet gentle grip on her wrist stopped her immediately. Before Meredith knew it, Nyx pulled her close to kiss her deeply on the lips.
The softness of Nyx’s lips coupled with her lavender and mint perfume intoxicated Meredith. Soon, Meredith’s body relaxed as she surrendered to the kiss, her body consumed by ravenous fire. She almost groaned out loud when Nyx finally pulled away. She feared her heart would explode in her chest for beating way too rapidly.
“What the hell was that?” She gasped.
Nyx grinned. “Doing whatever the hell I want.”
Gaping at the mischievous demon, it was at that moment Meredith knew she had fucked up.
Torshie Torto writes fiction and nonfiction that inspires, informs, and entertains. Join her newsletter to get her stories straight into your inbox. If you love her work, kindly buy her a coffee.
