by Eve Newton
I look up at Dashel, who glares at Luc, but he turns to me and drops a light kiss to my lips. “I’ll be right over there. If you need me, call out.”
I nod back and then turn to Luc to see his reaction to this exchange.
He is fucking furious.
But in a good way.
I’ve seen jealousy on many men’s faces over the years, so I recognize it even on the Devil’s usually guarded countenance.
“He has killed more of my Demons than I can count. He needs to answer for that,” he spits out at me.
“Touch him and you will lose me forever,” I snarl. “He is off-limits to you.”
He gives me a nasty sneer. “You have been a very bad girl,” he growls at me. The dark tone makes me shiver with fear. He is thoroughly pissed at me.
“You can’t hurt me,” I squeak out, suddenly afraid of him, and moving back even further along the poolside.
“I can’t hurt the body that I placed you in,” he replies blandly. “That poor excuse of a carcass doesn’t get a pass.”
“Hey!”
I ignore Ella’s burst of indignation and fold my arms over my tits, feeling very vulnerable all of a sudden.
“Luc,” I say, still edging away. “I’m sorry. I know that what I did has hurt you, but you have to understand, I… Ahhh!”
There is a loud splash as I slip and suddenly find myself engulfed in cold water and sinking to the bottom of the pool as I struggle.
As my head pops free of the water, I splutter and gasp for breath. All I can hear is Luc laughing at me and my gauche move that has left me so humiliated, I want to drown right now and get it over with.
Even Dashel is smirking at me from his place over on the other side of the pool, clearly enjoying this and not in the least bit concerned for my safety. The fucker.
“Fuck you,” I snarl, forgetting my fear in my embarrassment as I swim over to the side. My large fake tits have a buoyancy that I wasn’t expecting, and it annoys me that Luc’s eyes are fixated on them as he laughs his ass off at me. I push my wet hair out of my face and then find myself hauled out of the pool by my elbows.
“How can I stay mad at you when you make me laugh like that?” Luc asks me softly, getting me to my feet and curling my hair behind my ear.
“So glad that I entertain you,” I growl, batting his hand away, feeling every bit the court jester and not at all the sexy Seductress.
“Oh, that you do, my dear,” he says with amusement. “Among other things.” That is said with a tone bordering on menacing and it brings back the fear that I felt before I tumbled ass-over-tit into the swimming pool.
“I’d ask what the hell you are doing here, but I guess you’re here to drag me back,” I drawl, trying to show nonchalance.
“Drag you back?” Luc repeats softly. “I was hoping that I wouldn’t have to.” He gives me a penetrating look, which unnerves me, but I hold his gaze.
“You know how I feel about this, Luc,” I say quietly.
“Clearly,” he spits out and I flinch. “But you also know how I feel about this.”
I don’t say anything because what can I say? He will never love me; never want to be with me and our child if I even make it that far. No, it’s best to cut and run – again. But the question is, now that he is standing right in front of me, how the heck do I do that?
“Come home,” Luc says steadily, never even blinking to break our gaze.
“With you?” I whisper, unable to help myself.
“Of course,” he scoffs.
“With you?” I demand again, and he gets that little frown on his face that tells me he is annoyed with my tone.
“Obviously,” he growls. “I’m not going to stay here. I’m already causing more chaos for the other side just by standing here arguing with you.”
“You just don’t get it,” I say sadly and turn my back on him.
“What is there to get?” he barks at me. “You were chosen for this; it is a great honor and you are throwing it back in my face. It’s fucking insulting, Axelle, and I will not stand this disrespect for a second longer.”
“Disrespect?” I ask incredulously. “It is you who is disrespecting me, Luc.”
“How so?” he asks in a genuine tone that catches me off-guard.
“Because!” I screech at him, completely lost for words.
He is maddening!
“What do you want from me, Axelle?” Luc asks after a pause, where I noticed he struggled to hold onto his temper.
“If you don’t know, I’m not going to tell you,” I say smartly, to which he rolls his eyes at me.
“How original,” he drawls.
“Fu…”
In an instant, he is in front of me and slapping his hand across my mouth. “Tell me to fuck off one more time and I will beat you, regardless.”
I blink and Luc removes his hand.
He leans down. “Tell me what you want, Axelle,” he whispers against my lips.
I lick mine, wanting to tilt my head ever so slightly up to kiss him, to show him what I want from him, but I clear my throat instead.
“I don’t want to be ‘just a vessel’,” I say in a small voice.
I see his surprise when he jerks back slightly. “Since when did you think that is all you were?” he asks perturbed.
“You said it, you buffoon!” I shout in his face, making Dashel come closer with a questioning look. I shake my head at him to stay where he is. “Unbelievable!”
I spin on my heel and begin to pace. I curse under my breath for giving myself away.
“I never…” Luc stops when I turn to him with a fierce glare.
“Don’t deny it. You said, and I quote, ‘Not a mother. Just a vessel’.” I place my hands on my hips for emphasis and wait for his response.
“What?” Luc says. “I…” He lets out an exasperated breath. “Do you want to be a mother, Axelle?” he asks seriously.
“No,” I say instantly.
“Precisely. In that moment I was telling you that you didn’t have to be involved,” Luc says in a placating tone that washes over me and almost makes me change my mind. “That it’s your choice. I have no expectations of you.”
No expectations.
I’m not sure how I feel about that. No, I don’t want to be a mother, but I don’t really want Luc not to want me to be a mother to his child. I’m so confused. I wrinkle up my brow, my head starting to ache with all that has transpired today.
“I need time,” I say wearily.
“There is no time, Axelle!” he roars. “You have been out of that body long enough.”
My shoulders sag and I know I have two choices. Go back with Luc and back to the trials or pull myself out of this host and hope to hell I find a new one before I dissipate into thin air.
Then suddenly, inspiration hits me. I have a third choice and one that he will agree to, only because it still gets him what he wants.
Well, sort of.
“I’m not going back to Hell with you, Luc. Not yet,” I start and watch as he turns an unattractive shade of puce. “Wait,” I add, holding up my hand. “It’s not all bad. I’m enjoying my freedom. I was locked away for months and then sentenced to a dreary life of Admin. I need options, Luc. I can’t just go back there and wait to die, or worse.”
He flinches visibly at my “or worse”.
“Then what are you suggesting? I need you back in the body I gave you, the body that started the trials,” he says impatiently.
“I know,” I say. “Bring the body here and put me back in it.” His eyes light up, but I’m not finished yet. “But I stay here on Earth, with Evan and Dashel, until I either pass the trials or die.”
His brow creases so fiercely, it practically crumples his entire face up. “No,” he says, shaking his head adamantly. “No, I cannot leave you here. What if you need m… something? I have already pushed the limits as to what I can get away with without causing a war. I cannot stay here.”
Me? Is that what he
was going to say?
“I’m not asking you to stay,” I say quietly. “I will be fine with Evan and Dashel.” Okay, so sex will be back off the table which displeases me, and Evan will go nuts, but will thrill Dashel to no end, probably.
“No!” he yells at me. “I will not leave you in that precious vessel to be ravaged, or worse, by those two pricks. I mean seriously, Axelle, a fucking Reaper and an Angel? What the fuck are you thinking?”
“Precious vessel,” I repeat with disdain, ignoring his disparaging of two of the men I love. “There you go again.”
“For fuck’s sake, Axelle! Be reasonable!” he shouts at me again.
“I am,” I say, sticking up my chin defiantly. “I have compromised so that we both get what we want.”
He deliberates that for several long moments. “Very well,” he says stiffly. “But if you so much as sniff in the direction of either one of them, I won’t be responsible for my actions.”
I nod hastily. The fact that he hasn’t smited Dashel by the poolside already, and that he brought Evan back to life, for me, gives me hope that he can be reasonable when the time comes for me to ask him to give me Dashel, instead of torturing him for eternity.
“Why not just stick a chastity belt on me?” I drawl sarcastically.
“Don’t tempt me,” he growls, taking a giant step forward to get in my face. “In fact, it’s an excellent idea.”
“You do that, and I will drag myself out of that body and you will never see me again,” I threaten.
“You tried that already and, well, here we are,” Luc says smugly, spreading his arms wide.
“You. Are. Infuriating,” I seethe at him.
“So. Are. You,” he seethes back, the electricity in the air crackling at the intensity of our chemistry.
We glare at each other, but neither one backs down.
“Asshole,” I spit out.
“Bitch,” Luc spits back.
“Argh!” I cry and beat my hands on his solid chest.
“You won’t win a standoff with me, wench,” Luc says, grabbing my hands. “You are strong, but you are no match for me.”
I struggle in his grasp, taking the opportunity to get closer to him so that I can jiggle my tits against him, just to rile him up. I’m impressed, but also mildly insulted, that he hasn’t spent this entire conversation staring at them. He has restraint, I’ll give him that.
Unfortunately, my actions also get my own libido into gear and without thinking about it, I tear my hands free and grab his head to pull it down to plant a kiss on his lips that takes my breath away.
It takes away his as well, as he suddenly pushes me back with a breathy rasp.
“Don’t,” he says quietly.
“You want me,” I whisper, indicating his raging hard-on visible against his jeans. “You can take me in this body.”
“No,” he says, shaking his head. “I want you in the body that I gave you when I take you, after you have passed the tests. Anything else will fall severely short of the fantasy I have of us.”
“Oh,” I gasp. “You have a fantasy of us?”
“Don’t you?” he asks with a raised eyebrow.
“Yes,” I breathe like a fool, practically drooling. “Oh, yes.”
I have a million of them, and they are all a thousand times better than the crap sex that we have already engaged in. Not to mention most of them also now include Evan and Dashel. Oh, what a gangbang that will be.
“Well, then,” Luc says, stepping back and snapping his fingers.
My Demonically created body appears, prone on the sun lounger to his left, and he indicates that I should stand next to it.
“I will do the transfer,” he says to me sternly.
“Wait,” I say. “I need to speak to Dashel and Evan about this.”
“It’s nothing to do with them,” he says sourly.
“But it is. You don’t understand the depth of our connection,” I whisper. “This involves them, as well.”
His brief, pained look makes my heart thump, but it disappears as soon as it came.
“Touch either of them and they will cease to be for good,” Luc threatens me.
I nod and give him a grateful smile. “I know that Dashel being here is weird. We haven’t…you know…yet,” I say awkwardly.
“Obviously,” he sneers. “Or he would’ve fallen and be suffering my wrath at my leisure.”
“Please, Luc, don’t hurt him.” I grab his hand, hoping he never finds out that I’m prepared to offer up as many of his Demons as it takes to repair my Angel’s soul while we fuck until the cows come home.
He glares at it for a moment, before he lets out a long-suffering sigh. “The things I do for you,” he mutters, making me grin to myself. The big, bad Devil is a bit of a softie where his ‘precious vessel’ is concerned. This can be used to manipulate him into all sorts of things.
“I need you to promise me,” he adds so quietly, I barely hear him. “I’m trusting you.”
“I promise,” I whisper back, realizing how difficult this must be for him, and that he probably wouldn’t do this for anyone else. Whether or not that has anything to do with me or the fact that I have come so far in the trials, I’m still not sure. “How do you know there hasn’t been an attempt at a trial?” I ask, with a tinge of hope in my voice, which I can’t squash.
“The body would have burned up,” he says shortly.
“Oh,” I mutter awkwardly.
He gestures me forward and places his hand on my forehead. “Close your eyes, this will hurt.”
Great.
I scrunch up my eyes and let out a scream as the agony of being forcibly ripped out of one host and placed into another, tears through my essence. I carry on screaming as the burn of Hell courses through my Demon body, writhing against the hard plastic of the sun lounger.
“Axelle,” Luc says, taking my hand. “Open your eyes.”
I do as I’m told and gaze up at his bright blue eyes.
“Perfect,” he murmurs to me and kisses my hand before he lets it drop heavily to my side.
“Yeah, just perfect,” I mumble and shudder as my essence settles in comfortably, happy, despite everything, to be encased in a body so beautifully handcrafted by the Devil.
“I can’t give you what you want,” he whispers to me suddenly, before he stands up.
“What?” I ask, still a bit disorientated, not sure that I heard him correctly.
“I know what you want from me, Axelle, and I’m surprised and intrigued, but what you require of me is impossible,” he says, avoiding my gaze.
I stay silent; the hurt from his brush-off now causing the agony that is tearing through me. I knew all along that he couldn’t love me. How can he? Demons can’t love, so how can the Devil? I don’t know why I suddenly feel this emotion, not with just one male, but three, very different specimens of male. But Luc has given it to me straight. He will never love me because he can’t. He doesn’t even know how.
Then show him.
“Nothing is impossible,” I whisper back. “Look at me. Who knew I could fall in love three times in the same week?”
He grunts his response and then steps back, startled as I yell in his face, “Luc!”
“What?” he asks curiously. “What is it?” He hovers uncertainly in front of me.
“Ph–phase five,” I pant. “That was phase five.”
“What do you mean?” he asks with a frown.
“Escaping and choosing to come back, it was phase five,” I say, not really understanding it completely myself.
“Was it now?” Luc says with narrowed eyes. “A true test of loyalty.” He beams down at me and I simper under his approving look. “Only one more to go.”
Oh, crap. Only one more to go.
I have days to go before I die or…don’t.
Luc snaps his fingers and Evan appears. “A deal is a deal,” he says to me, looking more relaxed than I have ever seen him. He turns to give a ferocious glare at Dash
el, who has come closer with a very worried look on his face. I know he will be having stern words with me about what I’ve just done.
“I will return for you when the time has come,” Luc says, looking back at me.
And without waiting for me to say anything, he flames out, leaving me alone with a furious resigned-looking Reaper and an Angel that gives fury a whole new meaning.
~ CHAPTER THIRTEEN ~
Luc
I’m pensive as I return to my domain. I have a lot of thinking to do about this deal I’ve just struck with a very wily Demon Seductress that has not one, but two males on her tail.
My mood is worsened as Jezebelle slinks into my view.
“What do you want?” I ask her.
“Darius is well, he is feeding,” she says with a huff.
“Good,” I snap at her, knowing she is pissed because she has had to feed him a part of her essence to heal him. I don’t give a flying crap though. She will do as I say, when I say it.
“You’re welcome,” she hisses at me and then flops down in a chair. “What’s got into you, anyway? Where is the bitch? I thought you would be bringing her back?”
“Axelle has returned to her body, passed another phase, but she is staying on Earth until the time comes,” I answer morosely.
“With Evan?” she giggles.
I throw her a death stare that fazes her only slightly.
I have to take the positives out of this Hell-ish scenario. It is only a matter of days until I get what I want. I have absolutely no doubt that Axelle will succeed. I know that she is in fear for her life, but she has no reason to be. She was made to be my one, it was clear from the second I first started to investigate her.
“Is that a note of satisfaction I see on your face?” Jezebelle whispers to me.
I can hear the sadness in her tone, but I ignore it, as I don’t care.
“No, it is complete satisfaction,” I say. “Now, leave me. I need to celebrate.”
“I can help you with that,” she says softly, standing up, gliding towards me and taking my hand.
“Not that kind of celebration,” I hiss, snatching my hand back. Although what I wouldn’t give for a fuck right about now. Axelle riled me up good and proper with all her wriggling against me with her naked tits on show and it is causing me some discomfort. What I need right now, is something that I have to be alone for, and something that my unnatural skin is itching to experience. “Go,” I say firmly and this time, she doesn’t disobey. She leaves me alone in my bedroom.
