by Cassie Ryan
“Its claws are hooked into the tailgate dragging it along behind us.” Jezebeth had unbuckled her seat belt and turned in her seat. She stood on her knees and looked out the back window.
Noah glanced over his shoulder just as the bumpy red hand of the demon curled over the tailgate, its long black talons digging deep into the metal of the truck bed. “Damn.” He glanced over at Jezebeth. “Do you know how to drive?”
She rolled her eyes and turned around in her seat. “Give me a minute.”
Irritation at her calm tone snapped through him. “I’m not sure we have a minute,” he told her as another demon hand appeared over the edge of the tailgate, the claws digging in and pulling more of the demon into sight.
Jezebeth’s form shimmered and although she still looked the same, she was suddenly much taller, allowing her feet to reach the floorboards.
He stared for a long moment, swatches of light strobing over her as they drove past light posts.
Noah frowned and resisted the urge to rub his eyes to ensure he wasn’t hallucinating. “The imp never mentioned succubi could change forms.”
“They normally can’t.” She turned to look at him, and he could just make out the dark circles of fatigue under her eyes and the lines of strain etched across her pale face.
Concern and guilt twined inside his gut. She’d said she needed the energy from the men to come back inside the bar and help him. She’d obviously used most of that energy up to help him and then change into a form where she could reach the gas pedal and brake. And he’d been a judgmental ass.
Way to go, Noah.
He’d known she was a succubus when he started on this mission, so he shouldn’t be surprised when she acted like one. If she didn’t, she’d die, or whatever the equivalent was for a succubus.
“Do you want me to drive, or not?” she snapped, making him realize he’d fallen silent.
Noah glanced into the rearview mirror to see the demon hooking one leg over the tailgate and pulled himself back to the present. “Yes. Slide over close to me.”
As if she’d done the maneuver a million times, Jezebeth took the steering wheel in her left hand and slid one long leg over Noah’s. She braced her left foot on the floor mat near the driver’s door. When she pulled her weight up with her left arm, she winced but made no other protests.
Noah slid to the right on the bench seat and waited until Jezebeth nudged his right foot off the gas pedal, keeping an even pressure as he slid out from under her. Her short spiky hair brushed across his face and he inhaled a lungful of a combination of pomegranate, honey, smoke, and sweat from the club. Then she was driving, and he found himself free to move in the passenger seat.
“Hold on!” she said just as he reached for his backpack on the floorboards.
Noah braced one hand on the dashboard and one against the door as the truck swerved hard to the right and the sound of something large thunked as it rolled around in the bed of the truck.
Noah winced as he thought of all the supplies he’d strapped down back there. But having them destroyed this way was better than becoming a late night snack for a demon and letting Jezebeth get captured.
He started to turn his head to see where the demon was when Jezebeth yanked the steering wheel hard to the left, wrenching his neck and making him grab tight to anything he could to avoid being shaken around the cab like dice in a cup.
The loud thumping from the bed was now accompanied by an angry-sounding roar.
Noah braced his feet as Jezebeth swerved again. He grabbed his backpack, fumbling inside for some type of weapon to use against the demon.
His hand closed around two balloons filled with kosher salt and he yanked them out as he tried to figure out how to hit the demon without endangering Jezebeth. After all, she was a demon too; would the rabbi-blessed salt harm her as well?
A large crack filled Noah’s ears, quickly followed by the sound of a thousand marbles being dropped onto concrete as the back windshield shattered, raining him and Jezebeth with tiny rounded cubes of glass. Noah instinctively shielded his face as the truck swerved erratically again.
He wasn’t sure if he should be frustrated or impressed with Jezebeth’s creativity in trying to dislodge the demon since it might kill him as well if she wasn’t careful.
He twisted on the seat and lunged forward to put himself between Jezebeth and the demon. He stopped short as he found himself face-to-face with the snarling, lava-colored nightmare. The stench of sulfur surrounded him as the demon’s heated breath seared against his skin, the glistening fangs looking larger than life this close-up.
A sardonic smile twisted the demon’s scaly lips as it opened its mouth wider, probably in preparation to take a large bite out of Noah.
Noah raised his hand, shoving the salt-filled balloons into the gaping maw and then jumped back, slamming against the dashboard, hitting the steering wheel and causing Jezebeth to swerve once again.
The demon’s jaws snapped closed, bits of salt flying out in a spray around them.
Pain radiated up and down Noah’s back as he curled forward to try to avoid hitting his head. He slid down until his ass was wedged in the space between the dashboard and the seat, his feet trapped at eye level on the seat in front of him, his body pretzeled in a painful angle.
Jezebeth remained quiet, the salt bouncing harmlessly off her back, which relieved at least part of Noah’s fears as she continued to keep them on the road and moving.
Noah snapped his gaze toward the demon to find it melting like a wax figure under a blowtorch. Before its facial features melted entirely away, Noah thought he saw a quick expression of surprise. Then a loud pop echoed through the cab, and the thing disappeared back to Hell as its earthly form vanished, plunging them into near darkness.
“Are you all right?” Jezebeth’s voice was soft and filled with exhaustion.
Noah unwedged himself from between the seat and dashboard and turned to find her slumped in the seat as she continued to drive. He glanced through the broken window, noticing the cold night air for the first time since he’d entered the club to search for Jezebeth. “I’ll be fine. What about you?”
“I need to stop and find sustenance, even if it’s only a quick fix.” She swallowed hard, as if the effort to speak cost her more energy than she had to spare.
After witnessing her in action, he’d expected her to give a stoic response and tell him she was “fine” or some other equivalent. Her matter-of-fact honesty surprised him.
“The other demons can track the place where that one was sent back to Hell, so we need to keep moving and get as far away from there as possible.” Each word became softer and more slurred as she continued.
“Pull over.”
She didn’t argue and, instead, slowed the truck and drove onto the shoulder of the road, shifting it into park.
Noah glanced around them, glad the club was on the outskirts of the small Texas town and the road was currently deserted. He hopped out of the truck and circled around to the driver’s side to find Jezebeth already scooted over and slumped against the passenger door. He pulled the door shut and turned toward her. “Is there anything else I need to know?”
She nodded, weakly. “Wherever we go, I need to find someone who will be attracted to me in this form. I don’t have enough energy to change into another one.”
Noah’s cock surged to life again, as if to say it was very much attracted to her in this current form—not really for the ridiculous form itself, but for her bravery back at the club, for how calmly she’d handled their near death-by-demon encounter, and for her sense of humor through the whole ordeal. Her driving skills didn’t hurt either.
He smiled at his last thought and shifted in his seat as he tried to ignore his body’s blatant reaction to her.
She was a succubus, for God’s sake, and had probably slept with millions of men in her long lifetime. He didn’t have any desire to be the newest notch on her bedpost—even if she needed an energy fix. Not to ment
ion he really wasn’t into the overdone curves and short, spiky hair on a woman, regardless of his body’s reaction.
His sense of chivalry and honor prodded him to offer her some of his energy, but he swallowed back the words before they could form. “We’ll find you something. Hang in there.” As the words left his lips, he felt like an utter and complete ass for the second time in the span of less than an hour but couldn’t bring himself to take it back.
Instead, he guided the truck back onto the road and let silence fall between them as they drove through the darkness. It was past midnight on a Friday night. Where was the best place to find a few men willing to offer themselves up for a wounded woman who looked like she was about to pass out?
A soft glow of light in the distance caught Noah’s attention, and he grinned as he pressed the gas pedal down harder. “I think I have just the place. Sort of a succubus smorgasbord, if you’re willing.”
3
As Lilith, Queen of the Succubi, materialized in the deep shadows outside the large brick three-story, she expanded her senses and sniffed the night air. The salty tang of ocean mixed with the astringent scent from the weeping willow just behind her left an almost metallic taste on the back of her tongue. The sharp ocean breeze stung her cheeks and ruffled the long hair around her face.
Other than small animals and a few ocean birds, no one and nothing lurked nearby.
She stepped out of her hiding place, her soft-soled shoes silent as she made her way across the perfectly manicured lawn as a soft aura of moonlight bathed her in its warmth. After all, she’d been a creature of the night since Adam had chosen Eve over her in the Garden of Eden all those many centuries ago.
Only kindness from a surprising source had saved her.
Adam’s rejection still stung, more from her pride after all this time, but she shoved it aside and let anticipation curl inside her belly as she stepped up onto the porch and rang the bell. Chimes that reminded her of a grandfather clock echoed through the foyer before the large front door swung silently open.
Lilith stepped inside and pulled the tie at her neck to undo the fastening of her flowing black cape. She shrugged the sensuous material off her shoulders and hung it on the coat rack as the doors swung gently closed behind her.
“Uriel, I’m here.” The sound of her voice echoed in the entry-way, and she took a moment to let her gaze linger on the silk paneling, the hardwood banister, and the priceless pieces of artwork tastefully on display. As if drawn by a magnetic force, she stepped forward toward a life-sized marble statue of Uriel done by Michelangelo during the Italian Renaissance.
The statue stood on a three-inch platform, nearly seven feet tall from top to bottom. It captured the Archangel in a fighting stance holding his twin deadly daggers, the promise of swift justice in his expression. He was completely nude, and Lilith let her gaze drink in the delicious sight of him—the broad shoulders, smooth, hairless chest, trim waist, corded thighs, and long, thick cock that laid against his thigh, his heavy sac hanging just underneath.
Blood rushed through her body, pooling in her breasts and between her thighs, leaving her skin achy and her pussy empty and wanting. She needed to feed, but knew that even had she been fully sated, her reaction would be the same when it came to Uriel.
And the statue was nothing compared to the real thing.
She reached out and brushed the tips of her fingers over the statue’s thick cock, tracing down the shaft to the head as vivid mental images of when she’d touched the reality flashed through her mind. Even flaccid, Uriel was impressive.
A sensual growl sounded just behind her and made her jump like a guilty child.
“The smell of your sweet arousal is like ambrosia, my beautiful nassah.” Uriel’s warm breath against her cheek and the heat of his body just behind her sent a quick rush of silky moisture between the swollen lips of her labia.
Uriel inhaled deep and pulled her back tight against him. The instant she felt his hard erection pressing against her, she gasped.
“I didn’t realize you had such an interest in art.”
Unable to speak through her suddenly tight throat, Lilith tilted her head to the side, an invitation that he readily accepted, skimming his lips down the side of her neck and gently sucking at her skin. Arousal shot through her veins like liquid fire, and more silky moisture leaked from her body as she melted back against him.
With a feral growl, Uriel bit down on her neck hard, the pain sharpening into an exquisite torture as a light wave of vertigo slapped at her, making her sway.
Uriel held her tight against his body until the dizziness passed and then . . . he was gone.
Lilith wasn’t surprised to see he’d materialized them straight up to his bedroom—she always had that slight slap of vertigo when she wasn’t in charge of their destination. She also wasn’t surprised he had disappeared . . . again. But she couldn’t help the familiar disappointment that slid through her like a black cloud. From the way he’d greeted her tonight, she’d dared to hope.
But she should’ve known better.
Uriel had interceded for her back at the Garden of Eden and vowed before God that he would keep her supplied with sustenance so she could survive. His intervention had been necessary since once humans fell from grace, their energy was no longer strong enough to sustain her—only another supernatural creature could. And without God’s approval, no supernatural creature would even speak to her, let alone feed and sustain her. Many of them still blamed her for Adam and Eve being kicked out of the Garden of Eden, even though she was only doing what she had been created to do—tempt humans so they could grow and evolve.
Lilith still didn’t know why Uriel had saved her. She wasn’t privy to God’s plans concerning her, but assumed without Uriel’s intervention, she would be long dead and all the incubi and succubi that currently populated the earth and the other realms would have never existed.
To further complicate matters, Archangels were forbidden to have relationships—with each other or with other high-level supernatural creatures. God meant them to help the humans, and the temptation for His “executive staff” to become too familiar with each other and leave the lower angels and the human race to their own devices was a very real threat to God’s plans.
But that didn’t mean God expected the Archangels to remain abstinent, only to choose their partners from among those beneath them in the hierarchy. After all, He had made sex for the enjoyment of all His creatures, and the Archangels were no different—although they had a lot less sexual hang-ups than the humans. But then, who didn’t?
Lilith still wasn’t sure why she counted as a high-level supernatural since she and her minions were considered the bastard step-children of the supernatural world—neither demon nor angel, but something in between. And yet, somehow when Uriel had taken responsibility for her, her status had been set.
It had been difficult for Uriel to reconcile his two sets of vows until he’d found a loophole. He facilitated sexual sessions between Lilith and others including humans, demons, succubi, or incubi. He watched and pleasured himself but didn’t participate. The sexual energy he gave off from his completion was more than enough to feed Lilith, and he still technically stayed within the boundaries of his vows.
She sighed. There had only been once that Uriel had given in and taken Lilith himself. She’d been hopelessly in love with him long before that, but she’d spent the millennia since longing for another night in his arms. Tonight’s greeting had given her hope, and his disappearance had cruelly dashed it all over again.
“Damn it, Uriel.” She turned in a circle looking for him.
The large custom bed big enough for six full-grown men took up one wall. A large vertical dark cherry log sat at each corner—the side braces for the intricate wrought-iron headboard and footboard that graced the huge bed. The comforter was deep purple, the satin sheets and pillowcases black, matching the theme of the rest of the room.
But no much-too-gorgeous Archangel.
On the wall to the right of the bed stood two glassed-in French doors that led out to a balcony that ran the entire length of the back of the house. The wall to the left of the bed held an antique cherry chest of drawers, dressing table, and the door that led back inside the house.
Lilith slowly turned around to look behind her.
Uriel sat on a large black leather couch dressed in gray slacks and a white button-down shirt open at the collar. She sucked in a breath as she let her gaze roam over him, only then realizing she’d stopped breathing as she’d searched for him.
His large erection tented out his trousers and a small, round wet spot had formed from his pre-come against the cloth. His multicolored hair hung straight over his shoulders, the golds, reds, and browns blending together so no matter how many times Lilith saw his hair, it always looked different. It was silky and soft under her fingers, she knew from past experience, and she had loved feeling those strands sliding over her naked body.
A shudder quaked through her at the vivid sensual memory, and she raised her gaze to meet Uriel’s silver one, his eyes reminding her of mercury—the silver constantly moving and all seeing.
“Still as beautiful and enchanting as ever, nassah.” His voice was strained as he smiled up at her.
“Still as beautiful and stubborn as ever, ahuvi.” She gritted her teeth against the hurt she heard in her own voice. She always called him “beloved” and he always referred to her as “temptation,” when she knew the damned Archangel returned her love.
A sad smile curved his lips. “Let us not fight, nassah. You know my feelings, and that will have to be enough. Come, our time grows short.”
The familiar arguments rose inside her throat, and she swallowed them back. After all, countless millennia of rehashing the same things ensured pretty much every avenue had been explored. And Uriel was right, she didn’t want to waste what precious time they had together. Although frustration churned into anger inside her gut—at the situation, at his easy acceptance of it all, and at her own complicity. Her eyes stung, and she blinked away the tears that tried to form.
