Hard to Find (Hell Hounds Harem Book 4)

by Briana Michaels

  Hell Hounds don’t give a shit what they use so long as it got the job done. That went for all manner of things: weapons, soap, weights, bedroom toys.

  Bishop kept his ears perked so he would catch any sound coming from his room. Annnnd right on cue, he swiftly popped his head out her bedroom and saw Tilly doing the same from his room. They smiled at each other.

  She looked amazing.

  Every inch of Bishop’s body hardened as Tilly walked out of his room and down the hall towards him. Those curves… those pink lips…

  Fuuuuuck. The Hound was a wreck underneath his cool exterior. Those black fires he’d been tossed into earlier hadn’t done that great of a job of unfucking him. Maybe Lucifer’s powers were still drained, which meant the fires weren’t as strong as usual. Or maybe Bishop was beyond the lick of those flames now. Didn’t matter. One look at Tilly with her strawberry blonde hair still wet and her body back in that damned long dress again, the Hell Hound wanted to go wild and make her howl until her throat was raw. Then he wanted to come down her throat and snuggle up in the bed and hold her tight while she slept.

  As if she could sense the desire roaring inside him, Tilly approached cautiously. “How long do you plan to keep me here?”

  Bishop’s hearing was a little fuzzy. It sounded like she thought she was a prisoner or something. “What?”

  “How long am I supposed to stay here?”

  Forever would be just great, he thought. “You’re staying until we have everything squared away. Then we’ll see.”

  Tilly’s green gaze pinned him with a nasty glare. “We’ll see what exactly?”

  Bishop saw she had a weapon in her hand. That little snoop had stolen it from his stash in end table drawer. It shouldn’t have turned him on, but it seriously fucking did. “Don’t cut yourself with that, Sweetness. We can’t risk another hospital run.” He gestured towards the spare bedroom, “This is your room while you’re here. Val brought back some of your things, too. I’ve unpacked everything for you and there are extra blankets over there in case you get cold.”

  “He went back to my place?”

  Bishop didn’t respond. He went down the steps, figuring she’d either follow him or not.

  She followed him. “Bishop!”

  He didn’t turn around. With his state of mind right now, the last thing he needed was to see a buxom woman bound down a huge flight of steps. It would send him to his knees and have him begging like the Hound he was.

  Bishop bit his bottom lip and tried to remember what her mouth felt like on his when they’d kissed at The Blue Lizard. Such a crying shame he’d been in a bad fucking headspace with his unbalance at the time. And he wasn’t in a better one now, so thinking about kissing Tilly needed to stop. Now. Right the fuck now.

  Shit, he couldn’t stop thinking about it. It was like the harder he tried to quit, the stronger his desire roared.

  “Bishop!” she snapped from behind him.

  He managed to make it all the way to the kitchen without turning around. His hands balled into fists and his breathing grew labored. Shit, shit, shit.

  “Bishop!”

  The Hound turned around and ensnared her with a fierce grip. She wanted his attention, well she fucking had it now. Bishop pressed his entire body against hers and walked Tilly back until she hit a wall. He tried to stop himself. Truly, he did. But he was too far gone for control and didn’t give a fuck about anything except tasting her again.

  His nostrils flared. She smelled really fucking good and used his shampoo and soap and the combination did a job on his senses the likes of which he’d never felt before.

  “Fuck, woman.”

  He crushed his mouth to hers and ignored her pounding fists on his shoulders. Instead of backing off, Bishop grabbed her wrists, disarmed her, and slammed both her hands against the wall, pinning them above her head as he kept kissing her. She tasted like mint and magic and he ground his cock against her, begging her to let him in.

  “Easy, Hound.” Valor’s voice vaguely registered.

  Valor ripped Bishop away from Tilly and forced him to the ground. Barking like an angry dog, Bishop fought for freedom and Valor slammed him down hard enough to ring Bishop’s church bells. “At. Ease. Hound.”

  Bishop blink-blinked and sucked in a couple ragged breathes. “Jesus… fuck… fuck!” He dug the heel of his boots into the floor and tried to regain some control. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry!”

  “Doona apologize to me,” Valor grabbed Bishop by his shirt, hauled him to his feet, and shoved Bishop forward. “Apologize to her.”

  Shame consumed him. Tilly was flushed and still pressed against the wall. “Oh god, I’m so sorry, Tilly. I… I’m so sorry for that.”

  She swallowed and stayed silent.

  “Do ye accept, lass?” Valor still had a hold on Bishop’s shirt collar.

  Tilly nodded quickly and looked down at the floor.

  “We doona attack our guests,” Valor growled in Bishop’s ear. “If ye canna find your control, Hound, I’ll find it for ye and it willna be pleasant. Understood?”

  “Yes, Alpha.”

  Tilly’s gaze snapped to Bishop and… oh god damnit, she looked just as ashamed as he felt. That wasn’t a good look on her at all. “It’s fine,” she said.

  “No, it’s not. I shouldn’t have acted like that.”

  Tilly looked like she wanted to say more, but instead of coming out with it, she turned and went back up the steps. They watched her go and only after they heard her bedroom door shut did Valor let go of Bishop.

  “What the flying fuck is wrong with ye, Hound?”

  Bishop didn’t have a good answer. “I’m still not right. The fires didn’t really help like they should have.”

  Valor growled and walked over to the kitchen sink and splashed cold water on his face. He was silent for a minute before admitting, “Fuck, I think I’m right there with ye.”

  “Double fuck.”

  “I’d love to, but now isn’t the time and you’re not my type.”

  Bishop leaned against the counter and tried to find his inner peace. Valor did the same and they glared at each other from across the breakfast bar. “What are we going to do?”

  “Respect her and keep a safe fucking distance.”

  “We need to let her go. She’s not safe with us.”

  “We must have control of ourselves, Hound. And she stays. I’ll not have the lass out there like a rabbit for the wolves. We need that book and we promised to help her. We’re men of our word.”

  “We’re not men. We’re Hell Hounds. And right now you and I are too dangerous for her to be with.”

  “Better us than a killer, aye?” Valor pulled out his phone, hit a couple buttons, and held it out so Bishop could see the screen. “I took a picture of this on Tilly’s ceiling. Was it there when you were?”

  It was a drawing of a symbol.

  “No,” Bishop took the cell and held it with shaky hands. “This isn’t good.”

  “She’s been playing with fire, Hound. The lass was bound to get burned.”

  Bishop’s instinct roared, “We have to protect her.”

  “Wow, Tilly, you are one fucked up woman.” Tilly glared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror and wanted to cry. “What the hell is the matter with you?” She turned on the faucet, cupped her hand under the cold water, and slurped it up. She was still so thirsty. Next, she splashed her face. Dabbing dry with a hand towel, she tried to reel herself in. God damn Bishop’s kiss…

  Tilly never experienced anything quite so overwhelming in all her life. And that animalistic bark? Holy Hell, he sounded like a beast when Valor pinned Bishop to the ground.

  Shame flushed her cheeks again as she recalled how Bishop looked when Valor made him apologize. Yes, the kiss was unexpected, but not unwanted. Whatever boundaries Bishop crossed, she’d let him do it again. She wanted him to do it again.

  Had Bishop not pinned her hands above her head and pressed her so tightly agains
t the wall, Tilly would have reciprocated tenfold. Hence why she was so angry with herself right now.

  This was the worst possible time to have a love affair. She was in danger. She was cursed. She had a creeper tailing her and a rich man with a lot of power hot on her ass. Now she’d gone and gotten mixed up with two men she didn’t know at all – and who were armed to the teeth – and she had been lured back to their home because she had no other place to go.

  So, yeah, this would be the perfect time to distract herself with a beard ride. Naturally. “Errgh!” Tilly leaned against the counter and buried her face in her hands. “Snap the fuck out of this, woman.”

  A knock on the door scared the shit out of her and she squeaked.

  “Matilda Jane, it’s Valor.”

  Tilly stomped out of the bathroom and opened her bedroom door. Peering out cautiously, she wasn’t sure what to say so she just stared at the Hound. Hound. She’d heard them both use that phrase now. Hound. They must be Hell Hounds. No way. Not possible. Right? Fuck.

  “Are ye alright, lass?” Valor kept a little distance between them. She noticed one hand was in his pocket, the other had a slight tremor to it.

  “I’m fine. Seriously.” She looked at his hand again and frowned, “Why are you shaking like that?”

  He clasped both hands behind his back, “It’s nothing.”

  She opened the door more and gave him a full on glare. “You’re lying.”

  His eyes narrowed on her. Then he sighed and relaxed his stance, “I’ll be fine. I just need to regain my strength. It’s been a long couple of days and it’s starting to take its toll on me.”

  She wasn’t expecting him to answer her like that. Actually, she didn’t know what she was expecting him to say, but a big man like him, who obviously liked to be in charge of things, acknowledging he was weak in some way just wasn’t what she’d been expecting.

  It was refreshing to get an honest answer. She wanted to see how far she could push him. “What are you, Valor?”

  “A man who wants to help ye and also get that damned book.” He smiled like a charmer.

  Good grief he was a good looking man. That dark auburn hair was like a warm russet sunset in autumn. He must have been about six-four and was built like a lumberjack – not too big and bulky, but definitely strong enough to do a lot of damage.

  “I don’t understand what’s happening,” she whispered.

  “What do ye not understand, Matilda Jane?” He took another step closer.

  Why did he have to talk with that sexy brogue? It wasn’t helping her current situation at all, damnit. “Were we meant to meet or is this… was this…” her heart started to race, “Were you sent to me?”

  Valor’s eyebrow arched with a stern gaze, “Sent to ye? Who do ye think would do that?”

  That wasn’t a no, which made her grip the door handle with white-knuckle fever. “Were you?”

  “No.”

  She couldn’t tell if he was lying or not.

  “I doona expect ye to believe us, lass. But we’ve already proven that we wish to help ye.” Valor put his hand on the door and pushed it open with ease. She immediately took a step back. “I’ve just done a costly thing, healing ye as I did in the hospital. And I’ve risked much bringing ye into my home.”

  “Because of who’s after me?”

  Valor gave a half-hearted chuckle and shook his head as he stepped into her bedroom. Tilly could either stand her ground or back the hell up. She backed up. Sissy.

  “I’ve no fears of man, lass. Whoever is after ye, I’ll make him sorry for it. That’s not the risk that’s got me worried.” He towered over her and tilted his head to the side, “Ye fear we were sent to ye… but I’ve a mind to believe it was the other way around.”

  Tilly backed up until her legs hit the bed. “What are you talking about?”

  “I was sent to The Blue Lizard to hunt for my Hounds. Ye were there.”

  Hounds. “So?”

  “Ye had a book of black magic, the darkest kind, just sitting in your apartment like a wee novel to enjoy.”

  He grabbed something from his back pocket and her heartrate kicked up speed. Was he going to pull a gun on her? A knife? Oh god!

  Valor held out his cell and showed her a picture of a strange design. “This was on your ceiling, Matilda Jane. Do ye ken what it is?”

  Her blood ran cold as she stared at the picture, knowing exactly what it was. “N-n-n-n-no.”

  Valor growled like a deadly predator. “Are ye sure?” He took up all the space in the room. The air, too.

  Tilly couldn’t breathe or think or move with him like this. She had to force herself to answer with a level tone, “I’m positive. I don’t know what that is. I’ve never seen something like it before.” On my ceiling.

  “Ye doona fear death,” his gaze raked down her body.

  “What makes you think that?”

  Valor pulled out a piece of folded paper from his pocket and she felt her face redden when she recognized it was her Bucket List from her fridge. He handed it over and frowned, “You’re a verra dangerous creature, Matilda Jane.” He stepped back and put his phone away. “What’s the address of the man who now has the book?”

  They stared at each other, neither willing to give up their information.

  Finally, Valor turned to leave, “Dinner was ordered and Jack, the one who came to the hospital, should be arriving shortly. I expect ye downstairs in ten minutes ready to speak and tell us everything.” Valor stopped at the threshold, “Bishop and I are men of our word, Matilda Jane. We’ll help ye as we said we would, but ye had better be a woman of your word too. Ye doona want another enemy, lass.”

  “Is that a threat, Valor?”

  He smiled tightly and walked away.

  Chapter 20

  Lucifer had a raging headache. Ever since the walls of Hell cracked and malanum ran wild, he’d been on damage control to get things back in order and this shit wasn’t getting easier as the days passed.

  “Yo! Luce!” Uriel, the Angel of Repentance, swaggered into Lucifer’s main hall carrying a cardboard box, “I brought lunch.”

  Lucifer had to hand it to Uriel, the angel had, so far, kept to his word. When all Hell broke loose a couple months ago, Lucifer’s brothers came down to help him fight the malanum back and find the traitor. In the midst of the shitstorm they were in, Uriel, along with Constantine and Gabriel, agreed to have more of a presence down in Hell. So far, Uriel still came down the most, but Gabriel and Constantine had other responsibilities to tend to at the moment so who was Lucifer to complain? Speaking of which, “Still no luck in finding the book, brother?”

  “None.” Uriel dropped his box onto the large table and pulled out a brown paper bag. “But I did find this sweet little joint that makes the best Swiss with mushroom burgers.” Those were Lucifer’s favorite.

  Shoving a bunch of greasy French fries in his mouth, Uri sat down and handed Lucifer his lunch. “I haven’t heard from Gabe or Con.”

  Instead of responding, the Devil took two big bites of his burger and wiped his mouth with a napkin. Hopefully some food in his belly would help alleviate his headache.

  “How’s the malanum count?”

  “Same,” Lucifer grumbled. “There hasn’t been much movement since we got the cracks fixed and temporary guards in place.”

  During the malanum attacks, Charlotte, a traitorous Gate Keeper, had managed to wreak havoc among the living and the dead. She recruited outsiders who knew magics that could turn humans into vessels for malanum to possess. She also allowed malanum to escape Hell, orchestrated Sara’s abduction a few years back, had done all she could to tear down the empire Hell was, and had even slaughtered her fellow Gate Keepers and Lucifer’s ladies in the process.

  The bitch.

  Even now, Lucifer couldn’t understand why Charlotte did it. She was a traitor to her maker. Had broken apart Lucifer’s best pack of Hounds. Fractured Hell. Killed her friends. They executed her, of course, bu
t by the time they realized it was Charlotte destroying everything, too much damage had been done. Still, something about the way it all ended didn’t feel right to Lucifer.

  Had the Dark Truth, a nasty hag who saw the deepest, ugliest truths in a soul, not confirmed Charlotte’s secrets, Lucifer would never have believed it. Lucifer was so hurt and angry, he didn’t spare Charlotte any mercy. One simple touch of the Devil’s hand turned that backstabbing Gate Keeper to ashes.

  Lucifer’s touch wasn’t nearly as deadly now that he had some time to regain his control. His powers, however, were another nightmare. Not that he was willing to discuss it. Lucifer needed to focus on keeping things running smoothly down here while his brothers searched for what was stolen from him during Charlotte’s betrayal.

  “I can’t stay long,” Uri said between bites, “I’ve got to make my reports and I wanted to check on a couple things I’ve been neglecting lately.”

  Lucifer nodded and didn’t ask what those things were. Angels were always busy and Uriel was no exception. He might be the jokester of the group, but he was important for the balance of the Universe.

  As was Lucifer.

  “I’ve got some Hounds filling in for Gate Keepers until Reggie and I can train new ones.” Lucifer took a sip of his drink and frowned. Gah, he hated soda. Too fizzy and sweet for him. But he didn’t want to reject any offering right now, even from his own brother, so he drank it and was grateful. Being the ruler of Hell meant he was tied to the realm and couldn’t leave, so it wasn’t like he could go shopping for the drinks he enjoyed. Maybe one day that would change, but it wouldn’t be anytime soon. And with Lucifer’s power drained and control bound by a fraying rope, trying to stretch his limits was an absolute no go at the moment.

  “I’ve brought them food, too,” Uri wrapped his knuckles on the box. “I’ll bring it to them once I’m finished here with you.”