And Harper nearly choked on her steak. When she’d finally swallowed it down with the help of her wine, she shrugged. “Thanks for sharing.”

“You want me.” She cast him a glare but didn’t deny it, which soothed his demon slightly. “But you’re going to fight it, aren’t you?”

Every step of the way. It wasn’t that she had any hang-ups about casual sex – and that was all it would be if she got involved with Knox Thorne. Demons were very sexual creatures, so casual sex among their kind was pretty much the norm. But that was the thing. “I don’t get involved with our kind – not even for a single night.”

That was the last thing he’d expected her to say. His demon was just as shocked. “You don’t date demons? You’ve never been with one of our kind?”

She took another sip of her wine. “No.”

“Why?” He wasn’t all that surprised when she didn’t answer him. Shamelessly using his most compelling voice, Knox said, “Tell me.” But, of course, she shook off the compulsion.

“No.” Didn’t he understand yet that she was a very private person? Harper was also a person who preferred to avoid complications. Like parking tickets, speed restrictions, and red lights – which was why she no longer had a driver’s license. When it came to relationships, male demons liked to make things complicated. They were extremely possessive, annoyingly demanding, and incredibly intense. Human relationships, by contrast, could be simpler. Most human males wouldn’t demand everything from a girl, whereas demons would accept nothing less.

Of course, she could have simply settled for a series of one-night stands with her own species rather than stick to humans. But that kind of lifestyle held no appeal for Harper. Her father flitted from person to person, and he was never happy. Not to mention that human males were more accepting because, unaware of what she was, they didn’t see her demonic flaws. The lack of wings, the strange ever-changing eyes, and the inability to conjure a simple fucking orb of hellfire therefore meant nothing to them. She thought Knox would push her for an explanation, but although his mouth tightened, he shrugged.

Picking up his wine glass, Knox sank into his chair. “Okay, we’ll play it your way.”

“I’m not playing.”

“No, you’re not.” And that just made him want her even more. His cock was hard, heavy, and aching with the need to be in her. The dark predator inside him now wanted her more than ever; it wanted to be the first demon to possess her. “You’ll come to me.”

Harper narrowed her eyes. “Is that so?”

There was a taunt in her voice that made him arch a brow. “It will happen.”

“Do you think that sex will make me more inclined to bond with you, is that it?”

“This has nothing to do with us being anchors. This is about me wanting you, and you wanting me.”

“You’re very sure of yourself. And you mistakenly seem to think you can be very sure of me.” She pouted. “How sad for you.”

He gave her a pointed look. “I will have you in my bed, Harper. I always take what I want. Right now, that’s you.”

“But you also want the anchor bond. Adding sex into the mix would just complicate things.”

“Sex never has to be complicated.”

But of course he’d think that. He was a guy who approached sexual intimacy on a purely physical level. For him, it could never impact an emotional situation. “You like control in all things. You’ll never control me,” she reminded him.

No, he wouldn’t. And that should have dulled her appeal. But if anything, it made him want her more. Knox didn’t understand it. “You could never desire a man you could control.”

“Is that a fact?”

“It is. You’re a very strong personality, Harper. You would only be attracted to someone who’s either stronger or equally strong.”

It pissed her off that he’d read her so easily. “And you think you’re stronger, don’t you?”

“What I think is that when I’m deep inside you, neither of us will care.”

Harper shook her head. “It won’t happen.”

His eyes bled to black as his demon pushed for supremacy. “It will, little sphinx.” The voice was toneless, flat. “I promise you that.”

To Harper’s total frustration, their conversation had sent so much lust curdling inside her that she lost her appetite. Her food sat like lead in her stomach. Knox’s knowing look told her that he knew exactly why she suddenly didn’t feel so hungry – at least not for food anyway.

When they were done with their meal, he led her out of the room with a hand on her lower back; his touch seemed to burn her flesh right through her clothes. As they were nearing the restaurant’s exit, Knox ever so slightly tensed. Harper would have asked what was wrong, but then she noticed that the beautiful blonde heading toward them, arm in arm with a guy half her age, was glaring hard at Knox.

She stopped in front of him. “Knox.”

He sighed. “Kendra.”

If Harper was guessing correctly, this was an ex-bed buddy of Knox’s who wasn’t very happy about the ‘ex’ part. The she-demon spared Harper a brief, dismissive glance.

Feeling unusually protective as Kendra turned her glower on Harper, Knox slid his hand around Harper’s back to cup her hip. Kendra noticed the move and didn’t appear to like it.