by Azure Boone
“What is pillow talk?” Dorn’s voice was low as he leaned a hip on the counter.
Kassern grinned and raised his brows. “You’re asking the wrong angel, bro.” Huh, the angel who knew everything found something he didn't know. Imagine that.
Dorn threw a quick peek down the hall before whispering, “Sally is waiting for me right now,” he poked his finger on the wood plank table, “to do that. Am I going to be talking to my pillow? What's the point?”
Kassern chuckled at how alarmed the perfect angel was. Not knowing everything about something must be such a hard pill to swallow for the genius bastard. “You could ask her.”
“I’d rather just know.”
“Then ask your humans.”
Dorn sighed then closed his eyes, silently summoning his male human. A few seconds later, Lucian came from the room he shared with Jessie, yawning and running his hands through his hair. He shuffled to the table looking like hell and sat. Gaunt hollows shadowed the contours of his face and beard stubble darkened his jaw to give him a sinister appearance.
He scowled at Dorn and grunted. “What.”
“What is pillow talk?” Dorn nearly whispered and glanced around surreptitiously.
What the fuck kind of question is that screamed from the tired lines of the human’s face. “Why?”
Dorn rolled his eyes and sighed, petulance emanating from his every cell. “Can’t you just tell me? Why does everyone feel the need to know my reasons for asking a simple question?”
"We're just amazed to find something you don't know everything about." Kassern grinned. “Sally has asked for this and he wants to know how to perform it.” Lucian turned his look to Kassern and Kassern shrugged. “I’m clueless as well.”
“It’s when you talk,” Lucian said plainly, “while laying on your pillow.”
Dorn waited patiently for more. When it didn’t come he said incredulous, “That’s it?”
Damn the aqua angel sounded funny in shock. But Lucian’s emphatic nods of, uh, yeah, made it official.
“Pillow talk,” Dorn repeated, amazed. “Well, I can certainly do that.”
“That’s good,” Lucian said, nodding. “Now can I go back to my pillow? You interrupted the sleep you insisted I get.”
“Yes, yes. Rest well. My apologies.”
“Yes, yes, I will,” Lucian muttered as he walked back.
Kassern nodded at his human when he was out of ear shot. “Your boy okay?”
Dorn sighed. “You saw his face, of course he’s not. I mean he is as long as he’s not allowing himself to fall prey to the lies that gave him that mark.”
Kassern nodded slowly. “The God hating bit.”
“Yes, and the bitterness that sort of ignorance produces. When a human can’t figure something out, then he calls it a paradox. When important things go misunderstood, it leads to frustration, frustration leads to anger, anger leads to--”
“Star Wars!” Kassern pointed at him. “Master what’s his name says that part.”
Dorn stared at him in worrisome disbelief. “My God, when do you have the time to make mashed potatoes out of your brain?”
Kassern shrugged. “I’m pretty good at multitasking. But in regard to your human, yes, well regarding all humans. It would be nice if they considered the all-important fact that they don’t have all the fucking variables for their flawed data.”
“And much of the data they do have is flawed.” Dorn’s frustration lined his head.
“Fucking aye.”
“Do you…do you really find it necessary to use that form of language?”
Kassern grinned and shrugged a shoulder. “It’s just word shades. Nothing more.” He turned his head suddenly. “The Serith is coming.”
“I feel him.” Dorn stood with Kassern in respectful preparation. The arrival of a member of the Brotherhood of Aesculapius was a big deal, especially a high ranking member. Normally, apprentices and lower members dealt in the direct practice of medicine upon both human and angel, as well as the other intelligent species spread throughout all the Universes.
For a Serith, one of the senior medical experts, to take personal interest in a case was practically unheard of and nearly sent Kassern off the deep end with worry.
Kassern’s heart beat at a ridiculous pace, dreading the news. When the angel fully formed in the room, Kassern and Dorn bowed. “Serith,” Kassern said.
“I will not delay in relaying my findings. You will bring your female to the Grotto of Aesculapius in order for me to conduct a full line of tests.”
“What?” Kassern’s body began to tremble with ruby energy as he fought to control that debilitating human trait called panic.
The man seemed regretful and concerned. “What I have found is unlike anything I have seen before. The fluid and tissue sample taken showed lethal toxins with extraordinarily small minimum effective doses. I've hypothesized that the only reason she remains alive is that she has somehow assimilated some of your unique angelic properties and they have selectively mutated her immune system into something we’ve not encountered, allowing her to fight the infection."
Kassern’s heart nearly stopped. “From that creature?”
The Serith nodded. “I have found strains of a sort of super bacteria, similar to the medication resistant strains humans often contract when the full course of an antibiotic is not administered over repeated infections. The bacteria is fused with supernatural particles, and I believe the source to be—”
“Demons.” Dorn spat the dirty word.
Kassern reeled with horror. “When can I bring her?”
“Immediately. The bacteria reproduces at more than ten times the rate of normal bacteria. It is also undergoing extremely rapid genetic mutation, no doubt intentional, rather than the random changes we would expect to see. We can’t be too careful until we understand it more. I need to run several tests and find out how her body is resisting it. How is the wound?”
Kassern raked his hand through his hair, wanting to hurt something. “It seems not to be progressing any further than a rough bruise.”
“Bring her to the Grotto at first chance. I am confident in three days, I will have an antidote.”
“I’ll get her now. Dorn?”
“I’ll hold things here. We’ll keep all activity under the radar while you’re gone.”
Kassern nodded, rubbing his mouth and looking around, feeling disoriented. The idea that Karly was so close to death ripped his angelic control apart. Kassern tried to figure out how to break it to her that they would have to leave immediately.
She would resist, no doubt, insisting that the wound was nothing, so he would have to convince her to go. Not to mention, he wanted to spend one more night with her first, since he would likely not get to touch her while there. Just the idea made his entire body ache for her. “In the morning. I’ll bring her in the morning.”
“Good idea.” Dorn gave Kassern one hard slap on the back.
Unfortunately, Kassern's worries took away any enjoyment of the highly unusual display of affection.
The sooner he had Karly looked at the better. This was good. Of course it was, he needed to act like an angel and not a pussy-whipped human.
** ** **
Exhaustion pulled at Sam, bones and muscles filled with a liquid ache on top of the waves of painful tremors that kept rolling over her. Despite the soul-deep weariness, she forced her reluctant brain to consider the cozy warmth surrounding her.
The most delicious scent filled her senses, all fresh and warm and… Male? Surely she was imagining it?
The question forced her brain into the next level of alert.
She was cold, bone deep and deadly, but a source of magnificent heat held direct contact with her skin. The surface was firm but giving, silky smooth but textured. Skin?
She climbed to the next level of awareness. Searching for details, she found hard muscle and amazing contours. Big.
A dream no doubt. No man would be naked and pressed up against her. It was the pitiful truth, even if it hurt. She might as well enjoy. No doubt imaginary men were the only kind she'd ever have the opportunity to make love to.
She needed no further incentive to snuggle closer, molding her body to the big muscular frame of her dreams. His scent was addictive and she drew it deeper into her with every breath. She nuzzled her face in even closer and gave in to the temptation to slide her lips along the silky skin at the base of his throat.
The dream man sucked in a breath and held it, muscles tight. Mmm. What an amazingly vivid dream.
Warm satiny skin begged to be tasted and Sam obliged. Her tongue slipped between her lips for the tiniest sample. Delectable. She had to have more. The tip of her tongue moved of its own volition, tracing the line of his collar bone then settling back into the notch at the center.
Dream man’s throat moaned, barely audible, and strong arms pulled her closer to his body while one big hand slid down her back to lightly cup her ass. He shifted a little to his back and brought her partially atop him, allowing her better access to that wondrous chest. The hand on her butt slid down the back of her thigh and applied gentle pressure to draw her leg up.
An inferno of a massive erection twitched against her inner thigh, drawing a moan from her. Damn, how vivid and realistic could a dream be? She ached, knowing any minute she’d wake up alone in a cold bed in her second story bedroom of the ranch house. She trailed little kisses down the center of his chest, occasionally veering to the side to taste an incredible pec.
Dream Man moaned again and trailed the hand still on her thigh back upward, taking the time to stop and caress her muscled curves, and made her wish she'd shaved her legs more recently. Then magical fingers found the groove at the top of her thigh and slipped forward to nestle next to her sex.
"Mmmm, yes." The breathy whisper escaped with a desperate ache for more. She paused to swirl her tongue along the underside of a well-developed pec, reveling in the little shiver that passed through him.
Those fingers moved over her cotton panties to settle across her lips with the lightest touch, almost tickling. He grunted a little—frustration?—and slipped his fingers inside the elastic at the leg. The tips combed lightly through her pubic hair, tightening muscles she'd never known about. Incredible heat and tension built fast, settling right above her pubic bone, making her push toward it.
He tenderly separated throbbing folds that, while not virgin, hadn't known a man's touch could impart real pleasure.
She instinctively spread her legs a little more to give him better access and she pressed her hips into his to create a new sensation. "Oh, God, yes." Air surged into her lungs and she pushed onto his fingers for better contact. Her lips explored another portion of his chest, desperate to taste all of him.
He continued to gently stroke her outer folds for what seemed an eternity. The pressure he applied seemed to magnify her clit with indirect caresses until she dripped with desire and thought she might never breathe normally again.
Sam's entire body throbbed in time with her pulse, every heartbeat producing exquisite tremors through inner muscles that desperately sought the heat of his cock.
And still he continued with those maddening caresses that promised so much.
Delirious with his touch, she whimpered against his chest and let her mouth trail wherever she could reach. Her upper lip encountered a small swathe of silky hair and she couldn't resist tugging at it with her lips.
Dream Man moaned in response and finally let his fingers go a bit deeper, actually penetrating her inner folds to slide across skin exquisitely needful of his touch. Her muscles clenched again, sending another cascade of moisture flowing.
Her lips continued to toy with his chest hair until she found the hardened disk of his nipple and allowed her tongue to lavish it with attention, drawing another moan from him.
His hips rocked to thrust his scorching hard-on against her inner thigh. He needed to act like a Dream Man soon, and dissolve their underwear, or something equally dreamy.
Before she could follow the thought along a path of logic, he let the tip of one finger slip inside her while another finally came into direct contact with her clit.
Her nails dug into the muscle on his sides, drawing a dreamy groan from him and earning her more sincere caresses on the ache between her folds. “Yes,” she whispered, “yes, touch me.” She pushed her hips into those perfectly dancing fingers then gasped when he rolled to halfway cover her body with his.
God, so good. So real. So impossible.
Scorching breath accompanied lips along her neck just as his finger slid in deep. “Oh God yes! Yes!”
Lips moved up and sucked along the line of her jaw until they reached her mouth. She turned for them, desperate to kiss. She wanted to really kiss this wonderful Dream Man. Full warm lips settled softly over hers and proceeded to tenderly taste with hot groans.
Insane with need, Sam grabbed hold of his smooth face, tired of the teasing, and pulled him in for a real kiss. He rewarded her with what felt like a shocked gasp, right in her mouth. That amazing finger of his plunged into her and didn't stop until his hand pressed hard against her body like he couldn’t get deep enough. She tried to help, lifting her hips, wanting more, bigger, harder, faster.
His lips left hers and seemed to make a hurried trail down. She protested with needy moans, gasping when that hot mouth found her naked breast and sucked gently. Shame for what she didn’t have rudely pushed into her dreamy consciousness. She was almost glad when his lips left her nipple with a light smacking sound. It'd be great if she weren't so incredibly self-conscious about her deficit so she could fully enjoy the white-hot sensations he created there. No matter, as long as he kissed her again.
Wait. Why were his lips going in the wrong direction? Her mouth was north, not south. Well, as long as he left that delicious finger buried inside her, she could ride that pleasure just flicking her hips. Mmm. So good.
The finger slowly slid in and out and Sam writhed on the bed, wishing he’d come back and kiss her. His hot breath flowed across the insanely sensitive skin at the junction of her thighs. What was he doing there?
Sam bolted up in bed when she felt wet heat slide across her clit. “What are you doing!” The biggest oh my God oh my God reality slammed into her as she stared at her Dream Man. The new hired hand! Kneeling in the bed of a…she looked around. Where the hell was she?
A violent headache slammed her entire body and she remembered the fire, the storm, the stranded. Oh shit! She pulled the nearest garment over her and up to her chin.
He held his hands up. “I’m…sorry, I thought…”
“You thought what!” Oh my God, she was sick. This…man took advantage of her while she was sick! “You molested a sick woman?”
“Oh God, no, I…you…”
“I what? Was sick and delusional and you thought that meant I wanted your…your…” she gestured to his body with one hand, distracted by the wall of magnificence that now stood at the foot of the bed, “your fingers all over me? Oh my God I cannot believe you did that!”
** ** **
Toren was dumbfounded standing there like a fallen angel who’d raped a human. She’d seemed so willing. She’d said she was delusional. God, how could he not know that? She’d felt so good and soft and she seemed so…receptive to his touch.
No wait. She’d touched first.
He merely answered the need he so easily heard in her beautiful moans and felt in her exquisite touch. His body ached to be back in bed with her, holding her close. “I am extremely sorry, you have to believe me, I didn’t realize—”
“Do you take me for a fool?” She shook her head. Those lips felt so good under his. She’d been so eager and hungry.
“You seemed to be aware and you seemed to really like it.”
She choked on an incredulous laugh. “Well yes of course I liked it, I was
half asleep and thought I was dreaming! Hello. Just because you have that… that…” she gestured at him again, her gaze roaming over his body, “dumb physique and all, does not give you the right to use it on women, mister. Sick woman!” She made a sound somewhere between a groan and a growl and covered her face. Was she reliving what he’d done the way he was?
God, he would never sleep until he knew what she tasted like. And why did she behave like him tasting her beautiful Eden was wrong? She’d felt so good on his fingers, he wanted his tongue everywhere down there, and his mercury properties practically insisted none to gently that he not wait another second to taste her. There was something there that his shield wanted and needed and Toren was extremely curious about the what and the why of it all. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am, really. I would never have done that, had I known.”
She remained with her hands over her face then groaned and slowly fell onto the bed. “I’m so embarrassed. I can’t believe you did that, and I’m sick, ache-y, and cold again.”
“I can warm you—”
Her arm shot out with her palm up in the STOP position. “Don’t even think about it, I’d rather freeze to death.”
Wow. Was it that bad for her? She hadn’t acted like it was. The memory of her voice and touch filled his body until his mercury became demanding again.
“You can sleep in the bed but don’t you dare touch me.”
Toren’s heart skipped a beat and he carefully held back the smile inspired by the truth belying her words. “I don’t really need to sleep. Right now,” he added, remembering he was supposed to be human.