Paramour for the Devil

by Savannah Hill

  Damian broke into a chuckle at her whisper. “You get a little feisty when you’re jealous.”

  Haley paused, giving a hint of a smile at her own behavior. “Yeah, I guess I do.” She shook her head, lowering her face to her hands. “It’s unintentional.”

  He grasped her wrists, flattening her palm over his rapid heartbeat.

  A powerful shock of emotion pulsed in her own heart as she held onto his chest, losing herself completely to the steady drumming of his pounding heartbeat. I am falling hard…

  “Your heart’s beating fast.”

  “It’s because you’re close.” Damian slid primitive hands underneath her silk panties to grip her backside.

  His touch sent shivers over her flesh, bringing her to dig her polished fingernails into his tattooed skin.

  “I want to kiss you.” She gave him an unsure look.

  A smile spread across his face. “Then do it.”

  “OK.” Her voice was thick with restrained lust as she slowly leaned forward, catching his lips with hers and letting her arms tighten around him.

  Somewhere nearby, Damian’s cell phone vibrated, and they both ignored the sound. Dazed by his heated mouth as their tongues slid together, her panties had gone damp, and she moved on his lap, bearing herself down onto his gloriously thick erection barely hidden by the sweatpants.

  The doorbell rang through the house, bringing an immediate halt to their motions. A key being turned in the lock indicated it must be Noah, and Haley scrambled off Damian’s lap, moving her arms to cover herself as the door opened.

  Noah came through the doorway and darted his gaze from her scant lingerie. “Jesus, we tried to call to give you a heads up.”

  “You’re home early.” Damian stood, facing Haley, blocking her from view with his broad back, and looked down at the jutting erection under his pants with a roll of his eyes.

  “Boss called me onto a new assignment. He said you’re on the case too, so probably check your voicemail.”

  “Fuck.”

  “Haley?” Ginger peered around Damian’s rigid body. “Come here, look what I got.”

  Haley glanced at Noah, carrying luggage upstairs with his back turned, and she slipped past Damian to meet Ginger in the foyer.

  With a gleaming smile, she offered Haley her hand to show the shining diamond on her left ring finger. “Can you believe it’s really happening?”

  “Aww, it’s a princess cut.” Haley stared at the diamond, overwhelmed by the glittery sight.

  “I don’t know if he even knows what that is, but it’s so perfect. We had to cut our romantic getaway short, but it’s totally cool because now I can pull up my wedding spreadsheets on my laptop. There’s so much planning to do.”

  “Oh my God, I forgot about the spreadsheets.” Haley laughed, feeling a bubbly warmth from Ginger’s giddy excitement.

  “Traditionally, Hawthorne women don’t change their name, but Ginger Andrews.” She drew out the name. “I’d give up the family history for that title.”

  “It sounds like a movie star.”

  “How’s your vacation been so far?” Ginger looked over her lingerie with a cheeky grin.

  “Eventful.” She tried not to get carried away with girl talk. “I have to put some clothes on.” She turned back toward Damian. “I’m going upstairs to change.”

  He nodded at her and reached for his phone, scrolling through the long list of missed calls. Most were from his boss, two from Stephen, and one from Noah a few minutes earlier. It didn’t matter if he was assigned a new case. He hadn’t gotten nearly enough time with Haley yet. Just the fact she was on her way up the staircase to get dressed made him feel bleak. Their lazy day had been shot to hell.

  Listening to the numerous messages from Victor, Damian watched the floor with a clenched jaw at the thundering cadence of his boss’ voice. “I ordered you two to take out the target, not offer him a goddamned deal. You’re soldiers, not rehab counselors for Chrissake. If he kills again, I’m holding you both personally responsible.”

  Noah strolled into the empty living room. “You get the new mission details?”

  “Not yet, still catching hell for the way the last one ended.”

  “Yeah, that was a tough call.” Noah sank down into a chair. “But, fuck…if we followed orders? I couldn’t have lived with that kind of guilt.”

  Damian deleted the next bellowing voicemail without listening to it, sitting down on the warm couch, and his gaze fell to the pile of DVD’s on the table. He’d already sent word to headquarters he was taking time off for the first time in his impressive career, and he wasn’t going anywhere until he got his fill of alone time with her. “What’s the mission?”

  “The goddamn djinn.” Noah grinned, sprawling his legs out in front of him. “Talis and Adam chased them back up North from Utah, but the trail went cold when they got to Wyoming. Victor pulled them off the case to do some bullshit desk jobs at HQ. He wants us to pick up where they left off.”

  As much as he enjoyed the new pleasures of a life with Haley, Damian couldn’t deny the magnetic pull of the hunt. His body seemed to have been bred for it, longing for the road, and these were the shadowy motherfuckers that tried to kill his angel. “Any word on Eli?”

  “Following the straight and narrow according to the clairvoyants.” Noah shifted his position as the girls descended the stairs, straightening his shoulders. “Anyway, are we hitting the road? Harris doesn’t give a fuck about vacation.”

  Damian shook his head. “Sorry, man. I’m staying here.”

  “Damn, this girl’s meaningful, huh?” Noah’s question went unanswered as Ginger walked up to him and draped herself onto his lap, falling into the tight space beside him in the armchair and nestling into the crook of his arm.

  Haley gracefully dropped onto the cushion at the other end of the couch. Barefoot, she wore a pair of sexy jeans and a soft, chocolate-brown top that wrapped around her figure in just the right way. It was clear she wasn’t comfortable cuddling up to him in front of others since she’d chosen to sit so far away, but Damian found himself craving her closeness.

  “Don’t worry about it. I’ll get one of the rookies to come along with me to Wyoming. They make me feel like a sage old man whenever I work with them, always hounding me with questions.”

  “Stephen and Neil are here.” Haley looked in confusion toward the door.

  “Really? Why the fuck would Neil be here?” Noah sat up.

  As the doorbell chimed, Damian got up to answer the door. Noah had voiced his thoughts exactly, and the familiar animalistic urge to guard his woman from the overly handsy Healer was in full force. He opened the door with a dark look, trying not to be annoyed by their visit, but the grave expressions on their faces indicated trouble, and he invited them in.

  “Oh, wow, the gang’s all here.” Stephen sat on the couch. “I didn’t know you were in town, Hales.”

  “Mmhmm.”

  “How long have you been here?”

  Haley opened her mouth to respond, but Neil cut her off, plopping himself down into a chair. “She took a spontaneous vacation. I figured you went to some exotic resort or something. I didn’t think you’d be here.” He looked around the mansion with disdain.

  “I’m…” Her timid voice proved she wasn’t prepared to make their relationship public. “Well… I’m just…hanging out in Seattle.”

  Ginger piped up with a huge smile gracing her features. “And she’s also my maid of honor, so she’s helping me plan my wedding.”

  “Oh, congratulations, Ginge.” Stephen smiled. “God, you’ve been planning this thing since grade school, right? I remember hearing you constantly talking about it when you were a little kid.”

  Neil snickered. “Hell, she talked about it all the way through college too.” He gestured to Haley. “Shortcake and I used to joke that we’d get married before she did just out of spite.”

  “What are you doing here?” Damian directed the question at Neil with an unmi
stakable edge to his voice. He leaned on the arm of the couch with his arms crossed over his bare chest, glaring down at the Healer making himself at home in his living room.

  Stephen answered for him. “We were hoping you’d let us go through your library to see if you’ve got something we haven’t seen before.”

  “We’re researching a case involving some of your close family members.” Neil sat back comfortably in the chair. “Two of your brothers, Dane and Karver? We thought you might have some knowledge on the sick monsters since you’re one of them.”

  “Jesus, Neil.” Haley glanced at him in shock.

  Stephen turned to Damian with an apologetic look. “I asked Mr. Harris to put me out in the field, and he gave me this case. Your brothers are running a sex slave business near the Pit in Hell. I need to know what their weaknesses are.”

  “You two are going to the Pit?” Damian stared at him, incredulous. “Your first assignment is to take out Karver and Dane?”

  “Neil isn’t going on the actual mission. He’s just been assigned to help with research.”

  “Unbelievable.” Damian couldn’t think of any possible reason Victor would want to send Stephen on a suicide mission. “They’re immortal. You’d be completely fucked in a fight against them.”

  “The assignment is to do surveillance on the operation, gather as much intel about the targets as possible, not necessarily engage them in combat, although the ultimate goal is to kill them, and I’ll take the opportunity if it presents itself. He gave me a Drakpiece, so I can get out of there fast if I have to.”

  “Harris didn’t even give you a partner?” Noah rubbed his chin.

  “It’s mostly surveillance.” Stephen shrugged. “I guess I don’t need one.”

  Damian considered his unfinished business with the Drak regarding the slave girl Haley had encountered, and he couldn’t let Stephen head blindly into Hell by himself. His brothers were psychopaths; they didn’t necessarily have any weaknesses to exploit.

  “Dude, you can’t go on that mission alone.” Noah gave Stephen a sober look. “That place is a fucking nightmare, it isn’t right for a first assignment, what is Victor thinking?”

  “I’ll go.” Damian rolled his head back and forth to stretch his neck. “I need to look into something near the Pit anyway.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  Several hours later, they were still gathered in the living room. Noah had just left for Wyoming, and Ginger lounged on the floor, surrounded by assorted piles of bridal magazines. Haley sat on the couch, scrolling through wedding dresses on the computer, bookmarking her favorites. She tried not to let her mind wander to the fact that Damian and her brother were going to the Pit. This was the career path they’d chosen, her helpless worrying wouldn’t do any good. Still, she hated knowing they would soon be in Hell on a precarious mission, and there was nothing she could do about it.

  Sighing, she pulled the laptop from the coffee table to her lap and adjusted her black framed glasses before continuing to wade through pictures of dresses. A chat window popped up in her e-mail inbox.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: You look ridiculously sexy in those glasses.

  Stephen sat next to her on the couch, laser focused on his stack of research books, and Neil did the same in the chair beside her. With a hint of a smile on her lips, she inconspicuously shifted her gaze to Damian. He sat at a table by the far wall, dressed casually in jeans and a T-shirt, looking at his laptop as he leaned back in his chair with his hands behind his head. Lowering them to the keyboard, he typed for a second and another line came up on her screen.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: It’s very distracting.

  HaleyGrace7: I don’t remember giving you my username…

  Pierce.Adversus8476: You are remarkably easy to stalk, Miss Hawthorne. That’s something you might want to work on.

  Her breath sped up as she read the screen, the name sparking something deep in her lower belly. Shifting a little on the couch, she itched to look up at him and take in the sight of his arms in the stretch cotton T-shirt, but she kept her gaze on the laptop.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: It was in the list of contacts, one of your brothers must have used my computer to message you. But since your middle name is Grace. I probably could have found it using a process of elimination.

  HaleyGrace7: Then you’d be quite a determined stalker, how did you know my middle name?

  Pierce.Adversus8476: It was your mother’s name.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: By the way, I’m sorry I’m leaving in the middle of our week off together.

  Emotion flooded through her at the unexpected apology. Though their mission had her racked with worry, she was grateful Damian had volunteered to go with her brother.

  HaleyGrace7: Thank you for helping Stephen.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: I need to know you’re going to be careful while I’m gone. Please don’t go anywhere by yourself.

  HaleyGrace7: I’ll be safe.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: I don’t like leaving you in this city unprotected.

  HaleyGrace7: You don’t need to worry, I promise I won’t go out alone.

  Damian eyed her words on the screen with a dark expression for a moment before responding.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: Good. And Neil is not a bodyguard.

  Haley hid her smile well, enchanted by Damian’s protective nature toward her, and felt a longing urge to be snuggled up to his warm body, enfolded in his arms. A mournful sadness drifted over her at the thought of sleeping in his bed without him, and she hoped the mission would be quick. She caught the serious look of discontentment on his handsome features and couldn’t resist teasing him a little.

  HaleyGrace7: But what if he asks me to go to lunch with him?

  His fingers moved across the keyboard with rapid strokes, his reply appearing on her screen within a second.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: Tell him to go suck a dick and stay the fuck away from you.

  She tried to suppress the urge to laugh at his heated answer and softly typed her response to avoid raising suspicion from those around them.

  HaleyGrace7: OK… but I’ll use a very polite voice when I say it.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: Can we play out a secretary fantasy later? Those goddamn glasses are getting me hard.

  HaleyGrace7: Absolutely Mr. Pierce.

  HaleyGrace7: Is this the one we discussed yesterday? You’re going to make me take off my panties and then put them inside me?

  The moment she hit the enter button to send it, her cheeks filled with a deep warmth. It felt awkward that her brother was only a few feet away from her, diligently reading his ancient book, but her shame faded to excitement as a new response from Damian popped up on her screen.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: Probably something different. I don’t expect you to be wearing anything under your skirt Miss Hawthorne.

  What was it about that name that instantly sent submissive vibrations through her? Despite the fact she was starting to get very turned on in a room full of her relatives and one ex-boyfriend, her blood was pumping, and she wanted to take the conversation further.

  HaleyGrace7: What type of work will you have me do?

  Pierce.Adversus8476: Good question. I’d like you to spend some dedicated time on your knees in front of me.

  Heat radiated through her as she read the words, and she imagined herself on the floor at his feet, using her mouth on him.

  HaleyGrace7: Giving you an oral presentation?

  Pierce.Adversus8476: Yes. You are exceptionally impressive in that department, Miss Hawthorne. Also, I’ll be doing some detailed work between your legs, and I’d like you to ride that delicious pussy of yours on my tongue until you’re dripping all over it.

  Her mouth went dry as she stared at the screen with a slack jaw. Remembering where she was, she closed her lips, swallowing deeply, and focused on breathing normally while she typed a reply.

  HaleyGrace7: If I had any panties on right now, they would be wet.

  Pierce.Adversus84
76: You aren’t wearing underwear? In those tight ass jeans?

  Frowning, he casually shifted his gaze to her on the couch, and she slipped her hand to the side of her neck, avoiding his look of discontent.

  “You having neck pains, Shortcake? Here.” Neil got to his feet, standing behind the couch in less than a second.

  “Oh, no, I’m OK.” Haley protested, surprised to find his hands already on her shoulders.

  “You used to call me the Wizard. ‘Cause of my magic fingers. Remember?” Neil pressed his thumbs into her muscles, and a lovely tingling blinded her for a moment.

  “Oh, no, Neil. I’m really…” Oh God, why does my voice sound so breathy? She reached up to brush his hands away as he deepened the massage, and the heavenly tingles warmed through her muscles again.

  “Really tense?” He laughed. “I can tell.”

  A new chat message flashed on her screen.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: Tell Harry Potter to keep his goddamn hands to himself.

  A smile broke on her lips, and she shot back a lightning fast reply.

  HaleyGrace7: Very nice reference!

  Damian’s response came back just as fast, and she was amazed at how quickly he’d been able to type it.

  Pierce.Adversus8476: I’m dead fucking serious. Don’t make me take your sexy ass upstairs and spank you.

  “Neil.” Haley jolted at the words on the screen, and her shoulders automatically shook off Neil’s grasp. She turned her head back to give him a measured look. “I don’t need any more massages. Really.”

  A pained expression fell over his face, and he dragged a hand through his blond locks. “I guess.” He shrugged, meandering back to his seat. “Whatever you say, Shortcake.” He gave her a sly wink before he resumed studying his book.

  She turned her attention back to the laptop, closed any open windows on the screen, and set it on the table. Biting her thumbnail, she stood up to quietly slip away from the awkwardness of the overcrowded room. As she walked toward the kitchen, she couldn’t pin down her scattered emotions. She felt hungry or thirsty, or just anxious in general, and definitely unhappy Damian would be leaving on his dangerous mission in a few short hours. The warm moisture between her legs reminded her of the restless longing deep in her belly, and it dawned on her that most of her disorganized feelings were probably just pent-up sexual frustration. He’s turned me into a sex junkie.