Loving Angel (A Divisa Novel Book 4) (2 page)

Chapter 2

Lexi bounded in between Angel and me, her blonde hair twisted in some crazy braid. “I can’t believe I made it through high school without killing anyone.”

She might not have felt a life slip away at her hand, but I had.

Killing Eric, who happened to be Travis’s girlfriend’s father, had been necessary. That didn’t mean I enjoyed the kill.

Demons. Well, that was a different story. They were essentially already dead. But humans…I didn’t relish in the act. However, to protect my family—to protect Angel—I would do whatever it took. My soul was already damned. If I still had one.

I gave Lexi a firm look, telling her without words to shut her trap. My cousin often spoke before she thought, but out of the three of us, she was the most levelheaded. So I guess it balanced out.

“Oops. Sorry.” She giggled. It was a sound that warmed my heart, hearing Lexi’s happiness.

I never thought I would care about someone or want to protect someone as fiercely as I did Lexi, and then Angel moved next door. With just once glance, I knew I was in serious trouble. She was the first and only girl to make my heart sputter.

Which had totally pissed me off.

That, and the fact that I’d had been out all night chasing a lower-demon in the woods. I still remembered the expression on her face when she got her first glimpse of me. Shirtless. Sweaty. Bone-tired.

To think I had thought I could intimidate her. Shoo her away with my famous glare. For once, it didn’t work, not like it usually did with humans. My intrigue only intensified, and so did my smirk. After she left with Lexi, I had zapped to my room puzzled and peeved. That had been basically how I’d felt about her for weeks.

Admitting I had feelings for her had been one of the hardest self-realizations. Considering it had taken her death for me to admit it. Saying the big L-word had been another.

“The day is still young,” Angel said, her gaze sliding to mine. “Anything can happen.”

Always the optimist.

The ceremony of Spring Valley’s class of 2014 had commenced, and now we all had a little piece of paper to remember it by. It had been a fairly quick ceremony, seeing as you could fit our entire town inside the football field.

Parents gathered around, congratulating their kids. Devin and Angel’s mom were among them. I spotted their beaming faces as Lexi, Angel, and I meandered our way across the makeshift stage and down into the audience.

“Can you believe that lame speech Principal Scrubbs gave?” Lexi chattered, unable to help herself. Silence did not exist when she was around.

We had just about reached Devin when a figure stepped into our path. I met Brody eye-to-eye. Just looking at him filled me with white-hot rage, which might have been ninety-nine percent pure jealousy.

Brody shifted on his feet, his brown eyes darting from me to Angel. “Hey, I just wanted to say congrats.”

“Uh, thanks,” Angel mumbled.

I scowled. The audacity of this guy, he just didn’t go away. How many times did I have to kick his ass before he got the message? Do. Not. Have
any
contact, what so ever, with my girlfriend. I was thinking he was in need of a refresher course. I stepped forward, but that was as far as I got.

Angel placed a hand on my arm. “We should go. Devin and my mom are waiting.”

She was right, but my demon didn’t always feel like being sensible. Lucky for Brody, the demon inside me was infatuated with Angel and would pretty much do anything to make her happy—most of the time.

“Maybe I’ll see you around,” Brody hollered as we left.

“Don’t hold your breath,” I called over my shoulder.

Angel rolled her eyes. “I can’t take you anywhere. God, I hate this stupid getup,” she complained, doing some kind of wiggle dance.

My lips twitched.

“It’s not that bad,” Lexi replied. “With the right shoes…” She pulled up the hem on her robe, showing off the deathtrap thing-a-ma-bobs covering her feet.

“Only you could make a graduation gown look fashionable,” Angel said, smiling at Lexi.

I leaned close to Angel. “I could help you get out of those clothes if they’re bothering you that much.”

Lexi scrunched her dainty nose. “Gross. You know I can hear you.”

I arched a brow. “Maybe you should see your way out of my conversation.”

Lexi gave a smartass reply, but something had caught my eye. Devin was talking to someone, and it wasn’t just anyone. It was the enemy.

My blood chilled.

What were Devin and Chloe doing talking to Emma’s mom? Angel paled beside me, seeing what had distracted me. She and Emma’s mom didn’t have the best track record. Next to Mrs. Deen were Emma and Travis.

Internally, I let out a loud, long groan. Facing the woman whose husband I killed wasn’t a confrontation I was looking forward to, especially in front of Mrs. Morgan.

“I’m so proud of you,” I heard Chloe whisper to Angel as they hugged.

Angel tugged at her collar. “Mom, don’t cry.”

Tears streamed down Chloe’s cheeks, and Devin looked on the verge of shedding a few himself.

This was turning into a sap fest.

“I never thought I would see this day,” Devin said, giving me a bear hug.

He might not be my father, but he was the closest thing I could get to one. I looked up to him. In my eyes, he was a million times the man my real father was, seeing as he was a deceitful demon. “I like to keep you on your toes.”

“And give me more white hairs than I can count.” He patted me on the back. “Your mom would have been so proud of the man you’ve become, Chase. I know I am.”

Ah, great. We were all going to be bawling at this rate. My throat clogged with emotion, and I just nodded. The tough guy inside me lifted his chin.

“You would look great as a silver fox, Dad,” Lexi said.

“Kiss ass,” Travis coughed, grinning.

Lexi socked him in the arm with a force that would have sent a normal person flat on their rear.

“Guys, we’re all adults now,” Devin said with a look of exasperation, but he wasn’t fooling anyone. He loved us, even with all our flaws and the part of us he could never truly understand. Devin spent his life making sure we were safe. Making sure he knew everything he could about us.

I might not be his son, but I was still blood, and I never lacked love. Although I was robbed the chance to know my mother, it was obvious Devin loved his sister very much, yet, I would be lying if I said that a part of me didn’t wish the mother I never knew was still alive. I tried not to imagine how different my life might have been, but one thing was certain; I couldn’t picture my life without Angel.

“Speak for yourself,” Travis muttered.

As the others talked, a cold wind moved down my spine. I couldn’t shake the gross-a-roni sense that someone was out there watching. My demon perked up and tensed inside me. Crowds made me twitchy. Add Mrs. Deen into the equation and I was feeling downright restless. Stretching out my abilities, I tried to find anything supernatural, or more specifically, demonic. I got nothing. Still, I wouldn’t put it past Hell to mess up graduation.

Scanning the field and the lush forest that surrounded the school, I couldn’t see anything, but the prickle on my neck wouldn’t go away. And that led me to one conclusion…

It was time to leave. I wasn’t taking any chances. That was a lesson I always seemed to learn the hard way.

“Angel,” I murmured in her ear. “We need to go.”

She glanced up at me, the sun shining in her eyes as she studied my face. I knew she could feel the edginess running through me. “Good idea. The sooner I get out of this heinous outfit, the better.”

Travis and Lexi had both caught my worried expression and knew better than to disregard it. I gave a nod. When you lived with danger threatening you at every corner, you learned to trust your instincts and ask questions later.

That was kind of my motto—
kick ass first and then take names
.

“We’ll see you at home,” Angel told her mom, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.

Chloe smiled. “Don’t forget I’m cooking tonight. Celebratory dinner.”

She snorted. “As if Chase is going to let me forget. He’s like a hound when it comes to your cooking.”

True story, extra senses and all.

These days, I spent as much time at Angel’s house as I did mine, maybe more if you counted the nights I snuck into her room. And I never missed a meal if Chloe was in the kitchen. It was natural how easily our families merged. I was unsure if the others had realized the change. We had suddenly become one family, and for the first time, we were all happy.

It scared the bejesus out of me.

Really, how long could it last?

Travis gave me a nod, letting me know they would be leaving right behind Angel and me. My mind was churning with the endless possibilities—all bad—as we walked to the car. Whoever or whatever was watching us, didn’t want to be found, which made me believe that, all in due time, we would be meeting face-to-face. But it was going to be on my terms.

“What’s going on?” Angel asked when we were out of parental earshot. Her hand gripped mine.

“We’re being watched.” I glanced over my shoulder.

“Demon?”

I shook my head. “I don’t think so.” I felt her heart race under my fingertips. Brushing the inside of her wrist, I stopped at my black Impala. Hopefully, I’d own this one longer than my last.

“Hunter?” she inquired, going through the list of regular nasties.

“I’m not certain, but we’re not sticking around to find out. Let’s go, before things get ugly.”

“I don’t think anything could get uglier than this gown,” she grumbled.

The next thing I knew, she was whipping the robe over her head and tossing it into the back seat of the car. Only Angel could bring a grin to my lips during a tense situation. And make my hormones go wild. I caught just the barest of belly flesh, and that did it. A growl purred at the base of my throat.

She glided into the leather seat and sighed. “Oh God, that’s better.”

I slipped my hand over the back of her seat. “Buckle up. I wouldn’t want you to lose any more clothes.”
Or I just might crash this car after all.

She gave me a funny look, but strapped herself in.

I kept my eyes peeled for anything suspicious as the car hummed along the road. The more distance I put between us and school, the less I felt the stalker-vibe. It was a relief…for now. I couldn’t shake the feeling that this was just a prelude of things to come. Call it my demon intuition, but something wicked was brewing.

My hands tightened on the steering wheel as the wind from the open window blew over my face. There was a distinct scent of pine and fresh-cut grass in the air. Summer. Freedom. I wasn’t going to let some jackass mess it up. For once, Angel and I were going to have
normal
for as long as I could make it last.

She deserved it.

Unfortunately, no matter how much I willed it, normal lasted about two seconds.

If I hadn’t been peering at Angel, mesmerized by the way the sunbeams highlighted the curve of her cheeks, I might have missed the glimmer of red from behind a bush just off the side of the road. My brakes screeched and the back tires fishtailed as I came to a quick halt. Angel slammed against her seat, strands of hair curtaining her face.

“Stay here!” I ordered and took off. I didn’t give her a chance to argue, because that was exactly what she would have done, insisted on coming with me. There was no time. I had to catch this SOB before he vanished on me.

Chapter 3

She yelled my name, but I was already moving through the woods at blinding speeds. Branches lashed against my skin, but I didn’t feel them. The mark at my hip throbbed as I gained on the demon. I didn’t have a plan, nothing concrete. I usually didn’t.

Circling around, I knew I was faster, and I would be able to cut him off. This had to be a quick takedown, because I didn’t honestly think Angel would stay put, which meant she would be putting herself in danger. Again.

Skidding to a standstill, the demon shot forward, a blur of reddish eyes. I clotheslined the idiot, knocking him off his feet. “Where do you think you’re going?”

He crouched, hissing. “I’m not here for you.”

Not here for me?
I angled my head to the side. “I’m wounded. Here I thought I was number one on Hell’s hit list.”

The demon’s form began to flicker. “You aren’t our concern anymore, Chase Winters.”

Well, that was different, but it didn’t change that I was still going to wipe the ground with his scuzzy face. “Since we seem to be on a first-name basis, why don’t we skip the pleasantries and let me acquaint you with my fist.” My closed hand connected with his face in a satisfactory crunch. I watched his head snap back and grinned.

He wasn’t stunned for long. Launching to the side, I poured every bit of my rage into the blow. There was no hesitation as I followed up my first punch with a second and a third. Even as I was kicking the daylights out of the lowlife, I knew he hadn’t been the one leering around at our graduation, which only frustrated me more.

The demon zoomed past me and then twisted around. In the form of a human, he stood directly in front of me, but it was his eyes that gave him away—so bright they lit up the shadowy woods.

I blinked.

That was all it took for the demon to get in my face. He struck out, clipping me in the mouth. It hurt, but I didn’t show it. I worked my jaw, running a hand along the bottom of my chin.

Wrong move, assmunch.

My hand shot out, grabbing him by the arm, I spun, tossing him like a Frisbee. He hit a nearby tree with a loud thwack. I cracked my knuckles, keeping an eye on him as he stirred. “That’s all you got?” I gloated, the blood pumping in my veins.

I didn’t know what purpose he had lurking in the woods, and I didn’t care. Nor did I give him the chance to explain.

He rushed at me, gnarling his teeth.

“You, my friend, are in need of some serious dental work,” I sneered. Then I dipped and sprung up behind the fool. Lower-demons weren’t the brightest. They got stuck doing all the grunt work.

I choke slammed the douchebag, smashing him into the ground one-handed. Dirt flew into the air as I kept my grip tight on his neck. To complicate matters, I felt the familiar tingles that only one person could entice.

Angel.

I lifted my head.

Yep. There she was with her hands on her hips, frowning.

“I thought I told you to stay in the car,” I rumbled.

She made a pucker face. “Is he the bug that’s been up your butt?”

The demon wiggled under my grasp, so I stuck my knee into his chest. “Don’t move,” I warned. My gaze flicked back to Angel. “No, but he still needs to be taught a lesson. Demons aren’t welcome here.”

“Chase, stop playing with him and send him back.”

My eyes narrowed. She had been awfully quiet sneaking up on me. “How did you track me?”

“I didn’t,” she said.

If that was true, how had she found me? I had assumed our connection had led her to me.

“I tracked him.” She nodded to the lower-demon still in my clutches. He was watching our exchange and had stopped fighting against my binds.

The breeze carried my soft curse.

Right. That made total sense. My girlfriend was linked to the very beings I’d spent my life fighting.

“He’s one of Alastair’s,” she informed, taking a step forward and looking down at me with the most startling blue eyes I’d ever seen.

A muscle popped on the side of my face. Hearing
his
name caused the anger inside me to crest. I despised the man who’d sired me. I hated the life he forced upon me. I condemned him for what he did to my mom—what he did to Angel. It was because of him that she now had this power over him and his minions.

I was bitter like a mofo.

All I ever wanted was to protect her from this, not pull her deeper and deeper into it. There was no getting out now. She was smack dab in the thick of demon politics and all the risks that came with it.

She saw the flicker of emotions cross my face as the hand around the demon’s neck squeezed until my knuckles were white.

“Go back to Hell and stay there,” she ordered, stealing my kill.

The a-hole disintegrated at my feet, raining the air with black soot. I shot up, not entirely pleased. “Damn it, Angel. I wasn’t done with him. We were just getting started.” I
had
been toying with him, drawing out the inevitable, only because I needed a source to direct my frustration on. What a more perfect target than a demon?

A spark lit between us. Her chin tilted up. “Uh-huh. That’s not what it looked like. What is the point in beating him to a bloody pulp?”

I gritted my teeth. “Because it’s satisfying, and I need to hit something.” She didn’t understand. The demon inside demanded it, thrived on the chaos of Hell. Friend or foe, it made no difference.

“Sock a monkey.”

My anger dispelled, and I shook my head. “Angel, the crap that comes out of your mouth never fails to astonish me.”

She rocked back on her heels. “You like it.”

I ran a hand through my hair. “What does that say about me?”

A slip of a smile teased her lips. “Plenty of words come to mind, but we don’t have time. We need to get home before my mom and Devin get there.”

Neither of us wanted to explain what held us up. Angel’s mom might know about half-demons, the underworld, and all the things that went bump in the night, but it was still awkward dinner conversation. I gave one last scan of the forest, listening for anything out of the ordinary. The only thing I felt were the sparklers shooting off inside me from being close to Angel. The tattoo at my hip was going berserk.

“Let’s go,” I mumbled.

We hiked it back to the car at a much slower pace. Angel matched her strides with mine, which meant she was practically running to keep up with me. I slowed down for her sake. Glancing at the girl next to me, I thought about how far she’d come in a year. There was a time when she had been afraid of the woods, but rightly so.

She had been bitten by a hellhound. The bite injected the hound’s unique saliva into her system, allowing Hell to keep a trace on her.

Our drive home was without any additional surprises. I relaxed; therefore, so did Angel. I wasn’t sure I would ever get used to the way our emotions were tied to each other. Out of the three links, soulbond was the most intricate. It not only linked our souls, but also our feelings. If I was having a bad day, ten out of ten times, so was Angel. We fed off the other.

Heartbond linked our hearts. They beat at the same rhythm, in time, but it was more than just the tempo. It was our love that had forged the second connection. Reckless. Profound. Breathtaking.

Bodybond tied us physically. This was the bond I didn’t want to test often. If separated by distance and time, our bodies weakened. My inhuman strength faded, and we suffered without the other. Not my idea of a good time.

The sun was slowly setting behind the fields across the road as we pulled into the driveway. Soon the corn stalks would sprout up, towering over my head. There was a solace in the covering of the fields that I sought on many nights.

So many memories surrounded this house, mostly good. It had been the only home I’d known, and it was bewildering that in such a short time, Angel bombarded a huge portion of those memories, like the night she followed me and learned the truth. That had been the night I started living. It changed me, and definitely changed our relationship more than either of us realized at the time. I had given her as much a shock as she did proving that she wasn’t afraid of me.

It still boggled my mind, and a part of me would always think I didn’t deserve her. I would never take advantage of the gift the universe had given me…or that she bestowed upon me. Blind faith. Eternal love. Trust. She made me a better person, something I never cared about being before.

With Angel at my side, the possibilities were endless.

“So you’re sure it wasn’t the demon you picked up with your spidey-sense?” she asked as we walked up the driveway.

I chuckled. “How many times do I have to tell you I’m not a superhero?”

She gave me a cheeky grin. “You are to me.”

My heart warmed. I plucked her off her feet and swung her around. “Cute.”

Her arms were secured around my neck as she scrunched her button nose. “I’m not a kitten.”

I set her back on her feet, and we walked into her house. I flipped on the lights. “What are we having for dinner? I’m starved.”

She rolled her eyes. “Shocker. You’re always hungry.”

I followed her into the kitchen, admiring the view as her little tush sashayed. “Can I help that I worked up an appetite?”

Pivoting, she said, “Here.” Then she stuck a roll in my mouth. “Chew on this.”

I bit down, taking a hunk of bread.

We only had a few minutes alone before her house was turned into a circus—a half-demon spectacle. Dinner was everything I imagined a Leave-it-to-Beaver family meal would be like. The food was outstanding. Angel’s mom knew how to manipulate even the simplest of flavors. There was laughter, lasagna, happy tears, a monster-sized salad, debates, and to-die-for amaretto cheesecake.

I shoveled a forkful of creamy dessert. It was magic in my mouth.

Beside me, Angel sighed. “I feel like an Oompa Loompa.”

“At least you’re not blue,” I pointed out.

Everyone at the table laughed, and Angel flipped a piece of food off her fork at me, which I caught in my mouth.

“Showoff,” she said, ineffectively hiding her own grin.

The best part…I forgot all about the demons, Hell, hunters, and the other crazies out there. It was a memorable celebration with my family. Together we made sense, and it was nice to see Devin happy. I swear he appeared years younger with Chloe at his side.

Raising three little hellions on his own had not been easy. If anything, it had been a day-to-day challenge, but he had done his best. He loved us, and I could see by the infatuated expression on his face that he loved Chloe.

I had Angel.

Travis had Emma.

Devin had Chloe.

We all had someone. Except Lexi.

Looking at my little cousin, she acted happy, but I knew that underneath all that makeup, she wanted someone to love her—all of her, including the demon she repressed so well.