Demetrius

The sheets of the bed shifted across her bare skin as someone moved closer to next to her. She felt the person's hard body press against her as they wrapped their left arm over her side and pulled her closer to them. Magdalene opened her eyes and turned her head to look over her shoulder. She couldn't help but smile at the gorgeous vampire that leaned over her. His fingertips traced over her torso, gliding down past her belly button and pushed under the waist band of her boy short underwear.

"Demetrius," she whispered his name with pleasure.

She rolled over entirely on her back so she could stare up at him with beaming eyes. Demetrius was half naked, revealing his pale flesh and muscular chest. His arms and torso were covered in tattoos. His body was a masterpiece as it was, the ink added detail and depth to his figure. She stared up at his emerald green eyes and felt her heart skip a beat. It had been too long since she had seen him. She brushed his long black hair out of his face, tucking it behind his ear. What had brought him to her bed now?

"I've missed you," he whispered reading her mind. He leaned down, kissing her fully on the mouth. She didn't resist, she kissed him slowly in return as her arms wrapped around his broad shoulders. There was a pulse and heat in her center that was all too familiar. Demetrius always turned her on quickly. A simple smile from him sent her into a whirl of hot desire.

The pulsing didn't stop as Demetrius kissed her. His tongue penetrated her lips and teased her lustful desires.

The pulsing continued. Suddenly, it was a heavy vibration on her stomach—

--Magdalene jolted up in her dormitory bed. Her cell phone was vibrating on her stomach, causing the pulsing feel that was spreading through her torso. She rolled to her side as she looked around confused. The cell phone fell off her stomach and continued to buzz as a call was coming through.

Magdalene grabbed the phone and stared at the screen with squinting eyes.

It was one in the morning and Roman Morrison was calling her. She fumbled out of the loft bed as she answered the call in a low whisper.

"One second," she said into the device.

She walked across the room, grabbing her robe from the back of the closet door. She threw it on over her thin tank top and shorts, grabbed her keys and exited the room. She didn't want to wake Rose with the late night phone call.

The lights were low in the hall as she walked down towards the elevator.

"Sorry," she said into the phone once she was situated.

"No, I'm sorry," Roman's voice replied. "I should have called sooner."

Magdalene didn't reply. She had sent Roman a text three days ago asking him to call her when he had a chance. She wanted to talk to him about Demetrius. Magdalene knew it was him she saw standing on the street corner on her way back from the clinic. It had alarmed her that her ex-lover had shown up at Harper's. She was hoping that Roman would have a status on her father's business to know what he may want.

Demetrius Langston was Marius' second hand. He was always by Marius' side and he ran the slave trade efficiently for him. If he was looking for Magdalene it meant that he knew what she had done to her father and no doubt, would be looking for instructions on how to manage the business of the clan.

"Magdalene?"

She blinked. "Yes, sorry. I'm here. It's alright. I know you're busy."

"Yes," Roman responded. "But what is the matter? Your text made it sound urgent."

Magdalene stepped out of the elevator and looked around the lobby of the dorm. One of the residential advisors was sitting behind the front desk playing on their phone and listening to music. Magdalene wasn't sure if he even noticed her as she walked by. She made her way out of the building and took a seat on a park bench just in front of her dorm. She crossed her legs as she sat down and rubbed her eyes, still groggy from being woken by Roman's call.

"I saw a vampire on campus three days ago," she said softly as she glanced around. No one was around to overhear her.

"Well, that's not unheard of, Magdalene," Roman responded slowly.

"It was Demetrius Langston," she continued with a stern tone.

This seemed to catch Roman's attention. "Did he approach you?"

"No, I saw him on a street corner. I don't know how long he was following me. He disappeared when I made eye contact with him. I wondered if the council has picked up any reports of my father's death or changes in his business."

"Not directly. They've had a tail on Langston for about a year now, since he went out west. We've assumed that he was working to build the business for your father."

Magdalene nodded. She suspected that much as well. "The tail should be here too then?"

"Most likely," Roman agreed. "We will have to move forward carefully, Magdalene. The council is not aware that I've helped you. The tail will probably figure out who you are and bring it to their attention."

"What should we do then?"

Roman was silent for a moment. "It might be time to make them aware. When is your next free weekend?"

"This weekend should be fine. I can do homework anywhere."

"Alright, I'll pick you up on Friday. I'll schedule a meeting with the council to introduce you."

"Okay," Magdalene said slowly. She wasn't sure if she liked the idea of going to the Midwest witches council. She had to remind herself that she was half witch and she had a place with them just like she did with vampires. "What should I do about Demetrius?"

"Keep away from him," Roman advised. "He would be the first person I'd expect to pick up your father's business."

"If he keeps it running in my name, would that help us dismantle it?"

Roman seemed to be thinking about Magdalene's question because he was silent for a few moments.

"It could. But I doubt he'd be willing to do that."

"I don't know if he'll challenge me for power," Magdalene responded as she picked at a loose splinter of wood on the back of the bench. "I know nothing of the business. It would be very reasonable I think for me to ask him to run it for me. I don't think he would suspect anything."

"How well do you know him?"

"Pretty well," Magdalene replied easily.

It wasn't a lie. She had known Demetrius intimately before he left Palazzo il Bicchiere. She bit her bottom lip as she thought about the dream she had been woken from. She missed the way Demetrius lusted after her – he would never say he loved her; according to Demetrius, vampires were not capable of love – but despite that he always made her feel safe and wanted…until he left.

"Magdalene?"

"Sorry," she said as she blinked. "Uh, what did you say?"

"I asked if you trust him?"

There was a soft shift in the breeze that caught Magdalene's attention. She shifted her weight on the bench as she expanded her mind. She could feel him close by. Demetrius was near.

"I trust that he'll put the clan and business first," she replied as she turned around.

Sure enough, at the corner of the dormitory building where the parking lot began, stood Demetrius Langston in the shadows. She stood up from her spot on the bench. They made eye contact for a brief moment. He placed his hands in his pockets and slowly started to walk forward on the sidewalk towards her.

"If he tries to make contact, see if he'll go along with it," Roman said. "But you'll need to be cautious. He may just try to kill you to gain power over the clan."

Demetrius stopped right in front of Magdalene and looked her over with deep emerald green eyes. She held her breath for a moment as she glared up at him. He looked even more handsome than in her dream. His hair was tied back in a low bun at the base of his neck. There was faint stubble on his chin and cheeks because he hadn't shaved recently. He was dressed handsomely in black slacks, a black button up and black vest over top. The sleeves of his shirt were rolled up half way to reveal the complete sleeve tattoos on his forearms.

He smirked as Magdalene glared at him. He reached out to touch her cheek, but she grabbed his wrist sharply. She felt the blue color drain from her eyes, quickly changing her irises to deep gray. This seemed amusing to Demetrius because he smiled broadly and rolled his eyes.

"Alright," Magdalene said. "I'll be sure to be careful. I'll see you Friday."

"Call if you see him again."

Magdalene hesitated as she continued to glare at Demetrius. "I will," she finally said then hung up the phone.

Demetrius grinned a charming smile at her that made Magdalene weak in the knees a little. She stood her ground however.

"I can't recall the last time I saw your eyes turn gray," Demetrius said in a calm deep voice that made Magdalene feel like smooth velvet was running over her skin. "Are you not feeding regularly?"

"My dietary needs are none of your concern," she spat back quickly. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question."

"I'm half witch. It's not out of the realm of possibility for me to attend a witch university."

"Your father is dead," Demetrius stepped closer to her, if that was even possible. "You have inherited the rights to his clan and instead of taking up the leadership role and running the business the first thing you do is go to a university?"

"What makes you think I killed Marius?" She asked. He must have known that she did otherwise he wouldn't have said she inherited the rights to the clan.

"The clan is not built of fools. We know who our leader is."

"Are you here to kill me?"

Magdalene glared up at him with icy eyes. She was ready for a fight but she didn't think that Demetrius would kill her. Despite what he said, she knew deep down inside of him somewhere that he cared for her.

"No," he whispered as he leaned his head close to her ear. "I trust that you want me to run your business for you."

Magdalene put her hands on Demetrius' chest and pushed him back away from her slightly. He was still smiling at her.

"You're very trusting," she replied. "How can I trust you when you left me without so much as a good bye?"

"I left for work because your father asked me to. You know I could not put our personal relationship before the clan."

"You left because you were afraid my father knew you were sleeping with me."

Demetrius laughed and shook his head. "I'm sure your father would have approved of our relationship if he ever found out. I left because I was told to. You know that I will run your business as you see fit. You know I can take care of it the way you want it to be taken care of."

Magdalene raised her eyebrows at his comment. What was he trying to tell her?

"Relax, Magdalene," he said smoothly as he touched her cheek. "Let your eyes go back to blue, they are so much prettier that way."

"You'll have to do more than sweet talk me to change my eye color."

"I would seduce you," he leaned in to her ear again. He was close enough to kiss her, or nibble on her ear lobe, but he didn't. His breath was warm on her flesh. It sent shivers through her body and made her hair stand up with unquestionable desire. "But I think that would set you off even more."

He stood up straight. Magdalene's eyes did relax back to their normal blue shade. When she didn't say anything, just stared up at Demetrius, he continued to speak. He folded his hands in front of his waist and spoke sternly.

"I will manage the business for you," he said. "I'll keep things moving on the outside while I slowly dismantle things on the inside. I've already sent the staff of Palazzo il Bicchiere away. The place is abandoned."

Magdalene looked at him with surprise. "You say staff, but you mean slaves. You released them?"

Demetrius nodded. "I knew that is what you would have wanted."

Magdalene bit her bottom lip and turned away from him for a moment. She looked over her shoulder at him. "What if it's not?"

Demetrius stepped close to her, touching her hips and pressing his body against her back. He wrapped her body entirely in his arms as he leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Look me in the eye and tell me it's not. Tell me you don't want me to touch you and love you like I did before, like in your dreams."

His hand wandered up her arm and stopped at her shoulder. He slowly pushed her robe off her shoulder revealing her flesh to the cool autumn air. She shivered and he pressed her body more firmly against his as he buried his head into the nape of her neck. He kissed her delicately. His tongue pressed against her skin causing a heavy sigh to escape her lips. He took her hands, squeezing them tightly and wrapped her arms around her body. He encased her in his muscular arms.

Magdalene laid her head back against Demetrius' shoulder. She desperately wanted him to love her the way he used to. Her body craved for sexual attention that she had not received since he left. But she craved his affection more than anything else; his compassion and empathy towards her. When they were together he seemed to truly understand her. He felt her pain and always wished to take it away…but he didn't…

Magdalene stood up straight and pulled out of his arms slowly. She turned to face him and fixed her robe so her body was covered. She crossed her arms over chest as she glared at him with heavy eyes.

"You left me," she said carefully. "You never fought for me despite knowing how my father treated me. I trust you to run the business and slowly take it apart, but I do not trust you to love me."

"You know vampires are not capable of love," he said. "Every ounce of desire I have for you is for your beauty and your power."

Magdalene could only glare at him. His words were hurtful. She hoped to hurt him back just as harshly, but nothing came to mind at that particular moment.

"Then why help me destroy my father's business?"

"It is yours to destroy," he shrugged. "I will always do your bidding as you are the head of the clan now."

"Even though you don't love me?"

"I didn't love your father either," Demetrius replied with a cunning smile. He reached forwarded to touch Magdalene's cheek again. She grabbed his wrist, stopping him. He grabbed her other arm, pulled her towards him and wrapped her body in his strength again. She frowned as she stared up at him. "Would you like to finish out the dream you were having upstairs?"

She rolled her eyes and pushed out of his arms. Of course he had been channeling her while she slept. He probably would have been stalking in the shadows of her bedroom if she had invited him into the dormitory.

"Get out of here," she said. "Keep me updated on the status of the business."

Demetrius bowed his head in acknowledgement of her request. He stood up straight and with the blink of an eye he vanished right before her. Magdalene released a long slow breath as she ran her hands through her hair. She wasn't entirely sure what Demetrius Langston was playing at, but she knew she couldn't trust him. Why hadn't she just asked him to leave her alone? Take the business and the clan and keep them for himself. She honestly didn't care what happened to them—why was she getting caught up in Roman's agenda to take the entire clan and slave trade down?

Magdalene heaved a heavy sigh and turned on her heel, heading back to the dormitory. Demetrius' intentions were something she could ponder another time. At that moment, she needed to get back to sleep.