It All Started with an Apple. Subtitled: Lucifer's forbidden fruit

Chapter 6 Aelia

The Miami sound machine's Conga plays loudly, filling the room with music. Aelia closes her eyes a moment. The music speaks to her soul. The salsa-type beat fills her inside and out until her body begins to move to the melody like a tree moves in the breeze, graceful yet wild and free. As always, Aelia becomes one with the music when she dances, moving to it like she has danced a thousand times before. Everything and everyone in the room ceases to exist until nothing remains but the music and herself, meeting one another in a caress as intimate as the caress of a lover.

The music ends, and Aelia returns to reality and the applause of Scott and the DJ. She takes a bow, feeling quite proud that she mastered the dance without knowing what the music would sound like or the style of dance it would entail. Again, she is unaware of Lucifer's presence as he grins in pride and pleasure, thinking he cannot wait to make her his mate.

Staying hidden, he turns himself into a transparent mist, going backstage with her to her dressing room. He continues beside her unseen until they are inside, where the other dancers finally show up. He could not help but ignore everyone but her, thinking how her captivating beauty was near overwhelming, as was his desire to touch her, which was so feral it frightened him.

Aelia shivers, feeling unnaturally cold. Suddenly, the feeling that she is not alone in her private dressing room comes over her. She glances around, expecting to find another dancer or her boss, but her eyes find nothing more than a shadow. A shadow that is heavy and stifling as if it were a living-breathing object. It is a massive silhouette, and for the life of her, Aelia cannot pinpoint its maker.

"Stop! Just stop," she tells herself in a cracked voice of irritation. The last thing she needs tonight is to freak herself out and be edgy. Tonight was for Shelby. No matter where her friend was, this dance was for her, and Aelia wanted it to be flawless. She finishes getting ready by applying another layer of plum-colored lipstick to her full lips.

A while later, Aelia, now standing underneath the heated spotlight, no longer felt frightened or nervous. She is more than ready to dance, to make every one of the customers in the club desire what they could never have. She had no idea where this newfound confidence and seductiveness came from, but she did not care. She planned to use it to her advantage. The music starts, and the crowd chants for her to dance, showing them what she's got. With a self-assured grin that would probably tempt the devil, Aelia sways her hips, rolling her upper body in perfect unison with the beat of the drums. With every ounce of energy inside of her, she becomes one with the music again, letting it guide her in a dance of pure passion.

Lucifer smiles at Aelia's thoughts of the devil and how her dance would tempt him. He could hardly wait to take his human disguise to touch her. He is proud that he used his powers to give her the confidence to dance without the doubts plaguing her and all mankind. Aelia is incredibly sexy up there on that stage, dancing like some wild gypsy woman in front of a campfire light. Lucifer is almost saddened when the music ends, and she begins to collect all her tips from the crowd. The knowledge that he would soon be holding her in his arms makes him accept the end of her dance. With a flash of extreme power radiating from his being, he finally takes his human form and heads towards a vacant dressing room across the hall from hers.

After leaving the stage and getting back to her dressing room once more, Aelia wipes the beads of perspiration from her naked breasts and shoulders. Suddenly, out of nowhere, she thinks about Tristen. Damn, that man, she met him one time, but still, he lingers in her mind like a brand or scar that can never fade. She finishes drying off and then pulls her robe up over her body to where it hides her naked flesh from the waist up her body perfectly. She still thinks of Tristen until she wants to pull her hair out in frustration. The sound of an acoustic guitar from across the hall finally seizes her thoughts. She is confused and surprised by the sound, especially from that room. As far as she knew, it was always vacant. She sits bewildered for the longest time before her curiosity gets the better of her. Ignoring her brain completely, she stood and walked from the safety of her room, wearing no more than her robe and a pair of gold-colored panties.