Free Her Incubus Master (The Children of Lilith) by Bliss Devlin Page A

long legs moving away. She knew perfectly
well what she was thinking.
    She was thinking that her powers were at a dangerously-low
ebb, and that she was having difficulties maintaining her glamour.
    She was thinking that sex with someone who knew her and
cared about her would be more nourishing than feeding on a hundred anonymous sleepers.
    She tried to tell herself that probably nothing would
happen.
    Or, if it did, she would only take one climax from Katie.
    Surely Andras wouldn't mind just one? It would be a mercy
to the girl to give her a little relief...and I'm so very hungry...
    * * *
    "Italian? How many languages do the two of you
speak?"
    Amanda's house was a gorgeous, lovingly-restored Victorian
with the most amazing redwood floors, lots of Persian carpets in rich, vivid
colors, and molded plaster ceilings to die for.
    Brunch had been wonderful, the promised omelets supplemented
by light, crispy Belgian waffles served with brandied maple syrup, and
complemented by Katie's fresh strawberries, gourmet coffee, and the promised
mimosas, made from fresh-squeezed orange juice and a generous amount of real
French champagne.
    Truth be told, Katie was feeling more than a little tipsy as
she followed Amanda from the breakfast nook to her living room, which was furnished
with a surprisingly-comfortable antique loveseat and wing armchairs. 
    With them came a tray with an insulated coffeepot, the
half-empty bottle of champagne, a pitcher of orange juice, and the last of the
strawberries, which were organic, ridiculously expensive, and meltingly sweet.
    There followed a few minutes of refilling cups and glasses.
    Katie was a little surprised when Amanda sat herself down on
the loveseat next to her, almost close enough to touch. As she had promised
Andras, Katie had been watching Amanda for any signs of illness. Nothing seemed
obvious, except for the fact that Amanda seemed exhausted...drained somehow,
her usual brisk energy dulled.
    "About twelve," replied Amanda. "Plus ancient
Greek and Latin."
    "Wow! I'm impressed. I struggled through four years of Spanish
in high school, and it was hard ."
    Amanda laughed. "My parents relocated every few years
while Andras and I were growing up, so it was a matter of survival more than
anything else. We quickly figured out that we had to learn the local language
if we wanted to make friends."
    "Military family? Mormon missionaries?" Katie
probed, though with a last name as famous as Vélos,
Amanda probably thought she was a moron for not having figured it out yet. "C'mon, Amanda. You and Andras never mention your parents, not even to
complain about them. I'm dying of curiosity."
    "None of the above." Amanda relaxed against the back
of the sofa, her arm pressing against Katie's, and took another sip of her
coffee. "Our parents were—well, I guess the best way to describe them
would be that they started out as political activists, then later on, they
founded a fairly successful business importing herbs and spices."
    Hah. Spice and herb imports was one way to describe Vélos Enterprises, but it wasn't the first term that
Katie would have chosen to describe the hugely successful "natural
pharmaceuticals" company. But it did let her know that Amanda wanted to
keep her family connections on the down-low.
    "So we moved around a lot."
    "Are your parents still alive?" This was an honest
question. Aphrodisios and Psyche Vélos had never
been celebrities, not in the kind of way that led paparazzi stalking them. They
never made the evening news, and they didn't even have a Wikipedia entry,
though their company did.
    Amanda looked surprised by his question. "Of course! I
mean, yes. They visited us when Andras and I first moved here. They always
liked Yoshiko, and I think they were worried about Andras after she died."
    She stopped speaking, her expressing suddenly somber, and
fiddled with her coffee cup. "He worried me when he abruptly quit
his job in Los Angeles right after her funeral and relocated here