Wicked Edge (17 page)

But so far, she and Hope had managed to keep the nightly reports to Ted secret. That all might end in a few minutes if she couldn’t get Edge to leave the dungeon.

“Ganymede is probably almost done. Why don’t you go over and wait for him?”

Edge opened one eye. “Trying to get rid of me?”

“No.” Yes.

Edge closed his eye. “I’m in no hurry. Sparkle’s over there in case Ganymede blows again.”

Fat lot of good that would do. But Passion understood that it
was impossible for Hope to spend every second of every day with both Ganymede and Edge.

Passion looked at Hope again to see if she was getting nervous. But Hope was busy on the laptop that had pretty much taken over her life. Except when she went dancing with Murmur. Passion didn’t even want to think about that complication.

Her final hope that Edge might leave the room before Ted checked in evaporated as the familiar cold wash of power hit. At least Ted only seemed to have audio, so as long as Edge kept quiet, everything should be okay on the archangel end. But Hope had to answer him out loud. Passion refused to look at Edge.

“What did you do today, Hope, to turn those in the castle away from evil?”
Archangel Ted sounded distracted for some reason.

Hope sighed as she pulled up her list of lies on the computer. Passion felt sorry for her. There was no way Hope had time to do any soul saving when she was trotting around behind either Edge or Ganymede all day and dancing with the demon at night. None of which she could reveal to Ted.

Some of this was Passion’s fault. She’d started Hope down this path when she’d blackmailed her into helping Ganymede. Hope had told Ted that yes, there’d been a little Earth shaking, but it didn’t have anything to do with the cosmic troublemakers. That was the first time Hope had lied to Ted. Now it had become a habit.

Passion held her breath as she looked at Edge. His eyes were still closed. She relaxed a little. At least he didn’t seem to be able to hear Ted’s side of the conversation.

“I spoke with Pink and convinced her that her so–what attitude wouldn’t open heaven’s gates for her. Next, I suggested to Lady Gaga that she walk away from her bad romance if she wanted to save her soul. She laughed at me, so I’ll probably have to do a follow–up on that one. Then I told Britney Spears that saying, ‘Oops! I did it
again,’ will
not
convince the Supreme Being she’s ready to renounce sin. After that, I—”

Ted exhaled deeply.
“Enough. I’m not in the mood to listen to your endless list of petty sinners.”

Surprise. Passion thought Ted wanted them to concentrate on the petty sinners. He’d made it clear he didn’t want them to go after the big guns. She glanced again at Edge. His eyes were open. Oh, crap. She put her finger over his lips.

And lost herself for a moment in the feel of them—the warmth, the softness, probably the only softness in his whole hard body.

“Have you kept an eye on the cosmic troublemakers?”

“Umm, yes.” Hope sounded nervous for the first time.

“Have they shown any hints of violence? Have you heard them say anything that might make you think I should send down the avenging angels?”
Ted sounded hopeful.

Passion widened her eyes even as she shook her head at Hope.

But Hope didn’t need any coaching from the sidelines. “It’s been peaceful here. And they really don’t talk in front of me.”

Even as Passion went weak with relief, she wondered about Hope. What had happened to Ted’s model of the perfect angel? Hope had been the dedicated one. Now? She lied like a human and didn’t seem to think that going out with a demon was a biggie. Worse than that, blue had begun to swirl around her. Lust. Murmur had a lot to answer for.

“What about you, Passion?”

“Well…”

“I have confidence you’ll tell me what I want to know. After all, you do want to return home sometime before you die of old age. And make no mistake, if you stay in human form long enough, you
will
die.”

Passion narrowed her eyes. Jerk. She hated being threatened. “I saw nothing. I heard nothing.” Besides, even with all the bad stuff
happening, she’d never felt so alive in her life. She was in no hurry to return to her home on the corner of Dull and Boring.

The air practically vibrated with his displeasure.
“Continue doing your works of mercy, but keep your eyes on the cosmic troublemakers. In fact, I give you permission to become friendly with them. Of course, you can’t turn them from their wickedness, but if you hear any plans involving violence, I’ll need to know. We have to stop them before they harm the human population.”

The coldness retreated. He was gone. And what was up with his obsession with the cosmic troublemakers? It sounded as though he was looking for an excuse to attack them. She sighed. And if she were a good angel, she’d give it to him. But she wasn’t a good angel. So she was keeping her mouth shut.

Edge sat up. He was smiling. “Pink? Lady Gaga? Britney Spears? You’ve been spending too much time with Murmur.” His smile faded. “Who were you speaking to?”

Hope looked uncertain, so Passion stepped into the silence. No use trying to keep Ted’s visits secret. “Archangel Ted checks in each night to find out what we’ve done during the day.”

Edge shook his head. “I can’t believe he bought your list, Hope.”

Hope offered him a small smile. “Archangel Ted isn’t into pop culture or music, so I was pretty safe.”

His expression turned thoughtful as he looked at Hope. “Who are the ‘they’ you mentioned?”

“You and the other cosmic troublemakers. He wants to make sure you’re not becoming too dangerous.” Hope returned to the pleasures of Facebook.

Passion winced. So
now
Hope decided to be honest.

“Look, it’s no big deal.” Passion pasted on a fake smile. “Ted is a busybody. He wants to know everything, but it doesn’t mean anything.” Unless busybody Ted decided to send the avenging angels.

He didn’t have a chance to comment because just then the dungeon door swung open and Ganymede, in his cat form, padded in. Sparkle trailed behind him carrying a hairdryer.

Ganymede’s hair was wet and slicked back except where it stuck up all around his fuzzy face. Passion couldn’t stop her grin. He didn’t look like Mr. Destroyer of the Universe now. “You stayed in cat form for the shower?”

He glared at her.
“It takes too long to change forms. Besides, if I decide to misplace my brain again, you guys might have a better shot at subduing me in cat form. Of course, it would take all of you working together. I’m that powerful.”

“O mighty chaos bringer, if you reprise your role as deranged dude, I’ll take up Holgarth’s staff and bash you in the head again.” Sparkle seemed to be enjoying the possibility.

Ganymede chose not to comment on that.

“I didn’t think cats liked water.” Passion tried not to laugh at his drowned-kitty look.

“I’m in cat
form,
babe. The real me enjoys a great shower. And Sparkle scrubbed my back.”
His cat eyes narrowed to slits at the remembered pleasure.

Passion thought of something she’d been meaning to ask. “Why do you stay in cat form at all? I mean, you make a great human.” That hadn’t come out exactly as she’d planned.

She caught the corner of Edge’s frown. What was his problem?

“Cats do a better job of sneaking. No one notices a cat, so people don’t filter what they say in front of me. It’s more fun being a cat.”
He glanced at Sparkle.
“Most of the time.”

Sparkle snorted her opinion of that. “What he means is that he doesn’t have any responsibilities as a cat. He can sit around all day watching TV and eating.” Her expression softened. “When we make love, though, he’d better be in his golden-god form.”

Ganymede leaped onto the table with the restraints attached
to it, and Sparkle plugged in the hairdryer. This whole living space was just weird. Hey, how many angels ever got to wake in the morning to an iron maiden staring them in the face?

“Time for my shower.” Edge rose in one lithe motion. He glanced at Passion. “Want to keep me company?”

The question caught her by surprise. She bit back her automatic yes. “I don’t do backs.”

Something in his expression promised that scrubbing his back would be one of life’s highlights. “Not
in
the shower. You can stand outside to make sure I’m me when I come out.”

“Fine.” She grabbed her nightgown, robe, and slippers. She’d shower when he was finished.

Luckily, Dacian was still up in the great hall playing the big bad vampire in the last few fantasies. He wasn’t irredeemable, so technically she should be trying to turn him away from evil. Right now, though, she didn’t feel qualified to talk to anyone about making it through the pearly gates.

She settled onto a chair as Edge went into the bathroom. He didn’t close the door, and she forced her gaze away from it. Too bad she couldn’t do the same with her imagination.

Passion did some mental humming to drown out the sounds of him undressing and sighed her relief when she heard the shower door close. She looked around for a magazine to keep her thoughts busy.

“Come in here so I can talk to you while I’m showering.”

The voice of the serpent in the garden. The big fat apple—juicy, sweet, and tempting. “I don’t—”

“Afraid?”

The symbolic gauntlet. In her mind, Ted barked conflicting orders.
“They’re irredeemable. Stay away from them. No, I want to know what they’re planning. Act friendly.”

Even as she tried to pretend that strolling into the bathroom
while he was naked was no big deal, her pounding heart knew what a liar she was. Sure, she’d slept on the same mattress with him for almost a week now, but this was different. Asleep, he wasn’t actively tempting her. This was active and totally premeditated enticement.

“Close the door just in case Dacian comes home.” He turned on the water.

She shut the door and then leaned her back against it.

“Explain again what your job was in heaven.”

Passion swallowed hard. She could see him, hazy through the frosted glass. He was…She frowned. He’d asked her a question. “I soothed people’s worries and gently guided them down the path to goodness.”

“So you manipulated their minds?”

“What? No, of course not.” But she had. It was for their own good, though. Didn’t that make it okay?

“Did sex make it onto your sanctioned–by–heaven list?”

The long unbroken line of his muscular body taunted and seduced her through the glass. “Not specifically. I guided people away from
all
excesses.” Unease touched her. Now that she thought about it, Ted had demanded she only pass on thoughts he’d approved. Nothing wrong with that, though. He was just doing his job.

“Who checked up on you?”

She closed her eyes, but it didn’t help. In her mind, there was no glass between them. Warm water sluiced over his gleaming body as she slid her fingers across…Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes. “Ted. When I finished my assignments, he’d ask me for details about how things went.”

“Did you choose the people you visited?”

Couldn’t he just shut up so she could concentrate on the way his body twisted and bent, hard muscle moving beneath smooth skin…? She tried to control the heavy feeling building low in her stomach. It felt so good, but she knew it was so wrong. Not here,
not with this man. “No. Ted gave me a list of people who needed me.” Thinking back, she realized Ted always sent her to people with power—politicians and military leaders. What was that about? Didn’t the huddled masses need saving too?

“Were you happy in heaven?”

She watched him soap himself, sliding the washcloth along his inner thigh, cupping…Passion gritted her teeth. He was doing this on purpose, and she didn’t have the strength to open the bathroom door and leave. No wonder Ted had never been happy with her. He knew how weak she really was. “Of course I was happy. It was heaven.” No, she’d always felt restless, unfulfilled.
And how easily the lies come to you now.

“Who did you love there?” His voice had softened, but that didn’t lessen the impact of the question.

“No one.” Her answer was just as soft. She’d opted for telling the truth—to him, to
herself
. And that truth popped the bubble she’d built around her existence.

Mercilessly, he drove his point home. “Doesn’t it seem strange that in a place supposedly dedicated to eternal love, there isn’t any?”

She pressed her palms flat against the door as though she could keep the doubts and fears outside. But that wouldn’t help, because all the uncertainties were already in here with her.

Passion watched unblinking as he turned off the water, opened the stall door, and stepped out. Steam filled the air with moist heat that made it hard for her to breathe. He stood too close, towered too tall above her. Wet, his tawny hair looked darker, and he’d slicked it back from his face. His bared body glistened as steam curled and flowed around him. She could almost believe he’d risen from the underworld, a beautiful demon sent to drag her from heaven forever. The worst part? She wouldn’t miss Ted or any of the heavenly host.

Water beaded across his broad chest. One drop lost its grip on
his nipple and wended a crooked path lower and lower, over his ridged stomach before coming to rest…She jerked her gaze back to his face.

“You excite me, maybe-angel. My body recognizes that and reacts accordingly.” It wasn’t an apology, just a statement of fact. He studied her from those gleaming amber eyes. “Do you understand?”

Passion shrugged in a pitiful attempt to seem casual. “You’re aroused. I’ve seen it before in humans’ thoughts.” Well, maybe not exactly like
his
. She controlled her need to glance down again, to scope out the exact length, breadth, and degree of hardness so she could have total recall when she was finally alone. Because never had anything she’d seen in people’s minds lived up to this real-time experience.

Silence wrapped around her, made her want to squirm with her need to touch him. Passion knew that if she could see herself as she was able to see others, she’d be in the eye of a whirling blue hurricane of lust.