Bad Boys of the Underworld Box Set

by Jacey Ward

  “Yes,” she agreed vacantly. “I am yours.”

  A feeling of satisfaction flooded through Nathaniel.

  It is done! He thought, grinning to himself smugly as he nibbled on her lip. I have won.

  “You have won a spot in her head for the time being, and I can keep her under this spell for a while, but if she loses contact with you for long, it will wear off – be warned,” Satan corrected. “I can’t do everything,” he said bitterly.

  Nathaniel almost laughed aloud.

  “Oh, ye of little faith,” he replied silently. He turned toward her, intending to put the final touches on her seduction. She would be his, and it would be because she wanted him, not because of a spell that Satan put on her.

  He cupped her face gently, and starting with her full lips, he began an exploration of her face, nibbling his way inside her mouth, and then down across her jawline, gently stroking her face with his thumbs. He felt her lean into his touch finally, and lust surged through him. She raised her arms slowly, caressing his broadly muscled chest slowly, as if she wasn’t sure she should be touching him. He leaned her back slightly, delighting in the feel of her hard nipples rubbing across his bare chest. She moaned slightly, her breath hitching as he grasped one nipple through her shirt, squeezing firmly.

  Then suddenly, she seemed to shake herself, pushing at his chest slightly and again, he panicked. Just as he went to thrust his hard cock against her body, hoping to draw her back into the moment, she began to cough. And she didn’t stop. Her body was wracked with spasms, and she started to turn red, desperately trying to draw enough breath in to continue into the next wave of chest-tearing coughs ripping through her. She pulled away from him quickly, the vapid look in her eyes disappearing as the contact with him was broken.

  What the fuck? Nathaniel wondered. What’s happening to her? He watched, bewildered, as Sera bent at the waist, trying to get herself under control.

  “Goddammit, Michael! You’re not allowed to interfere!” he heard Lucky spit out.

  Nathaniel just stood there, not sure what was happening, or what he was supposed to do. Did Lucky actually think Michael was causing this coughing jag? Didn’t he know that Michael didn’t actually know what was going on anywhere else? If he did, Nathaniel knew there was no way he would still be a resident of heaven. He would have been cast to the deepest depths of hell for his betrayal of Cass. And Cass would have remained the golden child in heaven. It didn’t make sense any other way…did it? And dammit, why was he unsure about that all of a sudden? This wasn’t making any sense.

  Suddenly, Sera seemed to get a hold of the coughing and she stood straight, her eyes clear, much to Nathaniel’s chagrin. She looked slightly confused, staring at him, as if she didn’t know who he was or what she was doing there.

  Without warning, she spun and grabbed the purse that she had dropped on the floor earlier. Mumbling something about needing to get home, she fled the hotel room, not looking back.

  Lucky continued to spit profanities in his head, cursing and swearing against some kind of divine intervention. It made Nathaniel nervous, knowing that when he was done cursing Michael, he would turn on Nathaniel and blame him as well. Fuck, how did this all go to hell so quickly? I had won, for fuck’s sake! He cursed inwardly. And now I’m left without Sera, and with a hard-on big enough to burst seams. He whirled, making his way to the bathroom. Maybe a cold shower would help.

  He opened the door to the bathroom and turned to flick on the light.

  He grabbed the button of his jeans, preparing to strip and jump in the shower before the demon came back into his mind to drag him through the fires of hell, he caught a glance at something which made his heart stop.

  A foot stuck out from behind the shower curtain, its owner hidden.

  Mari…

  He had forgotten all about the prostitute during the excitement of the morning, but as he peered into the bathtub, he could see that he did not need to worry about her again.

  Her face was blue and bloated in death and she gazed at him with shocked eyes.

  “What did you do?” Nathaniel choked, an image of Michele’s bloodied corpse dancing before his eyes.

  “Me?” Satan snorted, returning immediately to bask in Nathaniel’s horror. “You do not know your own strength. You did this,” he accused, sounding vindictive and satisfied with Nathaniel’s horror.

  Nathaniel shook his head in disbelief.

  “I did not!” he insisted, but Lucky snidely laughed.

  “I warned you to use your powers wisely. You are already reckless. You did it with but a thought. Remember? The thought you had about not needing her any longer?”

  Nathaniel refused to believe it.

  “Do not be so shocked,” Lucky chanted. “It is good to know that you are still able to kill if need be.”

  “What?” he whispered, shocked. “Why?”

  The devil snickered.

  “Because,” he snarled darkly, “If you fail to win Sera back, you can always kill her instead.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Cassiel

  Something had changed in Serafina when she returned to her tiny apartment that afternoon, something subtle but apparent.

  It was as if she was floating through the space, a little lost, and she seemed surprised to see him there.

  “Oh! Hi,” she remarked as she came through the door, dropping her canvas messenger bag on the floor. She offered him a dazed smile.

  Cass eyed her, a strange sense coming over him as he stared at her.

  “Yes,” he replied slowly. “I thought we had discussed me staying here last eve.”

  She shrugged almost indifferently, slipping by him with a vacant look on her face.

  “Sure,” she said, but Cass could see there was a difference in her as she made her way into the kitchen. “Are you hungry?”

  He followed her, his lids narrowing as he looked at her.

  “Did you have a pleasant day?” he asked, watching her closely as she pulled a cardboard box out of the refrigerator and opened it.

  “I think so,” she replied slowly, her brow furrowing as she realized she couldn’t really remember much of her day. She had gone to work this morning to meet with Conrad, right? Yes, she remembered being annoyed at his behavior. He acted like they were a couple, a permanent team. But did they ever make it to the meeting with Mr. Parker? Her brow furrowed as she tried to recall the details of the meeting.

  She remembered that she had been distracted all day by thoughts of coming home to Cass. She had planned to attack his gorgeous body as soon as she got home, squeeze at least three orgasms out of him, then cuddle on the couch and just bask in his arms. There was something about just being close to him that made her feel…safe. Weird. But she couldn’t remember anything else. Her worry was interrupted by Cass.

  “Do you want to go out for dinner?” Cass asked, distracting her as she tried to remember other details of her day.

  “Yeah, let’s go out for dinner,” she said slowly, and Cass was not sure she if she had even understood his question. She seemed so damned distracted.

  She turned toward the door again and Cass had no choice but to follow her as she walked into the hallway, bag in hand once more.

  Suddenly, he spun her around and leaned into her, pinning her body against the wall.

  “You’re different,” he told her bluntly, studying her closely.

  Her green eyes were dull and lifeless, and something was missing from their depth; the fire he had been drawn to was gone.

  “What do you mean?” she asked blankly.

  He stared deeply into her eyes, his gaze piercing straight through her into her soul. Concern and anger filled him simultaneously, his lips crushing against her.

  While she didn’t resist, there was no response either and Cass felt a chill of apprehension filling him.

  “She does not seem as smitten by you as she was this morning,” Lucky chirped in his ear and he bristled at the sound of Lucifer’s voic
e.

  Cass drew his head back sharply, finally realizing why her eyes looked so vacant.

  “What did you do to her?” he demanded silently, but there was only laughter as Sera continued to gaze at him.

  I should have known, Cassiel thought, fury coursing through his veins. He just had to cheat. So be it, he realized, I guess I always knew there would be no way to win this wager without a fight with the devil.

  “I’m hungry,” Sera announced flatly. “Can we go now?”

  He stared at her, his mind beginning to whirl.

  What has Lucky done to her and how can I get her back?

  The looks, teases and caresses they had shared that morning had left him feeling warm and excited all day, but there was nothing in Sera’s face which showed any signs of those emotions at that moment.

  Sera tried to brush past him, but he blocked her way.

  I will not give her up without a battle, he thought furiously. I found her – she’s the other half of me, I can feel it.

  “No,” he said flatly. “We can’t go.”

  She eyed him and for the first time, he saw a glimmer of the girl whom he had been so drawn to.

  But as quickly as it had come on, it was gone.

  “I’m hungry,” she repeated but Cass did not care.

  He pushed his body harder against her, pinning her back against the wall, his mouth finding hers again.

  His tongue lashed out, prodding her lips apart as his body meshed against hers.

  At first, she seemed stunned by the motion, as if she didn’t know how to react but when he seized her arms, pulling her wrists above her head, Sera’s body slowly melted into his, her kiss responsive for the first time.

  There she is, he thought grimly, his hardness thickening more insistently against her stomach, his fists tightening around the tender flesh of her arms.

  Sera slowly ground her hips in a circle, her chest and hips welded against his and Cass started to lose the panic that had gripped him when she had returned from work.

  She’s mine. She’s belongs with me. Nothing Lucifer can do will change that.

  Their embrace deepened, Sera allowing her head to fall back as he inhaled the scent of her hair, mouth grazing her earlobes. He dropped his hand to the curve of her ass and pulled her forward, even harder against his cock. She moaned lightly and he could feel her nipples pebble beneath the thin shirt she wore. Her breath hitched, and he ground his jaws together, trying to gather the shattering pieces of his control. He inhaled deeply, drawing in the special scent of her arousal, and his control fractured further.

  “Damn, are you going to fuck me right here in the hallway?” she breathed heatedly, as his lips nestled against her throat, delivering small bites and licks in the sensitive curve where her neck met her shoulder. Moisture gathered in her panties as he played her body like only he seemed to be able to do. Why was everything so much better with him? Every sensation more intense, every caress more meaningful. This can’t be normal, right?

  “I think I’ll fuck you anywhere I please. From now on,” he replied, and she shivered with pleasure.

  He thrust his pelvis into hers, wanting her to feel how crazy she made him.

  “Excuse me!”

  Reluctantly, Cass raised his head to look at the irate Spanish woman standing in the hallway with her two young children.

  A slight bit of guilt swept through him as he released his grip on Sera’s wrists and lowered them to her sides.

  “This is not a whorehouse!” she remonstrated, and Sera snickered.

  “Yes, ma’am,” she replied, and they pulled apart as the woman ushered her brood through the dim corridor toward her apartment, muttering about loose morals under her breath.

  Cass was fixated on Sera’s face, his pulse slowing slightly as he did.

  “It’s probably for the best,” she told him. “I’m seriously starving. If you ravage me one more time, I might starve to death. I’m not exaggerating.”

  He offered her a smile.

  “I wouldn’t want to do that,” he told her, reaching up to brush a stray strand of hair out of her face. It seemed to be the same piece which slipped onto her forehead over and over, no matter how many times he moved it aside.

  But it wasn’t her shiny mane of reddish-brown hair which had him enraptured; it was the look in her emerald eyes as she studied his face.

  Gone was the trance-like expression she had possessed, but confusion was in its place.

  “I feel funny,” she confessed. “I think I really need to eat.”

  He nodded slowly.

  “Let’s go then,” he agreed, and he watched as she locked the door.

  The two of them made their way to the tiny lobby and into the dusky Detroit evening.

  “Tacos work for you?” she asked as they began to walk, and Cass nodded, although again, he had no idea what she was asking.

  Life was so much different than it had been when he died. It was difficult to believe he was on the same world.

  I will have an infinite amount of time to learn the ways of this life, he assured himself. If Lucky stays out of my affairs.

  Yet Cass knew there was a real danger that he could lose to the devil, something he had already predicted when he had accepted the ridiculous bet.

  He had known there would be little chance he would ever roam the earth as a free man, away from Lucky’s treachery and games. He had accepted it at the time, known that Lucky would cheat. But he had decided that the chance to walk on Earth again, even for a month, would be worth it.

  But now, things had changed.

  Serafina was worth fighting for, and he would not give up his chance to stay with her, no matter what tricks Satan threw his way.

  She must feel the same way about me, he told himself firmly, watching her through his peripheral vision as he walked. If she didn’t, there would have been no breaking whatever spell Lucky had put upon her.

  True love always conquers. Even Lucky knows that, he thought, shaking his head.

  Sera paused, her face pale.

  “What’s the matter?” he asked, his arm circling her waist.

  “I – I don’t know,” she admitted. “I just feel a little dizzy.”

  “Come on,” Cass instructed, guiding her inside a nearby café. “Let’s eat here.”

  But as they sat, he realized that her odd feeling was probably connected to whatever had happened to her that day.

  He sat her in a booth and signaled for a nearby server.

  “What’ll it be, hon?” the too-skinny bleached blonde asked as she approached. If Cass had known anything about the modern world, he would have marveled at the cliché the employee seemed to be.

  “Food,” he replied, and Sera laughed.

  “A menu would be good,” the ginger corrected. “And I could use a Coke.”

  “Pepsi okay, hon?”

  “Anything with sugar,” Sera agreed, and the waitress turned to Cass.

  “And you, hon?”

  “Water,” he replied shortly.

  “All righty. Be right back, hon.”

  Cass wondered if the overuse of endearments was commonplace in the city. But the server’s vernacular was the least of his concerns. The rapidly fading color in Sera’s face was alarming and he felt as if he was watching her essence slip away before his eyes.

  Not today, Lucifer, he thought acridly. No matter what you did, I will undo it.

  “So what did you do today?” Cass asked, leaning across the table to take her hands. It seemed that she was growing paler with each moment that passed.

  Her skin was almost opaque with the veins showing through. Cassiel’s heart began to hammer in his chest.

  “What did you do to her?” he roared again at Lucky silently, but the demon only laughed again.

  “I didn’t do anything!” he cried back with faux innocence.

  “I…I went to work,” Sera started slowly. “And…oh yeah, and then I went to meet a client at the Hilton…”

&n
bsp; She trailed off as if trying to put together the pieces of her day, looking confused and frustrated as she tried to recall the occurrences of her day.

  “I don’t remember much of what happened today,” she admitted, her head jerking up to stare at him. “I – I don’t even remember coming home.”

  “What do you recall?” he asked firmly. Cass needed to know what force he was up against, what Lucky had done to his lover.

  “She will never tell you!” Lucky cooed in his ear. “She’s too weak to remember!”

  Rage was building inside Cassiel, a fury worse than one he had felt toward his brother during the ultimate betrayal.

  “Serafina, you must look at me,” he told her urgently. “Look into my face.”

  A stab of fear overtook him as her face took on a greyish tinge, but she managed to look into his face.

  “Please try to remember your day. I fear you have been…” he trailed off, unsure if how she would react to the news she had been put under a spell.

  “Drugged?” she mumbled and Cass’ brow furrowed.

  Yes! Given drugs. That is more acceptable in this world.

  “Yes,” he replied quickly. “Who did you meet at the…Hilton? Who was the client? What did he say to you?”

  She shook her head, blinking several times.

  “I don’t remember,” she insisted.

  “Did you go alone?” Cass demanded, unwilling to leave the subject, even though he could see it was making her frustrated.

  She shook her head and suddenly, her mossy eyes lit up.

  “No! Boy Wonder came with.”

  “Boy wonder?” he echoed, wishing desperately that he understood the language of today’s world. “Who is this boy?”

  “Conrad Christensen. He works with me at the law firm.”

  “You must call on him and ask him the name of the man you met.”

  Sera gazed at him, a worried look coming over her face.

  “You’re acting weird,” she commented slowly.

  “I would say you are the one acting strangely,” he replied. “It is very important. Please, we must learn the name of the man you went to see.”

  “Or woman,” she piped up. “It could have been a woman.”