The Incubus and His Secretary

Lancelot's P.O.V:

"Y-you're not s-staying...?" She asked, voice breathless, eyes already closing.

I pulled up my pants, buckled up, and fixed the few wrinkles in my shirt caused when the woman had tried to discard it. Too bad, I wasn't into getting naked when it came to a quick fix.

"No," I answered curtly, running a hand through my black hair to neaten it out as much as possible. I hate it when women mess it up. They think it pleases me. I hate it as much as I hate staying the night with them. I never do.

When I was done adjusting myself, I bent down over her naked body and pulled the sheets over to cover her. Then I leaned in to whisper in her ear.

"Forget about who you slept with. You had a one-night stand with a stranger. You liked it, but it wouldn't become permanent, so you sent him away. That's all you'll remember."

One thing I could never do was make a woman forget she ever slept with anyone. Some of us prefer to erase every trace of ourselves from the donor, so it'll get easy to avoid detection, but I loathe the idea. It's humiliating for a woman to wake up naked in a hotel room, with no memory whatsoever of why they ended up there, or wore, wondering if they were raped.

The girl I was with was average looking: light brown hair, brown eyes, and a slightly chubby build. She'd been easy prey. Insecure enough to have fallen for my charm the instant I laid eyes on her. Now, I strode out of the room without a second glance.

My car was waiting for me right outside the hotel. Martin, my chauffeur, held the door open for me. He knew exactly how long I needed to finish. He was one of the few who knew about our existence. But then again, every supernatural being in every dimension needed a human who they could trust to survive. No one survives in this world without allies, no matter how powerful.

"Where to Sir?" He asked, fixing his cap over his sandy blonde hair, starting the engine and putting the gear in reverse.

"HQ," I answered, looking out the window at a sleepless New York City. Even at 2.30 in the morning, the city was alive and breathing, people crowding the streets.

"What is it?" I asked Martin.

"Sir?" He appeared startled.

"You keep glancing back nervously. What's wrong?" I asked again, never taking my eyes off the energetic, enthusiastic people on the streets. My hunger increased at the sight of them. I wanted to devour their energy. Snuff out the candle of their lives, brighten mine.

"Your brother is waiting." He said just as we pulled into the parking lot of Reefwood HQ.

My golden eyes snapped to Martin's light blue ones in the review mirror. Held. "What!"

"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you before, I had ordered." His nervousness increased. I knew something was wrong the instant he had opened the door for me.

"The only orders you take are from me. No one else." I got out and slammed the door shut before he could react and headed inside my office.

The truth was, Martin is one of my most trusted men, and he's used to every one of my moods. He'll get over it.

"Brother."

I winced and came to a stop a few feet from the elevator. "Antony."

"Little brother." Antony came to stand in front of me, all blonde hair and blue-eyed. It was clear to everyone that we bore no resemblance to each other since we were conceived from different fathers. I even towered a foot over him. "You're not with anyone?"

"I've had my meal." I sidestepped him and pressed the elevator button. I waited for the doors to open with teeth-gritting patience.

"Wha-meal?" Antony asked, astounded. "Dear God! Have some respect, Lance! They are living, breathing people. Women!"

"A meal is a meal. It doesn't matter if you have to eat it or sleep with it." Finally! I stepped into the open elevator, Antony hot on my heels.

"We're Incubi, not Demons." He said exasperated.

"Didn't know there was a difference." My head was starting to throb. "Why are you here, brother? Certainly not to discriminate between Incubi and Demons?"

"No." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "It's about your new Secretary."

I turned to face him sharply. "I don't need a new secretary. I think I'd told you that specifically."

"Brother...please. At least have a look at her! She's already waiti-"

"You've called her here? At this ungodly hour?" Antony's innocent look, though, told me a completely different story. I was beyond outraged. How dare he barge into my office and try to control my life! "Antony?"

"Ummm..." Ace scratched the back of his head nervously.

A light 'ping' noise indicated that we'd reached the tenth floor of my HQ, and as soon as the doors parted, Antony's reasons for being nervous became crystal clear.

He hadn't only brought a secretary to my office. He'd appointed her.

The lounge was spotless and devoid of papers, everything else was piled up and stacked into cupboards, and the lights were still on. I'd kept the place disorganized on purpose!

She stood by the office door. Tall, a bit on the skinny side. Dark brown hair in a tight knot, glasses, and a pantsuit. Professional from head to toe. And familiar. Very very familiar.

"What is your secretary doing here?" I snapped. Fuming.

"Her term expired at my office, and you recently fired yours. So..." Antony swallowed and turned to me, determination filling his eyes. "Lancelot, give it a try. She's the best we've ever had. She'll be perfect."

I looked her over. I'd seen her before, but only a couple of times when I was forced to visit Antony in Bluestar. She didn't look anything extraordinary. "At least bring someone nicer on the eyes," I muttered under my breath.

"So, you choose people based on their looks?" I turned towards her, surprised that she'd have the guts to speak up, especially if she knew anything about my reputation.

"No. But I like the idea of beauty with brains. Don't you?" I replied, daring her to lose her composure. But she didn't. Instead, she gave me a huge plastic smile.

"Then, I can assure you. I'll work hard enough that you won't miss the former."

"And what makes you think you have the brains, Miss...?"

"Johnson. Anaya Johnson." She righted her glasses with one hand, the other behind her back. With that posture, she looked fit enough for military school. "And as far as my brain is concerned, I'm sure my portfolio will give you all the answers you need, which is laid out on top of your desk. Any other questions, Mr. Eustis?"

"Little brother, just consider-"

"You're hired."

"Wha-" My brother seemed to be at a loss of words. He hadn't thought I'd accept so easily. Had been ready to defend his little Secretary at any cost. Watching his blue eyes widen and his mouth gape open was a treat indeed. "Office hour starts at 8 am. A second late, and I'll fire you immediately. No questions asked."

"Certainly." Unfazed as usual. It'll be fun to ruffle that fur. "I'll see you tomorrow, Sir."

"Good night, Ms. Johnson," I smirked as she headed past us to the elevator.

"Good night Mr. Eustis, Antony." She bowed her head a fraction and closed the elevator door. The fact that she called Antony by his first name wasn't lost on me. Did Antony feed on her?

"Goodness, brother!" I winced at his outburst. He didn't wait long to pounce on me. He started as soon as Ms. Johnson was out of sight. "She's human for God's sake! She needs rest, and she's already done enough by waiting for you till 3 in the morning!"

"You wanted her to work for me, so I hired her. It's not my fault she's incompetent." I shrugged and loosened my tie. I was tired, and I didn't want to deal with Antony's drama right now.

"She is not incompetent! She is the best secretary we've ever had, and she'll prove it to you! She'll make you eat your own words, little brother. Just you wait!" With that, he turned and stormed out of my office.

Saved me the trouble.

I entered my cabin to find it in the same pristine order as the lounge. Impressive.

I moved past my office door and down the hallway through a camouflaged door to my apartment. This is where I stay. It has a huge living area and a huge bedroom with an en suite bathroom. No guest rooms, no extra bathrooms, and the kitchen is always empty. I don't like having company, and I don't eat regular food.

Taking off my jacket and shirt, I threw them into the laundry basket; a maid comes two days a week to clean everything. I then went to the attached bathroom to wash off any trace of my meal from my body. If it didn't sate my hunger, I wouldn't bother with those filthy mortals.

After a steaming hot shower, I came out of the bathroom in my robe and stood by the glass wall that overlooked the city.

The best day in the world for me would be the day my family stopped interfering with my life. But that day certainly wasn't today or tomorrow.

Tomorrow is going to be a busy day. "Let's see how long you last...Anaya."

Anaya's P.O.V:

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. BEEP. BEEP!!!

SLAM!

The door banged open at the exact instant I shut off my alarm clock.

"Honey, if you're trying to wake up the entire neighborhood, I think you've already succeeded." 

"Five more minutes, mom..." I groaned from under my blanket. Soon found it flying off of me to land on the floor.

"Say that to your new boss." Mom put her hands on her hips to emphasize her point.

"Mooooom! Why did you remove my blanket? I'm not five!" I whined, the cold morning air making me shiver as goosebumps danced on my skin, but being the stubborn, lazy person I am, I simply stayed put.

"Yes, you're not. You're 25, and you know very well that it takes over an hour to reach your new office!" She said sternly. "Up. Now!"

"I'm up! I'm up!" I sat up in bed, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Twenty-five or not, my mom is still the boss of the house.

"Good. Get ready. I'm making breakfast." With that, she flipped her dark brown hair over her shoulders and walked out of the room.

Does she have to be this dramatic at six in the morning?

I sighed, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. It was past four o'clock when I went to bed last night, or should I say this morning. I'd hardly had two hours of sleep. But I can't waste time on sleep today. I have a hunch I'll be working my ass off this week at my new office. Any mistakes, and I'm fired.

Sometimes, I need to know when to stop. Antony had merely asked for a favor to work at his brother's office for the remainder of my term. If I couldn't do it, then I can go back to working with him any time I wanted to, and he'd even renew my term for another three years. I should have refused, but the idea of taking on a challenge with Lancelot Eustis was just too tempting. The pay's pretty high too. But most of all, it was Lancelot's I-am-God' s-most-prized-creation attitude that got me into this mess, and I'm not the kind of person who gets scared of the big bad wolf.

I took a quick shower and dressed in a blue pencil skirt and jacket with a white shirt underneath. I pulled my hair into a neat bun on top of my head and put on my glasses. Applying a tiny bit of eyeliner and lip-gloss, I checked my reflection in the mirror one last time before leaving the room. Mom was making me breakfast when I reached the kitchen.

"Mom, "I called out to her." I'm leaving."

"Here's your breakfast, honey," she handed me a lunch box. "I made your favorite sandwiches. Eat them on your way, and I've packed a salad for lunch, separate dressing."

"Thanks, mom, I love you. Bye." I hugged her before leaving for Reefwood HQ.

The bus ride took an hour, which gave me enough time to go over and compare everything Antony had told me about his brother and what I'd gathered from the net while snacking on my mom's delicious turkey salad sandwiches. The difference was humongous.

What the tabloids said was that Lancelot Eustis had it all easy. He was never in office the entire day, was always seen with a different woman, he was a cheater, a heart breaker, but no matter how bad the breakups, none of his ex's said a single bad word about him.

On the other hand, Antony had told me that he was a hardworking man who didn't want people knowing that he was talented; he came across as a spoilt rich playboy because he had commitment problems and that he was a genuinely lovely person.

I could play eenie-meenie-miney-mo here, but since I've known Antony for over three years, I decided to trust his advice.

But Lancelot Eustis, on the other hand, other than being Godly handsome with soft, shiny black hair and golden eyes similar to topaz, had an air of power around him that could intimidate the Angel's themselves. But at the same time, there was no denying the fact that he was also too arrogant. I sighed. I have to steer clear of him before my infatuation grows. I'm his secretary, and I plan on keeping it utterly professional if I am to survive a single day.

I got off at my stop and decided to cover the short distance walking on foot. Since I wore wedges, walking was a bit easier. I checked my watch before entering the building. I punched in my card and took the elevator to the 10th floor.

"Hey! Hold up." I stopped the elevator doors and smiled as another person entered the elevator on the third floor. A man with light brown hair and green eyes in the usual staff attire, carrying a coffee mug in his hands.

"Here," he handed over the steaming cup of espresso to me. "Boss has this every morning. Gets cranky without it. Mr. Eustis asked me to inform you."

"Mr. Eustis?" I raised an eyebrow at him.

"Antony." He corrected with a dimpled smile.

"Thank you, Mr. Trevor." I read his nametag. "And don't worry; I'll prepare it myself from tomorrow onwards."

"Happy to help, Ms. Johnson." He exited on the ninth floor.

I stepped out of the elevator on the 10th, placed my purse on my desk, took out the organizer in one hand and used it as a tray for the coffee, adjusted my jacket with my free hand, took a deep breath...and opened the cabin door...only to nearly have a heart attack.

"Ah, Ms. Johnson. You seem to be a second too late for work." He smirked, leaning over his desk, palms on either side of a half-naked woman underneath him.

I tried my hardest to keep my poker face. I'm a professional, and I've seen worse. I would not be fazed. "Sir, I'm two minutes and three seconds early. Your clock is approximately four minutes and twenty-nine seconds faster than standard."

His smile vanished, and he pushed away from the woman, who got up and fixed herself as if I hadn't just walked in on her and my boss, going at it at eight in the morning, on top of my boss's working desk…, which I'll now have to disinfect. On the other hand, my boss was currently on his iPhone, checking for the correct timing.

"Looks like you get to keep your job for today, Ms. Johnson. Now," he looked at the woman who was now standing on her feet by his desk, not a hair out of place.

"I'll leave you to your work then," she smiled seductively at him, making me shudder inwardly. "Call me when you're free." With that, she glided her way out of the room, but not before pinning me with her murderous gaze.

"You counted the timing?" He asked incredulously.

"I would have corrected it if the clock weren't so high," I answered truthfully. "Here's your coffee, Sir."

He gave me a piercing look, which had me freezing on my spot. Did he think I'd poison him, or was he just startled? I didn't have to ponder that long for the answer since he took the mug away from me at that instant.

"Sir, if you tell me what your plans for the day are, then I ca-"

"Oh, I'm not going to need any planning, Ms. Johnson. But I do have some for you." He smirked, cutting me off as I took out the organizer. I was beginning to learn that his face, as Godly as ever, was just as a mask for the Devil underneath. "Are you ready for it?"

"Yes, Sir," I said firmly. I will not bend as all the others have before. If he thinks a little work will scare me, he doesn't know me yet.

But what was also running through my head at that instant was… I should have trusted the tabloids.