Redemption (The Keepers of Hell Book 3)

by James, Danielle

  Shelly brushed the wrinkles out of her clothes and pulled her shirt back over her head. “Well, I’ll see you later,” she said as she headed for the door.

  Jake was dumbfounded. “What?” he barked. “You’re leaving? But I thought we…”

  “Ugh,” she sighed. “It was the best I ever had. There is that better?”

  “You can’t just...” he started.

  “Yes,” she interrupted, “I can. Thank you very much. I needed that. Have a nice night now.” She walked out the door, leaving Jake with a hard on of steel and more frustration than a psychiatrist could handle. Not only was his body in a tiff because he was horny as sin with no outlet, but he wanted Shelly to come back for other reasons he wasn’t ready to admit. He liked her. Much, much more than he should. He liked the way she claimed him as her own. Fuck, he wanted her to own him and that was one giant head fuck in and of itself. He was well and truly fucked, and not in a way that he wanted to be.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Jake had to get out of there. The more he thought about it, the more that woman pissed him off. How could she just get hers and walk away? She left him with a semi parked in his underwear and now the bitch was nowhere to be found.

  He decided it was best if he flashed himself to Earth to watch his charge, Lucy. Jake found himself standing outside of her home once again, looking in like a stalker. At first, everything was quiet. And then someone screamed. Jake flashed inside the house, and what he saw made his stomach turn.

  Lucy was lying on the floor with blood gushing from her nose. Jake wanted to help her, but he stopped himself. Her husband came barreling into the room and yanked her up by her hair. “You stupid bitch,” he ground out. “I told you that I don’t like raw steak.” He dragged her into the kitchen. The man snatched a piece of meat off a plate and shoved it into Lucy’s face. “Does this look cooked to you?” he barked. “It’s got blood on it. Blood!” he tossed the meat to the floor and forced Lucy to look at him. Her blonde hair was streaked red with her own blood, but she raised her eyes to meet his.

  Jake had thought this man had broken Lucy’s spirit, but now he wasn’t so sure. There was a fire in her eyes that sparked briefly before she masked it.

  “I’m sorry,” she said calmly. “I’ll make you another one.”

  “No you won’t!” he shouted at her. Lucy didn’t even flinch when he hit her. “I’m going to take a shower and when I get out, this mess better be cleaned up.”

  Jake watched helplessly as Lucy started to clean the mess. She washed the dishes and put them away. Then she swept the floor. When she returned the broom to the closet, she stopped to look at something.

  It was about then that her husband came out of the hallway and made his presence known. “You can’t hide in the fucking closet,” he barked at her. “Get out here.” He grabbed her by her hair again and slapped her across the face.

  Jake looked into the closet and saw there was a box safe in the back. It was open and empty. He wondered what would have been in there. It looked like the kind of box someone would keep a gun in. And then it hit him.

  “Oh, Lucy, no,” he whispered. He turned back to his charge but it was too late. She had the gun level with her extended arm.

  “You aren’t going to touch me,” she said softly. “Not anymore.”

  “Lucy, please,” her husband said sarcastically. “You don’t even know how to unlock it.”

  Lucy pulled the hammer back and the gun clicked into place. “Don’t I?’ she asked. “I’m leaving here and you are not going to stop me.”

  Her husband watched as she picked up her purse and her car keys while never taking her eyes off him. She walked backward toward the door, but when she turned to unlock it, he struck. He grabbed her arm and she spun around. He tried to get the gun from her but in the struggle, it went off.

  The room filled with an unnatural silence. The smell of blood got thick in the air and Jake held his breath. Lucy’s face was filled with horror, and after a long second, her husband fell to the floor.

  Lucy looked at his lifeless body for a moment and then she opened the door. She ran for hell or high water to her car. She slammed the door and jammed her keys into the ignition. Jake watched as she peeled out of the driveway and sped off into the night.

  Jake knew the husband was dead. As well he should be, he thought. That man had been a monster and he deserved his fate. He followed Lucy down the street and into town. He had to keep flashing himself to keep up with her. She didn’t make it far. She took a corner too fast and the car lost its traction against the asphalt. It careened into the opposite lane and into oncoming traffic. Lucy yanked the wheel to her left in an attempt to try to correct her slide, but it was useless. A pickup truck laid on its horn and locked its brakes up, fish tailing away from her. The car veered back into her lane and then kept going. It finally slammed into a telephone pole. Jake heard the crunch of metal and breaking glass and prayed that she was all right.

  He got close to the vehicle and saw her sitting in the driver seat. She had thought to put on her seat belt, thank God. She was breathing and she would live. He let out his breath. She would be all right. That was, until her car caught fire.

  The engine ignited and it didn’t take long for the flames to engulf the car. Lucy was unconscious in the front seat. She had to get out! He needed to call for help. What was he supposed to do? A flash of memory smacked him right in the face. It was Ash telling him to never put his fire out again. Of course! That was it! Jake willed the flames into submission, and finally, all that was left of the inferno was a cloud of thick, black smoke. He heard sirens in the air and knew that someone had already called 911. Help was on its way.

  ***

  Shelly had followed Jake. She had marked him for a reason and this was precisely it. How dare he take an interest in another woman? Hadn’t she made it clear that he belonged to her? Apparently not. And look what he did! She made it there just in time to see him snuff out the flames on that woman’s car. He wasn’t supposed to interfere!

  She made herself known by grabbing his arm and flashing them both back to Hell.

  They materialized outside of Ash’s office.

  “What the fuck?” Jake demanded.

  “You’re in deep shit, that’s what,” she told him.

  “For what?”

  “Ash, open the damn door,” Shelly called to their leader. The doors opened and she drug Jake in with her.

  Jake saw Ash sitting behind his desk, Antonio at his side. They were studying something on the computer screen, but both heads were staring at him and Shelly right at that moment. He also noticed there was still a caged man in the corner of the room.

  “How long is he going to stay there?” Jake asked.

  “Until I figure out what to do with him,” Ash answered. “What is going on here?”

  Shelly stepped up. “I’ll tell you what’s going on!” she yelled. “This fucktard just saved that woman’s life. He isn’t supposed to interfere.”

  “She was going to die,” Jake defended himself.

  “He put out the flames on her car,” Shelly explained. “I saw it.”

  Jake’s head whipped around to look at her. “What are you, my stalker?”

  Shelly humphed. “More like a babysitter.”

  “I didn’t ask for your help,” Jake countered. “And I don’t need a nanny.”

  “Well, apparently you need to be watched.”

  “Shut up,” Jake snapped.

  “Fuck off,” Shelly replied.

  “You are such a bitch,” Jake said.

  “You’re a fucking pansy, Mike Tyson.” She crossed her arms at her chest and raised one eyebrow at, as if she were daring him to come back with more.

  Jake couldn’t resist. “Martha fucking Stewart,” he smiled.

  Oh, he did not just call her Martha Stewart. “Go to hell,” she barked.

  She was even prettier when she was mad, Jake noticed. “You know, every time I am around you, my midd
le finger gets a hard on.” He showed her the finger in question and yep, it was standing at attention.

  Fire flashed in her eyes. “Better get used to it,” she snarled, “because the only way you’re getting laid around here is to crawl up a chicken’s ass and wait.”

  Ash held back his bark of laughter. He and Antonio were watching the exchange, their heads moving from Jake to Shelly and back. It was like watching a tennis match. With words.

  “Hey, Carrot Top called, he wants his hair back,” Jake retorted. He smiled as he watched the anger flush her face.

  “Does your ass get jealous of all the shit that comes out of your mouth?” she asked. Just mentioning his mouth reminded her of what that mouth felt like on her skin, which made her blood roar in her veins, which pissed her off even more.

  “Were your parents siblings?” he asked her.

  “You are such a huge douche bag you could cleanse a whale's vagina!” she shouted back.

  “Yeah?” he asked with a half-smile. He was handsome when he smiled. “Your vagina is so big that I would need MapQuest to find the g-spot!”

  “Save your breath asshole, you’re gonna need it to inflate your date later.”

  “Do you think we should stop this?” Antonio whispered to Ash. Ash shook his head. “I know that they are what they are but... damn.”

  “You’re sure about this?” Ash asked him quietly. “They don’t seem to like each other very much.”

  Antonio snorted.

  “You’re a fat lipped firebug!”

  “Soul sucking siren!”

  “Get off your man period!”

  “Dick rash.”

  “Knuckle dragging Neanderthal!”

  “Glue sniffing gutter slut!” Jake shouted. The pair were nose to nose now. Ash and Antonio were quietly betting on who would hit who first.

  “Isn’t there a hydrant you need to piss on?”

  “Selfish narcissistic tease.”

  “You're such an asshole. Kissing any part of you would be fairly termed 'rimming.” Someone actually laughed at that one, but Jake didn’t bother to look at who. Shelly was so close he could smell her.

  “Two tongued tattletale,” he said to her, a little softer.

  “If you were any more of a dick, prostitutes would be trying to shove condoms over your head,” she said through clenched teeth.

  “I’d tell you to fuck yourself and the horse you rode in on, but from the look on your face I’d say you already did that,” he said. She smelled so good.

  “If brains were dynamite you wouldn't have enough to blow your nose.”

  “Your birth certificate was an apology letter to your parents!”

  “Get your head out of your ass,” she barked at him, “it’s not a hat. Although, an ass is probably the only thing you could get to sit on your head! Either one, north or south!”

  Jake couldn’t take it anymore. She was driving him insane! And not just with her smartass mouth, but her scent! She was just as turned on as he was, and as hard as it was for him to admit, he wanted her. First he had to shut her up, so he did the only thing he could think of. He kissed her.

  ***

  Ash and Antonio watched as Jake picked Shelly up and slammed her into the wall. He covered her body with his own as his mouth plundered hers. “We should really do something,” Antonio said.

  “What?” Ash asked as Jake started grinding his hips into the demon.

  “I don’t know!” Antonio barked out on a laugh, “but if you don’t they’re gonna be having sex right here on your office floor.”

  That was enough to spur Ash into action. He stood from his chair and ran around the desk. “Hey, hey! Go to your corners. Or get a room. Or something. Just get out of here!”

  Shelly didn’t answer him, but shoved her hands through Jake’s hair and kissed him harder. Jake made eye contact and lifted Shelly’s legs to wrap them around his waist. Then he walked, while still kissing her, toward the door. Ash gave the mental command for the doors to open and Jake walked through them, taking his demon with him.

  “I think I will deal with his interference later,” Ash said, watching the empty doorway after they left.

  “I think that’s wise,” Antonio agreed.

  “Was I that bad?” Ash asked. “I mean, when I was getting my shit together with Elizabeth?”

  Antonio looked at his friend with a crooked smile. “You were so much worse,” he laughed.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Jake had barely made it into the hallway with his cargo when Shelly made a frustrated noise in the back of her throat. Her arms were tight around his neck and her legs were wrapped securely around his hips. Jake fumbled them both down the hallway in the direction of his room.

  Shelly growled against his neck, and the next thing he felt was his body dematerializing. Then the soft carpet of his sleeping quarters was under his feet. “Not moving fast enough for you, Demon Girl?” he chuckled.

  “Shut up, Asshat,” she growled and bit into the cord of his neck. The pain was sharp and sent shivers all over his body.

  “Right, best if we don’t talk,” he agreed. He walked over to the bed and lowered her back to the sheets, keeping her legs wrapped around him. He had no choice but to fall on top of her. He hungrily kissed her neck and collarbone before pushing up on his hands above her.

  “I need something,” he muttered. He caught sight of a black silk scarf on his bedside table that hadn’t been there before. He wondered for a mere second where it had come from, but decided he didn’t care. He snatched the scarf off the table and pushed Shelly’s hands above her head.

  “What are you doing?” She glared at him as he tied the scarf around her wrists.

  “Making sure you don’t go anywhere this time,” he grunted back at her. He was pinning her weight with his hips and he pushed them into her for good measure. Her sharp intake of breath was not lost on him. She wanted him just as much as he wanted her, and he was going to make sure she admitted it.

  “I could get loose if I wanted to,” she said breathlessly.

  Jake pretended not to hear her and put both hands on the front of her shirt. She raised a brow at him in defiance just before he ripped the material apart. Her perfect breasts were on display for him and they rose and fell with each breath that she took. Jake watched in fascination as the tips hardened and stood for his attention, as if they were begging him to taste them.

  He was more than happy to oblige. He dipped his head low and sucked one diamond hard pebble into his mouth. He took his time, licking and nibbling, first one nipple and then the other. He made his way down her belly and smiled when she giggled. It wasn’t a sound he had ever expected to hear from her, but he decided she liked it.

  He ghosted his tongue over her abdomen, enjoying the way the skin fluttered beneath his touch. She was squirming against her bonds by the time he had made his way down to her pants. He popped the button and pushed them down her legs, leaving her bare to him.

  She was beautiful. He looked back up to her eyes, almost as if he were asking permission. The fire he saw in her face was all the permission he needed. He settled his wide shoulders between her thighs and went in for a taste.

  As soon as his tongue touched her, he knew he was lost. Forever ruined for other women. No one else would ever do. Her flavor was like a dance in his mouth, caressing each and every one of his taste buds and sliding down his throat like a fine wine.

  Shelly was thrashing on her back as he licked her sensitive flesh over and over again. He could tell she was nearing the edge and he backed off. He raised up from her and was rewarded with a snarl from her.

  “You’re not finished,” she growled at him. “Get back down there.”

  He tsk'ed at her with his tongue. “You don’t get yours this time until I am buried deep inside you,” he told her.

  “Then get on with it!” she shouted at him. She yanked hard on the scarf that bound her wrists and the material rent under her strength. “Never mind,” she said
, “I’ll do it myself.”

  She flipped him over like he weighed nothing at all and yanked his pants off his body. She didn’t bother with his shirt. She straddled his waist and reached between them, guiding his cock where she wanted it to be.

  Jake didn’t even really have time to process what she was doing before she dropped her hips and impaled herself on him. “Ah, fuck,” he ground out, grabbing her hips and holding her still. She felt so good around him that if she moved even a little bit, he was going to lose it. But she wasn’t very obedient and forced her hips to move. Jake couldn’t take it anymore. He pulled her body down and held her chest to his and drove into her. He moved within her while securing her to himself.

  Shelly was teetering on the brink of losing control. Her body was full of the angel under her, but that wasn’t what was causing the issue. His arms were locked around her like a vise and he was whispering things in her ear. Things about what he wanted to do to her. Things about how he liked her and the way she made him feel. That was all fine and good, but it was how he was making her feel that bothered her.

  His arms felt warm, and safe, and loving. She felt secure in the circle of his arms. He kissed the side of her neck as he drove into her, holding her tight. When he roared his release, Shelly allowed herself to go as well. She didn’t know when she had started holding back, but she had. She wanted him to find release with her and when he had, she let her body go and closed her eyes with pleasure.

  When their breathing returned to normal, Jake rolled them to the side and tucked Shelly into the cradle of his arms. She closed her eyes and pretended to sleep, but she couldn’t even if she wanted to. Jake made her feel things. He made her feel, period, and that bothered her.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  “Are we ready?” Jason asked Laura.

  “Almost,” she replied. “Just gotta get finished drawing this spell.”

  Jason admired the witch’s handiwork. She had drawn an inverted pentagram on the floor with a circle around it. She had already chanted the spell that would activate it. “I don’t want to trap the demon. That’s likely to piss it off and he won’t help us.”