by Vivi Dumas
She snatched the towel off the chair and went into the bathroom. The hot water cascaded down Angel’s back, rinsing the tension away. She needed to regroup. This was the 21st century. A woman could initiate a booty call. If Isabella didn’t like her sleeping with Jacque, she should get tighter reigns on him. Angel only had a couple weeks left, and she didn’t have to see any of them again. She leaned back against the cool tile of the shower wall and let the hot water stream over her head, dissolving the thoughts of Isabella out of her mind.
She refused to acknowledge any feelings for Jacque except lust and desire as she pictured him—muscular, sweaty, and naked. Her body shivered, remembering the passion invoked by his touch. No man ever delivered the pleasure he administered. Sex as great as last night deserved a warning label. Maybe it was a demon thing. Were all demons as skillful in bed as Jacque?
Wrapped in a towel, Angel stepped out of the bathroom. She shrieked when she turned to see Lucifer sitting on the bed.
She pulled the towel tighter around her. “Shit! You scared me.”
“I didn’t mean to.” Lucifer watched her, taking lingering glances at her legs.
“Can I help you with something?”
“I’m disappointed.”
“Disappointed? For what?”
“You had sex with Jacque last night.”
Throwing up her hands, Angel demanded, “What the hell! Does everyone know? Did Isabella tell you?”
“No one needed to tell me. I know all things happening in my world. I had hoped you would save yourself for me. I should’ve thought it through before I asked Jacque to take this mission. Women tend to find him irresistible.”
“Whether it was Jacque or someone else, it wouldn’t matter. I’m not attracted to you.” Angel blurted before she could stop herself.
He circled her, toying with a strand of her wet wavy hair. “You have yet to give me a chance to show you my talents. I think you’ll find me to your liking. Regardless, you know you and Jacque can’t be together.”
“No one said we planned to be together. We had sex. We’re not getting married.” She backed away and pulled her hair out of his grasp.
“Jacque will be leaving at the end of the week. I need him back with the armies.”
“Sure you do. Who’s going to finish the last week of training?”
“The last week for you will be magic training. You’ll be training with Marie.”
She jumped as an invisible hand caressed her calf. “You know what. I’m done. Please leave now!”
“Call me if you need anything.” Lucifer flashed the beastly smile and disappeared.
Mentally and emotionally, Angel was drained. Her heart broke at the thought of not seeing Jacque again. Her interest in him went beyond the physical. She had a talent for falling for unavailable men. Even when she was engaged to Jackson, she knew he didn’t love her. At the time, a piece of a man was better than no man at all.
***
Jacque lay across the bed with his hands clasped behind his head. He knew he shouldn’t have bedded Angel, but he couldn’t resist, especially after he felt the lust exuding from her. Everything about her said, “Fuck me.” He wanted to hold her in his arms ever since he laid eyes on her at the bar. He thought sleeping with her would satisfy his obsession. It just ignited the embers into a full-blown fire.
The knock at the door snapped him out of his thoughts. Jacque hid an amused grin, thinking Angel had changed her mind. Lucifer propped himself against the doorframe.
“What’s up?” Jacque leaned on the door and smiled.
“You’ll be going back to your army at the end of the week.”
The words wiped the smile off Jacque’s face. “Why the fuck would I cut training short?”
“Isabella can take over the training. She is more than qualified. Anyway, didn’t you say you didn’t want to be at headquarters and wanted to be with your soldiers?”
Jacque’s hand pressed into the wooden door. He released it when he heard it crack. “What about Angel? You know her and Isabella have problems.”
“Their only problem is you. Maybe when you’re gone, they’ll stop fighting.” Lucifer disappeared before Jacque could comment.
Shit! He thought he would have more time to convince Angel to be with him. Luc was jealous. He wanted Angel for himself. Jacque figured let the best demon win. Competition was becoming a theme with Angel. Currently, she belonged to Jacque. Well, not completely, but he planned to fix that problem. He headed for the shower to get ready. He needed to go find Angel before anyone else got to her.
Another rap on the door interrupted him as he dressed to leave. He snatched open the door hoping it was Angel. But to his dismay, Bell stood in front of him with her hands on her hips. She shoved him aside and stormed into the room. Shaking his head, Jacque closed the door and followed her. He hoped to deal with her quickly.
“What the hell are you thinking?” Bell spat.
Fifty years of the bickering was getting old. “What’re you ranting about now?”
“You fucked the human!” Her eyes cut through him like daggers.
“It’s none of your business who I fuck anymore. We’re not together, even when we were together, we did our own thing.” Somewhere in his heart, he felt sorry for her.
“You know you belong to me. Sure, we fight, but we always get back together. It might take a decade or two, but we always get back together.” Her voice was frantic.
“Bell, I care about you. We’ve been back and forth for a long time with nothing moving forward. We’re no good for each other. Someone always ends up hurt. It’s like eating too much chocolate. It’s good while you’re eating, but you pay for it in the end.” He held her hand to soothe her.
“I know we’re bad for each other, but you think you can make a life with this girl?” Tears glistened on her cheeks. This was the first time he’d seen her cry.
“I don’t know what I can have with Angel. All I can do is test the waters and see what happens.” Jacque wiped the tear as it slid down her cheek.
“What makes her so special?” Bell questioned.
“I don’t know. It’s what we had in the beginning. She’s confident and independent, yet she still needs me. There is strength in her, yet she ended up here. I don’t know.”
Isabella smiled at him. She stepped into him, put her arms around his waist, and buried herself against his chest. Jacque held her close. They stood locked in each other’s embrace when the door opened. Angel entered, pivoted, and ran in the opposite direction.
***
Running down the hall, she cursed herself for being so stupid. She heard the sound of Jacque’s voice calling her and the echo of Isabella’s mocking tone. She stopped by to say sorry for the way she left. It was apparent he was already over it. She burst into her room slamming the door. Tears flowed down her face as she slumped on the floor, propping her back against the bed.
Someone knocked on the door and pushed it open. Jacque filled the doorway. He crossed the room and kneeled beside her on the floor, reaching out for her.
She withdrew immediately and smacked his hands away. “Don’t touch me!”
“I’m sorry. It’s not what you think.” He pleaded for her understanding.
“How do you know what I think?”
“I wasn’t with Bell. I was just saying goodbye. For good.”
She searched his face for reassurance. “Why?”
“Bell and I have a long history. She’s having a hard time accepting it’s over. I need her to understand it’s over, and I want to be with you.”
“We can’t be together. You’re leaving at the end of the week. Lucifer’s pissed we slept together.” Angel hung her head in her hands unable to look into Jacque’s eyes.
“Luc’s a poor loser. He hates that you chose me over him. His problem, not mine. He’ll get over it. Yeah. I have to leave. All I’m asking is for you to give me until the end of the week. Let’s see where this goes. If we can still stand each ot
her by then, I’ll figure something out.” A mask of determination penetrated his face.
“I don’t know.”
“I wasn’t good enough last night to make you give me a second try?” Jacque teased.
Heat spread inside her just thinking about the sex last night. “Okay. You got until the end of the week. Afterward, we go our separate ways. You’re lucky you’re good in bed.” Angel chuckled through her tears.
“I’ll make it worth your while. Last night was just a taste of my abilities.” Jacque winked at her. “Come on. Let’s get something to eat. It’s been a long morning.”
Chapter Seven
A hushed whisper spread through the cafeteria when Angel and Jacque entered the room. Most of the guys smirked in obvious acknowledgement of Angel’s new status. Like most men, Jacque was oblivious to the attention his behavior attracted. He followed so close behind her they shared one silhouette. She nudged him with an elbow to create some space between them.
Jacque shrugged his shoulders. “What?”
“You gotta give me some space. You’re crowding me, and it’s attracting too much attention. Bad enough I’m the only human and the only female. Now they know we slept together. What the hell? Did someone Tweet it?” The words escaped without a breath in between.
“Sorry. I didn’t notice.” He dropped his head and moved the food around on his tray.
She needed something to take her mind away from the craziness. A good sword fight could release some of her anxiety. Too bad they didn’t have training today. She and Jacque took a seat at the far end of the room. Everyone still glanced at them and whispered. Noel approached from the opposite end of the cafeteria with disdain written on his face.
“Finally given up hiding? I knew there was a reason you favored her.” Noel glared at Jacque.
“You need to mind your own business. You’re out of line.” Jacque’s gritty voice held an edge.
“You bust our balls all day long. Nothing we do is good enough, but you allow her to slack off because you’re fucking her!” Noel’s face glowed red with anger.
Before Jacque could move, Angel’s hands locked like vise grips between Noel’s legs bringing him to his knees. She trembled with rage. With shaky hands, she released Noel to fall flat on the ground groaning in pain. As soon as he hit the floor, her foot connected with his rib cage.
Straddling Noel, she grabbed him by his shirt. “Don’t you ever disrespect me again! Next time you won’t be lucky enough to pick your stupid ass off the floor.” Angel dropped Noel back down, stomping on his knee as she stormed out the room.
Jacque smirked as he offered Noel his hand. That’ll teach him to fuck with Angel. Jacque thought he learned his lesson the day before, but apparently Noel hadn’t. He finished his breakfast to give Angel some time to cool off then strolled to her room and knocked on the door. The bulk of the door muffled her voice. When he entered her room, she lay on her back with her arms tucked underneath her head. Her beauty mixed with fury reminded him of an angry goddess.
“You kicked his ass back there. He’ll never live this one down.”
Her chocolate brown eyes sparked with rage. “He can go to hell for all I care!”
“Babe, we’re already in Hell, but I think you showed him a new meaning for it. You know you can’t go around injuring my soldiers.”
“I didn’t think. Just reacted.”
His laugh rumbled through the room. “Don’t worry about it. Noel will recover. At least I know not to piss you off.”
Sliding on the bed next to her, Jacque pulled her in his arms. She nestled her head against his chest. Rolling over on top of her, he trapped her under him, tasting the saltiness of her kiss. Angel responded to his urgency. He tangled his hand in her hair, jerking her head back slightly, as he ground his hardness against her. She brought her lips just below his ear, languidly trailing her tongue down his neck. A deep voice snapped Jacque out of his haze of pleasure.
“I told you she didn’t belong to you!” Luc spewed.
“Don’t you ever knock? You’ve got to stop popping into my room!” Angel dropped back onto the mattress holding her head.
“This room belongs to me, just as you do,” Luc corrected.
“She made a deal with you. She doesn’t belong to you,” Jacque challenged.
“Do you think she is yours?” the Devil countered.
“This is crazy! I don’t belong to anyone! Both of you need to back off.” Angel flinched at the pain reflected in Jacque’s eyes.
Angel had had enough of everyone. She just wanted to be alone. Instead, mayhem broke loose before she could put them out. Jacque’s curses burst from the flames enveloping him. Lucifer’s blood-red eyes danced with fury as the flames lapped at his skin. Her screams mingled with his anguish. She couldn’t tell if he cried out in pain or in anger. With one last bellow of her name, he disappeared, swallowed by the fire.
“What the hell did you do!” she cried out, falling to her knees on the spot where Jacque once stood.
“There’s no need for you to worry about him. He won’t be returning.” Lucifer turned to leave. Angel snatched his shoulder and spun him around before he could leave.
“You will tell me what you did with him!” Her eyes narrowed, and her words contained the rasping of tears.
“I sent him back to his army. He serves me, and I no longer have a need for him. If you’re so enamored with him, I’ll be glad to make a deal with you.” A smile crawled across his face.
“What kind of a deal?”
“You want to be with Jacque? I have a simple solution. Give up your soul and stay here. You can be with him for an eternity. How much are you willing to give up for him?”
“You’re telling me my only option is to give up my soul and stay here? How do I know you’re telling the truth? I might agree, and you’ll still cause trouble for us.”
“Are you willing to give up everything for him? I’ll guarantee to let you and Jacque be together in peace.”
“Can I think about it?”
“No. I need your answer now,” Lucifer demanded.
“I can’t give up everything for someone I hardly know. I have to get back to my mother and sister. But you promise you didn’t harm Jacque?” Tears streamed down her cheeks.
Lucifer huffed, “Jacque’s fine,” and vanished.
She remained on the floor for some time, trying to understand what just transpired. She was in way over her head with no easy way out. If she made the right choice, why did this emptiness gnaw inside her? Her feelings for Jacque didn’t justify giving up everything to be with him. Other than a few kind words, the most they shared was one mind-blowing night. Angel had to admit orgasms like the ones last night were almost worth being trapped in hell forever.
Tonight would be an early night. After the shower, she tucked herself into the thick covers on the bed. As she drifted into a turbulent slumber, she searched for Jacque in her dreams. His beautiful face haunted her in her sleep.
Screaming Jacque’s name, she woke at dawn. Last night’s events and lack of sleep put her in a foul mood. She needed coffee and lots of it. She threw on her black Baby Phat sweatpants and a pink spandex tank top and slinked down the stairs to the cafeteria. When she hit the door, the buzz of Jacque’s departure already permeated the air. He was their hero, and she banished him back to the legions.
Grabbing her caffeine and some fruit, she snuck out of the cafeteria to avoid the prying eyes of her fellow cadets. When she turned the corner, she bumped into Isabella—the last person she needed to see right now.
Isabella leered mockingly. “I see you worked things out famously. Hope you’re proud of yourself.”
“I don’t need your shit right now, Isabella!”
“I can’t imagine what the hell the two of them see in you, but whatever. Don’t worry. I’ll take good care of Jacque when you’re gone.”
Before Angel could stop herself, her hand came across Isabella’s face so hard it knocked her back a c
ouple of steps. Hatred glowed in Isabella’s eyes as she leapt on Angel like a tiger attacking its prey. The two tumbled to the stone floor ripping at each other’s hair. Angel rolled on top of Isabella, raining blows to the side of her head as Isabella protected her face. Angel cried out in pain when Isabella bit into her thigh, forcing her to slide onto the floor. Isabella jumped to her feet and kicked Angel with a boot in the small of her back. Angel struggled off the ground. Finding her balance, she connected with Isabella’s jaw with a back kick.
A crowd gathered in the hall. Instigated by the shouts of the crowd, additional blows rang through the castle. Noel yelled, “Stomp her human ass into the floor!”
A fist slammed into Angel’s jaw. The iron-tainted taste of blood trickled down her throat. She tackled Isabella with all the rage burning within her. Once down, Angel snatched Isabella by her T-shirt and slammed her head into the cold stone underneath them until strong hands ripped her away.
Lucifer’s voice boomed in Angel’s ear. “I think you two have had enough.”
“You keep the crazy bitch away from me!” Isabella shrieked.
“Maybe this’ll teach you to better pick your battles, Isabella,” Lucifer chastised.
“I think you’ve had all the training you need here. It’s time for you to leave. I can’t have you causing anymore trouble.”
“Whatever. I’ll be more than happy to get the fuck out of here.” Angel’s exhaustion rang true in her words.
Angel dragged herself back to her room. She took the Vamp Juice out of the mini-fridge and chugged it. She had more than her share of the stuff since she started training. It built up in her system, fortifying her with extra strength, giving her the ability to keep up with her supernatural classmates. Even with the Vamp Juice, she felt like a bulldozer ran her over. She began packing her belongings. She couldn’t leave this place fast enough.
***
