Put Your Heart on the Line By  MidnightRider1225

Prompt: Once a year The Valentine Demon walks among us. This year it is out to charm you. Will you fall for it or run from it?

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I ran swerving through back alleys and jumping over fences as I went letting the light of the full moon guide my path.

"You can't run for forever little girl." The thing called from behind me getting ever closer. I turned a quick corner almost losing my footing on the wet pavement. Sweat trickled down my spine as I jumped one more low chain link fence into something that looked like a court yard.

I stopped looking in all directions, but walls blocked every exit except for the way I came through. I panted trying to catch my breath. Looking down at my torn, bloody skinny jeans from where I had caught my leg on one of the other fences. This was it, I thought, I pulled out my small pocket knife. I may be cornered but I would not go down without a fight. My eyes focused in on where I had come through seeing a dark velvety shadow move and my limbs instantly started shaking.

"What... what do you want?!" I yelled at the thing holding the small knife out in front of me pointing it at the shadows. The only answer was the wind whipping my blonde hair in the stiff cold breeze and the rustle of leaves skittering across the pavement.

I peered closer into the deep shadows of the alley I had come through. I swallowed hard as I saw luminous red eyes staring back at me as the thing chuckled, a low, husky, sinfully seductive sound that had me shaking so violently that I almost dropped the knife.

I backed away until my back hit one of the ten foot brick walls of the courtyard watching as it slowly stalked closer. The shadows clung to it's form shrouding it form my view, but I knew whatever it was it wasn't human. It didn't jump over the chain-link fence like I was expecting, instead it just walked straight through it. The second it stepped into the light of the moon the shadows took on a solid form. One of the date that I had been with tonight before I left him at the restaurant because his other girlfriend showed up there too. On Valentine's Day none the less.

"Come on Kate, she means nothing to me lets go home." The prick said and I was instantly furious all over again, but then the shadows took over once more and it changed forms again. This time it chose a form I could have only dreamt of. "Is this what you want Kate?" The man crooned in a husky seductive voice as he slowly walked towards me. Stalking like he was the predator and I was simply prey.

It was something that I remembered clearly, I had written enough stories about this man and daydreamed that he was real too many times to count and now here he was, looking me over like I was about to be his meal. Tall, dark and muscular, this has to just be a dream. I thought as I pressed into the wall further feeling the rough material scrape against my skin. He was perfection in my eyes, perfect olive skin, midnight hair, and bright electric blue eyes.

It was like this thing was reading my mind because it smirked, "why don't you come with me sweet girl, we could make up for that scum. I'm not going to hurt you."

"Why are you doing this, why me? I didn't do anything." I swallowed hard trying to keep my voice from shaking. I didn't want to show this thing that I was terrified of it, although something inside of me told me it already knew.

"Oh Kate, I'm just trying to help, no one should be alone on Valentines day." It was terrifying how my body reacted to him at this distance. I had to force myself to stay pressed against the wall every single instinct inside of me fought to go to him.

"Please... please stop." I cried, tears streaming down my face, I didn't understand. How was he doing this to me. I dug my fingernails into the bricks feeling them tear and start to bleed with the force I had to exert to keep myself from running to him. The knife dropped from my hand landing somewhere in the grass and I gasped for breath.

"Stop what sweet girl?" It asked still stalking closer. It was maybe ten feet from me now and I could see every perfectly sculpted line of his figure highlighted by the moonlight. His strong jaw, the outline of the promise of sculpted perfection under his t-shirt, the thick muscles of his thighs that his jeans clung to, and the almost luminous glow of those eyes. It was breath taking, he was breath takingly beautiful in every way.

I felt like I was in a horrible game of tug of war, every fiber of my being wanted to go to him but my mind was screaming telling me to run, telling me it was a monster. "I'm no monster sweet girl," he cocked his head and raked his gaze over me. He was reading my mind, I couldn't physically press myself any closer to the wall. Six feet now was all that separated me from this being. "I'm your deepest desire Kate. I'm no more a monster than you are."

It reached out to me and my mind raced, I managed to fling myself away from him. Something was telling me that if I let it touch me that it would be game over for me. It didn't do much though, I took maybe two steps away from him when my limbs just collapsed refusing to work any longer.

I panted, this is how it's going to end, I thought as I lay there unable to move and completely at this thing's mercy. "What are you?" I managed to ask as it kneeled down in front of my face looking me in the eye.

"I'm a demon sweet girl, I come here to help people like you that get their hearts broken on Valentines day."

"I... I don't need help. I'm fine." I lied, but it was my only defense at this point.

"We both know that isn't the truth Kate. That scum hurt you in one of the most intimate of ways and I just want to help you fix it. I can help you Kate, I can make it stop hurting all you have to do is let me." My lips quivered as I swallowed hard. "I can make it all go away, the pain, the fear, the despair. I can help you just let me in sweet girl."

He was so close, he smelled so good, it was so tempting. That had really hurt, I remembered Cole looking at me like I was the only girl in the world, that was the only thing I had ever wanted. When he had asked me out for Valentines Day it was a dream come true, then she walked in. That perfection of a girl ruined my dreams with one single word. Prank, it was all a prank. Tears fell once more just remembering the whole situation. "See, it could be so different. Who needs someone like that when you could have everything you have ever wanted. He is ugly inside and out, Kate you need someone who knows how to treat a lady." Then he gently brushed a lock of hair away from my face letting his touch linger on my cheek and I gasped.

That was when my mind stopped fighting this. His touch was electric. It sent tingles straight down my spine causing every one of my nerves to stand at attention. I needed more. I needed him and nothing else.

My limbs moved of their own accord, arms reaching out to him and he smiled. My mind registered it far too late that it was the smile of a predator right before they ripped their prey's throat out.

My everything went numb the second he took my hand pulling me to my feet. My mind went blank, the pain of rejection went away entirely, the fear I was experiencing moments ago turned into excitement, and I felt exhilarated.

Everything fell away as I leaned into his strong chest. There was a moment that I felt like I was falling before we were suddenly somewhere else. The moonlit courtyard was no more now we were in a field full of white roses as far as the eye could see. They sparkled in the sunlight gleaming beautifully as they slowly swayed in the light breeze. Closing my eyes I took a deep breath taking in the soft sweet scent before looking up at him.

I felt like I was on a cloud, I got lost in the depths of those blue eyes until he pulled his gaze away. Bending down he kissed the side of my neck making me let out a low soft groan of pure pleasure. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced, my pulse raced as he kissed up my jaw leaving fire in his wake. I melted into him as my knees gave out leaning fully into him. The second our lips touched I thought I was going to melt from the heat that flooded my system.

Nothing else mattered, the whole world could have exploded around us and I wouldn't have given a single thought to it as he deepened the kiss. Then I felt an odd pressure in my chest and pulled back.

Everything flooded back to me in vivid color as I looked down at the now gaping hole in my chest where my heart had been. Blood dripped as I crumpled turning the once white roses crimson. He chuckled, "Valentine's Day doesn't mean anything unless you put your heart on the line."