Angel's Kiss

by Rosalie Lario

  Ruby stood frozen in place, watching Eva go. The other woman came to a stop right in front of her door, just three rooms down from Ruby’s, and turned back to her with a grin. “Hey, at least there’s a side benefit to going to Alaska. Michael tells me Jason’s going too, and he’s one beefy hunk of angel meat, if I may say so myself.”

  “Um…” Her teasing words caused Ruby’s cheeks to heat. “I suppose so.”

  After giving Ruby a wink, Eva disappeared into the bedroom.

  Huh. Well…what Eva lacked in subtlety she made up for with spunk, that was for sure.

  Shaking herself out of her stupor, Ruby strode inside her own room.

  Eva’s right, she thought as she carelessly removed her clothes and tossed on a pair of comfy flannel pajamas. Jason was vulnerable. Much as she’d like to pretend otherwise, she knew it was the mating process that preserved an angel’s strength and immortality. Tayla had further explained to her that angels fed off each other’s essence while mating, perpetuating their eternal life. Not only did this work with angels, but also those with angelic blood. Nephilim, like her.

  And yes, there was the awesome side benefit that a nephilim who mated with an angel would also experience prolonged life, barring any unfortunate accidents. But that wasn’t enough for her.

  I won’t love like my mother did.

  She couldn’t bear to lose someone she loved that much.

  “You don’t have to be in love to make love, genius.”

  Ruby absorbed that little nugget of self-wisdom while she climbed into bed. It was true. In fact, if she looked at it in terms of pure strategy, it would only make sense to do what she could to ensure the safety of the soldiers who went into battle. While she couldn’t do the same for every unmated angel—even if the thought of multiple lovers appealed to her, which it didn’t, something told her angels would tear each other apart before agreeing to share a bed partner—if she could make just one of them stronger…well then, shouldn’t she?

  She snorted at the path her thoughts had taken.

  Way to rationalize it, Ruby.

  Truth was, she wanted Jason. Wanted him badly. And if giving in to the lust raging within her happened to help make him stronger, then that was just a side bonus. But there was the one little thing that kept her from seeking him out and jumping his bones right here and now.

  What if, in giving herself to him, she inadvertently fell in love?

  She was woefully inexperienced in matters of the flesh. While it was easy enough to think she could keep her emotions separate from the physical act, that she could treat the whole thing as another training exercise of sorts, the truth was, she didn’t know. Her mother had fallen for her father, and fallen hard, and she’d never recovered from his death. When he died, a part of her had too, and when she’d gotten sick, she’d embraced her passing willingly. Maybe even eagerly, as if she knew he awaited her on the other side. Ruby never wanted that to happen to her.

  So the bottom line was…

  Could she bear to risk her heart? And if she did, what if Jason claimed it? What on earth would she do then?

  Chapter Nine

  “I can’t believe I’m doing this!” Ruby raised her voice to a shout to be heard over the whistle of the biting breeze. If someone had told her a week ago that she’d soon be zooming away from the city in the arms of an angel, she’d have laughed them to the nearest insane asylum. But here she was, on her way to the Fallen compound hidden somewhere in the Adirondack Mountains.

  “Not frightened, are you?”

  Jason’s voice was a deep rumble that carried easily over the sound of the wind.

  “No way.” Anxious, excited, and more than a bit stressed, yes. But not frightened.

  When Jason had first told her he’d be flying her to the compound, her first thought had been, “How?”

  And when she’d learned she flying prone with his chest to her back and his ankles hooked over hers to support her legs, her first response had been, “No freaking way.”

  But leave it to Eva to convince her.

  “Come on, it’s fun,” she’d coaxed. “Just spread your arms and pretend you’re Superman.”

  Though Ruby had been perfectly prepared to deny that the prospect appealed to her, Eva had seen right through any objection Ruby would have made.

  “I know you want to,” she’d teased. “You wouldn’t be half-angel otherwise.”

  Eva was right. Ruby’s little night escapade with Jason had only fueled her appetite for flight. Now, with the wind mussing her braided hair and breezing through the layers of her clothing, she truly felt like her own brand of superhero.

  “Warm enough?” Jason murmured in her ear.

  “Yes.” Surprisingly. Even with her heavy cable-knit sweater and the smooshed weight of her clothes-filled backpack between their bodies, she could feel the heat of his bare chest against her skin. And the steady flap of his wings kept her body cocooned in warm air. It was sort of like being wrapped in a warm, safe hammock—if the hammock was flipped upside down so she faced the ground, that was.

  Jason’s soft lips kissed her ear. “You’re going to love our compound, Ruby. Even this time of year, the mountains are a thing of majestic beauty.”

  Suppressing a shiver from the heat of his breath, she answered, “I don’t doubt it.”

  Letting out a sexy chuckle, he continued, “In this sort of temperature, steam rises off the hot springs, caressing your flesh when you’re down on the banks of the stream. And all is warm within the walls of our cavern. With the heat from the springs floating in, it’s as if you’re enclosed in a cozy nest.”

  She swallowed hard at the velvety sound of his voice. “You sound as if you love it there.”

  “I do. At first it was just a refuge, a place to hide from our brethren. But then we made it our own. We made it a home. Now, to my eyes, it’s just as beautiful as the home we lost back on our own world.”

  For a moment words betrayed her. Had she ever felt like that about any place she’d lived?

  No, not about a place. Her parents had been her home, but they’d been ripped from her by the hands of fate. Yet she wanted that chance to have a home she cared about just as much as Jason cared about his. She wanted freedom for herself and her people.

  And she was willing to die to get it.

  “I can’t wait to see your home,” she finally replied.

  She felt rather than saw the beauty of Jason’s smile. “Soon enough, sweet one.”

  After scanning the horizon, she noted, “I can’t see Michael or Aaron anymore.”

  “We decided to take slightly different path for safety purposes.”

  “Oh.” Made sense. Normally she’d say there was safety in numbers, especially since the odds of them running into more than one white-wing, as Jason liked to call them, were unlikely. But considering two of the three Fallen carried nephilim on their back, engaging any angel they might be unlucky enough to run into would be a foolish risk.

  Enveloped in his arms, she felt herself soothed into calmness, until finally her eyes began to drift shut. As if he sensed it, Jason spoke out.

  “Get some sleep if you can, Ruby. We’ve several hours yet before we arrive.”

  Right now she couldn’t find a single reason to protest. Stifling a yawn, she murmured, “Okay.”

  Sure enough, within moments her awareness dimmed, and she surrendered to the sweet solace of sleep.

  *****

  Jason’s arms were wrapped tightly around his treasured cargo when he first flew into the mountains hiding the Fallen compound. They’d left a bit later than anticipated, so the first stirrings of daylight were just starting to blossom, casting glowing pockets of light over the mountains and valleys. Off to their right, the highest peaks were dusted with snow, a precursor of the weather to come, but right now the temperature hovered somewhere in the mid-forties degrees Fahrenheit.

  Knowing Ruby would want to see it, he tightened his arms around her and rumbled out a greeting. S
he stirred in his arms, coming awake within a matter of seconds. Somehow he’d expected that. He could imagine Ruby always being prepared to battle. To defend her people.

  Unfortunately her movement sparked a stirring of his own. He shifted slightly, grateful their lower bodies weren’t closely connected. Her delectable bottom touched his abs right around the waistband. One inch lower and she’d be very much aware of how aroused she’d just made him.

  “Where are we?” she said sleepily.

  “We’re in the valley where our compound is located.” He expertly tilted and swerved through the narrow valley, flying lower and lower until the stream running through the mountains was visible. “Look down below.”

  She did and gasped. “No wonder you built here. No way for humans to accidentally stumble upon it.”

  “Nor any reason for a white-wing to wander down this far, since they could see nothing from their vantage point if they flew above.”

  Her gaze wandered here and there, no doubt taking in every detail of the changing fall foliage. The bright greens of summer had given way to more mellow yellows, reds, and oranges. It was, in a word, spectacular.

  “I can see why you love it here,” she finally said, and his heart almost burst with pride. Whether she recognized it or not, Ruby was his mate, and he wanted nothing more than for her to love his home. For her to see a place for herself here.

  He slowly dipped down, giving Ruby ample time to study her surroundings. Finally they soared about twenty feet above the water, low enough that tendrils of steam curled up to them in smoky ribbons of warmth.

  “Wow,” she breathed, taking a deep inhale. “So this is the stream the hot spring feeds into?”

  “Yes, the heat put out from the spring continues downstream for quite a bit. It even flows through a portion of the cave, which allowed us to create a bath.”

  She let out a luscious little moan. “That sounds like heaven right about now.”

  Oh, he could think of a few other things that would be far more heaven-like. Like Ruby, in his arms once again. Ever since that night under the bridge, she was all he could think about. All he dreamt about. He’d loved his mate Bethanny, and at times he still missed her, but the truth was he couldn’t remember ever wanting a woman as badly as he wanted Ruby.

  As he wanted her still.

  After locating the ledge leading into his compound—an innocuous ledge that no one who wasn’t acquainted with the place would ever think was the entrance to an eight-story rustic palace, of sorts—he set Ruby onto the rocky ground. She swayed, clutching onto his arms for support, and he held her body weight until she found her land legs once again.

  “This is it?” she asked, dubiously gazing toward the pitch-black space cut into the side of the mountain.

  He let out a chuckle at the sound of her voice. “It’s supposed to look innocuous.”

  “Well, mission accomplished,” she muttered. After gazing into the hole for a few more moments, she straightened her back and stared at him. Her hands retreated into the long sleeves of the thick sweater she wore—the only heat she’d needed while snuggled into his arms. “Thank you. For bringing me here.”

  Just like that, Jason’s amusement morphed into flat-out desire. Something in the way she spoke, in the way she stared at him, set his nerves afire. It had changed in the last day or so. He didn’t know how, but she peered at him differently now. Not as someone she needed to avoid, but more like someone she…

  Oh, he didn’t really know. All he knew was that his mate was here at his compound, where several other unmated males resided, and he hadn’t yet had the chance to truly claim her. The situation was less than ideal. Without the blending of essences that a mating accomplished, she would be like a slab of meat in a den full of starving lions.

  But since he couldn’t very well have suggested they resolve the dilemma by having a quick and dirty romp on the way to the compound, he would have to make the best of things.

  “You’re welcome,” he finally said before turning to the mouth of the cave. “Care to go see if any of the others have arrived?”

  “Sure.” Ruby took a breath and, almost as if trying to prove to him—or herself—that she had no fear, strode assuredly toward the entrance. He caught up with her before she could step inside, grabbing hold of her hand to stop her in her tracks.

  “Caution is a must here, my sweet.” He pointed to the pitch-black interior. “We left the front cavern unlit on the off-chance someone were to land here unexpected. The key is to keep directly to the center of the path, as there are many dangers to be found toward the edges of the cavern.”

  One of her brows cocked. “And how am I supposed to see the center of the path?”

  “You’ll soon learn to distinguish where the path is worn and smooth, as opposed to rocky and uneven.”

  “If you say so,” she responded with skepticism.

  Chuckling, he started forward without releasing his grip on her hand.

  *****

  So far the inside of the Fallen compound was not what Ruby had expected. The pitch-black entrance that seemed to run on for days was one thing, but what it led into was even more of a shock.

  An honest-to-God living room, for Christ’s sake. Though the dim, artificial lighting was not unlike her own underground home, the build and décor of this place was far more sophisticated than she or any of her gang had ever managed to accomplish.

  Unwinding her hand from Jason’s, Ruby allowed her gaze to wander over every detail in the chamber. The walls were the natural rough-hewn rock of the mountain, but the floor had been smoothed down. A large leather sectional and two leather recliners decorated one corner of the chamber, all centered around a plasma television somehow attached the wall.

  Suddenly feeling the increase in temperature, she slid her backpack from her shoulders to the ground and removed her oversized sweater, leaving her upper body clad only in a burgundy thermal shirt. After dropping the sweater on top of her backpack, she turned to face Jason, only half-joking when she said, “You get cable in here?”

  The corners of his lips turned up in amusement. “You’d be surprised.”

  “Something tells me this place is full of surprises.”

  “Come, I’ll show you the rest.” He pointed to a space leading out to a corridor on the far side of the room. “Out there is the staircase to the other floors. The lower level is our bathing facilities, and then of course the six levels above this one house our bedrooms and sitting quarters. I’ll show you those later. For now we’ll go here.”

  Jason turned, the ropy muscles of his bare back tensing. Despite their less than private surroundings, Ruby felt a tidal wave of desire wash through her. God, but this Fallen was edible. And ever since Eva had pointed out the benefits to their mating, she’d been finding herself thinking more and more about what he’d do if she were to throw him back against the nearest wall and have her wicked way with him.

  Why the hell was she denying herself, when she could very well be dead tomorrow?

  Jason, who’d entered another corridor, which ended in a swinging wooden door, stopped and turned back to her. “Coming?”

  Shaking herself out of her lust-induced stupor, she followed him through the wooden door. It led into a large kitchen with stainless steel appliances and a rectangular, rock-hewn island with several barstools.

  “You guys are freaking unbelievable.” She didn’t bother to hold back her laugh. “You must have felt like you were living in a hovel when you stayed in our dirty old subway tunnel.”

  He shrugged and leaned against the wall nearest to the door, the beautiful bare curves of his shoulders and biceps rippling and bulging as he moved. “It was a perfectly good home, Ruby. One built with your blood and sweat.”

  His unexpectedly kind words made her soften. Then came the sudden realization that she might never return to her home again. The stark beauty of this place made that thought easier to deal with, but it still made her sad.

  Jason’s eyes
wandered over her face. “Things are changing, Ruby. That is always difficult.”

  She’d forgotten how easily his kind could read hers. If not from her facial expressions, then from the emotions she couldn’t quite hold in.

  “It doesn’t matter,” she forced herself to say. “As long as we accomplish our goal.”

  His eyes clouded, and he opened his mouth, but before he could speak, the door leading into the kitchen swung open and Eva and Michael sauntered in, their hair wet, cheeks flushed, and hands intertwined like a couple of lovesick teenagers.

  Eva’s head was turned toward Michael and her voice low when she said, “Next time I’m going to—“

  Michael nudged her and she cut off, abruptly swiveling her head toward Ruby.

  “Oh.” Flushing, Eva released Michael’s hand. “You two made it already.”

  “I see you beat us here,” Jason commented in a dry tone from his spot by the door.

  “An hour or so ago, but then we took the most direct route.” A hint of embarrassment wafted off Eva. She covered it by striding toward the stainless steel refrigerator. “Want some breakfast?”

  Opening the door, she took out baskets of mixed fruits and placed them onto the island.

  “Seriously?” Ruby stalked to the island and picked up a blackberry. “Where do you guys get this stuff from?”

  “One or more of us flies out for supplies almost daily.” Michael wound his way around the island, pressing a kiss to Eva’s cheek before removing a carton of eggs from the fridge. He turned to Ruby with an arch of his brow. “Omelet?”

  Food did sound good, considering it had been over eight hours since she’d last eaten. But breakfast was eclipsed by the thought of a nice soak in the hot-spring-fed bath Jason had mentioned. “I’ll take a rain check. I’d love to wash up first.”

  Eva sighed as she popped a blackberry into her mouth. “The water’s perfect. We just came up from the bathing facilities ourselves.” Then, as if just realizing what she’d implied, she flushed even deeper than before.

  Jason unwound himself and straightened from his spot by the door, stalking toward Ruby. He leaned over her to grab a ripe blackberry and pop it into his mouth. With a vague “mm” sound that sent a shiver through Ruby’s spine, he said to Eva, “Have you seen any of the others since you’ve returned?”