Hope in Love

by J. Hali Steele

  He didn’t think Michael would be too happy with this new turn of events. Osce was kept under close watch for a good reason. Uriel had to be considered also.

  The great archangel of the Earth, Uriel oversaw Hell as the fire of God, in direct opposition to Luke. Uri and the devil hated each other with a passion only angels could sustain. Uri held the key which would open the doors of Hell at the end of time. Luke thought the key should be his.

  But the Father had been right. Uriel, also known as the angel of repentance, was a pitiless bastard but he provided the necessary balance to how many souls Luke could take without explicit permission.

  His other responsibility—the half-human offspring produced by the fallen angels who had taken human wives. It was this debacle that was the reason angels couldn’t mate with humans. Many of the children from these unions ran rampant around the world causing untold chaos. Quite a few were on Luke’s list of best friends. This was another bone of contention between the two powerful angels.

  Osce came under Uri’s care, but he’d be glad to be rid of him. Uri often referred to him as a pain in the ass. Michael laughed at that because he considered Uri to be a much bigger pain in his ass.

  Like Ramiel, Uriel did his own thing and Michael’s hold on him was tenuous at best, often needing the Father’s intervention.

  Tired of such boring thoughts, Ram’s mind wandered in another direction. His cock strained against his pants. Envisioning Yael wet and soapy in the shower became too much for him. Why not join her there? After all, she didn’t seem to mind the picture of the act he’d put in her mind earlier.

  He massaged the head of his cock through the thin material of his slacks until drops formed on the tip. Shit, no way was he going to take care of himself ever again. Not as long as Yael lived in the world. Ram vanished from the patio.

  So much steam filled the bathroom it would have been difficult for a human to see. Ram didn’t have that problem. Her luscious body was silhouetted against the glass doors. Already naked, he moved to the door and quietly slid it open.

  “Oh!” She jumped back at feeling him there and he had to reach out and catch her before she slipped on the wet floor.

  “I’ll leave if you’d rather be alone.” His breath held in his throat, waiting to hear her answer.

  “No…you may stay.” Her voice was hesitant.

  “I want to do more than just stay, Yael.” Hearing her inhale the air told him she’d read just what he wanted. “Let me bathe your body.” She handed him the lavender-scented sponge and turned her back to him with her arms across her breasts.

  “No, we should do the front first.” He eased her back around to face him. Her eyes were shut. “Look at me, baby. See what you do to me.” He pulled one arm loose and placed her hand on his cock. He sensed her excitement as air whistled through her teeth.

  Slowly, he ran the sponge around her chest. Her other arm dropped and she braced her hand against the wall. The one around his dick began to stroke and pull the skin back and forth. Ram’s blood was on fire and raced to fill his erection even more.

  He brought the sponge down and circled her breasts. The nipples stood in plump peaks and poked at him as he moved over them. Going lower, he washed her belly in circular swirls before he shifted to the place between her legs. He squeezed the sponge and her legs tightened against his wayward hand. “Ah, you liked that.”

  “Yes.”

  Short strokes back and forth over her pussy made her rock into his hand.

  “Turn around.” She released her hold on his cock and faced the wall. Both hands were raised and placed flat against the wall. “That’s right. Hold tight, baby.” Dropping the sponge, he used both hands to pull her body toward his. She bent slightly at the waist and he put one arm around her there to hold her.

  His free hand stroked and caressed her hips and her sweet cheeks. He let his cock bob against the back of her thigh as he pushed his fingers into the crease of her ass. Using the water that cascaded from the showerhead, he played at the pucker of skin and plied one fingertip inside.

  “Oooh, Ram,” she moaned and threw her head back. Arching even more, she pressed her behind further onto his finger.

  “Tell me if it hurts, I’ll stop.”

  “NO! Don’t stop.”

  He chuckled and planted kisses down her silky back as he pushed deeper inside. His heavy erection begged to be placed there and he moved it into the crevice and slid it between the silky cheeks, keeping his finger buried.

  Drops of cum formed on the tip of his penis, and with the water washing over them, he wouldn’t need any lubricant. He’d enter her slow and easy. Removing his finger, he grasped his cock and bumped the slick tip of it at her tiny opening. The head slipped in and she gasped.

  “Relax, baby. I won’t give you any more than you want.” He nudged it further in and waited for her muscles to loosen and accept him. She slid her hands down the wall, and bending lower, she pushed her ass back, taking more than he would have given her.

  Ram waited for her to move again. When she pulled away, and came back again, he gave her the rest of his cock.

  “Oh yeah,” he groaned as he started to pump inside her ass. Slow, very slow. He took his time and let her grow accustomed to the thickness that penetrated her anus. Felt so damn good. Both hands now rested on her hips and pulled her back and forth on his penis.

  He moved one hand to the front and stroked her pussy. She moaned loud, the sound bouncing off the tiled walls. He touched and pinched the nub nestled in the folds. Rubbed in a circular motion until she bucked her hips tighter against him. Picking up the pace a little, he thrust in and out.

  Shit, he could even come in her this way and not impregnate her. His balls were so tight, ready to explode.

  He plunged fingers deep into her pussy and worked in and out while his thumb massaged and caressed her clit. All the while he stroked in and out of her ass.

  Her breath came in ragged gasps and she called out to him. “Faster, I…”

  “Come on, baby. Let it go.” He strummed her cunt, moved in her anus in rhythmic thrusts. “Come for me, Yael.” Her body arched up, her head came back and she screamed.

  “Ramiel!”

  “I’m coming, fuck!” he groaned as he released a never-ending stream of semen in her ass. Her passage was slippery and she pushed his fingers out with convulsions from her pussy and the strength of her orgasm. “Sweet.” He straightened her body against the wall, lavished kisses on her neck and across her shoulders.

  Reaching for the sponge, he worked more soap into it and gently ran it between her thighs and into the crevice of her butt, bathing the inside of her thighs and down the back of her legs. Turning her to face him, he rinsed the sponge, prepared it again, and washed her nipples and her stomach. His lips covered hers, then he dotted her face with feathery kisses.

  So she wouldn’t have to move, he turned the showerhead toward her and let the spray of water rinse the suds from her body.

  He asked, “You okay, baby?” He moved his hands with the water through her thick curls, removing any traces of soap from her hair.

  “Umm,” she murmured. “Good.”

  Ram turned the water off, and lifted her from the shower. He placed her on the counter, grabbed a towel from the rack, and began drying her body.

  “I’m fine. You need to prepare for dinner also.” She smiled at him. “Let me get ready.”

  “I’ll be waiting for you downstairs.”

  He left her sitting on the bathroom counter, a smile on her face. If only he could leave her like that always—smiling.

  * * * * *

  Ram sat with Osce waiting for the women to make their grand entrance. Both men wore immaculate, black, designer suits. Neither used a tie, and the tops of their shirts opened to show a bit of dark hair sprinkling their muscular chests.

  Two hours passed and still no sign of the ladies. He could have dressed every woman in the world by now, and they would all look fabulous. What could
be taking so long? Both were already good-looking. Well, Yael was stunning. He smiled to himself as he thought how freshly showered she was. His dick jerked at the memory of being inside her ass.

  He got up and went to the door for the tenth time and looked down the hall with hopes of seeing them on their way out. He’d even lifted his spell of silence so he would hear them approach.

  “What in Job’s name could they be doing? I could fashion a living woman in less time.” He could feel Osce’s smile behind him.

  “Women are such frivolous creatures. They never think they look good enough,” he said. “They must bathe and fuss with their hair, then they paint themselves. They spray their bodies with expensive scents and then there is the final powder to the nose. I’m sure they’ll be done shortly.”

  “And how do you know so much about what they do?” Ram asked as he lounged against the patio wall.

  “I’ve taken women out before. You, Ram, only fuck them and whisk them back to where they came from.”

  “You son of a bitch, I’ve wined and dined some of the most beautiful and famous women in the world.”

  “They came to you fully powdered and dressed. I’m sure not a single one dared to be late. For you this is a first.”

  Ram heard the laughter behind Osce’s words as he stood and joined him.

  “I should send your ass back to Uriel right now.”

  “It is you who needs me, my friend. I was fine in my little corner of Hell.” Osce’s eyes darkened and became hooded.

  Ram often inquired of Michael what Osce had done to cause Uriel to lock him away. He never answered him. It seemed not even Luke or Raphael could get their hands on that information. All anyone knew was that it involved Morta, one of the Fates. He had never asked the man himself.

  “What happened between you and Morta?”

  “What happened between you and Patricia?” Osce retorted. Ram noticed a glint of steel in his friend’s eye when he asked that question. One day he’d be able to tell him, but not yet.

  “Touché.”

  Finally, he heard the sound of women’s high-heeled shoes on the marble floor. Both men waited with their backs to the patio wall.

  The first to appear was Patricia and she looked lovely in her royal blue sheath. It brought out her eyes which were almost the same color. He watched Osce’s eyes change. They flashed with excitement. Ram found that interesting. He had not seen his friend look at a woman like that in years. It pained him to not be able to divulge what had happened in Europe. Part of the story would be up to Patricia to tell. The rest Ram made sure she would never remember.

  And then Yael appeared.

  Holy Christ, she was magnificent. Covered in gold sequins that caught the setting sunlight, the fitted, off-the-shoulder dress glittered like magic. It stopped midthigh and allowed just a peek at the top of her stockings, drawing attention to her long, shapely legs. Her high-heeled shoes were the same shade of gold as her dress, and the open toe of her shoe showed off her pretty pink-painted toenails.

  He hadn’t seen her backside yet, but he hoped the stockings she wore would have seams. His cock yearned for release. No way could he spend hours with Yael and not tear that dress from her. His mind drifted to the scene in the shower, and her hot, tight butt. He wanted to shoo everyone away and go back there again. It had become impossible to keep her out of his mind.

  The curls he loved were back in her hair. They brushed below her bare shoulders and bounced when she walked, begging to have his hands tangled in their thickness.

  “Ladies,” Ram said, “shall we go?”

  He grasped Yael’s hand in his. Osce had Patricia’s as they left.

  * * * * *

  The maître d’ offered to escort them to a private room but Ram wanted to show Yael off. They descended a short stairway and were seated at a table in the club right off the dance floor where some customers swayed to the music of a live jazz band. He couldn’t wait to hold Yael in his arms and show her how to slow dance.

  The club had been popular in the forties and fifties and still kept a lot of the décor from that period. A low, glass wall topped by a chrome railing ran around the upper level of tables, which surrounded three sides of the room. A teakwood bar full of patrons curved around the fourth wall. Tables not too close together were covered with the best linen. Cushioned seats had high, comfortable chair backs.

  The French cuisine served here was the best in town. Most waited months for reservations. Ram didn’t have that problem. He’d been here often and befriended the owner.

  After a sumptuous meal of shrimp with beurre blanc sauce and couscous, he and Osce relaxed and sipped brandy as they waited for the ladies to return from the restroom.

  Ram had watched Yael leave the table and cross the room with practically every other man in the vicinity. Her legs went on forever, and the way her hips swayed was hypnotic. Thank God Michael saw fit to remove the spell and he had regained some control over his otherwise errant erection.

  He seethed as one young gentleman got up, seeming to follow her, but turned instead to the bar. His eyes had probably been glued to her sweet ass as she walked in front of him.

  “They will return eventually,” Osce said smiling. “It’s the powder thing again and the application of fresh lip color.”

  “I’m very curious how you’ve come by all of this information. I see a new side of you, my friend.”

  “Just because I don’t have your credentials doesn’t mean I’ve lived as a monk.”

  “Have I truly been that much of a cad?”

  “Cad isn’t quite the word I would have chosen…but, yes. You are legendary for your use and discard of women. One day it will come back to bite you in the ass.”

  Ram listened to Osce but got distracted when he noticed Yael and Patricia standing at the bar, talking with the same young man who he thought earlier had followed Yael.

  He saw her face light up in a smile at something the guy said, and his chest grew tight. I will kill him if he touches her. No sooner did the thought cross his mind than the man rested his hand on Yael’s arm. He decided, for her safety, he needed to hear the conversation.

  So the gentleman you are with is not your husband?

  No, we are…I don’t know how to explain it.

  Hey, sweetie, I’m just glad you’re not married. That means you’re a free agent.

  Free agent?

  Osce immediately became aware his friend had tuned him out. He followed the direction of Ram’s eyes and watched the scene unfold at the bar. Osce made himself privy to the conversation taking place there. Patricia waited as Yael talked to a handsome stranger.

  He could feel the energy around Ramiel escalate and he smiled. Maybe that bite in the ass was on the way sooner than expected.

  He wasn’t sure before, but now he was convinced Ram was more than a little attracted to the exulted. He had felt the same vibe from her when he guarded both women while they shopped. Any minute his friend would head to the bar and show his displeasure.

  Osce was shocked the guy hadn’t already disappeared. It wouldn’t be the first time Ram got a little touchy and sent some unsuspecting creature hurtling through space. He wouldn’t hurt them. He’d just drop them somewhere real nasty. Like the nearest trash receptacle.

  “I don’t think you want to do that,” he said to Ram.

  “Do what?” Osce had his attention once more.

  “It’s written all over your face that you’d like to bring harm to the gentleman who has his hand on Yael’s arm.”

  “No, I wouldn’t dare think of bringing him harm. I’m way past that. I kind of thought I’d kill the bastard.” Ram’s head turned back to the bar. Osce’s attention returned there also. The stranger had no idea how thin the thread of his life had just become.

  So give me a call and we can have lunch the next time you come to town to shop. I’ll show you some of our more famous sites.

  That sounds pleasant. I will call you.

  I wish you
would give me your number.

  I don’t think I have one. But I will let you know what it is when I find out.

  “Jesus fucking Christ, I am going to rip his damn head off.” He stood to go to the bar and Osce stopped him.

  “Ramiel, sit down before you make a complete ass of yourself. She doesn’t understand how things are here and you won’t help the situation if you tear the poor bastard’s head off in front of her.”

  “What the fuck am I supposed to do? I can’t just sit here. He’s making a blatant pass at her. He’s wants to get her into his bed.”

  “Just relax. I’ll go fetch the ladies.”

  Osce chuckled. It was funny to see Ramiel so worked up over a woman. He didn’t give any thought to how he’d have reacted if it had been Patricia. That was best left alone.

  Shit. Ram hadn’t counted on this. How could he make her understand what the guy was up to? Yael was so naïve and she believed the best about everyone. Things were different here, not like they were above, and he had to find some way to let her know and not seem too overprotective.

  He remembered how she reacted earlier when he told her he didn’t want her in bars such as the one she and Patricia visited earlier.

  He had to be very careful how he handled the situation. But damn, he couldn’t take her being out without giving her better knowledge of what men were after in this day and age. Yael was gorgeous and she would attract attention anywhere she went. Thank God Osce had been here and able to get him to see reason. He would have plucked the slimeball up, dropped him in the Gulf and left him to drown.

  The guy’s eyes followed Yael all the way back to their table. Ram decided to give him a little something to think about for being such a blatant pig. Before he could follow through on his plan, he heard Yael’s sweet, innocent voice.