Bad Angel

by JC Andrijeski

  Then something else occurred to him.

  Phoenix must have found a charger for it.

  And… recharged it for him.

  As it vibrated, the black case moved a few inches closer to the tray Phoenix set there when she first walked in, covered with food he’d completely forgotten about. Now he could smell the coffee in the carafe there, and what must be sausage under a metal warming cover.

  Both were probably cold by now.

  It didn’t seem to matter to a more animal part of Dags’ body.

  His stomach growled.

  Phoenix laughed again, clearly hearing it.

  He was about to climb off her, to grab the phone, to at least look at who was calling, but she reached up, caressing his face and jaw.

  That threw him enough that he looked down.

  Then she slid her other hand over his cock.

  He let out an involuntary sound, forgetting about the phone, forgetting about the food. She kept her hand there, between their bodies, and the blue-green light ignited in his chest and hands without warning, curling out of him like a slow-motion explosion, sliding over her skin, turning his whole body to liquid.

  She gasped in surprise, her eyes closing as she bit her lip.

  Opening them, she met his gaze, letting out an involuntary laugh.

  “God. You should see yourself right now.” Seeming to think about her own words, she grunted. Her voice abruptly turned annoyed. “Of course, it would be a lot more convincing if I hadn’t caught you screwing that redhead in a private room at The Dolphin. And if you hadn’t more or less admitted to sleeping with half of L.A. over the past few months⏤”

  “What?” He stared down at her.

  What the hell was she talking about?

  Why in God’s name would he tell her something like that?

  “I never said that,” he said, still staring at her.

  “You did. You just don’t remember.” Returning his gaze, she grunted. “That night you came here. The first night, when you crash-landed on my deck and scared the shit out of me. You told me all kinds of things that night, Jourdain.”

  Her voice turned faintly bitter.

  “Including the fact that you’d apparently been doing a sex tour of L.A. nightclubs for the past however-many months to avoid dealing with me… even as you dodged my calls. Not like I wasn’t already more or less aware of that.”

  His jaw clenched, but he fought with whether to press the point.

  He knew anything he said to that would definitely make things worse.

  Especially the things he wanted to remind her about Karver, and the fact that she’d more or less chosen Karver over him once before.

  He wanted to ask, though.

  He wanted to know why the hell he would even say that to her.

  More worrying still, what else had he said to her?

  The fingers of her free hand gripped his hair, tugging on him, pulling him down towards her. He followed along willingly enough, even as his mind ground through possible things he could have said⏤horrible, stupid, deeply messed-up things he might have told her.

  They were kissing again, before he’d managed to push that from his mind.

  His paranoia didn’t stop any part of him that wanted that kiss.

  The kiss deepened without warning, then he was holding her down, pressing her into the bed. She let out a moan against his mouth when that blue-green charge flared, sparking over and around both of them, heating his skin, heating hers, making her gasp.

  He wrapped his hand around her thigh, in part to keep it off the rest of her. The fingers of his other hand tightened around her wrist, holding her down on the mattress.

  He was losing it, though.

  He was definitely losing it.

  They had to stop this. He needed to stop. Now.

  Stopping was the responsible thing to do.

  He definitely needed to stop things before this went any further.

  He hung there, eyes half-closed as she sucked and kissed his throat, as she pressed her breasts up against him, reacting to the blue-green light, reacting to him pressing his weight into her. He still couldn’t see her aura, but he could feel her all around him anyway, maybe from that strange glow he’d seen around her skin.

  He wanted to fuck her.

  The thought shocked him, right before it echoed.

  He really, really wanted to fuck her.

  He’d never wanted sex with someone so badly in his life.

  He must have said some part of that out loud.

  He felt her flinch; then her skin heated in reaction, right before she wrapped her hand around his cock again. She pulled her wrist free of his fingers and reached for his pants, starting to unfasten them with deft fingers as soon as she’d pushed him back enough to give herself access.

  He hung there, half in a trance. His hand buried itself in her hair. He was envisioning things he wanted to do to her now, closing his eyes and seeing her naked under him, tied to the bed, completely at his mercy.

  She was kissing the edges of his lips when he finally opened his eyes, when he managed to pull himself back from wherever he’d gone. Her hand was still on his cock, and a heated surge hit out of him, making her cling to him.

  “Fuck,” he murmured, pressing into her. “We can’t do this.”

  “Yes. We can.”

  He shook his head. “Maybe I could go down on you,” he said, fighting to think, to rationalize how that would somehow be better. “I really want to go down on you.”

  Pain flickered through his chest as the images returned behind his eyes.

  “I want to tie you up,” he clarified. “To the bed. Then we won’t go too far.” That pain in his chest grew blinding. “I’ll make you come. I promise…”

  She let out a low moan, shocking him.

  Her fingers tightened painfully in his hair.

  Feeling his words affecting her, feeling her liking that he was talking to her, feeling that everything about him talking to her was turning her on, he was about to say more⏤

  When someone pointedly cleared their throat.

  It wasn’t Phoenix.

  Chapter 23

  Front Gate

  Dags stiffened, looking in the direction of the sound.

  He was harder than hell, breathing too much, the current still flickering around both of them, even as he fought it back. Some part of him was already half-geared up to fight, and that impulse to fight, to protect her, tangled in with the rest of it, confusing him. He stared, half-blind, in the direction of the door.

  “Who is it?” he growled.

  The person there jumped.

  “Jesus!” she said, loud, clutching her chest.

  Recognizing the voice, Dags flinched, too, even as his eyes clicked into focus.

  Asia.

  She was leaning against the table, the same table where Phoenix set the tray of food. What had been an amused smirk on her face faded as she stared at the two of them.

  “Are you using that lightning stuff on her?” she said, incredulous. “What the hell is wrong with you? Are you trying to fry my best friend?”

  Phoenix took her hand off his cock, and Dags winced again.

  “Asia!” Phoenix snapped. “What do you want? Why are you here?”

  “Calm down!” Asia frowned as she looked between them. “Jeez. You are both loons. How was I supposed to know? I mean, I thought he was shot. As in, barely alive and probably jacked up on morphine or whatever. I wasn’t expecting to walk in on the two of you screwing like a couple of horny⏤”

  “Get out of here!” Phoenix said, chucking a small pillow at her. “Now!”

  Asia exhaled, blowing a few dark curls out of her face, which looked curlier than usual, like she’d put some kind of product in it, or maybe not put some kind of product in it. Despite Phoenix’s words, Asia didn’t leave. She folded her arms under her breasts, pushing them up slightly, and continued to stare at them.

  Her mouth pursed as she looked from Phoeni
x to Dags, then back again.

  “You’re a lot more pervy than I would’ve thought,” she remarked, aiming her words at Dags. “…For an angel, I mean.”

  “Asia.” Phoenix spoke through gritted teeth. “Unless the house is on fire⏤”

  “The house isn’t on fire,” Asia cut in, rolling her eyes. “But I didn’t just come up here to spy, or whatever. I had a reason⏤”

  “Which is what?” Phoenix said. “What is your reason?”

  Asia blinked, seemingly thrown by the hostility coming off Phoenix. Gradually, that confusion faded from her light brown eyes.

  “Jesus, ‘Nix. I don’t know why you’re yelling at me. What the hell are you doing? He just got shot. As in, less than twelve hours ago, someone put a bullet in his back⏤”

  “I’m aware of that⏤”

  “Are you? Because it sure looks like you’re trying to fuck him.”

  “Asia! It’s none of your damned⏤”

  “None of my business? Seriously? He’s my friend, too. I watched him practically bleed out on our kitchen table yesterday. After you took him on some joy ride to a demon’s house. And now you have your hand on his⏤”

  “Asia!”

  “You did, though.” Asia frowned, refolding her arms. “You had your hand on his dick. Just now. I saw it. Are you really going to deny it?”

  Phoenix glared at her, but Asia just kept talking.

  “That doctor said the bullet almost nicked his heart. She said he could have died. Easily. We should have taken him to a damned hospital, ‘Nix.”

  Something in Asia’s voice made it sound like they’d had some portion of this argument already.

  “Karver and me, we let you overrule that,” Asia added. “But that doesn’t mean we’re cool with you killing the guy. The doc said he needed serious bed rest. I don’t think that includes whatever the hell you were doing to him just now.”

  Asia scowled, motioning over the two of them with one finger.

  “I think her exact words were, ‘Keep him hydrated. If he can take food, feed him when he wakes up.’ I don’t recall her saying anything about fucking him.” Asia’s brown eyes blazed, her voice angrier the longer she spoke. “I know he’s all angel-y and everything, but he just got shot. He had a bullet in his chest yesterday. You seriously can’t wait a few days?”

  “Hey!” Dags held up a hand. “Asia… calm down. I’m fine.”

  She glared at him.

  “Sure. Like I’m going to believe you. Not only am I pretty sure you wouldn’t turn down sex with her if you were actively bleeding to death, I’m also pretty sure you’re a full-blown masochist⏤”

  “Then blame me,” he growled. “Why are you yelling at her?”

  Asia snorted, glaring at Phoenix.

  “Oh,” she said, folding her arms. “I know exactly who started this.”

  There was a silence.

  Then Phoenix exhaled in annoyance, pushing lightly on Dags’ chest so she could slide out from under him, sitting on the bed by the headboard.

  “He just said he was fine,” Phoenix said, motioning at Dags. “Doesn’t he look all right to you? He’s certainly not on his death bed, for crying out loud.”

  “Well he’s not exactly okay, either, now is he?”

  “Asia!” Dags growled. “I’m fine. I’m fine, for fuck’s sake! I appreciate your concern, but I’m perfectly all right.”

  Seeing her skeptical look, he gritted his teeth, pulling himself upright with an effort, tugging some of the sheets and blankets with him as he slid over to the side of the bed. Sitting on the edge of the mattress, he reached up, carefully peeling off the bandage they’d removed earlier, wincing when the tape pulled at his skin.

  He took it all the way off his chest that time, grimacing at the red and yellow stains on the bandage itself, but only because they looked gross.

  He showed Asia the dark red mark beneath the cotton padding, along with the stitches that definitely looked like they needed to be removed. They stuck out of his skin strangely, like black worms swimming through his skin around what was now a non-existent bullet hole.

  “See?” he said. “I’m fine. Stop yelling at her.”

  Asia blinked, walking closer.

  “How the hell did you do that? Heal so quickly?”

  Dags frowned, shrugging. “Does it matter?”

  “Kinda,” she said, giving him an annoyed look. “Is that an angel thing?”

  Dags gritted his teeth, but nodded.

  There was a silence where Asia just stood there, looking at the exposed wound. She bent down in front of Dags then, touching the skin there tentatively, prodding and stroking it with her fingers. Dags felt a whisper of annoyance off Phoenix.

  When Asia didn’t stop touching him, that annoyance worsened.

  In the end, Dags couldn’t stand it.

  He grabbed Asia’s wrist.

  “Don’t touch, okay?” He met Asia’s gaze. “Just look. You can see it’s healed without touching it.”

  She smirked. “So only Phoenix gets to touch?”

  “Yes,” Dags said, unthinking. “Only Phoenix gets to touch.”

  From behind him, he felt Phoenix relax.

  She reached for his back, her fingers stroking his bare skin. He could practically feel the message woven in there, and closed his eyes, longer than a blink, before focusing back on Asia with an effort.

  Asia clearly picked up on something, too.

  Frowning, she took a few steps back from Dags.

  Like before, she was looking warily between the two of them.

  Then Phoenix’s voice rose, annoyed, even as she continued to massage Dags’ back.

  “Can you please leave now, Asia?” she said. “Or did you actually need something?”

  There was a silence.

  Then the other actress exhaled.

  Backing up to the enamel table by the door, she leaned her butt on the table’s edge, frowning as she continued to stare between them. Glancing sideways at the tray decorated with coffee cups and the carafe and what was presumably Dags’ breakfast, she lifted up the metal cover on the plate by hooking it with one finger.

  A strong smell of bacon, egg, sausage and butter wafted out, slowly filling the room.

  Asia stole a piece of bacon off the plate and dropped the lid back down.

  “Fine. Sorry to bug you guys with your… whatever…” Asia waved a hand expressively at the two of them, crunching on the piece of bacon with her back molars. “But someone’s here. At the gate. For Dags.”

  Dags stiffened.

  Before he could get all the way up from the bed, Phoenix gripped his arms from behind, holding him still. He sat back down, letting her hold him there, relaxing his body with an effort.

  “Who?” he said to Asia. “Who is it?”

  “I don’t remember the name.”

  “And the gate’s closed? I’ve never seen it closed before.”

  “Phoenix had the security guys close it last night. After you got shot.”

  Dags felt his shoulders relax, but not by much. “But you saw them? Did you go down to the gate yourself? Did they see you?”

  Asia pursed her lips. “No. I saw them through the video intercom.”

  “What do they want?”

  “She wouldn’t say. Not to me. Just that she needed to talk to you.”

  Dags frowned, exchanging looks with Phoenix.

  “She?” he said, turning back to Asia. “Did you recognize her?”

  “No.” Picking up the cover on the plate, she stole another piece of bacon. She took a bite, crunching it appreciatively, even as she lowered the metal cover.

  “Well, not her face,” she amended. “Her voice, maybe. She says she’s your assistant. I never met her before, but she sounds like the person I talked to when I called your office a few times for ‘Nix.”

  Dags glanced at Phoenix, surprised.

  Phoenix didn’t return his gaze. Flushing a little, she glared daggers at Asia, instead.

>   Asia seemed oblivious.

  “You know,” she said to Phoenix. “I told you about her. The kinda bitchy but funny one? I tried to remind her who I was, but she acted like she had no idea what I was talking about. She’s like… all business. She has a cop with her. Not your friend. Some young guy.”

  Dags was already on his feet.

  He disentangled himself from Phoenix’s hands gently but firmly.

  “How many are there?”

  Asia blinked, taken aback. “What do you mean?”

  “How. Many.” Dags stared at Asia, his jaw clenched. “Just those two? Ruby and some cop? And they’re still at the gate? Not inside? You’re sure?”

  “Yeah… I mean, I think so.”

  “With everything I said? That’s a yes on all of it?”

  “Yes,” she said, still sounded confused. “Last I knew. Unless one of the others let her in. I don’t know why they would.”

  Dags looked at Phoenix.

  Seeing how pale she was, he realized she understood.

  Asia watched them look at one another. “Wait. Is she not your assistant? I assumed you called her. Because of the you being shot thing. I figured you must have woken up and called your people, told them what happened. Why else would she be here?”

  “She wouldn’t be here,” Dags said grimly. “Ruby has no idea where this place is.”

  He didn’t take his eyes off Phoenix.

  His mind was churning now. He fought to think.

  “Is there a way out of here other than the driveway?” he said. “Some way you can drive, I mean.”

  When Phoenix shook her head, he frowned.

  “What about a panic room?” he said.

  Phoenix shook her head again. “Not that I know of. We could ask the security guys. It’s a rental, but they should know.”

  Dags fought to move his mind faster, to think.

  Still frowning, he said, “Text your security team. And Karver. Tell them they can’t let Ruby or the cop inside the gate. They need to say no, no matter what reason they give. Tell Karver, he and his girlfriend need to stay the hell away from them. Just about the only thing we know about these assholes is they like to take people known to one of us.”

  Still thinking aloud, he added,

  “Ask Karver if he knows anyone with a boat. If not, he and Cris might need to hike or swim out of here. You and Asia should go with them. See if you can make it a few beaches over, then head somewhere else… a hotel outside the Hollywood orbit, maybe even outside L.A. Pay in cash. Don’t go anywhere a friend of yours would think to look.”