The woman's fiery hair curled around her battered face, and the Demon Prince winced. Those fuckīng idiots would get a beating once he returned to Hell. His father's demons became far too bold since his death and needed a quick lesson on who the new master of Hell was.

He touched her bruised cheek again, hoping he could lessen the angry purple blotches with his healing abilities. Neo hadn't used them on a human before, but the instinct to help her stirred in his gut.

He turned away and opened a portal to his room with a sigh, checking on his infernal soul again. Ruz and A'ren licked at his hand and revealed his safe, still locked safely next to his bed. It was moments like this that he missed his lodging in his Hell. Permanently warm and fiery. The temperature on the earthly plain always left him uncomfortable. 

"Where's Var?" He murmured to his hounds, but their only response was confused whines. "Vekai," he cursed, picking up his phone and punching in the one number he cared to memorise. "Maezikeen. Var is missing, and he was bound to my room. Find him."

"Yes, Aidoneus." The line went dead before Neo had a chance to reprimand her. He hated the name his father gave him and wished it would've died with him.

"Neo?" Nyx stirred at his side, and he quickly closed his portal. But when he turned to face her, she was still fast asleep, her lips slightly parted, breath coming out in faint pants. He observed curiously as her heart fluttered at her throat and her fingers twitched.

"What are you dreaming of, little Red?" he questioned, leaning over her body. She seemed to feel his presence and her hands lifted, gripping his sides gently. He almost wrenched backwards when her fingers traced lines up his abdomen to his chest and neck. He dove into her mind, but she was still very much asleep, her thoughts an indecipherable muddle. Her back arched against the weighted blankets, and whispers escaped her plump, split lips. He leaned closer to make out the words when she buried her hands in his hair, the manicured nails offering a pleasurable sensation across his scalp. A twitch in his pant's surprised him, and he licked his lips, attempting to maintain composure as his ear almost brushed against her mouth.

With the faintest whimper, Nyx moaned, "I want you." Neo became undone. His trousers felt suffocatingly tight against his hardening length, and he detangled himself from her grip before he did something he would regret. He stood scowling at the foot of the bed and ran a hand through his hair. A human. He felt lust for a human. The thought repulsed him but also confused him.

With a grumble, he left her safe in his bed and took a cold shower.

*

The sound of running water woke Nyx, and she turned her tired eyes to a sliver of light beaconing from beneath a closed door. With a groan, she rose and let her feet brush against the cold floors. She gingerly touched each bruised spot on her body and found the pain was far more bearable than she had expected. She stood, pulling her dress down, flaming red and hoping Neo hadn't seen her with her clothes hiked above her waist, especially after her dream. 

Very inappropriate. 

Without much forethought, she walked to the closed door and wrapped her hand around the handle. Before she could open it, the handle moved, and the door flew inward, nearly pulling her off her feet. The forward momentum had her face careening straight into a damp, very naked torso. Nyx gasped and jumped back, tripping over her feet and, in a blink, ended up clasped in Neo's grip. His hands were rigid around her biceps. She swallowed, taking in his broad form and let her eyes wander down his chiselled front to his lower abs- a defined v shape disappearing beneath his white towel.

"What are you doing, Nyx?"

She stammered, meeting his black eyes. "Uh, um, nothing. I- I was just... You are so- Oh god."

"He's not going to help you," Neo responded with a smirk, releasing her gently on the floor and pushing past the stunned woman. He smelled fresh and sinful thought's raced through Nyx's mind as she turned to watch him enter a walk-in closet. She hadn't seen the door before and peered into the room just as Neo's towel dropped. Nyx jerked back, eyes bulging and face burning. She swore she heard a low chuckle before Neo's exquisite form reappeared from the closet. His black suit pants and unbuttoned dress shirt had more heat racing through her. Oh shit. I want you so bad.

She thought she heard a growl before he closed the distance between them and captured her face in his hands. "You need to stop your thoughts, now. Or I won't be able to stop myself."

Coldness shot through her chest at his words. Can you read my mind? His eyes hardened as he offered an imperceptible nod, but the warmth of his breath fanning across her lips distracted her. "I- I can't."

"You have to." His thumb brushed against her lower lip, and she parted her mouth with a small sigh.

"What are you? Selene's words rushed through her mind. Monster. Killer. Evil. Demon.

"You already know the answer to that."

"No. I don't- I don't know anything."

Neo growled, pushing his body against hers. Nyx retreated and quickly felt a wall at her back. Now pinned, a rush of pleasure swirled in her stomach as his low breath tickled the hairs around her face.

"Your friend was right. Everything she said is true."

"No- I -I don't b-" she almost said believe, but that wasn't the main thought fluttering across her mind as she stood caged between Neo's arms. "I don't care."

That was all it took. Neo's mouth dropped to meet hers, and she responded hungrily, pulling him closer with her wandering hands. He took her wrists and pinned them above her head, drawing a moan - a mixture of pleasure and pain - kissing a trail across her jaw and neck. His mouth recaptured her as he pressed himself against her,  thigh pushing against pelvis and between legs. She ignored the urge to rock her hips and kissed harder until she felt the cut on her top lip reopen. "Ouch."

Neo pulled back instantly, searching her face, a trace of her blood staining his upper lip. His jaw ticked as the seconds passed, his hand still wrapped around her wrists. Finally, when she said nothing, he straightened, and Nyx found herself panting against the wall, arms dropping uselessly to her sides when he crossed the room, not making eye contact. "I need to go. Maeze will take you dress shopping in the city Wednesday afternoon. I will pick you up on Saturday before the conference ball."

He sounded so curt and withdrawn from the lusting man she had only just been kissing. Strange despair settled in her chest as she watched the rise and fall of his shoulders.

Tears threatened to spill as he stepped out of the room, still not meeting her eyes. This was a mistake. He froze and turned his head just enough for her to glimpse his sharp profile. "The theme is Halo's and Hellfire." With that, he disappeared, and Nyx slid to the floor, wrapping her arms around her trembling frame, wondering what she did wrong.

*

"You can't be seriously considering this!" Selene said, slamming the fridge door. "Why would you even consider going after what he did? Nyx, I'm starting to worry about you."

Nyx pulled on a knitted cardigan and gathered her keys and phone. "For the last time, Selene. He didn't do anything wrong. It was the other people at the club. With Neo, it was... I just- I don't know, it was weird. How he acted before the kiss was so different from when he left me...."

Selene made throw-up noises. "I still can't believe you kissed him! After everything I told you!" She threw her head back and gestured to the heavens. "Make her see sense, please!"

Nyx scoffed and walked to the door. "Even if he is a Demon-"

"He is," Selene interrupted.

"Whatever! I'm gonna give him a chance to explain, okay? And you have to trust that I know what I'm doing."

"Do you? Know what you're doing, I mean?" Selene approached and lay her palm against Nyx's cheek. Before Nyx could respond, Selene's expression gave her pause. "I see a darkness in you, Nxyie. A light too. You have a gift, don't you?"

Afraid to say the garbled words, Nyx nodded and then shrugged. Is it a gift? I haven't been able to use it in a while... Maybe it's actually a curse.

"I love you, Nyxie. Be safe." Selene attempted a smile and then scowled in record speed, reaching past Nyx to wrench the door open. "You!"

"You." A familiar voice replied with a bored tone.

When Nyx turned to greet her chaperone, she couldn't believe it. "You?"

A/N

You? Who? 

I wonder who that could be...