by Sadie Moss
Ford growls.
“I’m afraid we’ll need a straight answer.”
“Fuck no.”
“There we are.” The angel moves on. “Sawyer, who embodies the sin of Lust. Do you renounce your sin?”
Sawyer winks at me. “No, I’m good.”
“Knight, who embodies the sin of Envy. Do you renounce your sin?”
Fear fills me. Knight doesn’t actually like his sin. He doesn’t want to feel eaten up all the time. He’s the only one who doesn’t revel in what he can do and who he is. Will he say that he gives it up? But if he does, does that mean he’ll stop existing?
He glances at me, and something passes through his dark brown eyes. It’s like yearning and satisfaction all wrapped into one. I smile at him softly, trying to convey a million things with this small tilt of my lips. I want him to know that even if he sometimes feels like he’s not enough, like he’s not worthy, there are seven other people in this world who know that he is. Who will believe it for him when he can’t.
His eyes turn a little glassy, and he dips his head once, his gaze locked on mine. Then he turns to the angel on the bench and shakes his head, the motion definitive. My stomach unclenches as a rush of relief fills me. I feel like my heart just got ten pounds lighter.
The woman nods, accepting Knight’s response. Then she turns to the imposing man beside me. “Ryland, who embodies the sin of Pride. Do you renounce your sin?”
Even if all the others had renounced their sin, I know that this man never would. He’s far too, well, proud to do it.
“No,” Ryland says, his head held high.
“Well then, I think that settles it.” The grandmotherly angel looks back at me. “Trinity, they are refusing to renounce their sins and stop indulging in them. That means they are not redeemed. A person can do a great many good things while still being impatient, or selfish, or cowardly. These men have done good deeds. We will not argue that point with you. We’re quite pleased to see them doing such good work, and we know that it is thanks to you. But they have not changed their full natures. A few moments of, say, temperance on the part of a glutton does not mean they have renounced gluttony completely.”
Thinking about it that way—it’s true, isn’t it? Nix has had moments where he wasn’t lazy. Remi’s had moments where he isn’t being a glutton. Beck’s had moments where he isn’t being greedy—and so on. But those moments don’t mean that they’ve given it all up completely. And through all of this, everything we’ve gone through, the sins have still been, well, sinful.
They’ve been themselves.
Ryland’s been proud. Knight’s been envious. Sawyer’s been lustful. I don’t think Ford’s been truly calm for a single minute during this entire process. They’re still the sins, and that’s reassuring.
And you know what? It doesn’t matter if the committee doesn’t think that’s good enough for them to be redeemed. The committee can think whatever they please. So long as I still get to keep my men with me, then I’m happy. I want them by my side; I don’t want to lose them. If the cost of that is that one committee full of stodgy angels doesn’t think they’re redeemed, then it’s just my lucky day, isn’t it?
“Now that that’s out of the way, the sins are free to leave,” the first angel says in his wheezing voice. “But there is the matter of you, Trinity.”
“Oh?” I ask. I’d thought it was kind of settled. I didn’t succeed in redeeming the sins. Not really anything else to do after that, is there?
All of the committee members nod.
“You didn’t redeem the sins,” the second angel croaks, “but you did prevent great evil from happening. You nearly died defending the humans. You put your life on the line for them. And you recruited others to help you in your cause and do good deeds. You did not let following orders get in the way of doing what you knew was truly the right thing.”
“For that, and after much discussion,” the grandmotherly woman says, “we have decided that it is only fair we allow you the chance to return to Heaven and be reinstated as a full angel. All of the usual conditions and privileges apply, of course. And we will give you a new pair of wings. I know you lost yours in the fight against Anderson.”
The committee members all peer at me, a quiet expectation in their eyes, and I realize that they’re all waiting for me to say yes.
The thing is… not that long ago, I would’ve said yes without thinking. All I wanted was to go home. To be back where I belonged. I can still remember how I felt in Remi’s restaurant when I tasted his food for the first time. I can feel that indulgent, warm sensation inside of me, that feeling of home.
But the idea of “home” isn’t Heaven for me anymore. It’s being with my men. That’s where I’m truly home.
And I can’t ask them to stay up here with me. The committee wouldn’t allow it, first of all. And they’d all be bored to death, second of all. My men would never want to just sit around all day being good. Even Nix wouldn’t like it up here, I don’t think.
So really, I don’t have to think long about my choice. It’s obvious to me. It would be amazing to get my wings back, but there are other things I want more.
I smile. “Thank you,” I tell the angels gathered before me. “I know this is a great honor, and I appreciate all of your generosity. I’m glad you appreciate my hard work and that you recognize what I’ve done to try to help people.”
Around me, I can feel the sins tensing. I think they think I’m going to say yes. Silly of them to worry about that. As if I could ever leave them. As if I’d ever want to.
“But I’m afraid I’m going to have to say no,” I finish. “Thank you, again, truly. It’s an honor. Respectfully and gratefully, but firmly, I must decline.”
The sins relax around me, and I have to work hard to stiffen my mouth so my grin doesn’t grow any wider. I don’t want the committee to think that I’m being flippant or disrespectful. It really is nice to see that I’m being appreciated by my people. That even the highest angels are recognizing the work I did. And even though they’re not outright saying it, I can sense between the lines of what they’re not saying.
They would’ve had no idea about Anderson until it was too late.
No angels came to our backup and rescue—they were caught completely flat-footed by his betrayal.
They’re thanking me profusely, and they’re not even giving me a second assignment to make up for the one that I didn’t complete. If they had been at all prepared for Anderson’s betrayal, we wouldn’t have had to fight that big battle on our own. And I doubt they would downplay their own part in things so much.
I saw what they didn’t, and they were blindsided. And they’re rewarding me for that without openly admitting that they were caught with their pants down.
Makes me feel a little… well, Ryland’s eyes flash, and I see him glance at me out of the corner of his eyes. He can sense my pride in myself.
Huh. I can’t even remember the last time I was proud of myself. But here we are. And it feels pretty good, actually.
The angels all look at each other, seeming a little baffled. “If you’re sure?”
I nod. “Yes. Thank you. But I’m sure. I’d like to stay fallen, if that’s all right.”
“That is perfectly all right.” The angel who reminds me of a grandmother smiles at me. “So it shall be.”
She bangs her gavel.
And so it is.
EPILOGUE
Trinity
It’s taken us a few weeks to find a house that suits us all as a group.
As a family.
Nix’s fortress isn’t right for all of us, and neither is Beck’s penthouse apartment. Nobody even wants to think about whatever crazy place Ford was living in, Ryland’s apartment is, and I quote, “soulless.” Remi’s words, not mine. And Remi, by his own admission, has an apartment that’s too small for all of us.
So we get a house instead.
Everyone sets to work making it their own. I’m still
adjusting a bit to living in New York City. It’s crazy. But I have my men with me to help me navigate it, the seven of them united the way they used to be. It’s so good to see them actually working together. Of course, there are moments when they clash—they wouldn’t be the men I fell in love with if they weren’t opinionated and stubborn—but it always works itself out.
I can feel the love between all of them again, where before it was so disjointed. It fills me with warmth.
Slowly but surely, the men get back to the things that were interrupted by my sudden appearance in their lives, and I’m making a life in New York for the first time. Before all of this started, I just worked at whatever job I could get; I didn’t really care about it. The only kind of life I had was through books and my favorite TV shows. I didn’t even have anyone to talk to about the stories and pop culture that I loved so much.
Now, I have people in my life. I have Nix to talk to about TV and books. I have Sawyer, who likes to take me out on proper dates, spoiling me rotten with romantic gestures… before tearing my clothes off. I have Remi, who wants me to try new dishes that he’s experimenting with. And I don’t have to be any particular kind of person, or work at any particular kind of job. I can figure out who I want to be, and that suits me just fine.
Beck, Remi, and Ryland are all going back to their jobs, of course. They like working. It feeds their particular sin and they get a sense of accomplishment from it. And they certainly make enough money between the three of them to take care of the rest of us. Nix has no intention of working. Ford still fights in the underground ring because he’d get bored otherwise. I think Sawyer and Knight are still figuring out what they want to do, just like I am. But it’ll only be a matter of time.
“Where’d you go?” Nix asks when I enter the house one afternoon with Knight trailing behind me.
“You’d have been so bored,” I tell him. “We checked out another museum.”
I’m having fun exploring the city. Knight usually accompanies me, absorbing it all with me. Sometimes Sawyer or Ford will come as well, depending on what it is I’m doing.
Nix groans and flops back onto the couch, fluffing a pillow under his head. “Ugh. You’re right about that. But I missed you.”
“I was only gone for a day.” I chuckle. “Ryland’s been gone longer than I have.”
He and Beckett work the longest hours, and I think we all miss them sometimes. But we make up for it when they get back home.
Nix grumbles something into his pillow and I grin, ruffling his hair as I walk by him. Remington’s already in the kitchen, cooking up something for dinner. I wave hello but don’t get too close—not with a hot stove involved. He’s in the zone, so we’ll have a proper hello later.
Sawyer wraps his arms around me from behind—I can tell it’s him from the cologne—and kisses me on the cheek.
“Hungry?” he growls.
“For food,” I correct him, elbowing him lightly. “The rest can wait.”
He just growls again, and the sound makes my clit throb. I know it’s not his power though. It’s just him.
Ryland and Beckett get home just as dinner’s ready. They used to pull much longer hours than this, but I’ve put my foot down about them finding a balance between the greed and pride that urge them to work, and spending time at home with the rest of us. I was surprised by how little fight they put up, honestly. I think they’re pleased with my rule, though they’ll never admit it.
Dinner’s always a lively affair with such different personalities, and I’m including myself in that. I’m always trying to snatch up the food first and it’s become a common joke that I’m the sin of impatience, which always makes me pout. There’s never a dull moment though.
After dinner, we usually watch a movie, and tonight’s no different. I’m not going to stop enjoying my fictional stories just because I have a life outside of them now. It’s just more fun because now I can share those stories with other people. Nix will binge watch entire television seasons with me, but the others are slower to keep up, so we usually just watch movies.
Tonight, we’re watching one of my favorites: The Matrix.
We got a truly massive couch, which of course Nix picked out. He spent forever shopping for it—not out of laziness, but because he’s a teeny bit of a perfectionist when it comes to picking out stuff like this. It has to be just right for maximum user experience, or something like that. I love it.
As we settle in for the movie, Beckett hauls me into his lap. Warmth spreads through me. I wouldn’t say that I’m used to everyone touching me, exactly, but I’m no longer surprised by it. Except when it comes to Beckett and Ryland. For so long, they held a part of themselves back from me, insisting on keeping their distance. To feel and see them expressing their affection so openly… it makes me melt. It reminds me that we really are all together in this now. Committed.
The movie starts as Ford hits play—sooner than Nix wants him to, which starts a bit of an argument until Ryland tells them all to hush—and I settle back against Beckett, his arm warm and solid around my waist. The opening sequence plays, green letters and numbers flashing in neat lines across the screen.
Beck’s lips find my ear, and he bites down gently on my earlobe, his hands wandering over my body. I suck in a breath, wriggling against him and feeling his cock stiffen beneath me. He chuckles, his breath wafting against my skin as he whispers, “I’m glad to be home. I missed you, angel.”
Then his lips are on my skin again, tracing a hot path down the line of my neck. I tilt my head to the side, letting out a quiet, needy moan as Beck squeezes my breast.
At the sound, six heads turn in my direction, six pairs of eyes growing heated as my men gaze at me.
Hmm.
I’ve got a feeling we might not make it all the way through the movie after all.
THANK YOU FOR READING!
Thanks so much for reading Trin and her men’s story! For a little extra fun, click here to read a bonus scene where the sins surprise Trinity with a very special gift, or copy and paste this link into your browser: https://BookHip.com/DZAZKW
If you love quirky heroines and sexy bad boys, try my complete reverse harem series, Hidden World Academy. Turn the page to find out more…
Mistaken identities, a human in a magical world, and three sexy warlocks. Sounds like the start of a joke, but nope...
It's my life.
After one too many kamikazes on my twenty-first birthday, I've made a few interesting discoveries.
First of all... magic is real.
Secondly... there's a whole supernatural dimension that exists parallel to ours.
Thirdly... I've somehow gotten stuck in that dimension.
There are about a billion things wrong with this picture, including the fact that I don't actually have any magic. Everyone here thinks I do though. They also think I'm a witch named Roxie, the star student at Radcliffe Magical Academy.
Ummm. Nope. Not me. Sorry.
I don't know where the hell the real Roxie is, or how I'm supposed to get back home, but I'm determined to find out.
Unfortunately, I keep getting distracted by three hot-as-hell warlocks I can't seem to avoid. Cross, a snarky bad boy who pushes all my buttons, Theo, an incorrigible flirt with a devastating accent, and Kasian, a teacher's assistant who's totally off limits.
Even though I'm drawn to all three of them, I'm not sure I should trust them.
Because if anybody finds out I don't belong here...
I'm screwed.
Buy it Amazon or read free in Kindle Unlimited HERE!
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ALSO BY SADIE MOSS
Magic Awakened
Kissed by Shadows (prequel novella)
Bound by Magic
Game of Lies
Consort of Rebels
The Vampires’ Fae
Saved by Blood
Seduce
d by Blood
Ruined by Blood
The Last Shifter
Wolf Hunted
Wolf Called
Wolf Claimed
Wolf Freed
Academy of Unpredictable Magic
Spark
Trials
Thief
Threat
Hunt
Clash
Hidden World Academy
Magic Swap
Magic Chase
Magic Gambit
Her Soulkeepers
Sacrifice
Defiance
Ascension
Feathers and Fate
Dark Kings
Wicked Game
Wanted Angel
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Contents
1. Trinity
2. Sawyer
3. Trinity
4. Trinity
5. Trinity
6. Phoenix
7. Trinity
8. Trinity
9. Trinity
10. Beckett
11. Trinity
12. Ford
13. Trinity
14. Trinity
15. Trinity
16. Trinity
17. Trinity
18. Ryland
19. Trinity
20. Knight
21. Trinity
22. Trinity
23. Remington
24. Trinity
25. Trinity
Epilogue
Also by Sadie Moss