Her hand slid beneath his shirt while her tongue trailed down his neck and up to his ear. “Take me home, Damian. I want to make love to you.”
The only response he gave her was a masculine grunt, and when she blinked, she was lying on top of him in his bed. His hands kneaded her back, and he nibbled on her neck, sending warm shivers up and down her spine. Nestled in the protective cage of Damian’s arms, she felt safe and adored, and she wanted to give herself to him completely.
“I need you, Damian.”
He groaned and rolled on top of her, dissolving his clothes as his hands explored her body. His passion drunk eyes were deep and heavy, and he struggled to tug her shirt over her head. “You aren’t making this easy on me.”
She bit her bottom lip and closed her eyes. The warmth of his skin enveloped her as her clothing melted away.
“That’s better.” He kissed her with urgency, as if he was afraid she’d slip away at any moment. But she wasn’t going anywhere. She belonged to him. Every part of her. Body, mind, and soul.
She gasped as he filled her, clung to him as they made love. His gentle rhythm quickened, sending electricity pulsing through her soul. Her orgasm overtook her, and she trembled beneath him as he shuddered, consumed by his own release.
Rising onto his elbows, he trailed his fingertips down her cheek and across her lips. “Oh, April...aw hell.” He dropped his head on the pillow beside her and blew out an exasperated breath. “He’s really got bad timing.”
Their Charge’s adrenaline pulse through her core, too. “Daniel’s suicidal again.”
“Come on. But this time, will you try to help him from The In-Between?”
She grinned and ran a finger down his back. “No promises.”
They arrived in Daniel’s apartment without a second to spare. He sat on the sofa with a gun pointed at his temple. His finger trembled on the trigger, and he squeezed his eyes shut.
She clutched Damian’s arm as she formulated a plan in her mind. “Where the hell’d he get a gun?”
“I don’t know, but we need to start paying more attention to him. What are you going to do?”
Did she have a choice? The guy was about to blow his head off. “I’m going in.”
“April, let’s think about this first.”
Daniel exhaled and lowered the gun.
“Please try whispering to him first.”
She fisted her hands at her sides. “Whispering doesn’t work with him.”
Damian shot her an imploring look, and she sighed.
“Daniel, please put the gun down. The pain will lessen. Your life is worth living.”
“Life’s not worth living.” He pressed the gun into his temple.
“That’s it.” She Jumped to his apartment and ripped the gun from his hand.
Rubbing his hand on his forehead, he let his head drop back on the couch. “Go away.”
“Sorry, Daniel. No can do.” She plopped down next to him on the sofa. At least he didn’t reek of vomit this time. “What are you doing with your life, buddy? You’ve gotta get it together.”
“Ha. Right.”
“Seriously. God really does have big plans for you, but you have to stay alive.”
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and dropped his head into his hands. “What do you know about God?”
“Uh, hello? Guardian Angel?”
“Okay then. If God has such big plans for me, why’d he take my wife away? She was everything to me.”
She rubbed her hand across his back. “God didn’t take your wife away; she was murdered.”
“They didn’t even catch the bastard. No one knows who did it.”
Tears streamed down his cheeks, turning into heavy sobs, and she couldn’t stand seeing him in that much pain. He needed closure, and she had to give it to him.
“I know who did it.”
His head whipped up, and he glared at her. “Who? Tell me who.” He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her. “Tell me!”
“If you’ll let me go, I might.” She felt Damian’s presence growing closer. He was on the verge of crossing over, but she needed to do this on her own. She went utterly still and stared into his eyes, lowering her voice to an almost inaudible level. “Let me go.”
Daniel released her. “I’m sorry. Please, Angel. You have to tell me.”
“Okay. First of all, I have a name. It’s April. And second, I’ll only tell you if you promise not to do anything stupid.”
He bit his bottom lip and cut his gaze to the left. “All right, I promise.”
“April...” She heard Damian’s warning like a voice in her head, calling her back to her senses. But she knew her Charge wouldn’t make it to thirty in his current condition.
“He needs closure, Damian.”
“Who’s Damian? Who are you talking to?” Daniel jumped to his feet and paced the small living room. Tension built in his muscles, and he clenched his trembling hands into fists. “Dammit, April. I need to know!”
She crossed the room to stand in front of him and leveled her gaze on his. “Her sister killed her.”
He froze.
“Jenny? No...that’s ridiculous. She’d never hurt her own sister. And she’s been helping me get through this. She even planned the funeral. No, I don’t believe you.”
She gave him the most sincere look she could muster. “I wouldn’t lie to you. It’s my job to protect you.”
His bottom lip trembled and his brow furrowed. “Protect me from what?”
“Well, yourself apparently. Look, I wasn’t supposed to tell you anything. It’s not my place, yada, yada, yada. But I thought you needed to know. So you can move on with your life. Great things will be happening to you in two short years, and you need to be around to experience it.”
He raked his fingers through his hair and shook his head. “Jenny. But, why?”
“Because she wanted to be with you. She’s not right in the mind. She needs help. Now you can call the police, and they can help her.”
His jaw went rigid as he glared at her with steely eyes. “No...no police. She deserves to burn in Hell. Give me my gun.”
She took a step back. “No.”
“Give it to me!” He lunged toward her, but she moved just out of his grasp.
For the first time since becoming a Guardian, April was scared. But not for herself. If he managed to get the gun from her, it would all be over. He’d either blow his own head off or put a bullet in Jenny’s.
“I know you’re angry. I understand what you must be feeling.”
He stalked toward her with his jaw clenched so tight the veins in his neck protruded. “Do you? Have you ever been betrayed like this?”
She took another step back and found herself against the wall. “My boyfriend cheated on me for five months.”
He spat out a sour laugh. “You’re comparing a cheating boyfriend to a murderer? You have no idea what I’m feeling right now.”
“Maybe not, but I do.”
Daniel spun around at the sound of Damian’s voice behind him, and April shoved the gun into the back waistband of her pants.
“Who? You’re her boyfriend.”
“I hope to be, someday. If she’ll have me. But I know what it’s like to lose someone you love to murder. To have the one person in the world you trust the most betray you.”
The sorrow in Damian’s eyes tore at her heart, and she couldn’t let him go through those painful memories again. She rushed to his side and threw her arms around him.
“You don’t have to do this. Just let me...”
“No. You said he needs to find closure? Well, so do I.”
Daniel’s hands trembled as he wiped the tears from his eyes and pressed his back against the wall.
Damian looked at him and sucked in a deep breath. He held on to April like she was the only thing holding him together. She thought he might fall apart if she let him go.
“My...wife. Ex-wife since I denounced her the day it
happened. She murdered our unborn child to be with another man.”
Silence pressed down like a weight in the room, and for a moment, she thought Damian would buckle to the ground. Instead, he straightened his spine and relaxed his shoulders.
“Getting even...killing Jenny. It’s not going to bring your wife back. And neither is hating her for the rest of your life. Trust me. The only person you’ll be hurting is yourself.”
Daniel shook his head. “But she needs to be punished.”
“She does, yes. But it’s not your place to deliver it. God will judge her actions one day. But for now, leave the punishment up to the law.”
Had Damian really forgiven Juliet? Was he ready to let go? The anger in his eyes had relented to compassion. His hands no longer clenched into fists. April rose up on her toes and kissed his cheek.
“I’m proud of you,” she whispered. And he smiled.
“So, Daniel. What are you going to do?” She stepped toward him and squeezed his hand. “Will you leave it up to the law?”
He stared straight ahead, his face expressionless. The moments stretched into minutes as April waited for his answer. He closed his eyes for a long blink, and then he looked into her eyes.
“Okay...okay. I’ll turn her in to the cops. But I want to talk to her first. I’ll take a recorder so I can tape her confession.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. You’re too volatile right now.”
He pulled his hand from her grasp and crossed his arms. “I need closure. I need to hear it from her.”
She looked to Damian, who nodded his head.
“All right. But the gun stays with me.”
“Yeah. Fine. Whatever.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed Jenny’s number. “Hey, Jen. Can you meet me at O’Sullivan’s? I want to talk to you about something. Yeah. Twenty minutes? Great.”
He shoved the phone in his pocket and paced. His rigid posture and staccato movements revealed his anger, and April wondered if she made the right decision.
“Are you sure you want to do this? Maybe you should wait a few days, until you calm down.”
“No.” He shrugged and shook his head. “I’ll be fine. It’s a public place. Nothing’s gonna happen.”
“Right. We’ll stay out of sight, but we’ll be there if you need us.”
Daniel nodded, and with an air of determination, he marched out the door.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
“This was a bad idea, wasn’t it?” April looked at Damian like a child who’d been caught in a lie. She knew she was in trouble, but her determination to help her Charge made it impossible for him to be upset with her.
“Possibly. But you were right. He does need closure, and we’ll help him get it any way we can.” It would take time, but she’d learn what methods worked for keeping Charges safe. The most important aspect of being a Guardian was dedication, and she showed plenty of that in every move she made.
She grinned and poked him in the ribs. “Did you just admit I was right about something? Is that what I heard?”
“Yeah.” He pulled her to his chest and kissed the top of her head. “But don’t get used to it.”
When they reached O’Sullivan’s, a small, rundown bar on the outskirts of downtown Chicago, they found Jenny’s Keeper waiting for them in The In-Between. The dimly lit side parking lot was empty, and an eerie silence filled the air. April clung to his side, and her racing heart thrummed against his ribs.
“Where’s Jenny?” he asked.
The Keeper drifted toward them, sadness filling her eyes. “She’s on her way. You told him, didn’t you?”
“Yes. We felt that—”
April squeezed his hand. “It was my idea. If anything goes wrong, I take full responsibility.”
“We both do.”
“I don’t think this will end well,” the Keeper said. “She’s distraught and conflicted about her actions.”
“As she should be,” he replied.
A light-colored Toyota Camry pulled into the lot. Daniel cut the lights, and with the engine still running, he got out and leaned against the door. His relaxed posture appeared casual, like he was waiting to meet an old friend. But the scowl on his face revealed his inner torment.
April moved closer to her Charge, pulling Damian along with her. “What do you think’s going through his mind right now?”
“Hurt, anger, disbelief.”
April furrowed her brow and cocked her head to the side. “Disbelief?”
“I didn’t want to accept it. I couldn’t believe my wife would commit such a horrendous act.”
“Did you want to kill her?”
He inhaled deeply. Did he want to kill her? Maybe at the height of his distress, when his emotions were so out of control he didn’t trust himself to be around anyone. The thought may have flitted through his mind at some point, but Damian wasn’t a killer. That he’d held on to his anger and resentment for so long was regrettable enough.
“No. As angry as I was for all those years, I couldn’t have killed her. I could never take the life of another person, no matter how heinous their crimes.”
“That’s good to know.”
Her accepting smile warmed his heart. Even in the midst of a possible disaster with their Charge, her beautiful soul reminded him just how much he loved her.
A dark Lexus parked next to Daniel’s car, and Jenny hastened around to face him. She stopped ten feet away and smiled. Her eyes held excitement and fear, like she didn’t know whether to rush into his arms or run away. The Keeper stood behind her, wrapping her in as much compassion as she could offer to the murderer.
“Hi, Daniel. I hope I didn’t keep you waiting too long.”
Daniel pushed from the car and took two steps toward her, his expression blank. “I know what you did.”
Her eyes grew wide, and her gaze darted about the empty parking lot. “What I did? I...I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Don’t play games with me, Jenny. You killed my wife.” He took another step toward her and clenched his fists.
April winced and moved toward him. “Calm down, Daniel. You promised not to do anything stupid.”
“That’s ridiculous.” Jenny’s voice pitched an octave higher. “Who told you that?”
The corner of his mouth pulled up into a wicked grin. “My Guardian Angel.”
Jenny balked. “Do you hear yourself, Daniel? You need help. Maybe you should see a therapist.”
“No. You’re the one who needs help. You killed your own sister. Admit it.”
“Tell him, Jenny. He knows the truth,” the Keeper whispered.
“No! I would never.”
“Why’d you do it? Tell me!”
Tears streamed down her cheeks as she pleaded with him. “I...only did it so we could be together. I love you, Daniel.”
He covered his ears. “No....you don’t love me. You’re sick. You’re obsessed.”
“No, I do love you. I always have. We’re supposed to be together. Don’t you see? With her out of the way, we can finally love each other like we were meant to. I did it for us.”
He clenched his jaw, and the corner of his lip pulled up into a snarl. “I don’t love you. And I will never be with you.”
“No. Don’t do this, Daniel. We can work it out.” She held out her hand and took a tentative step toward him.
“No. I’m calling the police. You belong in prison.”
Jenny blew out a defeated sigh and reached into her handbag. “You’re right, Daniel. You’re right.” She dug through her purse as if she was looking for her keys, but instead, she pulled out a handgun. Her Keeper frantically whispered her disapproval.
April rocked onto the balls of her feet; she was going to Jump. Damian took her hand and squeezed it gently.
“Not yet. Give her Keeper a chance.”
With trembling hands, Jenny pointed the gun at Daniel. He didn’t move. He simply lifted his head and stared at her with cocky confi
dence.
“I didn’t want it to come to this.” Jenny’s voice trembled like her hand. “But if you won’t be with me, then you won’t be with anyone.”
He straightened his posture and glared into her eyes. “You wanna kill me? Go ahead. I’ve got nothing left to live for.”
Jenny’s finger twitched on the trigger, and April leaped into the scene, knocking the pistol from her hands. The gun skidded across the parking lot and landed at Daniel’s feet while Jenny collapsed to the ground in sobs.
Daniel hesitated, then picked up the weapon. He raised it level with Jenny’s head, and without as much as a tremor, his finger rested on the trigger.
“Put the gun down.” April stepped between them with her hands raised in surrender. “Let’s think about this, okay?”
He looked at her and jerked his head to the side. “Move.”
Damian’s heart slammed into his throat. The scene was all too familiar. He couldn’t stand by and watch her be killed again. His stomach wrenched at the thought of her going through all that pain.
“Come on. You don’t want to do this.” April took another step toward him. “Remember what we talked about? Killing Jenny won’t bring your wife back. Give me the gun, Daniel.”
His hand shook. His body trembled, but he didn’t give up the weapon.
“I love you, Daniel,” Jenny cried from her heap on the ground.
“Shut up!” His hand steadied. Determination filled his eyes. “Move, Angel.”
Without a second thought, Damian flew at Daniel and grabbed the gun. But Daniel’s grip was too tight. They wrestled, and though Damian’s strength was overwhelming, Daniel pulled the trigger.
Jenny’s scream ripped through the parking lot, and the metallic smell of fresh blood flooded Damian’s senses. Daniel dropped to his knees, shock making him speechless. Jenny’s cries blasted in Damian’s ears, and his stomach dropped.
April was silent. Dead. Again.
He spun around and found her lying lifeless in a pool of bright red blood. The bullet went straight through her head, blowing a hole the size of a baseball out the back. He scooped her into his arms and turned to Daniel.
The Rest of Forever: A Guardian Angel Paranormal Romance Page 20