by Jill Myles
For like, two minutes. I’m not the most patient person. So when the cathedral remained empty, I decided the time for pleasantry was over. “Uriel,” I bellowed at the top of my lungs. “I know you’re out there.”
Still nothing. Oh, I knew he was there. The trick was making him show himself.
I lifted my coffee cup and threatened, “You’d better show yourself, or I’m going to head for the holy water.”
“Jacqueline.” Uriel’s voice rang from behind me and I turned, watching the angel move forward, the white wings flowing down his back. “It is so good to see you again.” He looked as beautiful and pure as I remembered. He also looked guilty as hell.
“Can the crap, Uriel. You used me because I didn’t know what was going on. I should never have listened to you.”
“I don’t know what you mean, Jacqueline. I thought our bargain was straightforward. You get a little info for me, and I return the favor with one of my own. I fail to see how that’s ‘using you,’ as you say.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “Yeah? Well, the vampires figured me out in three seconds flat, and now they know that you’re checking up on them. They’ve taken my friend Remy hostage, too.” Tears threatened and I had to blink hard, which only made things worse as I got mascara in my eyes. Dammit.
“What?” Uriel’s features slid into a frown of concern.
“I know,” I sniffed, trying hard not to blubber and not succeeding very well. “They’ve got Remy and I don’t know how to get her back.”
He shook his head. “What did you say about the vampires knowing I’m-that is, we’re-involved? Did you find out why they are gathering?”
Irritation began to prick at me. “Oh, I’m sure Remy’s just fine. Thanks for your concern,” I said, my throat bitter. “And yes-when I met the queen, she figured it out pretty fast.”
“The queen.” It was a quiet statement, followed by a sigh. “You’ve stirred up quite a mess now, haven’t you? Did you find out their plans?”
“Me?” I squeaked in protest, ignoring his fishing for information. “I didn’t do anything except what you told me to do-bribed me to do. It’s not my fault if they figured it out.”
He sat next to me and brushed his fingertips across my forehead. As desire flared through my body, I dug my fingernails into my palms so I wouldn’t jump him. “I see her mark upon you,” Uriel said in his soft voice. “It has negated my own.”
I bit back a “No shit, Sherlock” and opted for the stare-down instead. “So what now? How do we get Remy back?”
I didn’t like the pause that followed. Instead of hitting me with a straight answer, he grimaced and looked away. “It’s not quite that easy, I’m afraid.”
“Sure it is. You go down there and wave your halo and make them give her back. You’re the one with the power here, remember? You’ve still got your all-access pass too so maybe you should try stepping in and helping my friend.” Desperation was starting to crawl through me. What was I going to do if I couldn’t get Remy back? What was I going to do if Uriel didn’t help me?
He patted me on the shoulder, then pulled away as if I were diseased. “I’m afraid I cannot step in, child. However, I am confident that you will think of something. Did you find out their plans?” His pale eyes glittered as he repeated the question, focusing on me with sudden avid intent. “You must have found out something.”
“Oh, I found out something all right,” I said, not liking the look in his eyes. “They’re after some halo from some Joachim dude from way back when.”
Uriel bit his lip, his wings quivering a touch. “Joachim?”
I nodded.
Uriel gave a high-pitched moan of delight and stood abruptly, his eyes intent and a tad insane. “Did they say where they’ve found it? Who has it in their possession?”
“See, that’s the tricky thing.” I scratched my head, a bit unwilling to part with what I’d learned so far. “I’m supposed to find it. Any brilliant ideas swimming around in that holy head of yours?”
His hand was suddenly clamped around my own, his face scant inches from mine. Pale blue eyes pinned me to the pew. “You must find that halo and bring it to me. It is of the utmost importance that I get the artifact, not the queen. Do you understand me?”
I tried to extract myself, sliding over on the pew. “Calm down for two seconds, okay? I don’t even know where the stupid thing is-”
“I have friends who can help you find it for me,” he immediately responded.
“-but the vamps want it in exchange for Remy, and I already promised I’d give it to them.” I eyed the door. “Maybe the next one that rolls around, I can call dibs for you. Deal?”
“No!” he screamed, the muscles in his neck tensing with the force of his shout, and my head snapped back at the force of his voice. “There will never be another halo with as much raw power infused in it as Joachim’s. I must have it and no other.” He gave me a wild look and gritted his teeth. “Do you understand? You must bring it to me.”
If ever someone was in need of crazy pills, I’d put my money on Uriel. “Uh, I’d really like to bring it to you, seeing as how you’re the good guy and all, but my friend’s life is at stake here.”
He shook his head. “You fail to understand me. Or perhaps you do not choose to.” He slid forward on the bench again, and I scooted even farther back. “What will it take for you to bring the halo to me? Gold? Immortality? A child? A lover?” He touched my arm.
“Ick?” I gave him a disbelieving stare and shrugged off his hand. As much as I wanted to throw him down on the bench and ravish him, it felt wrong. Like seducing a priest. Times ten. “Look, I realize that you and I are from different generations, but I don’t want you to be my boy toy, nor do I want you to pimp for me. You can’t buy it off me-okay?”
“Perhaps I am not offering you the right things,” he said, and gone was the pretty-boy angel look, in its place a rather scary, solemn expression. “I can offer you release from your succubi curse.”
Okay, now he was delving into areas I didn’t want to think about. I stood up and scooted down to the far end of the bench. “I’ve had enough. I don’t even know where the thing is, so I can’t promise you anything. I’m sorry.”
“Wouldn’t you like to be free from the Itch and have a chance to return to your normal life?”
I paused, weak creature that I was, then shook my head. Whatever he offered, the cost was too high. “Tell you what. I’ll find the halo, rescue my friend, and then we’ll talk, okay?” I headed for the cathedral doors, needing to get out of there.
“You’re making a mistake,” he boomed behind me. “Others will jump at the chance of what you are refusing. What will become of you if someone else beats you to the h-”
I shut the door while he was still speaking. I didn’t even want to think about that.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Noah showed up before dawn. I’d been hovering by the window, anxiously waiting for the sky to lighten, which is why I was freaked out when the doorbell rang when it was still dark. I answered the door with a kitchen knife in hand, not sure who I would find on the other side.
The fallen angel raised an eyebrow. “Planning on carving a turkey?”
He looked wonderful. I don’t know if it was my relief to see him that made my hormones surge, or the lack of Uriel’s kiss on my brow. It could also be the way his very broad shoulders filled out the cream-colored turtleneck sweater so nicely, and how his hair swept along the collar, just waiting for my itching fingers to brush it back.
“Want to invite me in? Remy’s got the place warded to the skies and back so I can’t come inside unless you invite me.”
“Sure.” I put the knife down on a foyer table, my hands shaking. “Come on in.”
He stepped past me and glanced around the huge, posh house. “Don’t tell me-Remy’s still fixing her hair.” A line creased between his eyebrows, indicating his frustration. “We need to speak to Uriel as soon as possible before this stuf
f climbs upstairs, or you’ll really be in hot water.”
I burst into tears.
The look on Noah’s face darkened. “You didn’t, did you?”
I was unable to answer, as my throat was all knotted up in the loudest, noisiest sobs this side of Hollywood. “N-n-n-n-” I stammered.
Large hands clasped my shoulders with ferocious strength, and Noah squared my face toward his. “Jackie,” he warned. “Where’s Remy?”
I could tell he was trying to refrain from shoving me away or losing his temper.
Which of course made me cry all the harder. “I’m so sorry,” I managed, trying to pull away. “You hate me now.”
“Shhh, Jackie.” Noah’s large hands reached up to cup my wet cheeks. “It’s going to be okay. Calm down.”
Feeling helpless beyond words, I allowed him to enfold me in his arms as I cried out my fear and remorse. He led me toward the living room and sat on the couch, calmly stroking my back, just holding me and comforting me. I managed to leak the story onto his broad chest and he didn’t say a word to judge me, just listened quietly until I was done.
Once the sobs dried up to the occasional shudder, I remained curled up in his arms, my head pressed against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.
Noah pressed a light kiss onto my brow. “Better now?” His voice was soft, comforting.
I nodded, leaning into the slight caress. My heart was pounding in my throat and I slid my hands behind his neck, caressing his nape without even thinking about what I was doing. “I’m so glad you’re here, Noah.” All I could think about was crawling into his lap and closing my eyes, hoping the world would go away for a time. My hands slid down his chest, pausing at his nipples, and my fingers found them instinctively. I stroked the pebble-hard flesh, feeling my own tighten in response.
He stilled at my touch. “Jackie …” Noah shifted against me. “Did the queen do anything to you?”
“She kissed me.” I could feel my forehead blazing, feverishly hot. “I think it negated the angel kiss.”
Noah sighed. “It did more than that. A vampire’s kiss works in the opposite direction of an angel’s, Jackie. Your ‘curse,’ as you like to call it, is going to be amplified tenfold in a few hours or so, unless you do something about it.”
“It’s already amplified,” I said, fitting my body against his. The sensual rush swept through my body, now that my anxiety had been released. I laced his fingers with mine and turned to stare at him, lifting my cheek off his chest. “So what are my options?”
I would have cursed the compulsion that drove me, if it weren’t for the gorgeous man wrapped around me. Damn, he looked delicious. I slid my hand out of his and ran it under his turtleneck, feeling his flat stomach tighten beneath my hand.
His eyes met mine, and I saw that they had flared to the vivid blue I knew all too well. “Let me help you, Jackie,” he said, lifting my hand from his neck and pressing a scorching kiss against the palm. His eyes watched mine.
Guilt and longing surged through me at the same time. I knew that it was my nature doing this to him, causing him to flare up with desire every time I was around. Remy had told me that the Serim needed to sate their urges only about once a month, and here I was driving Noah mad whenever I stepped into the same room. “I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I know I’m a bother-”
My words cut off when he nipped at the fleshy part of my hand with his teeth, sending desire rocketing straight through my body. “Jackie,” he warned, his lips brushing against my palm.
“Yes?” My voice sounded more like a moan.
“If your body needs release”-Noah brought my fingertips to his lips-“I want to be the one you come to. Understand?”
“I don’t want to be a charity case,” I protested.
“Oh, trust me,” he chuckled. “This is far from charity.” He took my fingertip into his mouth and sucked on it.
“Wow,” I breathed, sliding the tip along his lips. “You’re pretty good at that.”
“Let me show you what else I’m good at.” Within the space of a breath, he had flung me on my back and was looming over me. My legs were tossed into the air, still bare from the short skirt I’d worn to the club, and he slid his hand down the pale length of one thigh.
I shivered with anticipation. The glide of his hand felt wonderful against my skin, and I arched my back slightly with the pleasure of the simple caress. “Mmm. For artistry I’d give it a 5.8, but for technical merit, only a 5.4.”
He pressed a kiss against my upraised ankle. “What are you talking about?” Another kiss against the tender skin of the inside of my knee.
“Nothing,” I moaned, losing my train of thought. “Do that again.”
Noah complied, sliding his delicious mouth closer toward my skirt. “You’re so beautiful, Jackie …” His breath was hot against my skin, sending shockwaves through my body and making my brain spin.
“It’s the succubus thing,” I panted, trying not to writhe in anticipation and failing rather miserably. “Changes the way you look, and stuff.”
“… but you talk entirely too much,” he chided, licking my thigh and then blowing gently on the overheated skin. “I don’t want to hear talking,” he murmured in that low, sexy voice, his smooth cheek close to my thigh. “I want you screaming my name.”
The fabric of my skirt slid up, courtesy of Noah’s hands, and the pulsing in the vee of my thighs increased in its crescendo, the Itch in full swing. His hands slid over my hips, looking for the zipper to my skirt and then sliding that down my hips, leaving me bare save for a skimpy thong. He hesitated for a moment, and I opened my eyes to protest, just in time to see his blond head duck down, and felt the crotch of my thong being moved aside to allow his fingers to rub up against my wetness.
I groaned loudly, my hands instinctively reaching for his head to cling to. “Oh, God, Noah. Do that again.”
His fingers found that perfect, most sensitive spot and flicked against it gently, sending me into paroxysms of desire. “Like that?”
My head jerked into a rough nod and I bit my lip. My hips rose to meet him in silent appeal and were rewarded with the feel of his slick fingers rubbing up and down my folds, taunting me by just barely brushing against the spot that I wanted them most. Noah slid up over me, his mouth pressing onto my own and his tongue seeking out mine.
I returned the kiss with greedy abandon, my hips bucking against the teasing slide of his fingers, trying to guide them to just the right spot. Noah was an amazing kisser-his tongue slid against mine, then darted away, and he tugged at my lip with his teeth. “You taste better than anything.” He pressed a kiss against the curve of my neck. “Like a summer storm, fresh and sultry at the same time.”
“Quit with the fucking poetry and just take me!” I ground my hips against his hand.
He slid me up against his chest, ripping the back of my corset to get the damned thing off me. I was all too happy to help, and once my breasts were bare and free, I immediately rubbed my flesh against his and shoved him back on the couch. “My turn.”
His blue eyes gleamed up at me and I slid my pelvis over his, excited by the feel of his erection straining against the front of his slacks.
Noah’s hands reached up and caressed my breasts, teasing and flicking at my nipples. I nearly lost my mind from the sensations, but I forced myself to concentrate on returning the pleasure, grinding my hips against his erection, sliding forward to place my mouth against his and lick the seam of his lips.
A shudder wracked through him and I felt pleased at the reaction I stirred.
“Jackie-”
I placed a finger over his lips, nibbling on his earlobe. “The problem with you, Noah,” I said between tiny, teasing bites, “is that you talk too much.”
He groaned, his hands gripping my ass roughly and forcing it down on his clothed erection, as if by sheer will alone he could undress himself and plunge into me.
“Mmm,” I moaned against his neck, teasing, and then sat
up, straddling him and staring down. My hands splayed across his chest-still clothed-and I shook my head at him. “Why is it I’m the only naked one here?”
He stood up and dumped me onto the couch in his haste to undress. I lay among the cushions, watching him strip down to nothing. I hadn’t had a chance to see his body very well in the confessional, and I didn’t remember the time before, so I drank in the sight of his body now.
He was utterly gorgeous. His broad chest was carved into a series of rippling muscles, smooth and hairless, and he had a six-pack that a bodybuilder would kill for. His entire body was slightly tanned, as golden as his hair, and I was aroused to see no sign of a tan line anywhere. And his erection …
Enormous and thick, he had to be the most well-built man I’d ever seen. I was fascinated by the sight of it, jutting toward me and ready to slide between my legs.
I slid one bare foot over to his cock and teased the tip of it with my toe, pleased to see it rear and buck at the touch. “What are you waiting for, Noah? An engraved invitation?”
His hands were on me again, his mouth hot on my own, and I felt his hands around the waistband of my thong. My arms wrapped around his neck as he lifted me and ripped the triangle of fabric from my hips, tossing it to the floor.
“Jackie,” he breathed against my lips, laying me on the couch again. I stretched out erotically, arching against the hands that followed to tease my taut nipples.
I felt his hands slide around my ankles moments later, bringing them to his shoulders, then the tip of his cock teased me in the place that throbbed the hottest, the wettest. I moaned and writhed against him, sliding my hips in invitation. “Come inside me, Noah.” My hands reached for him frantically, stroking any bare skin I could find.
His cock teased the folds of my core a moment longer, then he plunged into me. Immediately, the pleasurepain feeling of intense fullness took over, and I forgot everything else as I jerked against him, moaning aloud.