All four men seemed blissfully happy, and the women they’d chosen were wonderful additions to the resort. Cristian used to have trouble imagining himself choosing one woman to spend a mortal life with and having to share her in the bargain with one of the other owners. That was the condition of their punishment, and now none of them could deny the fact that the curse could be lifted—something they still had doubted even as Leo and Andras began to age and change in small ways after choosing Blair.
But now that Hugh and Sterling had chosen Caleigh and had begun to exhibit the same changes, the other owners no longer denied the fact that their punishment was real. For that matter, so was the possibility of redemption, for the same fate that condemned them could also redeem them.
For the first time since 1919 when they’d been handed this punishment by the archangels and cast to Earth for their sins, Cristian began to imagine a mortal life with one woman—Joelle. But as wonderful as it sounded, he’d have to share her. Would Blade agree to such a thing? For that matter, would Joelle?
A jolt of fear shot through Cristian as he imagined telling Joelle what they were, about their punishment, and the only conditions under which it could be lifted. How would she react? Sure, she was a fun dame, but she was also levelheaded. She’d think they’d both gone off the deep end.
Cristian was so lost in his musings that by the time he registered the fact he’d heard water running and soft footfalls on carpeting, he had no time to pull his wings back in before Joelle’s terrified cry reached his ears.
Chapter Fourteen
“Holy hellfire! What the fuck are you?” Joelle stared at the wings on Cristian’s naked back. Wings. Huge wings attached beneath his shoulder blades, that spanned at least ten feet and hung down to his calves. They waved gently back and forth in the breeze from the open window.
What the hell?
Cristian whirled around, and Joelle recoiled at the look of terror on his face. “Joelle…it’s okay. They won’t hurt you.”
“What the fuck is going on?” A million questions ran through her mind, but she couldn’t give a voice to any except that one. Her heart hammered so loudly surely he could hear it. Her palms were damp and breathing was difficult. As she stared at the wings, they slowly started to disappear. Only disappear wasn’t exactly the right word. It was more like they withdrew. She was certain if he turned around again she’d watch them being sucked right back into his body.
The corners of Cristian’s mouth turned up as if he were trying not to laugh. “You’re cute when you swear like a sailor. Right now I’m picturing you in a midshipman’s uniform on the deck of a destroyer.”
“What are you?” she whispered. She wasn’t in the mood for his humor right now.
She heard footsteps and spun around to find Blade behind her.
“Cristian…what the hell have you done?”
His tone was more accusatory than surprised. Joelle stared from one man to the other, trying to make sense of what she’d just seen and heard but failing miserably. It couldn’t be real, and yet she knew it was. But what the hell did it mean? Who and what were these men? Were they even men, for that matter?
Cristian looked crestfallen, and Joelle’s heart gave a strange lurch. There were times when Blade was too sharp with him.
“It was an accident, Blade.”
“Letting out your wings was an accident?” Blade came up behind Joelle and put his hands on her shoulders. “Are you all right?” he asked quietly.
She looked into his eyes, unsure how to answer.
“No,” said Cristian. “I mean the fact Joelle saw them was an accident. I didn’t hear her come into the room.”
Blade made a sound of disgust, and Joelle turned on him. “Stop that. He’s not a child. And you obviously aren’t shocked by this, so instead of chiding him, why don’t you tell me what the hell is going on here?”
Blade looked mollified and reached for her hand, but she pulled it away and took a few steps back. “Oh no, not again. You are not going to distract me with your damn sexy eyes and your scent again.”
Cristian’s wings were no longer visible, but the window was still wide open. Joelle crossed her arms. “It’s freezing in here.”
Cristian shut the window then pulled on his boxer shorts. Blade glanced around the room, spotted his, and put them on. Joelle wrapped her robe tightly around her body and began to pace the room. Every strange thing that she’d been mulling over last evening by the pool before Blade picked her up came back to her. He’d distracted her on purpose last evening. She was sure of it.
“What’s going on here? What is really going on?” she asked again. “Either you tell me or I’m out of here.” She didn’t know if her threat would pull any weight with them, but it was an empty one as far as she was concerned. These men had touched her heart in a way no others ever had. And now that she was over the initial shock, she was fascinated by the possibility of what Blade and Cristian might truly be.
“Please sit down,” said Blade. “I’ll get you a drink. You’ll need it.”
As Blade made his way into the kitchen, Joelle glanced toward Cristian, who still stood in front of the window, looking defeated. “Come away from the window and sit down, Cristian.”
“I’m sorry, Joelle. I should have been more careful.”
“I’m not upset with you. I just want to know what’s going on.”
“Blade is better at explaining things than I am.”
Joelle glanced toward the kitchen and lowered her voice. “Why do you let him speak that way to you?”
Cristian shrugged, and a shadow of anger passed through his eyes.
“Stand up to him. You have a lot going for you, Cristian. Let that show, okay?”
He crossed the room and wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly. His scent filled her head and erotic images danced through her mind, but Joelle mentally shook them off. She needed to keep a clear perspective right now. She pulled out of his arms and took a seat in the armchair. That way neither of them could sit too close, and maybe she wouldn’t fall under their spell this time.
Blade handed Joelle a glass, and she drank, wincing at how much rum he’d put in it. So much for keeping a clear head. He and Cristian sat on the sofa, across from her. “Okay, I have my drink. Now start explaining.”
“We’re Nephilim,” said Blade. “Fallen angels.”
Joelle blinked a few times, wondering if Blade was joking, but nothing in his facial expression or his eyes told her he was. “Pardon me?”
“It’s true,” said Cristian. “All those times I slipped up and said ‘we’ is because I meant it. There are twelve of us, and we’re the original and only owners of this resort. We’re not cousins, and there is no extended family.”
“You lied to me?”
“We lie to everyone, Joelle,” said Blade. “Would you have booked a vacation here if the magazine article you read said the place is run by fallen angels?”
“Maybe. What about your staff? Do you lie to them as well?”
Blade shook his head. “Not anymore. We…when Leo and Andras…let me back up a bit. The twelve of us were part of a larger group sent to Earth during Prohibition to help people find a more peaceful way to express their dislike of booze. We decided it would be more fun to get drunk and seduce women. We were especially fond of having one woman between two of us.”
A chill ran over Joelle’s limbs. “Oh, I see. No wonder you didn’t protest that first night when I suggested a threesome. Is that what you meant the other day by ‘the rules’?”
“Please don’t think that,” said Cristian, giving her a pitiful look. “It wasn’t like that.”
“Really, Cristian? You’d known me all of two hours. It was exactly like that.”
“Um, not to be rude,” said Blade, “but you suggested it, Joelle, not us.”
Heat crept up her face. “You did something to me that night.”
Blade shook his head. “No. We did not use our powers to seduce you,
sweetheart.”
Had he just called her ‘sweetheart’ again? “What about last night by the pool? You were watching me too closely. You knew I was mulling things over, and you did something so I’d stop thinking about all the odd things that happen when I’m around you two.”
“I distracted you, nothing more. I swear it.”
“Can you read my thoughts?”
“Not the way you probably imagine. We can sense emotions and general trains of thought, but it’s not like we’re listening to a radio show and get a word-for-word translation.”
“How do I know then if my feelings when I’m with you are real?” She was the biggest fool on the planet. She’d let these men—or whatever they were—trick her into acting like the loose woman Scott had once accused her of being. And to think she had actually convinced herself that she was falling in love with them, and had fantasized that they might have feelings for her as well. What an idiot she was.
“Do you doubt your own senses?” asked Cristian. He gave her a smoldering look, but Joelle didn’t allow it to arouse her this time. Was that look part of his act? “What we feel when we make love with you is as real as what you feel, Joelle. We can’t manipulate free will or your emotions. We can’t make you do anything you truly don’t want to do already.”
“This still makes me very uncomfortable, Cristian.”
He looked flustered, and she felt guilty. It was bad enough when Blade was condescending toward him. Joelle didn’t want to be part of that as well.
“Enhance is a better way to explain it. We can change the environment to enhance emotions that are already there.”
“Like the way the air feels electrified and hot at times when I’m with one of you? You’re doing that?”
He shook his head. “We aren’t charging the air, but that’s your perception when we use our powers near you, yes.”
“And you each have a distinct smell. Is that just in my imagination?”
“No, it’s there. Some people are more sensitive to it than others.”
“Do you use your powers to enhance the environment for all the guests?”
Cristian averted his gaze and lowered his voice. “Yes, but you already knew that, Joelle.”
What he said was true. It’s why she’d booked this vacation. “What about the fact I hardly see you two eat anything? Do you have to eat and drink to stay alive?”
“No, but we can and do enjoy food and drink.”
“Would you have explained this to me at all if I hadn’t walked in on Cristian with his wings out?”
Blade and Cristian exchanged a glance again. Joelle blinked back tears. What was wrong with her? Why should it bother her so much that they treated her no differently than the other guests? That’s all she was, after all—just another woman in a long line of conquests for them. That’s why women came here. It’s what they did. She was nothing special to them, and once she left they’d move on.
Blade was watching her carefully. “Honestly? I don’t know if we would have told you, Joelle. We don’t normally tell our guests what we are unless forced to. Most become quite upset or afraid.”
Joelle took a deep breath. She still wasn’t sure she believed them, but what else would explain the wings? Even if she could find rational explanations for all the other strange phenomena she’d experienced, none of those would explain actual wings on a human being.
“Do you remember when I first spoke to you, as you admired Lilith’s portrait?” asked Blade.
She nodded.
“You told me demons were fascinating.”
“And you told me she was your cousin. That’s not exactly true, is it?”
Blade had the grace to look guilty. “No, not even close. We tell people that to explain her portrait hanging in the lobby. But you also told me that history was full of stories about angels and demons interacting with humans, and that there were too many instances of unexplained phenomena in the world to completely discount the presence of supernatural creatures.”
“That’s not fair, Blade.”
The corners of his mouth turned up. “What is unfair? That I remember what you said, word-for-word?”
Joelle decided to ignore that point for the moment. “You can tell me what Lilith has to do with this place in a moment. First I want to know why you have this place at all. Why did you build this resort?”
“We were punished for our sins and for ignoring our mission. In retaliation, we started this resort to indulge in our fantasies, and as a way to thumb our noses at the archangels who had a hand in our punishment.” Blade rose and headed for the kitchen. “Do you want another drink, Joelle?”
“Yes.” She’d need several drinks to understand this revelation.
“It was fun at first,” he said, “but it brought us no permanent satisfaction. Several of us grew bored very quickly.” Blade handed her a fresh drink then returned to his seat. “The curse placed on us was designed so we’d constantly remember our sins. Since our preference was for two of us to seduce one woman, the only way we can choose a mortal life and have a chance at redemption is to convince a woman to spend the rest of her life with two of us. If she agrees, we become mortal.”
“But obviously, because of bigamy laws, we can’t marry her,” said Cristian. “And, as an extra added bonus, Lilith made us sterile, so we can’t give the woman children.”
“Why did she do that?” asked Joelle.
“We spurned her a long time ago. This was her sick way of getting revenge on us.”
Joelle glared at Cristian. “So that whole story about all of you having vasectomies was just bullshit then.”
“I never told you we had vasectomies. You jumped to that conclusion.”
Joelle was about to protest but realized Cristian was right. She’d made the only logical assumption she could at the time. He’d never actually said the word. “So why do you keep her portrait in the lobby?”
“She threatened to burn the place down if we didn’t keep it there,” said Blade. “And none of us wants to take a chance that she would follow through with her threat.”
“This is a lot to take in.”
“We know,” said Cristian. “And we’re sorry we had to tell you this way. It’s my fault.”
“No, it’s not. Please stop blaming yourself for this. I’ve had suspicions that something was odd here, long before I saw your wings. They’re really amazing, by the way.” She glanced at Blade. “Do you have them, too? Do all of you?”
“We do, but only Cristian can make his appear now.”
“Why is that?”
“The more time that goes by, the weaker our powers become, but which ones diminish is different for each of us.”
“Have some of the owners already chosen a mortal life?”
Blade nodded. “Leo and Andras were the first two. They chose Blair, or rather she chose them, in 1936. Then in 1943 Caleigh chose Hugh and Sterling.”
“They’re human now—those four owners?”
“Yes.”
She looked from one man to the other, wondering if she dared to ask. “Is that what you two want as well?”
“It’s crossed my mind.” Blade gave her a pointed look. Joelle had to avert her gaze because she wasn’t sure if the flutter in her heart was real or the result of Blade using his powers on her. How would she ever again be sure of anything she felt or thought while near them?
Cristian cleared his throat. “I never thought about it until recently.”
The corners of Blade’s mouth turned up as though he were trying to suppress a smile, but Cristian turned his attention toward Joelle. “Have you met Blair or Caleigh yet?”
Joelle shook her head.
“If you want to talk to them, we can arrange it. They might be able to help you understand all this better than we can.”
“I’ll think about it, Cristian.” Joelle wasn’t sure what she understood at this point. “But right now I think it’s best if I’m alone.” She glanced at the floor. “I have a g
reat deal to think about right now. Okay?”
“Joelle, for what’s it worth, I…we…don’t think of you as just another guest.” Cristian glanced toward Blade with a pleading expression on his face, as if looking for backup.
“It’s true,” said Blade. “We had so much fun with you yesterday and…and we’re both really sorry if telling you this has upset you.”
Joelle had to blink back tears again. She didn’t want to allow hope to build, but it was impossible not to. “Thank you, both of you. I had a lot of fun yesterday as well. I’ve had a lot of fun with both of you since I arrived. I just need some time to absorb all this, okay?”
Chapter Fifteen
Joelle didn’t sleep well the rest of the night. Every time she drifted off, horned demons and angels with fiery wings chased her dreams, and she jerked awake, panting and drenched in sweat. There was no reason to fear Blade or Cristian, but she couldn’t reconcile all she’d been told with the men she thought she knew. Had everything been a lie? Just a game where they enhanced the environment, as Cristian had called it, for their own pleasure?
But isn’t that why she’d come here? Two weeks of no-strings-attached sex. She’d used them as much as they’d used her. Knowing what they were didn’t change anything. Then why did she feel so betrayed and empty? Because she’d been foolish enough to believe she was falling in love, that’s why. And she’d held out hope they felt something for her as well.
Cristian’s words came back to her. “Joelle, for what’s it worth, I…we…don’t think of you as just another guest.”
But what did that really mean? She’d be gone in just over a week. Despite that unpleasant fact, there was no point in denying her feelings. Going home now or next week wouldn’t change one blessed thing. She was falling in love with Blade and Cristian. Not just one man, but two. And not really men, either. Angels. Fallen angels, yet. Joelle wanted to laugh, but it wasn’t funny. Not funny at all. It was terrible. How the hell had this happened?
* * * *
When Joelle woke again, bright light streamed in through the open drapes. Had she drawn them closed last night? She couldn’t even remember. The smell of eggs, bacon, and coffee assaulted her senses. What the heck?
Her Wanton Ways [Notorious Nephilim 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 11