RiskingEternity (8 page)

He needed to move, to will himself across the room, but his desire to stay was stronger. His own chains held him in place stronger than her delicate limbs ever could. His hips jerked, thrusting his hard flesh into her. She gasped and he moved again, unable to stop his headlong rush, his free fall into Hell. Damn Lucifer for making temptation taste so much like Heaven.

He covered her mouth with a desperate kiss, forcing her to swallow his groans, taking her sweet sounds into himself. All the while, he rocked against her, thrusting, pummeling her tender flesh. Trying to crawl inside her wet heat, become part of her,
make
her a part of him.

God help him, he never wanted to leave her.

“Oh, God,
Domin
—” She gasped as he rammed into her again. The orgasm took her and
she
spasmed
around him, clenching, making him come with her.

He arched and cried out, spilling himself into her once more. His back
spasmed
and his balls ached with the empty ejaculation. Tears of guilt and want and frustration burned his eyes as wave after wave of agony and pure ecstasy ripped through him.

Bites of fire cut into his back and shoulders where she clawed at him, pulling hair and feathers as her orgasm went on and on. He tried to focus on those small hurts, let them burst the bubble of sensation and pull him from his spiral into damnation, but it didn’t work. The pain transformed into pleasure and drove him higher. He convulsed in a second dry climax and the world spun away.

He was only vaguely aware of collapsing on top of Maggie, his face buried in her bright red hair and his open mouth brushing her freckle-dusted shoulder as he gasped for air.

She shifted under him, but he couldn’t move, didn’t want to. He didn’t want to lose this moment of Heaven before the Most High smote him.

She wiggled again, and her body squeezed, forcing a wave of indescribable sensation through him. Shuddering, wings quivering, he forced himself to pull out of her and roll to the side.

“I think I have rug burn on my ass,” she mumbled, curling against him.

“I’ll fix it momentarily.” He pulled her onto his chest and ran one hand over her soft hair.

For a long time, they simply held each other. Their breathing slowly returned to normal and shadows began to stretch across the floor, but Dom and Maggie didn’t move.

Maggie had begun to doze when
Dominicus
noted the room had darkened. He shifted her to the floor, and pulling the small blanket from the back of the couch, covered her before crossing to look out the window.

A heavy lump of dread settled in his belly and he swallowed against the bile rising in his throat.

Thick, dark clouds filled the sky, hanging oppressively close to the ground. Their steel-gray underbellies rolled with an unnatural violence and cast the landscape in a sickly green.

Had his judgment come so soon?

A quick glance back assured him Maggie slept, oblivious to the turmoil building outside. Crossing the room, he willed himself clothed and slipped out the door. Once outside, the eerie feeling increased. Despite the churning clouds above, the atmosphere on the ground was as still as death. No humans or animals could be seen and the plants didn’t stir in the thick air.

“Hello, angel,” crooned a voice, sensual and suggestive.

Spinning, he found the puppy lounging beside the doorway. Anger speared through him.

“I told you to leave her alone,
Meela
.”

The dog’s body stretched, morphing into something as gruesome as it was beautiful. The nude
demoness
was inky black, her skin covered in serpentine scales. Red eyes gleamed like rubies and her forked tongue slithered over full, blood-red lips and sharp fangs. Coal-black hair hung in snakelike ropes and delicate
batlike
wings spread behind her.

“Ah, Dom.
I didn’t think you recognized me. How nice to know my lover has not forgotten me after all these years.” She walked to him, her hips swaying sensuously, and pressed against him. Hard nipples cut into his chest and the stench of her lust filled his nostrils.

“Spirit knows spirit. The
Fall
changed you but you are still the cherub who once graced my side. You are still Philomela.” She recoiled with a hiss.
Dominicus
’ heart clenched, wondering if he would soon find his Heavenly name painful as well.

“Why are you here,
Meela
?”

“Where else would I be but following Lucifer’s favorite soul? Tell
me,
is she as delicious as she looks?”

His hands fisted at his sides and his jaw clenched. “You will never know.”

“You have really made things difficult, Dom. It was very naughty of you to warn her about the coffee shop. She was so anxious to get her coffee I couldn’t even convince her to stay outside the bank just a little longer, and I had the perfect surprise lined up for her, too. You’d be amazed at what a junkie will do in hopes of finding enough money for his next fix.”

His blood froze at the thought. He’d been so intent on keeping her away from the wrecked tanker, he hadn’t considered the danger of a simple walk across a parking lot.

“
Begone
,
Meela
,” he rasped.

“Do you really want me to leave, Dom? Don’t you remember how well we got along?” She leaned into him again. Lifting one hand, she dragged the tips of her black claws over his chest, leaving slashes in the fabric and red welts over his skin.

“I remember. I also remember you found another far more seductive.”

“Now Dom, don’t hold that against me.” She gave him a practiced pout and he could see the hint of the angel who had once infatuated him. The tawny skin and sparkling green eyes were gone, but she was still
Meela
, playing coy.

“I don’t hold anything against you. We were companions for a time,
then
you chose to leave. Our time has passed.”

“It doesn’t have to be. We can be together again.”

His eyes flicked to the door.

“Ah yes, your little human plaything.
You don’t want to leave her.”

He clenched his teeth and silently berated himself for giving his thoughts away to the calculating
demoness
. She had always been far too observant.

Meela
pressed to his side once more. “There are ways around the prohibition. Join me and you can be with her, always. I can give you your Maggie.”

The dare tempted him more than he cared to admit. Its evil wound into his mind and taunted him. He was close to his
Fall
. Just one more step and he could keep Maggie forever. In the lower realm there was no prohibition, no sin. There was only pleasure. He could indulge himself. Without conscious thought, one of his hands crept up to cup
Meela’s
hip, sliding over the cool smoothness of her scales.

“Yes,” she hissed. “Come with me, Dom. It could be the three of us, you and me and Maggie. I could fuck her while you watch. You can see it, can’t you?”

He could. It was easy to picture it, Maggie lying on black sheets while
Meela
crouched between her thighs, lapping at her with a forked tongue. Red blood on white skin as the demon sank her teeth into Maggie’s flesh. Him kneeling in front of a crouching Maggie, his wings spread, demon and
batlike
behind him. He forced his cock down her throat while
Meela
shoved those wickedly clawed fingers in her ass.

He saw himself coming, spraying thick, white streams of his ejaculate on her pale human flesh while demons swarmed her, bit at fragile skin and drank pieces of Maggie’s pure soul.

“No!” He shoved the
demoness
away, forced the images she’d fed him from his mind. “Be gone,
Hellbitch
. Stay away from me and do not come near this woman. She is under my protection.”

Meela
laughed at him. “You cannot protect her. The Most High has not given you the authority.”

“With or without his sanction, I will guard this woman,” he snarled, leaning in until he could smell the Hellfire on her breath. “It would serve you to remember seraphim are warriors. Cross me and I will feed you to the
Hellbound
demons.”

“We will see, Dom. You have upset the balance and my liege is not pleased. I leave for now, but you will not stop us from claiming what is ours.”

Meela
vanished in a wisp of sulfur and Dom blew out a harsh sigh of relief. For now, Maggie was safe and the confrontation assured him he had not yet Fallen. A breeze ruffled his feathers and he looked to the skies in alarm. The clouds had begun to move in a slow spiral and an ominous wind blew leaves from the trees. Someone was not happy, but
Dominicus
couldn’t tell if the power came from Heaven or Hell. At this point he wasn’t sure one was better than the other.

He entered her apartment on a thought, materializing in the kitchen, and immediately regretted it when she jumped and screamed. A coffee cup flew from her hand and shattered on the hard kitchen floor.

“Stop sneaking up on me!” she snapped and smacked his shoulder.

“I didn’t mean to surprise you. I thought you were sleeping.”

“Surprise me? More like scare the crap out of me. Why can’t you walk across the room like a normal person?”

“Because I am not a person.”
Was that not obvious?

She went still and her gaze flicked to his wings.
“Right.”
Sadness flared in her eyes, then was gone, leaving a cold wall of separation between them. He knew that wall far too well. A wall had plagued his existence, caged him in for far too long. He hadn’t expected rejection from Maggie. For this he’d risked his soul?

She bent down and started picking up pieces of shattered stoneware.

“I will clean this, Maggie.”

“I can get it.”

“So can I, and I am the one at fault.
Again.”

“Fine.
Whatever.” She stood with a huff and stalked to the living room.

Taking a deep and frustrated breath,
Dominicus
willed the mess away. Pieces of cup came together and the spilled liquid vanished. This was truly a horrible day. He prepared a replacement cup of coffee for her the human way and walked to the living room, trying to make noise along the way. She turned to watch him and her gaze landed on the yellow cup in his hand. That deep something flickered in her eyes again, something he could not name but didn’t like.

“Have I done something wrong, Maggie?” he asked. His face felt stiff and deep inside something twisted so tight he feared he would shatter.

“Of course not.
You’re perfect. I’m the one who’s all wrong.”

That made no sense. She was beautiful with a pure soul. He was so
flawed,
even the Most High could not suffer his presence. “Maggie, there is nothing wrong with you.”

“You’ll leave soon, won’t you?”

“I cannot stay forever.” His heart clenched. He was a
Hellbound
angel who could offer her nothing but pain. She deserved so much more than he could offer.

“How is your backside?” he asked, sitting beside her and handing her the steaming mug.

Her fair skin
pinkened
and she shrugged, refusing to meet his eyes.

“May I see?”

She spared him a shy glance before shifting and tugging the sash of her robe free. She angled toward him on the couch and held the front of the robe to her chest while letting the back drop down to her waist.

Angry red scrapes ran from her shoulder down her back to disappear under the waistband of her panties, marring her beautiful skin. He winced at the sight. He’d hurt her. Pushing the fabric lower, he leaned in and pressed his lips against her damaged skin. He heard her gasp and she jerked away, but he slipped a gentle hand around her.

Spreading his fingers over her soft stomach, he held her in place and kissed again, this time letting power flow over her. It rippled, golden and beautiful, across her skin and healed the injuries. Her breath came in shallow pants, bringing a smile to his lips. The power could do more than heal, and he wasn’t above using it to his advantage. An angel on the edge had few scruples.

“Does that feel good?” he whispered against her skin.

“Yes. Very.”

“Put down the mug, darling.”

Satisfaction curled through him at the sound of the mug clunking heavily on the side table. Sliding his hands down her arms, he pushed the robe away, baring her to him. His teeth scraped her skin in a rough caress. She trembled under his mouth as he placed nibbling kisses up her spine. Slipping his hands around her, he cupped her breasts and pulled her against him.

Her head fell back against his shoulder and she moaned. The soft, needy sound sent a surge of desire through him. Sweet friction sent sensation shuddering though him as she moved against him. How could one mere human make him need like this again? What was it about her that made the desire so overwhelming, made him dance on the fine line between redemption and eternal damnation?

He tangled a hand in her hair and pulled her head back, twisting to cover her mouth with his. He had to taste her, needed the flavor of her sweet humanity on his tongue. Without breaking the kiss, he lay back. He flicked his fingers over her nipples and ground his cock against her spine with a groan of pleasure. All it took was a single kiss, and he was lost in her.

“So, this is why you risk creation.” The condemnation echoed through the small room and Maggie jumped with a strangled scream.

“
Dammit
, don’t you people knock!” She turned her back on the intruder and scrambled to tug her robe back on.

“Why are you here,
Ren
?” He ought to thank his friend for saving him, but at the moment, he didn’t feel grateful.

“I’ve come for the girl. You have not done your job so I will do it for you.”

“No.” Dom’s blood ran cold. Would the Most High allow
Renatus
to take her from him, punish her for his sin? He rose and stood toe-to-toe with his friend. “You were not sent for her. I would know if you had been.”