The Devil's Angel: A Paranormal Vampire Romance Novel (Devil Series Book 2)

by Raven Steele

  He returned to Eve, heart pounding and sweat dotting his forehead. Very carefully, he clamped down on the blade and pulled, sliding the deeply embedded blade from her flesh. Blood gushed from the wound, drenching her already bloodstained white shirt. Lucien pressed his hand to the wound to slow the bleeding.

  “She can heal,” he said over and over again, his eyes closed tight. He’d never been so frightened in all his life. He could taste the bitter emotion on his tongue, feel it coursing through his veins. He should never have left her.

  Eve shot up into a sitting position, eyes wide, and sucking in air as if taking her first breath. On her exhale, she yelled, “Lucien!”

  He cradled her face with his palms. “I’m here. I’m right here. No one’s going to hurt you.”

  She frantically searched his face until there was recognition. Tears filled her eyes, and she threw her arms around him and buried her head to his shoulder. It startled him briefly, but then he wrapped his arms around her until she stopped shaking, and her breathing returned to normal.

  It took a little longer for his own breathing to regulate and for fear to release its grip from around his chest, a sensation he wasn’t used to feeling.

  “We should go,” he finally said, gathering her into his arms.

  “I can walk,” she mumbled.

  “I would rather carry you, if that’s all right.”

  She nodded weakly and slumped her head to his shoulder.

  Lucien held her tightly while his heartbeat slowed to a normal level. It helped that they were touching. He could feel her warm breath on his chest through the thin material of his t-shirt.

  When he reached her car, he reclined the passenger seat and gently placed her inside. Her arms hung limp in her lap, and her head dropped to the side. He closed her door, inhaled deeply and wiped the blood from his face with the bottom of his shirt. The cuts on his face had already healed. He rounded the vehicle to the driver’s side where he scooped up the keys and brought the engine to life. He would have to go back for his Hummer later.

  Lucien drove into the night, choosing no particular path. He didn’t know where he was going nor did he care. He could only think of the woman sitting next to him and her delicate hand resting upon her thigh. In his imagination only, he reached for it and let his hand move slowly over her long slender fingers. He thought it strange that her fragile hand had almost entirely disappeared beneath his. He made a promise to himself, right then and there, that he would protect her until the day he died.

  “Why do they keep coming for me?” she asked, her voice full of despair.

  The image of their interlocked hands disappeared. “This isn’t the first time?”

  “They attacked Charlie and me in Coast City a couple of times.”

  “Do you know who they are?”

  “All we know is they came from Ireland.”

  Lucien stiffened. His birthplace again.

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “It’s nothing. Has anyone tried to figure out who’s behind this?”

  “We have a vampire undercover in Ireland now. The only thing he’s been able to discover is the location for a big meeting coming up. The gathering is for vampires only, and he plans on being there.”

  “A vampire works at the Deific?”

  “Three of them that I know of.”

  Lucien tried to hide his surprise. He’d never met a good vampire. It was almost impossible to believe. “What are their names?”

  “Michael and Alana. I don’t know their last names, if vampires even have them. They are both in Ireland, Michael is the one undercover.”

  “And the third?” Lucien turned the car around and headed back to Seattle, figuring he could protect her best there.

  “His name is Henry. He’s the founder of the Deific.”

  This really surprised him. “But he’s a vampire.”

  “What’s your point?”

  “It doesn’t make sense.”

  “Does it have to? He still has the ability to choose what he wants to do with his life, just like you. You can ask him about it yourself. He wants to meet you.”

  “How does he know me?”

  “He said he met you once. That you changed history.”

  A stabbing pain struck at Lucien’s head, and he fell forward into the steering wheel. The car swerved sharply to the left.

  “Lucien!” Eve forced the wheel in the opposite direction, trying to straighten the vehicle onto the road.

  He leaned back and clutched at his head as if he could squeeze out the stabbing sensation from his brain. He pushed on the brake while Eve guided the car to the shoulder.

  “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  “I’m not sure…pain,” he stuttered. After a few deep breaths and a lot of concentration, he managed to shove it to the back of his mind. He inhaled several deep breaths.

  Eve watched him, eyes drawn together, lips turned down.

  He squirmed under her gaze. Forcing a tight smile, he said, “I’m fine, really. That was strange.”

  “You’re not fine.”

  Lucien pulled the car back onto the road and changed the subject, all the while pretending he didn’t have a massive headache. Something she’d said had triggered images in his mind: flashes of decayed bodies, burning corpses and screaming humans. Lots of them. Afraid this was one of the memories from a past he had long ago buried, he used his will power to shove it back into the recesses of his mind. Best if those never see the light of day.

  “Where do you want me to take you?” he asked.

  “Are you sure you’re okay?”

  He nodded.

  “You can take me back to my house.”

  “I can’t take you there. That’s the first place they’ll look.”

  “I’m not going to hide.”

  “Come to my place then,” he suggested. “At least for tonight. In the morning we can figure out what to do.”

  “You have a place?”

  “Where do you think I live?”

  Her eyebrows rose. “I mostly see you hanging out at the marina.”

  “You must think I’m a real loser.”

  “Not a loser—just homeless.”

  “See that building over there?” He pointed to the approaching lights of Seattle. “The tall one, a few buildings over from the Space Needle.”

  She squinted out the window. “Isn’t that a hotel?”

  “Yes.”

  “You live there?”

  “At the top.”

  “I didn’t know you could own a room there.”

  “I don’t own a room. I own the whole building.” For some reason, he wanted to impress her.

  “Then why are you always at the marina?”

  He tried to think of an answer that might make sense. “Have you ever felt that a piece of your soul was missing?” When she didn’t answer, he continued, “My missing piece is in the ocean.”

  “I feel that way about the moon.” She looked up into the dark sky from the passenger window.

  “How are you feeling?” Lucien asked. Her complexion finally had some color to it, which meant her body had healed itself.

  She turned to him, her green eyes almost glowing in the dark. “Much better. I know you probably think I’m weak, but I am getting stronger. I’ve done some impossible things with magic lately, but it still takes a toll on my body.”

  “You are not weak. I can feel the power in you, remember?”

  “Because of our connection.”

  When I didn’t say anything, she added, “Will you be okay with me for a little while?”

  He nodded and subconsciously licked his lips. “Yes.”

  “What changed?”

  “You need protection.”

  She huffed. “I don’t want you around if that’s your only reason. I can get that from the Deific, from Charlie.”

  He didn’t want to tell her of the vow he’d made to himself only moments ago. He rarely made promises, but when he did, he
kept them. “Too bad. It’s my duty.”

  Eve turned away from him. “I’m not anyone’s duty.”

  “That’s not what I meant,” he corrected. “I just want to make sure you’re safe. No one can protect you like I can.”

  “And when you think I’m safe, are you going to leave again?”

  He didn’t answer. Not because he thought he would leave, but because he didn’t think it was possible to ever be away from her again.

  She turned away from him and sunk into the seat, her focus on the moon above that had nearly dipped beneath the tree line. The sun would be up soon. Already the sky had begun to gray.

  They drove the remainder of the way home in silence. She still smelled like blood, a sweet candy-flavored aroma. It excited his senses but not in the same way a human’s did. He didn’t want to consume her blood; he wanted to lick it from her body, savor it on his tongue.

  Inwardly, he groaned and forced his thoughts away from her body.

  He glanced at her many times, trying to guess what she was thinking. Her expression was calm, but the corners of her mouth were turned down ever so slightly. He wished he could give her more, but he didn’t know how someone like him could ever make her happy. This arrangement had to work for both their sakes.

  Once inside the building, they rode up the elevator, standing apart from each other, which was good. Already, he’d grown hard just being this close to her. He didn’t mean to. His attraction to her, the pull he felt, was so powerful it made his blood burn with the kind of heat that could make him lose control.

  He better stay focused.

  Chapter 14

  Eve opened the door to his suite and walked around. “I like your place. It’s simple.”

  “I don’t need much.” He removed his phone from his pocket and texted Scott the location of his Hummer.

  “Where do you want me to sleep?” she asked.

  “The room down the hall.”

  “Where are you going to be?”

  “Around. Maybe I’ll watch a movie.”

  “Huh. Interesting.”

  “Why’s that?” he asked.

  “I’ve only seen you brood.”

  Lucien snorted. “I do a lot of things that don’t involve brooding.”

  Eve smiled, but it was a tired one. “I can’t wait to see that other side of you. Can I watch a movie with you?”

  “I guess.” Lucien turned on the television and clicked through his movie database. He didn’t have much.

  “That one,” she said, then looked down at her bloody clothing. “Can I borrow something from your closet to sleep in?”

  Every nerve ending came to life at the thought of her in his clothing, and he grew hard. His mouth fell open.

  She didn’t wait for him to speak as she headed down the hallway. “I’ll just grab a t-shirt or something. Your room is back this way?”

  Again, she didn’t wait for an answer. She disappeared into his room, and he heard her walk into his closet.

  He couldn’t move, couldn’t think. So many changes happening at once.

  She stuck her head out of his room, running her fingers through her hair. “Can I use your shower too? I didn’t realize how much blood was on me. I’ll be fast, I promise.”

  He barely nodded.

  While she showered and changed, he also changed out of his clothes, his fingers and body numb. He’d been with women plenty but not never long enough for either of them to develop feelings for each other. It was a pleasure he’d denied himself. And he had to keep denying it no matter what he felt. Love, friendship were not meant for him. It was just something he felt in his bones, a truth he couldn’t ignore.

  He returned to the kitchen, thinking maybe he should watch the elevator from the lobby instead of stay here. Let Eve stay by herself. With the way his muscles had coiled tightly, and how his nerves vibrated pleasurably within his gut, it was probably best he wasn’t near her. He didn’t trust himself.

  Eve returned to the living room wearing just her underwear and one of his gray t-shirts, probably the smallest one she could find by the way the material stretched across her breasts, revealing hard nipples. The hem of it barely reached the top of her thighs.

  She dried her long hair to the side of her shoulder with the same towel he’d used this morning. He gripped the counter and ground his teeth together in an attempt to keep his darker, more animalistic side of him from storming over to her, scooping her up and taking her into his bedroom.

  Eve stopped drying her hair and glanced nervously at the door behind him. “Are you leaving?”

  He swallowed around the fullness in his throat. “I was thinking about it.”

  “Well stop thinking. You’re staying. We’re watching a movie.”

  She dropped onto his recliner, bringing one knee up to her chest casually. He could barely see the black of her lacy underwear. He groaned helplessly.

  “Are you going to start the movie?” she asked.

  He walked over, forcing his gaze away from her body, and pressed play on the remote. He then returned to the kitchen and grabbed the single dining room chair and placed it next to the recliner. Eve stared at him.

  “What?” he asked.

  “There’s room for you here.” She slid over as far as possible and patted the spot next to her.

  “I’m good.” He had to stay strong.

  “I’m not going to take your only nice chair.” She stood up. “Switch me.”

  “No. This is fine.”

  “Switch me,” she repeated with more force.

  “Are you serious?”

  “Very.”

  He felt awkward as he stood to obey her command. As he lowered into the recliner, Eve took one step to the chair, but instead of sitting on it, she picked it up and tossed it into the wall. It broke into several pieces.

  Lucien frowned. “That was my only chair.”

  “No, it wasn’t.” She climbed on top of him and snuggled against his chest while his heart stopped beating.

  “Someone has to get you used to physical contact,” she mumbled, her voice barely audible over the introductory music playing from the television.

  Lucien tried to focus on the show, to watch the moving images in front of him, but he couldn’t concentrate with Eve pressed up against him, her bare legs draped over him and the side of the recliner. His gaze kept wandering to that spot high up between her thighs.

  She shifted her body a little, but her leg landed on top of his hand. He removed it and held it up awkwardly, like he wasn’t sure what to do with it.

  She gazed up at him beneath long eyelashes. “You can touch me, you know.”

  Touch her. “Where?”

  The words tumbled from his mouth before he could stop himself, but he didn’t look away from her.

  “Anywhere you want,” she whispered, and she parted her legs a little.

  It was too much. He growled low in his throat and dropped his hand to the top of her knee, gripping her flesh, and sliding his hand upward. Touch her. Every part of him wanted to ravish this beautiful creature on his lap. Kiss her all over. Taste her. Give her pleasure.

  He grew even harder beneath her.

  Her lips parted open, and her chest heaved in anticipation, straining against the material of his shirt. He kept his eyes locked with hers as his fingers reached for that spot between her legs. He hadn’t even touched it yet, but he moaned at the heat radiating from it.

  Eve’s breathing quickened in anticipation. “Please.”

  Her breathless whimper had him pulling aside her panties. He paused there, his heart thundering.

  His phone vibrated on the counter. The sound shattered his excited nerves, and he withdrew his hand. Sucking in a great breath, his eyes widened as if he’d just wakened from a dream, one he didn’t want to end, but one he also shouldn’t be having.

  Eve groaned in frustration but smiled shyly. “Is it important?”

  “Yes.” It had to be Scott or John.

  She sl
id off his lap and grabbed his phone from off the counter. She handed it to him.

  Lucien glanced at the caller ID. A number he didn’t recognize.

  “Yes?” he asked.

  A male voice spoke urgently. “Is Eve with you?”

  “Who is this?”

  “Charlie. Eve didn’t show up for work. Is she with you?”

  “How did you get this number?”

  “Eve gave it to me. She said to call it if I couldn’t ever reach her. And guess what? I can’t reach her, so, I will ask one more time, is Eve with you?”

  “I’ll call you back.” Lucien hung up the phone.

  Eve looked at him expectantly.

  “That was Charlie. You’re late for work.”

  She rushed to the window and pulled up the blinds. Sunlight filled the room. “I had no idea! Charlie must be so worried.”

  He moved into the kitchen where it wasn’t so bright. “Why did you give him my number?”

  “In case of an emergency. You don’t mind, do you?”

  “Yes.”

  She pretended not to hear. “I need to call him back.”

  She moved down the hallway to where Lucien presumed her phone was along with her dirty clothing. A moment later, her voice drifted back to Lucien. “They found me, Charlie.”

  Lucien focused his hearing on Charlie’s voice through the cell phone.

  “Tell me everything.”

  “There were six of them,” she said. “I managed to kill four and delay the others, but the magic took a toll on my body. I had to hide in an airport museum. That’s when I called Lucien for help.”

  “Why didn’t you call me?”

  Lucien inched his way closer to the hall.

  “It would’ve taken at least an hour for you to get a team together, and I didn’t have that kind of time.”

  “And if you hadn’t found Lucien yet? Then what would have happened? You would have called me!”

  “You’re right,” she mumbled. “But it’s not like that. It’s not like it made sense to take that risk when I didn’t have to.”