by Bea Paige
I swallow several times, trying to get rid of the fire that seems to be lodged just behind my tonsils. “A brother?” I croak, not letting him distract from the matter on hand.
“When the angels fell… we weren’t just thrown out of Heaven. We rebelled. Some of us did, not all. Others were undecided, trying to stay neutral, while the rest fought on the side of the Maker. It was chaos. Of course, the one who’d incited the rebellion was Lucifer, but he had a faithful friend, a second in command…”
Maro takes the glass from my hand and empties it in one go.
“Your brother,” I whisper, watching as the last bit of golden glow leaks from his face.
“Yes, Marbas. He was always the more talented of the two of us. Better at fighting, better looking, better at attracting the attention of female angels. And better at rebelling, I guess.”
He looks at his empty glass, not meeting my eyes.
“What side were you on?” I ask him, keeping my voice as steady and neutral as possible. I can take an educated guess, but I want him to confirm it.
“Neither.”
His answer surprises me. “Huh?”
“Of course, Marbas wanted me to be part of the rebellion. Most of my friends were on the other side, though. I didn’t want to abandon them, but I also didn’t want my brother to fight alone. I tried my best to be both, to help negotiate and bring the two sides together… but it didn’t work. They all assumed that I was secretly supporting my brother, so when he was thrown out of Heaven, they expelled me too. Luckily, the few friends I still had managed to convince the Maker to let me live on Earth rather than be stuck in Hell like Marbas. I’m free to travel here and visit him, but I’m barred from Heaven. I guess they still assume that one day, I’ll come and join my twin.”
“And Plutus thinks that too,” I say quietly. It’s not a question, I already know that it’s true. It’s been obvious from the way the two men have been talking to each other.
“He and every other damn demon,” Maro sighs. “They can sense the darkness in me. They know I’m not one of the heavenly angels, so they automatically assume that I’m one of the fallen. Which I am, technically, but not quite.”
He stops talking and stares at his glass, deep in thought. I'm not quite sure what to say. I want to hug him, but he doesn't look like he's in the mood for it. With his angelic glow gone, I see the darkness in him, the darkness that the demons are sensing too. What matters though, is if he decides to act on it. All of us have darkness inside, but not all of us become sinners. That might be the difference between Maro and his brother.
"You helped me," I tell him, before noticing that he might need a bit of context. "You knew you'd have to face prejudice in Hell. You didn't have to come here. And yet... you did. To help me, someone you don't even know. You're going against your brother's ally, or friend, or whatever Lucifer is to him. All of that... only a very good person would do that. You're not a fallen angel to me, Maro."
Finally, he looks up at me, his eyes blazing with an echo of the golden hue they were when I first met him. "That's sweet of you to say, but you don't know me. You have no idea what I've done. I deserve to be living down here, hell, I deserve to be punished in one of the circles."
I can't help it, I have to laugh. "Blasphemy!"
"What?" His dark expression is turning into confusion.
"Ever since I met you, you've been telling me not to use the word hell as a curse. Well, now you did it yourself."
He stares at me blankly for a moment, then a tiny smile is flickering on his lips. "I guess you're right. How very hypocritical of me."
"No, it makes you human."
The smile disappears. "Ciera, I'm not human. I'm as far from being human as it gets."
I reach out and take his hands into mine. "And that's what makes you special. You're an angel, a real bloody angel. You know that humans tell tales of having guardian angels watching over them? Well, you're mine, and I'm not letting you believe that you're anything else than a good, selfless person, human or not."
To emphasise - this man seems to need some encouragement - I lean over the table and press my lips against his. A kiss sometimes solves everything… but it doesn’t last. A cough behind me makes me jump and pull back.
“Sorry to interrupt, but I’ve got some bad news.” Ceb puts two glasses in front of us, as if to prepare us for the coming shock. “We can’t go on straight away. The sixth circle is closed.”
Chapter 19
“Closed? What do you mean closed?” I ask, my voice sounding both shrill and inebriated. Currently, Plutus has two heads and is looking more like Ceb in hellhound form than himself.
“Under construction or something…” Plutus shrugs. “No doubt Lucifer is up to something. Bottom line is, we ain’t going anywhere just yet.”
“Are you serious?”
“Sorry Ciera, this happens every so often. We just need to wait it out for a bit,” Ceb says apologetically.
“Well, how long’s a bit?” I slur. Suddenly, the chair beneath me seems to turn to liquid and my body falls to the side.
“Long enough to sober you up,” Maro says, catching me before I slide to the floor. He shoots a look at Ceb. “Ciera downed my drink…”
“Ah, fuck,” Ceb responds. “This should be interesting.”
Maro hauls me to my feet, then realising that my legs seemed to have lost the ability to walk, picks me up in his arms. “Let’s get you a bed to sleep off the drink. Hopefully by then we’ll have access to the next circle.”
“But I want to go now. Just let me talk to the gatekeeper, they’ll let me through. I’m badass,” I slur.
“I think that’s the issue,” Plutus mumbles as he follows Maro and I across the pub and into a darkened corridor, Ceb following behind.
“You’re all coming to bed too?” I ask, with a giggle.
Ceb and Plutus glance at each other. “We don’t really sleep. That’s a luxury bestowed upon those who aren’t…”
“Aren’t as what? Demony?”
Ceb chuckles. “No, Ciera... Dark. Dreaming is for souls who still have light.”
“But I gave my light up. It’s gone now. I don’t need sleeeeeep,” I say, drawing out the word. “I think we should do something far more exciting than sleep to pass the time.”
“Don’t tempt me, Ciera,” Plutus says, his voice rumbling. Even in my drunken haze my body reacts to his dominance.
Maro stops abruptly in front of a door at the furthest end of the corridor. He turns with me in his arms and looks from Ceb to Plutus. “Stand guard. No one gets in this room. Got it?”
“You want us to wait out here whilst…” Ceb’s voice trails off at the glare Maro gives him.
“Fine, fine. I’ll be your bloody watchdog.”
“Plutus?” Maro asks, waiting for a response.
Plutus’ gaze falls from Maro’s face to mine. “Will you be alright, Ciera?”
“Why wouldn’t I be alright? Maro’s an angel,” I giggle, running a hand over the thick muscle of his arm.
Plutus scoffs, looking far from convinced. “If you need me, call. I’ll be here with Ceb standing guard, okay?”
“Okay.”
Before Maro is able to open the door and step inside, Plutus leans over and presses a rough kiss against my mouth. My heart lurches in my chest at the contact.
“I haven’t forgotten our kiss, Ciera,” he murmurs against my mouth, before pulling back.
I feel Maro tense around me, but he doesn’t say a word.
“Since when did you kiss Ciera?” Ceb grumbles looking more than a little pissed off. I can’t help but giggle. It’s fun being the centre of their attention, and by ‘their,’ I mean the several Cebs and Plutus’ that are multiplying in front of me.
“It’s none of your damn business, hound,” Plutus responds.
Indignant, Ceb’s arm reaches out to stop Maro from heading into the room.
“Wait!” he says. “I’ll be damned if I’m the only one w
ho doesn’t steal a kiss.” He leans over, his huge bulk blocking out the overhead light. Above us, I can hear Maro murmuring obscenities under his breath, but, surprisingly, he doesn’t try to stop Ceb. He lets him kiss me.
Ceb’s mouth is soft, gentle even. I can feel the tickle of his beard against my skin, and in my drunk fuelled haze I wonder what that beard would feel like against other, more delicate areas. His tongue nudges open my lips and dances against my own. Ceb’s kisses are surprisingly sweet for someone so full of fire and brimstone. When his mouth leaves mine, the look he gives me is hard to read, but there is as much surprise in them as I know there must be in mine. My fingers flutter to my lips, the drunken haze fading fast. Has his kiss sobered me up?
“Damn it Ciera…” he mumbles before looking up at Maro. “I will guard this door with my life, you have my word.”
Maro dips his head in acknowledgement and then steps inside the room.
“I think I can walk now. Ceb’s kiss…”
“Sobered you up?”
I nod. “How?”
“Damned if I know how it works. What I do know is, the couple of times I’ve been in trouble down here, Berus has managed to heal me enough so that I can battle my way out again.”
“He kissed you too?” I ask, my mouth dropping open, my brain completely bypassing the fact that he has had to battle his way out of Hell in the past. Maro releases me from his arms, but I wobble on my feet still feeling a little tipsy if not rip-roaring drunk. He reaches out his hand to steady me.
“You may feel less drunk but you’re still not fully sober. Get on the bed, Cookie.”
“Back to Cookie now, is it?” I ask, climbing on the bed. I make room next to me for Maro to sit down, tapping the empty space beside me. Maro remains where he is, staring at me from his spot in the middle of the room. I tap the bed again. This time he obeys, and slides into the empty space next to me.
“You haven’t answered my question.” I insist.
“You don’t like my nickname for you?” he asks, turning his body to face mine.
“That’s not the question I mean…” I smirk.
Maro chuckles. “No, Cerberus has never kissed me, Ciera. He wouldn’t dare.”
“Fair enough,” I laugh, then raise my hand to my head as the most explosive headache flashes behind my eyes. “Holy fuck, what is that?” I ask my hand flying to my forehead. White spots enter my vision.
“Ah, that will be the mother of all hangovers,” Maro says, apologetically. “You’re better off trying to sleep it off.”
“I don’t suppose there are any painkillers in Hell?” I mumble, my eyes closing against the pain.
“Afraid not, but there are my hands…”
“Your hands?” I ask, cracking my eye open a fraction to see whether he’s taking the piss or not.
“Yes, my hands. Come here, Ciera,” he demands gently. This time he is tapping the bed between his parted legs. “Sit here, lean your back against me. I will rub that headache away.”
I’m not sure if it’s because he’s doing that hocus pocus thing of his, or whether it’s because I really, really want a head rub, but either way I crawl into his lap. This headache is the mother of all headaches and I don’t really care whether I’m under his spell or not, I want it gone. If his hands can give me relief, then so be it.
For the next half hour, Maro massages my head. His fingers start across my temple, moving in a circular motion before heading across my scalp. He is so good at it that the headache eases within minutes, but I don’t tell him that. Frankly, he could massage me like this for the next bloody week. When his fingers move to the back of my head and to the tops of my shoulders I can’t help but let out a long moan of ecstasy.
“Ciera, don’t do that,” Maro says, his voice husky.
“Do what?” I ask, twisting my body so I can look up at him.
“That noise you made. It’s very…”
As I look up into his eyes, I am very aware of Maro’s hands resting just above the top of my breast. “It’s very what, Maro?”
“Sexy. You’re very sexy, Ciera.”
Without really thinking about what I’m doing, I twist in his lap and straddle him.
“What are you doing?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” I ask, reaching up and brushing a strand of hair that has fallen in his eyes.
“I think you’re playing with fire. I think this could be a mistake. I think I want you to kiss me and damn the consequences,” Maro says in a heated rush.
“I’m already in Hell, so playing with fire is something I do quite well. As for it being a mistake, I’ve made plenty of them and lived to tell the tale…”
“And the last part?” Maro murmurs quietly, his hand reaching up to hold the back of my head.
I lean in close, my hips rocking against his pelvis as I do.
“What do you think?”
We both move to close the space between us, our lips joining in a heated rush. Maro’s fingers twine in my hair whilst mine wrap around the back of his neck. Our kiss is filled with red-hot desire, with passion, with longing. Our teeth clash with the urgency, our tongues entwine. My teeth nip against his lip and in response Maro growls, pulling my hair hard as his mouth moves down the curve of my exposed neck and slides back up again seeking out my mouth once more. We kiss for what seems like forever. It doesn’t move on from the kiss, even though I can feel Maro’s arousal thick and hot between us. For once in my life I am being kissed as though that’s all that matters. There’s no rush to move on to the next part. There is just satisfaction in our mouths pressed against one another. It’s exhilarating.
Eventually, Maro pulls his mouth away from mine. He places his hand up, resting it against my shoulder preventing me from seeking his kiss once more.
“No more, Cookie. As much as I want to kiss you all night, this must stop now before it goes any further.”
“But I want…”
Maro lifts his finger to my lips. “I know, I do too. But this isn’t the time, or the place.” He cups my face in his hand and brushes the pad of his thumb against my cheek. For a moment we just stare at each other, before Maro’s head suddenly snaps to the door. In one swift movement he lifts me off his lap and is standing in front of me, his sword withdrawn and glowing.
“Maro, what is it?” I ask.
The door flings open and Ceb and Plutus rush in.
Plutus and Ceb are by my side in an instant. “Get up, we have to go now,” Plutus demands, handing me my bow and arrow. I hadn’t even realised I’d left it behind.
“What’s happening? What is it?” I ask, feeling slightly better now that I have my new weapon back. I’m so much better with a bow than I ever was with my knives.
Ceb snarls, the light in his eyes changing.
“The gate’s open…. All Hell’s breaking loose.”
The End
Continue the Infernal Descent Series in book two, Hell’s Weeping.
https://books2read.com/hellsweeping
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About the Authors
Bea Paige lives a very secretive life in London... she likes red wine and Haribos (preferably together) and occasionally swings around poles when the mood takes her. If you like your books filled with vampires, wolf-shifters, angels, fae and Demi-gods then start reading her Sisters of Hex series, but if you prefer contemporary romance then grab the Brothers Freed series of books. Bea can't wait to see what you think.
Skye MacKinnon is an International Bestselling author with a slight obsession with Scotland, bunnies and dried mango. And when she says slight... her friends are trying to find ways to trick her into not having a book set in Scotland.
Whether they're set in space (Scottish space, obviously), fantasy worlds (Scottish fantasy worlds, obviously), or Scotland, Skye's tales are full of magic, romance and adventure. Oh and unicorns.
Also by Bea Paige
The Sisters of Hex series
(paranormal romance / reverse harem)
Prequel to The Sisters of Hex series:
Five Gold Rings: https://books2read.com/FiveGoldRings
Sisters of Hex: Accacia
OUT NOW:
#1 Accacia’s Curse https://books2read.com/AccaciasCurse
#2 Accacia’s Blood https://books2read.com/AccaciasBlood
#3 Accacia’s Bite https://books2read.com/AccaciasBite
Sisters of Hex: Fern
Out Now:
#1 Fern’s Decision https://books2read.com/FernsDecision
#2 Fern’s Wings https://books2read.com/FernsWings
#3 Fern’s Flight https://books2read.com/FernsFlight
Finding Their Muse
(dark contemporary romance / reverse harem)
#1 Stepshttps://books2read.com/Steps
#2 StrokesComing Soon
#3 StringsComing Soon
The Brothers Freed Series
(contemporary romance / reverse harem)
#1 Avalanche of Desire https://books2read.com/AvalancheOfDesire
#2 Storm of Seduction https://books2read.com/StormSeduction
#3 Dawn of Love
https://books2read.com/DawnOfLove
The Soul Guide series
(Urban Fantasy)
#1 Divided Souls https://books2read.com/DividedSouls
#2 Soul Ascendance https://books2read.com/SoulAscendance
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