Incubus

6

Chapter Six

Celia's heart jolted to a stop when the man walked into the light of the diner, unveiling himself from the darkness of the night. Her body froze as her eyes fell on the most vivid pair of amber eyes she had ever seen.

The man standing before her could've easily been sculpted by Michelangelo himself. Dark, unruly hair spilled in waves around the sharp ridges of his face. The dark t-shirt and simple jeans he wore did nothing to hide the muscles defining his body. What intrigued her even more, were the intricate tattoos decorating almost every inch of his tanned arms. She could even see black lines swirling up his neck from the collar of his shirt.

Her eyes slowly met his again, a blush now dusting her cheeks for openly checking him out. Her heart skipped another beat as his full crimson colored lips tilted into an amused smirk.

The feeling of someone nudging her in the side made her blink and look away. Valerie grinned slyly, glancing at the man and back to her.

"Hot damn," she whispered so only Celia could hear.

Celia flushed, silently agreeing with her friend as the stranger walked toward them with a smooth and graceful stride.

He met her on the other side of the counter, smoothly gliding onto one of the upholstered leather stools.

"Umm, good evening sir," she tentatively met his gaze, "What would you like today?"

"What do you have to offer?" His deep, velvety voice caressed her ears, lilting with an accent she couldn't place. Was she imagining it, or was there a dark edge to his words as his eyes glinted at her almost mischivieously?

His intense eyes arrested her, deeming her incapable of words. Fiery amber swam around his irises, darkening almost to red around the pupil. Something about those eyes seemed familiar.

"Uhmm... we have..." she began incoherently.

"We have many options," Valerie intervened, rescuing her from her flustered state. "Here's the menu," she slid it across the counter with a wide, flirtatious smile painting her red lips. "Today's special is tomato basil soup, if that interests you."

"Thank you, but I'll just have a black coffee for now." he smiled graciously, his unsettling eyes never leaving her. Celia was feeling more unnerved by his stare by the second.

"I'll-I'll go prepare it for you," she told him quickly, before turning around and rushing over to the coffee machines to escape his intense gaze. Yet she could still feel the heat of his stare burning into her back.

"Are you new to town?" she heard Valerie conversing as she made the coffee, "I'm sure I would've seen you before." the redhead flirted relentlessly, working her charm.

Celia turned around and walked toward him, the hot beverage balanced carefully in her hands.

He chuckled, a deep chuckle that sent shivers throughout Celia's body.

"I'm here because I was summoned." his eyes met Celia's, a knowing smile dancing across his lips.

She stopped breathing for a second. Summoned? No. It had to be a coincidence that he had used that word.

But the next line he spoke shattered every sense of self assuredness she had left.

"I can't wait to fulfill my purpose." he continued darkly. And then she saw it.

The coffee mug slipped through her fingers, as she watched him with horror. Backing away in panic, she barely heard the mug shattering into a million pieces, hot liquid splashing against the tiled floor.

She was too busy staring into his eyes--

His blood-red eyes.