The room, while Giles was locked inside it, was a pretty nice space. It had a tiny front sitting area, complete with a love seat, a reclining chair, and a television. There was another area with a comfortable mattress and box springs on a sturdy, wooden frame. There was even a tiny bathroom complete with shower, allowing him to keep up on his hygiene. Even the food his enemies brought him was yummy, filling, and plentiful—and not drugged.

Giles had been worried about that the first time he’d eaten it. When he’d been able to put off his hunger no longer, which had actually only been about a day and a half, he’d eaten about a third of the meal. Then he’d waited thirty minutes, monitoring how he felt and making certain there were no side effects.

There hadn’t been.

He’d eaten voraciously after that.

Whoever cooked for the vampires was an awesome chef.

Pausing to peer at his bed, Giles wondered if he could somehow manage to slice into the box springs and unfurl a wire that way.

“If you’re thinking of escape, the vampires own the land five miles in every direction. I doubt you’d manage to get far before they noticed you were no longer in here. However, if you ask nicely, I may be willing to help you.”

Spinning around, Giles prepared to tell off his uninvited, surprise visitor. His jaw sagged open at what he saw. No way could it be real!

Leaning against the bars that lined the front of the room that made up Giles’s sleeping and lounging area was the biggest, scariest creature he’d ever laid eyes on. It had black skin, wings, and horns. It stared at him with piercing black eyes that actually appeared to be twinkling with mirth, accentuated by the slight upturn of the corners of his lips.

“H-Holy sh-sh-sh—”

Giles slowly backed up until his legs hit the side of the sofa, and he tumbled backward, sprawling on it sideways. He quickly scrambled up again and put the loveseat between them…even though the creature remained on the other side of the bars.

“Holy shit, I believe is what you’re looking for,” the beast stated. He rubbed a claw-tipped hand over his chest, drawing attention to the fact that he didn’t wear a shirt over his huge, heavily-muscled torso. “And if you were saying that in response to my sexy chest, I’d be flattered.” He smirked, his black eyes gleaming. “A pity that you’re not.”

“What, uh, what—” Giles swallowed hard, getting moisture to his too-dry throat. His voice still came out raspy when he managed to ask, “What are you?”

“My name is Thanach,” the creature responded, grinning, showing off even white teeth. “And I am a demon.”

“You’re…you’re a…a demon?”

That is a demon?

When the creature—demon—Thanach offered one slow nod in confirmation and continued to smile at him, Giles took those precious few seconds to look it up and down. Or him rather, because there was no mistaking the beast’s gender. Thanach wore only a pair of dark brown leather pants which showed off a very large bulge at the groin.

Shit! Why did I notice that?

Even as Giles snapped his gaze back up Thanach’s torso and the thought passed through his mind, he felt heat surge through his system. His focus stalled on the male’s black nipples, noticing how they were already pebbled. He sucked in a surprised breath when he felt his own nipples do the same.

What the hell?

Surely it’s from fear, right?