by ERIN BEDFORD
Mandy and O’Connor turned to look at the photo of Riley Parks. I wasn’t lying when I said he looked weaselly. He had a receding hairline, leaving only the hair on the sides. His eyes were squinty and too close together. Plus, a panhandle mustache? What, are we in a black and white cartoon?
Mandy scoffed. “That’s what you are basing your decision on? His looks?”
I pointed a finger at her. “Hey, don’t knock it. I knew that Chuck Barry was a bad guy just from one look, and he ended up cheating on you with Brittany Cormac.”
Mandy flushed and glanced back at O’Connor before leaning toward me to hiss. “That was different. This is not high school, and Chuck had a reputation for cheating. You don’t need to be psychic to figure out he’s bad news.”
“Still, you should have more respect for yourself,” O’Connor commented, earning him a glare from Mandy. O’Connor cleared his throat and turned back to me. “In any case, Stevenson is right. Unless you have some hard evidence …” I opened my mouth to say something, but he cut me off. “… the kind that can hold up in court. We can’t arrest the manager.”
“Fine.” I pouted, crossing my arms over my chest.
Ignoring my temper tantrum, O’Connor went back to the board. “Our bet is that the culprit is someone who works there, but with us fighting the FBI over this homicide case, we unfortunately need to bring in outside help. Which is where you come in.” He didn’t even try to hide his disdain about hiring me, which made it that much more exhilarating.
“Great.” I snapped my fingers and jumped to my feet. “Just point me in the direction of the massage table, I mean, bad guy, and I’m on it.”
O’Connor glared at me. “You are there on the city’s dime, and that means, in no uncertain terms, are you to spend it like your daddy’s credit card. You get in, make with your voodoo, and get out.” He tucked his hands into his pockets and leaned forward slightly. “Are we clear?”
I held my hands up defensively. “Crystal.”
“Good.” O’Connor turned away from me to look at the board.
“What do you mean by no uncertain terms?” I asked, holding my finger up. “Because there are plenty of terms that I would qualify as certain. I mean, a mud wrap would definitely be something I would think is uncertain ‘cause you could get stuff all up in your—”
Before O’Connor could boil over and kill me, probably what he did to his other four wives, Mandy grabbed my arm and pushed me out of the room.
“What?” I whined, taking my arm from Mandy. “I just wanted to be clear on what counted as uncertain terms.”
“No, you weren’t.” Mandy shook her head. “You were being obnoxious. I don’t need O’Connor more hyped up than he already is. Just get in there, do the job, and get out. Got it?”
“Aye aye, Mon Capitan.” I saluted her with two fingers, earning me an eye roll.
“Yeah, yeah. Get out of here. I’ll send the files we have to your room at the spa.” She started to leave and then paused, putting her hand on my shoulders. “I’m counting on you, Jane. This is your chance to prove you are more than just some parlor trick act. You do this, and there will be a lot more cases coming your way.”
I placed my hands on top of hers and smiled. “You can count on me. I won’t let you down.”
“Good.” She patted my hands before releasing me.
“Now to go shopping for the perfect spa disguise.” I winked and walked toward the door, leaving a gaping Mandy.
“Is there really a need for a disguise?” Gabriel asked when we got outside.
“No,” I said. “But I’ll just charge it as a business expense.” I grinned, getting into my car. Besides, the city is paying for it.”
5
Gabriel wasn’t interested in going shopping with me after he found out I wasn’t going to buy a new bathing suit. Not that I blamed him. Shopping wasn’t my favorite activity. It wasn’t even on my list of top ten favorites and one of those was getting drunk with my mother.
Which for all cases and points was a ball of a time, let me tell you. Penny Mehr could get her drink on. But she also over shared … a lot. I did not need to know how my mother lost her virginity at fifteen to her senior boyfriend. Yuck. Some things were better left unsaid.
“You seem peppier than usual,” Lucifer said when I entered my apartment.
Setting my bags on the kitchen counter, I smiled at the Devil, who was looking scrumptious as ever. His dark hair was styled so that it had this playful sort of tousle to it, it made me want to run my fingers through it just to mess it up. His suit today was a dark blue with white pin stripes. The white shirt beneath clung to his chest, reminding me of the muscles that lay beneath it. He tucked his hands into his pockets, grinning like a fiend.
It was strange how he so easily looked like he belonged in my apartment. I rarely had all three of them in there at once. It was small enough as it was without me worrying about walking into any of them. I was sure the feeling in my nerves was getting damaged somehow. One could only take so much numbing tingles that didn’t come from a vibrator. Which reminded me I needed more batteries.
“Why shouldn’t I be? I have some fancy new clothes for my trip to the Blessed Falls Spa Resort, all paid for by the good people of Blessed Falls.” I patted my bags on the counter. I wasn’t one for shopping but this time I had fun. Probably because I wasn’t paying for it.
Lucifer lifted a brow. “I’m sure something in there made sense, but I’m sorry I’m at a bit of a loss.”
Grinning at the adorableness of a clueless Devil, I pulled out a pale blue dress that I knew, from trying it on at the store, hugged my hips and made me look like a million bucks. It better for how much it cost. Thank you, credit card.
“Well, that’s lovely,” Lucifer drew out, rubbing his chin. “Are you going somewhere special?”
“No, this is my laying around the house dress.” I laid the dress on my arm and shook my head, sarcasm dripping from my words. “We have a new case.”
Lucifer’s lips curled up into a salacious grin. “Well, it is a great dress, but I can’t help but think how much better it will look on the floor after I take it off you.”
My pulse raced at the heat in his eyes. Suddenly, I was excited for a whole other reason. Setting the dress back down with the rest of the day's goodies, I moved through my small kitchen to where Lucifer stood.
Licking my lips, I looked him up and down taking in the way his suit hugged his form. Really, where did he come up with these outfits? Any of them? Did they subscribe to some kind of magazine, each of them picking one person to model their look after? If so, I’d like to interject some swimwear in there. Maybe something in a spandex form.
Just the thought of the three of them oiled up and in barely anything … scratch that, change it to absolutely nothing … Though I’d only seen one of them naked, I was pretty sure that all three of them were built like Adonises. No need to worry about being disappointed in any aspect.
Lucifer’s gaze dropped down to the dip in my shirt. “So, is this a case that needs to be addressed at this very moment?”
“No,” I breathed. “Mandy is going to text me my information and when I should head over.”
“And your other job?” Lucifer’s lip curled up at the edge, flashing his canines.
“I … I quit. Last night.” I started to reach out to him, but when my fingertips began to tingle, I remembered our little handicap.
“Do you mind?” Lucifer asked, glancing down at my fingers. “Unless … you don’t want to?”
My eyes widened. “Oh, no. I want to. Believe me, I want to.” I chuckled nervously. I searched around for something to prick my finger or cut open a vein, anything to get my hands on the piece of angelic deliciousness so close but so far away from me.
When I couldn’t find anything right away, I almost cried. Damn me for not having pierced ears. Or being too safety conscious.
Eventually, I dug into my cutlery drawer and found a knife. Staring at the
sharp end of the utensil and then back to where Lucifer stood, I hesitated. I wanted him, I did, but was I really willing to cut myself open for a few minutes of orgasmic bliss?
The way Lucifer looked at me like he wanted to eat me whole answered it for me. Yes. Yes, I was.
I tried not to think about it as I pressed the tip of the blade into the tip of my finger. Red swelled from my skin, and I dropped the knife on the counter and turned to hurry back to Lucifer but gasped when I found him standing right behind me.
“Hey,” I held my hand up between us, my eyes darting from the blood bubbling up to the angel across from me. Without a word, Lucifer dipped his head down and wrapped his mouth around my finger, going all the way down to the knuckle. The tingling from his mouth soon warped to a hot wet suction.
Unlike at the office, Lucifer didn’t waste any time teasing me. His hands went to my hair, and soon after, that mouth around my finger was on my lips. My hands clenched into fists, twisting with the front of his suit in my grip, pulling him as close to me as possible.
Out of all the angels I’d kissed, Lucifer had to be the most proficient. His tongue stroked mine in a rhythmic pattern as if he were playing my mouth like a violin. Each slide of his tongue caused a different kind of tingle to roll through my body, settling deep between my thighs.
I shoved my hands underneath his jacket, hoping to get closer to the muscle beneath. Lucifer shrugged out of his jacket, his hands dropping from my hair to drag my shirt up exposing my stomach. I lifted my arms up allowing him to pull my shirt up and over my head. My bra came next as did his shirt. We stumbled from the kitchen and across my studio apartment to my bed.
“I’ve waited so long for this day,” Lucifer murmured, his mouth coasting over my skin, and I arched into it. His tongue wrapped around my nipple pulling it into his mouth, making me moan. My fingers curling into his dark locks, I brought him up from my chest to meet my mouth.
My hands met the material of his shirt, and I frowned. Too many clothes. He had too many clothes on. I started to unbutton his shirt, my mouth’s preoccupation with Lucifer’s making it a slow, grueling process. Jerking my mouth away from his, I grinned at him before grabbing the sides of his shirt and pulling as hard as I could.
“Well, well.” Lucifer grinned down at me. “A bit impatient, are we?”
Letting out a giggle, I breathed out, “You have no idea.” I grabbed the back of his head and dragged him back down to my mouth. His bare chest brushed against mine, causing all kinds of delightful zings to shoot through me, all of them pooling in my rapidly moistening panties.
Lucifer breathed in deeply. My eyes fluttered open to see the hot desire in his eyes. I barely had a moment to register what was going on before he had my pants undone and tossed to the side along with my soaked panties.
“Have you done this before?” I teased with a raised brow.
“Not with anyone like you,” Lucifer replied, pressing his lips to mine briefly before working on his own pants. “No one is like you.”
“I don’t know if I should be insulted or flattered,” I murmured as my eyes trailed down his chest. My fingers splayed over the muscles there as they trailed down to the lines along his hips. The man was utter perfection. Not surprising, considering where he came from.
“Neither.” Lucifer grinned wolfishly, his pants thoroughly discarded. My gaze immediately went lower to where he stood proudly, all warm, hard, and ready. Before I knew it, I had it in my grasp and my name on Lucifer’s lips.
“What should I be then?” I asked, moving my hand up and down his length.
“You,” Lucifer gasped as I tugged on him with a particularly tight grip. “Just be you.”
Grinning like a mad woman, I said, “That I can do.”
There was no more talking after that, Lucifer made sure of it. His mouth ravaged mine, the slow, meticulous movement from before gone. Apparently, Lucifer wasn’t so put together when mad with desire, something I wasn’t complaining about. Not one bit.
Lucifer’s cock bumped against my folds as we moved against each other. Not quite ready to move to the main event, but too impatient to keep our hands to ourselves. Lucifer worshiped my body like I was his new-found religion and I knew I would have marks in the morning. However, the thought of the Devil branding me like his didn’t quite have the dreaded feeling it should have.
I wanted everyone to see the evidence of our lovemaking, to know that I had Lucifer, the number one fallen angel, in my bed. Even if it was for one night. One night I hoped to put on repeat indefinitely.
When Lucifer pressed inside of me, it was like something clicked in my brain. Any kind of resistance I had to the guys was promptly demolished. I knew at that moment, I was supposed to be here. That I was meant to have this power. This ability to bring them into this plane, to give them a taste of what it was like to be human.
Why I hadn’t felt it with Michael, I didn’t know, but I knew that whatever the reason behind it, I wasn’t going to fight it. Not that I could. It felt too damn good to stop, even if I wanted to. Which I didn’t. Oh God, did I not want it to stop.
My eyes squeezed shut, and my head fell back on the pillow beneath me as my orgasm ripped through me. Two weeks of pent-up sexual tension and I was close to blacking out from my release. There was nothing in the world like having the Devil between your thighs.
I snort-laughed at that thought as I came down from my high.
“What is it?” Lucifer asked, settling in next to me.
Smiling, I turned to him. “So, Mandy’s Catholic. Or at least somewhat.”
“Okay?” Lucifer peered at me, his hand stroking my bare shoulder.
I shifted on the bed and leaned onto my elbow. “Well, I was just thinking that there was nothing better than having you between my legs and then that got me thinking about the nuns.”
“The nuns?” What could only be described as a devilish grin spread across his lips. “What could those poor ladies have to do with it?”
I couldn’t help but smile back at him. “I was just thinking that if they heard the thoughts that I was having about the Devil right this second, they might fall over and die.”
Lucifer laughed a full-throated laugh, making my insides clench low. “Sometimes, your mind is a miraculous thing.”
“I know.” I sniffed, mockingly brushing my shoulder off before collapsing back on the bed. We laid there for a few moments, Lucifer playing with my hair and me contemplating another go, when my phone chirped.
“Don’t get it,” Lucifer pleaded with me as I tried to get up from the bed. “Stay with me.”
I smiled at him. “I wish I could, but it might be Mandy, and like I said, we have a case. With my one stable paycheck gone, I have to make ends meet.” Leaning over, I pressed my lips to his but found myself dragged back into the bed and beneath him before I knew it.
“You play dirty,” I gasped as his finger found my wet center.
Lucifer smirked. “I’m the Devil, what did you expect?”
I gasped and moaned before replying, “Everything and more.” While my phone chirped at me from the kitchen, I let Lucifer drive me into oblivion once more. After all, it was good to have friends in low places. Very low places.
6
When Lucifer lost his corporeal form - the people of the world wept at that - I finally went and checked my phone. Mandy had messaged me with the information I needed to head out to the resort.
I didn’t bother taking the tags off my new clothes as I shoved them into my suitcase. It was pretty beaten up since I never bothered to buy anything new. The dark green canvas material had faded to a dingy brown. If I’d remembered my less-than-luxurious bags, I would have sprung for new ones while I was out. As it was, I didn’t have time now. I just had to hope no one saw me come in. Didn’t want to break my cover as one of the rich elite before I even checked in.
“How long will you be at this resort?” Lucifer asked from the bed. Of course, he hadn’t bothered to put his clothes
back on. They now lay scattered around my room where he’d discarded them, while he lay naked as the day he was born or, well, created, however that worked.
“I don’t know.” I shrugged, my eyes lingering on his bare form every time I passed by. “Could you put some clothes on?”
Lucifer grinned. “Does my form displease you?” He trailed a hand down his side to lay it on his hip, my eyes followed the movement drawing my attention to his hardening cock.
A bit breathless and more than a little wet, I shook my head. “No, but it does make it hard to get anything productive done, and the longer I have to work, the less time we have to do other things …”
With a bit of a pout, Lucifer conceded. “Very well.” Without a word or so much as a snap of his fingers, he was clothed in the same exact outfit sitting on my floor.
“Neat trick,” I commented, shoving yet another pair of shoes into my bag. “I could think of a few ways that could come in handy.”
Lucifer lifted one elegant shoulder. “I wear them because they are expected of me, not because I enjoy them. Being attached to material things is a human trait I am happy to not partake in.”
I scoffed. “Oh, okay, Mr. Three Piece Designer Suits. Admit it. Looking good matters to you.”
Shifting on the bed so that he was closer to me, Lucifer said, “I never said that. Looking good and being attached to one’s clothing are two separate things. Besides, who has ever heard of a sloppy Devil?” He flashed me a full-toothed grin.
Rolling my eyes at his arrogance, I finished packing my bag and tried to shut it. No such luck. The bag too small and the number of items in it too many. With a disheartened sigh, I sat on top of the bag and struggled to get it zipped closed.
“Is this a human custom?”
“What?” I asked, still struggling to get the bag shut.
“To sit on one’s luggage? Do all humans do this?” His brows rose up on his forehead to create a look of utter fascination with my actions.