CHARLOTTE

"Charlie!" Gray shouts, barreling into my room from the hallway entrance.

I shriek, jumping a good foot in the air and dropping the candy I snuck out of my office earlier. The hard, fruity balls fall to the floor and scatter, earning a pained gasp from me as I drop to my knees and begin to frantically grab at them.

Gray's by my side in seconds, his position matching mine as he helps me to pick them up.

The fact that he pops a few into his mouth doesn't go unnoticed by me, but I pretend as if I don't notice. He bought the candy for me, so it's not as if I can get angry with him for eating some of it.

"Sorry, my female." He apologizes between chews. "I didn't mean to startle you."

I turn to glare at him. Knocking would probably be an excellent way to prevent that.

My lips purse as I stand to my feet and shove as much candy as I can back into the small package they fell out of. Gray's been extra happy today, seeking me out every hour or so and checking in on how my day is going.

Even when I was with my tutor, he wouldn't stop popping his face into the room and distracting me. Rock found it quite amusing, chuckling every time Gray interrupted his teaching, but I found it anything but.

Today was supposed to be my first official day of tutoring, and instead of learning anything, I spent the entire time flushed and on edge.

I should have known better than to think I would find sanctuary in my bedroom.

Gray ignores my annoyance as he drops the candy back into their packaging and steps back. He looks me up and down with glee, his face twitching as he takes in my current outfit. I debated back and forth whether or not it was a good idea to show so much skin, but the sweltering heat made that answer for me.

I made sure to pick out and throw on one of my more modest sports bras, the fabric tight around my chest and flattening my breasts in an unattractive fashion. The spandex shorts don't leave much to the imagination, but after reminding myself that Gray is an Incubus and that the shape of a woman's rear is hardly going to be new to him, I was able to convince myself to wear them.

Although, as I watch Gray look me over with a hungry glint in his eye, I'm beginning to regret that decision.

"Took you long enough for you to finish up with Rock. I was going to take you earlier, but Silas told me that it would be better to wait until after your tutoring." Gray shares, seemingly not realizing that I have no idea what he's talking about.

Take me? I gulp, trying to internally reassure myself that he doesn't mean what I think he means. He promised that he wouldn't take me until I wanted it.

And I sure as fuck do not want it.

Shoving away my fear, I lift my chin and meet his eye. "Take me?"

Gray blinks before quickly shaking his head, seemingly eager to dispel my worry.

"No, not like that. Take you out." He explains with a smile.

Grimacing, I turn and look out of the bedroom window. It's hotter than usual today, and I have already decided that I will remain within the comfortable atmosphere of the estate. I fear I just might melt if I step foot outside.

Gray laughs at my reaction, his smile wide as he reaches forward and grabs a piece of candy from the container.

I scoff and yank my hand out of his reach. He's already eaten enough, and these are my favorite. Wanting to keep them, and myself, away from Gray is the entire reason that I ran and hid up here to eat them.

"You've grown quite an attitude these past few days." He comments.

I stiffen, my annoyance shifting into worry.

My confidence around him has grown drastically since arriving, and I haven't been holding back from snapping and arguing with Gray when he bothers me. Have I pushed too far? I should have known better than to get so comfortable.

My lips purse as regret takes over my emotions. My entire life I've been warned of the dangers of males, and yet here I am acting as if I am equal to them after only a couple of days. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Gray sighs at my reaction, his smile falling. Stepping forward, he wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me into his chest. Despite my worry, I find myself relaxing into his touch, comforted as he rubs his hand down the center of my back.

I allow him to hold me for a moment longer before pulling back. My lips flatten into a thin line as I note just how eagerly I accept his touch. I've been purchased for the sole purpose of being a sex doll for him, yet I continue to let my longing for intimacy cloud my vision.

Even when he doesn't persuade me with his essense, I still find myself content within his hold. A small part of me wishes that he would lure me in with his lust more. At least then I could have something to blame my feelings on.

My father is probably rolling in his grave. I know he always hoped that if I were to get purchased that it would be by a man who is kind to me, but he would be upset at how quickly I am trusting him.

My parents ingrained in me not to give in to a man and allow him hold over my heart before he's proved that he genuinely cares, but they never told me what it looks like when a man truly does. Gray seems like he cares. He's kind to me and makes an effort to bring me comfort, but I can't tell how honest that is.

Is he only doing this so I give in and agree to be a source of food for him? It would make sense that that's the truth, but sometimes it doesn't seem that way. Why train me to resist his lure if that's all he wants?

"Get out of your head." Gray murmurs before tugging me forward and pulling me back into his arms

He follows up his words by locking his arms around my back and lifting me a couple of inches in the air. My toes graze against the ground as he waddles us over to my closet. I'm sure he can hear the pounding of my heart as he pulls open the door and walks inside.

"I like your attitude, and there's no need to be ashamed for liking my presence." He assures me. "I'm sexy and kind. There's no better combination." Gray continues, laughing at his own self-preening.

Well, he sure thinks highly of himself.

I can't hold back my slight scoff, but try and turn it into a cough last minute. There's a lot to be ashamed of, but that's not an argument I'm going to have with him right now.

Gray politely ignores my slip up, his nose crinkling in my direction before he turns and heads over to my clothing rack. Despite the large size of the closet, all of my items fit comfortably on the small rod in the back.

It makes the closet look bare and a bit silly, but I don't mind it. I'm just happy to have my things.

"What are you doing?" I question as he begins to finger the clothing.

Gray takes a moment to answer, a quiet hum falling from his lips as he searches through my items. He pauses and grabs the fabric of one of my dresses, his eyebrows raising as he pulls it out and looks it over.

It's by far one of my favorite items, the material long and poorly fitting, but Gray seems to like it as he pulls it from the hanger and holds it up to my frame.

"We are going on a date. I want to hear all about your first tutoring session yesterday and how today went." He explains as he looks between me and the dress, his words bringing a blush to my cheeks.

A date? What does a date even consist of? My father never took my mother on them in fear of being harassed while out in public, and they never really spoke about them either.

They frequently occurred in my romance books, but they were all written before the female decline when it was normal for women to be out and about in society. I imagine that they have evolved since then.

Is it common for males to take their females out on dates? Thoughts continue to swirl around inside my mind as Gray sticks my head through the neck hole of the dress.

I hold back a laugh as he grabs my arms and shoves them inside as well, finding an odd sense of humor in the sight of him trying to dress me. Luckily the dress is high neck and long-sleeved, easily covering the clothing I already have on.

If I weren't lounging around in a sports bra and short spandex shorts, would he have tried to undress me too? I shiver at the thought.

The laughter I attempt to hold back bursts out of my mouth as Gray pulls the loose fabric down over my body before reaching under the hem of it and yanking down my shorts. My knees buckle at the force he uses, and I'm forced to grab onto his shoulders to steady myself.

He grimaces as I almost tumble over, his actions slowing.

"Aren't you supposed to be good at undressing women?" I joke.

Gray's attention snaps to my face, his eyes narrowing.

"I am, but if I don't distract you by doing a thousand different things at once, you get lost in your head and pull away from me. I don't want you all moody for our date." He explains, following up his actions with a swift kiss to my cheek before he bends and forces my feet into a pair of sandals.

This is all happening so quickly.

I don't have time to truly process his words as he grabs my hand and pulls me into his chest.

"I'm going to shift you, but it's intra-realm, so it shouldn't be too bad." He murmurs, pressing a soft kiss to the crown of my head just seconds before the world fades away around me.

I'm blinded and disorientated as the environment disappears and re-materializes around me. I hold onto Gray in a panic as the loud noise and chatter makes its way to my ears, my head ringing as I take some time to warm to my new surroundings.

If there's anything I've learned since being bought by Gray, it's that I do not like shifting.

"You okay?" I hear him whisper into my hair.

He softly strokes my back as I come to and pull away. Turning in his arms, I try not to let my surprise show as I look around the room. Demons mill about in front of large, waist-height tables. Almost all of them hold what appears to be a long wooden stick, and I watch with interest as one of them bends and uses the stick to hit a ball on the table.

There are at least fifty Demons in here, and as I look around I note that not one is a female. Am I supposed to be here? I know that Gray is strong, but I'm not too fond of the idea of being surrounded by so many males.

"This is a pool hall. It's a game that originated with Humans, but over time its popularity grew. Demons are big fans of it." He explains, gently nudging me to the left.

A few Demons turn and watch me as I grab onto Gray's arm and follow him, their expressions blank and uninterested as they look me over. Their gazes almost immediately lift to Gray before turning back around to their group.

That's not what I expected.

Maybe it's because Gray put me in a dress suited for a grandma. They probably can't even tell that I'm a female under the oversized, unflattering dress. The fact that this is the one he picked out for me is shocking. If anything, I would have expected him to try to put in something more revealing.

Gray leads us over to an empty table in the corner, his unhurried and confident movements bringing me some comfort. Most of the essense that overwhelms the room dissipates as we move away from the other Demons, and I breathe easy as we come to a halt at our table.

How lucky for us that there was an unoccupied spot open in the far corner of the room.

Turning, I take a moment to evaluate the room in more detail. It's stuffed full of people, and as I look, I note that not all are Demons as I initially thought. There are a few fairy-looking men standing around, and I even spot what looks to be a Were weaving throughout the crowd.

My mouth goes dry as I spot a cluster of Nightmares on the opposite end of the room, but I look away before the fear they bring sours my mood. I'm utterly shocked at the lack of care that the men all hold over a female being present in the bar.

Either Gray is much more dangerous than I thought he was, or something weird that I'm not aware of is going on.

"Do you come here a lot?" I eventually ask, turning around and facing Gray.

From the way he constantly moves around the estate in a hurry, I would assume that he doesn't have time to go out often. The way he expertly moves around this place has me thinking otherwise, though.

Gray stands to the side, watching me, and I flush as I realize that he was observing me this entire time. Pretending as if that doesn't affect me any, I raise my chin and hold his gaze. His cheeks suck in as he holds back a laugh.

"I used to." He answers before turning and approaching the table.

I lean forward and watch as he places a bunch of numbered balls into a wooden triangle. He shakes them all back and forth before removing the triangle and handing me one of the long sticks that the men hold.

Gray wraps his arms around my waist and rests his chin on my head as he moves me to the end of the table opposite the balls. "I bought this place a few years back and spent a lot of time here training the staff. It pretty much runs itself now, but I do enjoy a game now and again." He explains, bending me slightly over the edge of the table.

My pulse quickens as his chest and hips press against my back, but he doesn't make any dirty remarks as he shows me how to hold the stick and explains the rules of the game. They are easy enough to remember, and I find myself having fun as I fumble my way through the first round.

I can tell that Gray is purposefully missing shots so it doesn't end too quickly, but I don't find myself too offended. On the contrary, I'm a sore loser and am not above counting a win that's given to me.

"Let's make a game out of this." Gray murmurs as he pockets the last striped ball. He points his stick towards a corner before going for the black eight. "For each ball I sink, I get to ask you a question about yourself. For each one you get, you get to do the same."

I pause, looking at him with caution. I don't have much to hide, but don't doubt that Gray will be able to come up with some questions that I'm not comfortable answering.

"What if I don't like what you ask?" I probe.

Gray tilts his head to the side as he thinks, his back straightening as he sinks the last ball and wins the game. "You can avoid a question by giving me a kiss."

I laugh, having expected nothing less.

"Okay." I agree.

There are a thousand things that I would love to know when it comes to Gray and the Demon realm, and I'm not going to pass on such a perfect opportunity to ask them.

"And if you don't want to answer the question then," I state, thinking over a proper punishment for his avoidance. "then I get two more in its place."

Gray laughs before nodding in agreement.

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slowly but surely I'm falling in love w Gray

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