Insatiable: When Love and Lust Collide

Getting through Valentine’s Day isn’t easy for most of us.  Whether disillusioned by the commercialism set to drain dry the bleeding heart’s bank account or left out in the cold for the holiday, most people will agree that Valentine’s Day can have a heavy impact on lovers and singles alike.  While the hopeless romantic might argue that Valentine’s Day should be treated no differently than any other day, that any day holds a good excuse to spoil the ones we love, there is no denying that many hold a certain level of expectation that goes beyond the typical.

I’m not going to argue one way or the other on this issue.  Instead, I would like to bring up one I can’t help but ponder every time I begin seeing the store displays of chocolate hearts, teddy bears, and balloons: is Valentine’s Day really so much about love, or might it be just as notably about lust—or might it perhaps epitomize a combination of the two?

Think about chocolate for a moment.  It is rich, sensual, sweet, satisfying, and most importantly, it has a reputation as being women’s substitute for sex.  While one might argue for the loving gestures that might come with cards and other inedible gifts, the offering of chocolate is arguably akin to the offering of sex.  But what is love without passion or passion without love?  Each can function without the other, at least to a certain degree, but anyone who has experienced the two together can tell you that little—if not nothing—in this world can compare.

When I wrote my short story “Insatiable,” which includes characters from The Darkness and the Night trilogy, I focused on succubus Anna, working to imagine a character that experiences human love and desire, but also a constant lust and need for sexual companionship.  Her needs are so strong that it has not been above her to solicit sex in exchange for small bits of various lovers’ souls.  For her, there is a clear distinction between love and sex—and yet the two become interconnected when she falls in love with her bisexual partner, Kevin.  The result, however, is a draining mix of need and desire, which is as much a source of conflict as it is one of pleasure.  On rare occasions, it becomes downright dangerous.

In “Insatiable,” Anna becomes afflicted with an Astral parasite, one that takes her need beyond love or lust, testing the very limits of her relationship with Kevin.  What they both learn is that with love comes desire, with desire comes need, with need comes reciprocity, and with that ultimately comes sacrifice.  While every relationship is unique, these variables must come into play somehow regardless of the day of the year.

Excerpt: “Insatiable”

(contains sexually explicit language)

“No—not yet!” Anna cried.  She arched over him, her fingers entwined with his as she held him down, drinking in his sudden rush of pleasure.  Her pale blond hair fell delicately over her shoulders, just revealing her petite, round breasts.  Her muscular body glistened with sweat as he watched her ride him slowly, hoping to tame his excitement just a little longer.  “I’m not finished with you yet!”

The sudden gleam in her eyes sent him reeling with a thrilling mesh of pleasure and fear, his body straining to hold back, reveling and shuddering in giving her what she needed.  She could feel his excitement, his desperation to come deep inside her, the drive for release becoming too great to bear.  His muscles went tight as he met her with feverish intensity, breaking his hands free from hers to take her by the hips and drive her harder. 

His body trembled and a light moan escaped him.  She took him deep, taking as much of his soul as she could as his climax washed through her.  She sat straddling him, watching him go weak and quiet, still hungry for more.  “Kevin,” she said, thinking to press him for more, but she reconsidered as she noticed his nearly debilitating exhaustion, the look on his face telling her she had taken far too much already.

She pulled away from him and moved to his side.  “You okay?”

He took a heavy breath.  “Yeah.”

Silence.  She turned to him, finding that he refused to meet her gaze.

“I’m sorry,” she finally said.

“Sure.”

“I didn’t realize I was so hungry.”

“You or that Astral thing connected to your soul?”  He took another deep breath. 

“It’s not a ‘thing.’  My Doppelganger is a part of me.”  She leaned over him and swept a lock of his hair to the side of his damp forehead.  “Please don’t be mad.”

His hand met hers.  “I…”  His voice trailed off as he moved to feel her brow. “You’re burning up, Anna.”

“Am I?”  She felt her forehead and compared her temperature with his.

“Are you feeling okay?”

She shrugged.  “Just a little tired…and hungry.  I think I’ll feel better once we get out of this corn maze.”

“Corn maze?”

She looked around, blinking hard.  She turned back to him, laughing nervously as a shock of panic struck through her.  “I could have sworn I just…I must have gotten confused.”

He sat up, going lightheaded for a moment from the heavy energy drain, willing himself to the side of the bed.  “I think you should go to the infirmary.”  He snatched his clothes from the floor and slowly got dressed.

She looked around, her eyes going wide.  “We’ll never make it!”

He paused, unable to mask his concern as he watched her huddle against the headboard.

“They’re coming!” she shrieked.

Kevin jumped back as suddenly he saw them too, phantoms appearing through the walls, coming into the room from all directions, slowly amassing around the two.  The ghostly images had only vague features, as human as they clearly were, except they had cavernous black sockets where their eyes and mouths should have been.  “What is this?” he cried out, scrambling to Anna’s side.

The phantoms moved slowly as they emerged from the walls, hollow moans escaping emanating from their throats as they walked steadily toward the bed.  One emerged through the headboard between Kevin and Anna, looming over them for only a second before lunging at Anna.

Anna closed her eyes and screamed, and in a flash, the intruders were gone.

“Anna, what was that?”

She shook her head, shivering, her throat quavering as she breathed through slightly parted lips.

“Anna?”

She turned to him, wiping away a tear as it escaped with a sudden blink.  “Somehow, pieces of the Astral are breaking through.”

“What’s bringing them here?”

She shook her head, but then suddenly went still as a look of recognition came to her face.  “They’re coming for me.”

“But why?  Are we in danger?”  He felt her forehead again.  “You’re really burning up.”  He gathered Anna’s clothes and handed them to her.  “We need to get you to a doctor, or maybe a good pint or two of blood—”

“I’m not hungry for blood!”  She snatched her shirt and pulled it over her head with an angry huff.  “Maybe you’ll let me fuck your donor?”

“Not cool, Anna.”

“I’m starving!”

“Let’s get you to the infirmary.”

Anna zipped her pants and pulled back her sweaty hair.  “I don’t know what the hell is going on, but we definitely need to get out of here.”  She donned her fuzzy slippers and rushed out.

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