by Melody Raven
Muriel hissed at the stinging in her wrist as he let the dark liquid drip into the glass in a steady trickle. Demon blood was still red, but it was much darker than human blood, appearing black unless the sun shone on it.
Apprehension filled Muriel. “I hope you aren’t expecting me to drink that.”
“If I had my way, you and I would sneak off right now to release me from these fucking cuffs. After that, I would go my way while you run as far and fast from here as you can. Find a deserted island to live out your days. Living off the land and whatever it is that naturalists do. But you aren’t planning on doing that, are you?”
Muriel said nothing, silently confirming his theory.
“Let’s be honest. You’re mortal. You’re fragile. If you want to fight in this war, you have to toughen up.”
“You’re such a dick,” she muttered under her breath as she pulled him into the bathroom, where she quickly took care of her nightly routine. As she brushed her teeth with the cheap brush that Samuel had picked up on the way to the motel, her eyes kept glancing to the glass that rested right outside the door.
She turned back to Kier with a foaming mouth and toothbrush in hand. “Why do you even want me to drink your blood? Aren’t you sick of being in my head?”
“You look ridiculous.” He ignored her question.
She narrowed her eyes to him and turned back to furiously cleaning her teeth. Just as she rinsed, he said, “Besides, did it ever occur to you that after five years in your head, I might actually like you? Maybe I don’t want you to die.”
Muriel slowly wiped her mouth clean and met his eyes in the mirror. “No. It never once occurred to me that you liked me.”
The entire concept of a demon having the capacity to care for any being besides himself was foreign to her, let alone a demon who had the capacity to care for her.
It wasn’t as if Kier were an upstanding citizen. He took great joy in taunting Samuel with his mistakes, making sure to point out every time she was in any pain to make Samuel feel even worse.
The only logical explanation was that he was lying to her. He wanted her to believe that he cared for her; she just couldn’t figure out why. She was already planning to release him within the day, so he wasn’t angling for his freedom. What else could she really offer?
Sure, he made it clear he wanted to have sex with her, but he was an attractive male and seductive by nature. He could have sex with almost any woman he chose. She was nothing special to him.
Her eyes once again traveled to the red liquid. Was there something in it for him if she drank his blood?
It pained her to admit it, but he was right. If she wanted to fulfill her destiny and fight against the apocalypse like she had before, she would need her strength. She couldn’t do much fighting when even brushing her teeth caused her broken rib to shift painfully.
On top of that, there were thousands of demons with orders to kill her. She needed her strength.
Muriel closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath that did little calming when breathing still hurt. This was not an ideal situation, but she had to think logically.
Determined, she opened her eyes and walked to the kitchenette with three long strides. In one big gulp, she drank the entire glass of blood.
“What are you doing!” shouted Kier as the still warm liquid made its way down her throat.
Her first reaction was to gag; the idea of drinking blood, much less the dark blood of a demon, nauseated her. She held the back of her hand to her mouth as her stomach got used to the new liquid.
Kier grabbed the glass from her, but it was already empty. “Are you insane?”
“It was your idea,” she said against the back of her hand.
“It was a bluff. I was trying to convince you that you couldn’t get dark enough to take on Azazel!”
“Oh.” Muriel felt a strange buzzing feeling in her bones. “Well, your plan sucked.”
“Are you okay? How are you feeling?” His hands cupped her face as he looked her over intently for any signs of danger.
“I feel fine.” She waved his hands away from her and took a step away before the dizziness hit her. She tripped over her feet, but Kier’s strong arms caught her, tangling their bound limbs. Unable to stop herself, Muriel giggled at the situation. “Okay, maybe not completely fine.”
“Are you drunk?” he asked incredulously.
“I’m not drunk!” she protested with one of her punches to his arm before she giggled again. “I’m just a little tingly. I feel like I’m in a massage chair,” she whispered, as though they needed to keep it a secret.
“I don’t think you should drink that much at a time.” He slowly moved her to the bed and helped her sit down.
“What does it matter?” she asked, never losing her smile. “I’m already damned. Might as well enjoy the perks! My ribs feel amaaaazing. We should have done this sooner.”
“Maybe we should call James,” said Kier, obviously unsure what to do with a stoned Muriel.
“Just enjoy this.” Muriel fisted her hands in Kier’s shirt and pulled him closer. “Don’t you always tell me to lighten up? I feel so loose with you so deep inside me.”
The double meaning of her words was obvious as Kier’s eyes darkened with desire. “We should find Samuel.” He unfurled her grip and eased away from her.
She followed him, standing too quickly and losing her balance again. She fell against him; her breasts pressed against his chest and her free arm wrapped around his neck, giggling for almost a minute straight at his shocked expression.
When she calmed down, she looked up at him with big eyes. “Come on,” she whispered. “I know you want me. I can feel it.” On the last word, she rubbed her hips into his, feeling his already rock-hard erection. “Can’t you feel how much I want you too?”
“I feel how high you are.” His arms shook with the effort to keep from pushing her down onto the bed and taking everything she offered.
“Feel this,” she whispered as she closed her eyes in concentration. Beneath his fingers, her shirt and bra disappeared.
Kier stared at the pile of clothes as it appeared on the floor, trying to focus on anything but the feel of her warm skin beneath his fingertips. Her bare breasts pushed against him.
It was too much for a demon to resist. Why was he resisting? She was offering him everything he’d wanted for five years. There was no reason for him to refuse, but he still held himself back, or more accurately, he held her close. He knew he would lose control if he saw Muriel in all her topless glory. He remembered how those breasts had looked in the shower, water streaming between the peaks, nipples hard, pressing against his hands.
His fingers clenched against her skin. She would hate him if he did anything to her, but he shouldn’t care if she hated him. Why did he care, damn it?
Her mouth found his neck, where she gently nibbled at the sensitive base. His control broke as he pushed her down on the bed. She bounced on impact and his eyes were riveted by the movement in her chest. His mouth actually watered at the sight.
She looked him up and down with an undeniable heat in her eyes. She liked what she saw. His cock twitched at the thought.
He slowly followed her down onto the bed. He allowed himself to brush against her as he moved up her body until his hips were firmly centered between her legs and his cock was tight against her core, their clothes preventing them from touching.
He could feel her desire mixing with his own in his mind. He didn’t know how much was coming from her or him at this point. He just knew that he needed her.
He cupped the back of her head with his free hand and covered her mouth with his. There was no sweetness or gentleness to this kiss. Kier was fierce, taking everything she offered, and she was happy to meet him just as fiercely.
Her tongue met his and every time he nipped her lips with his teeth, she gave him a playful bite back. Her legs wrapped around his waist and her arm gripped his shirt, holding him tight.
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nbsp; Kier pulled back and looked down at her. Her lips were red and swollen from his attention, breasts heaving from arousal and eyes dilated from desire. He could feel exactly how turned on she was, but he wanted to bask in the moment.
“Tell me that you want me,” he ordered with a husky whisper.
She responded by rubbing herself against him, eliciting a groan. “I want you.”
“Tell me what you want from me.” He leaned down and took one pert nipple between his teeth.
Muriel groaned. Her fingers twisted in his hair, keeping him there.
“I want you inside me. I want you to fuck me.” He moved his head to the other nipple as his free hand made sure the first one stayed just as aroused as he had made it. “Please,” she begged as he gave her a little pinch and bite at the same time, balancing her on the edge of pain and pleasure.
He growled against her, wanting nothing more than to give her exactly what she was asking for. He wanted her in every way imaginable. On her back, on her stomach. He wanted to come in her mouth and between her legs. He wanted her in ways that her angel mind couldn’t even comprehend.
His hands shook as he reached for the button at the top of her jeans. He looked up and their eyes made contact as he unfastened them. The zipper was the only noise in the room as he slowly lowered it. He knew his eyes glowed with demonic hellfire, but it didn’t seem to deter the heat in Muriel’s gaze.
She lifted her bottom to assist him in removing her pants, and he ripped the garment from her in one abrupt motion. Just like that, she was naked before him. Naked and begging him to take her.
He sat up between her legs and put his free hand on her knee. He pushed her thighs apart and bared her.
He could see that the scrutiny made her embarrassed, even with the high from his blood, and she tried to close her legs, but he casually exerted his demon strength, not allowing her to cover herself.
“I have waited for this. For five years, I have wanted to see you. There is no hiding now,” he told her.
She bit her bottom lip nervously, but she relaxed her legs and opened herself to him. His hands moved up her legs, taking time to slide underneath her and squeeze the two plump globes of her ass, the perfect balance of muscle and flesh.
“Tell me, Muriel. If I touch you now, how wet will you be?” He drew his fingers closer to her opening.
“I don’t know,” she said, not knowing how to answer.
“I think you are going to be sopping wet for me. I think that your body is more than ready for me to push my cock into you as far as it will go and not stop fucking until we are both covered in sweat and you are screaming my name. What do you think?”
Her breath caught at his naughty words. “I think you might be right,” she said softly, eyes silently begging him to make good on his words.
One side of his mouth lifted in a wicked grin as his hand found her and pushed two fingers deep inside her warmth. Her eyes closed and her head tilted back, reveling in the sensation of having at least some part of him inside her.
While she looked away, Kier swooped down and took her clitoris in his mouth. The unexpected sensation caused Muriel to shout out. “Oh my God,” she moaned.
Kier continued his assault on her, lapping her with his tongue while his fingers mimicked the rhythm that his cock was dying to recreate.
Muriel was past words as she thrashed beneath him. Incoherent sounds escaped her throat as she turned her head from side to side. When her free hand reached up to cup a breast and squeeze a nipple, he almost lost it.
When she screamed and came around his fingers, his control snapped. He pulled her to him, wrapped her legs around his waist and sunk his fangs into her shoulder. She screamed again; the pain of his fangs made her orgasm even more intense. Her blood combined with her frantic rubbing against him was too much to bear. He rubbed his jean-clad cock up against her three times before his own release came. His teeth pulled free from her neck as he roared his release.
He held her tightly to him as she struggled to catch her breath. He would bet money that she’d never experienced an orgasm like that. Sure, he knew he was good, but she’d only ever been with angels. Angels in general were not good in bed. They didn’t have the passion.
He rested his head in the crook of her shoulder. The wounds from his fangs were already healing. His blood was still in her. Strengthening her.
Muriel let out a content sigh as her eyes drifted closed. Kier eased off her and onto his back. With a quick thought, he conjured some clean sweatpants to sleep in, though he could still use a shower to clean himself off.
He couldn’t remember the last time he’d come in his pants. No reason to. He hadn’t met a woman who had refused him in centuries. Though Muriel hadn’t exactly refused him. She had begged for more. For all of him. He was the one who had held back.
Why? He had fantasized about having her naked and beneath him for years. He finally had the golden opportunity and he was the one who held back? Kier searched his mind for any demon who would have done the same thing but none came to mind. What was wrong with him?
He knew that she hadn’t been herself. She would probably be mad enough with him because of the liberties he had taken with her.
Would she hate him in the morning?
Samuel emerged from the shower feeling refreshed but by no means relaxed. The demon was alone with Muriel at this very moment. God only knew how he was torturing her. He wanted to share the cheap motel room with them, even volunteering to sleep on the floor or chair, but Muriel had insisted that he give her space.
He really didn’t understand why she needed space from him. He wasn’t the one who’d been tormenting her. The one who apparently blocked her from entering Heaven. Plus, he had told her about the prophecy as soon as he could. Somehow she was surprised when she learned her demon captive kept the prophecy a secret.
Sure, Samuel hadn’t told her the entire prophecy, but he saw no reason to tell her that she could only kill Azazel with a broken heart. If she was going to get her heart broken, it was best she didn’t live her life just waiting for the pain. He knew more than most that prophecies couldn’t be changed or averted.
He had never believed in angels, demons, or any of the other various creatures that inhabited this Earth alongside humans. He was raised by a single mother who cared more about where her next high was coming from than what her son was up to. He fought his way through school, not caring about grades. There was never going to be a college education for him. He didn’t have the money, and his sketchy school and juvenile record was enough to bar him from getting any scholarships.
Military was the only future he ever saw for himself. He just never imagined he would be so good at it. It shouldn’t be so easy to take another life, but it was for him. Traveling from country to country with his team was the most at home he ever felt.
However, a bullet to the leg and early retirement had forced him to go back to trying to be “normal.” His life had been monotonous before Ava had found him. Day in and day out, he would try to fit in with the locals in the small town he tried to make his home. Constantly trying to remember what small talk consisted of and flipping through the endless TV channels without finding anything to hold his scattered attention. Until Ava.
At first he thought she was just the new bartender who happened to be sexier than any woman he had ever seen before. Soon he learned his guardian angel sent Ava to protect him from the horde of demons who would be hunting him because he was prophesied to stop the apocalypse.
It would have been a lot to take in for a normal human, but not for Samuel. Having something to fight for was a relief. Sure, he was mortal, but he had enough skills in hand-to-hand combat and gun training to hold his own against most supernatural beings.
A knock on his motel door dragged him out of his thoughts. He looked through the peephole, expecting to see Muriel, but his heart jumped at the sight of Ava.
He opened the door and she was in his arms in seconds. After a heated kis
s, she pulled back. She nibbled her bottom lip, obviously wanting more but holding herself back.
“You have three seconds to tell me why you’re here before I throw you down on that bed and don’t ask again until I’m done with you,” he threatened, knowing full well that if she didn’t want to sleep with him, she was more than capable of fighting him off.
She looked just as beautiful as always. Her shoulder-length straight blonde hair was back in a tight, no-nonsense ponytail. Her brown eyes stared up at him with a desirous look he would never get enough of. She was a full six feet tall and had the bone structure to be a model, though she never wore the type of clothes or makeup to really accentuate it. She didn’t need to.
This morning she wore a simple black tank top showing enough cleavage to make him drool and loose khaki cargo pants that probably hid more than a few weapons.
“It’s hard to concentrate with you waving that gun in my face,” she pointed out. Samuel hadn’t even noticed that he still held the weapon. It was instinctive for him to arm himself when he answered the door. Hell, it was instinctive for him to arm himself at all times.
“Well, you are pretty threatening,” he teased while he flipped the safety on and set the gun on the dresser.
“I came because I heard you found Muriel. Is she okay? Has she been attacked yet? Why didn’t she answer her phone? For that matter, why haven’t you answered your phone?”
Samuel had known these questions were coming, but he had been purposefully evasive with Ava because he didn’t want to answer them. “The situation is, um, confusing,” he offered.
Ava was never one to pussyfoot around. “Confusing?”
“Did you know what happens when a fallen angel drinks a demon’s blood?”
“Shit. I knew this was coming,” she muttered.
“You knew that a demon forced her to drink his blood?”
Her eyes widened. “Forced! I’ll kill the bastard,” she muttered under her breath. “No, I just figured that Muriel had been drinking it on her own. Because of its healing and strengthening properties, demon blood can be addictive for fallen angels, even though it’s strictly forbidden. I never thought Muriel would be the sort to partake, but since the prophecy said that she’s powered by demon blood, I just figured she has already been drinking it. She’ll probably need to drink more to get into Hell.”