by Sidney Ayers
“It’s easier to be instructed by someone who isn’t afflicted. Someone like…” She scratched her head, a devious grin spreading across her face. “Rafe.”
Yeah right! She angled a surreptitious gaze his way. He stood ramrod straight, with his lips taut. Any tighter, and he’d pull a muscle in his jaw. It looked like Rafe would rather undergo a root canal than spend any alone time with her.
Lilith blew out a breath. “How exactly are you planning to get there?” she asked, her eyes narrowing. “As I was patrolling the area, I noticed your friend drive off in your car.”
Crap! In all the excitement, she forgot that she lent her car to Serah. Glancing at the clock on the far wall, she grumbled. From what she’d said earlier, it’d be a while.
Grabbing her cell phone from her pocket, Lucy punched Serah’s speed dial. One… two… three… four… voice mail.
“Hello, you reached Serah SanGermano. Leave your message at the tone.” Not even bothering to leave a message, Lucy hung up. Must’ve been an important meeting. Serah never missed her calls. That’s what made her a great friend.
“Here, take mine,” Gerardo said, stuffing his keys in her hand.
Lucy cringed, recalling the last time she borrowed Gerardo’s car. Mounds of wrappers, cups, and plastic bags filled nearly every recess of his vehicle. It amazed her how he stayed as skinny as he did.
Noticing her cringe, he smiled. “Don’t worry. I just had it detailed.”
“Thanks, Ger. You’re a lifesaver.” She gave him a big ole bear hug. “Just so you know, I would’ve taken the car either way.” She had to see her mom.
“Is it safe to be traveling in public, where any of Belial’s goons may be lingering?” Lilith ran a hand through her shiny brunette tresses.
“I’ll judo chop them,” Lucy said, posing like the boy from The Karate Kid movie—the old school version. “Rafe will be protected.”
Lilith and Kalli broke out in simultaneous snickers. Catching their faux pas, they snorted—again in unison. With a huff, Kalli crossed her arms and tapped her toe.
Lilith, on the other hand, plopped back down on the seat, crossed her leg, and flipped her hair over her shoulder. Each avoided the other’s gaze like she had the plague. What was the deal with those two?
Rafe pulled on his leather coat and zipped up. “I don’t need no stinkin’ protection.”
Laughter filled the entire salon. Newsflash! Rafael Deleon, Paladin Demon, had finally found his sense of humor. Perhaps the time he’d spent with Squeaky did him some good.
Rafe shrugged, the muscles rippling against the leather of his jacket. He rolled his eyes. “I can be funny when I want to be.”
“Better late than never, I guess,” Kalli muttered. “I have no qualms with you taking Lucy to check on her mother. Sometimes in times of distress, having your family close by can be a blessing.”
Groaning, Lilith shook her head. “I’m not so sure that’s a good idea.”
Heads turned to Lilith. Every band of heroes always had a naysayer. Leave it to Mrs. Sex-o-holic to be the one. Fancy that—Lucy imagined it would’ve been Rafe. Then again, he seemed to be rather supportive since he returned.
“She may be a target.” Lilith rubbed her fingertips together. “A trap to set Lucy up.”
Rafe turned to face Lilith, his jaw firm. “If it’s a trap, then her mother is in danger. We are going.” The finality in his tone was unmistakable.
It unnerved her, the way she could read this man. She never had such a connection with any man. And the way his gaze burned, she knew he felt it too.
“Guess it’s three to one.” She smiled and blew Lilith a kiss. “Sorry, toots.”
Frankie giggled. “Hey, that’s my line.”
“It’s a catchy line, you know?” She gave Frankie a hug and turned to Gerardo, who’d remained abnormally quiet. “What’s up?”
Shrugging, Gerardo flipped his fingers through his hair. His gaze lowered to the floor; he let out a deep sigh. “I am responsible. I let that thing into the salon.” He shook his head. “I should’ve known better.”
Lucy sucked in a deep breath and took Gerardo into her arms. “It isn’t your fault, Ger. From what I’ve been told about Belial, he’s very strong.”
“But mi mamá always warned me about evil. I should’ve known.”
She swatted Gerardo on the arm. “Hey, he almost got me, so it’s my fault too.”
Lilith blew a deep breath out her nose. “It’s true. Belial is one of Hell’s strongest kings.” She brushed her fingernails with the pad of her thumb. “He almost got me at one time.”
Lucy arched a brow. Lilith didn’t seem the type to broadcast such a failure.
Her lips arched into a sheepish grin. “I’ve been around over two thousand years. I wasn’t always so talented, you know.”
“I heard about the whole flood incident. Fortunately for you, God took the blame,” Kalli muttered. “It pays being the king’s sister, doesn’t it?”
Lilith bolted from the sofa and lunged at Kalli. Her nails extending into long claws, she wrapped her hands around Kalli’s neck. “Get over it,” she hissed out.
“No,” Kalli seethed, squeezing her nails into Lilith’s fingers as she pried them from her neck. With a deafening snap, she twisted Lilith’s wrists and held firm. Her amethyst eyes flickered and sparked. Fangs poked from her mouth. Where’d she been hiding those?
As if Lucy had just turned on the nightly WWE program, the women sized each other up like two professional wrestlers. Thank goodness there wasn’t any mud! If these women kept it up, she’d have another disaster to clean up in her salon. It wasn’t time for a catfight.
Lucy puffed out her chest and stomped toward the two. Planting herself in between the two raging demonesses, she spread her arms, pushing them both apart. Lilith went hurtling against the wall, a large crack resounding throughout the room. Now that had to hurt.
In a just as loud clanking and clattering, Kalli flew into Gerardo’s station. Combs, shears, and curling irons lay askew on the floor. Double the pain, double the destruction. Demolition was now her middle name.
“There’s more where that came from,” she said, hands on hips.
“¡Madre de Dios!” Gerardo flailed his hands. “My station’s ruined.”
“Nothing that can’t be cleaned up, right Kalli?”
“I suppose.” Kalli crossed their arm and huffed, angling a defiant glare at Lilith. What the hell? Were these women reliving their grade school years?
“Can’t we all just get along?” Frankie asked. His thick southern accent wafted through the air like an angel’s herald. Amen, Frankie.
Lilith threw up her arms and rolled her eyes. “Fine. For now.”
Kalli’s gaze darted around the room, then reluctantly focused on Lilith. “I suppose.”
“Kiss and make up,” Gerardo chimed in.
Rafe snorted. “You do realize the two spent time on a Greek island together.”
Aha! From the way these women acted like two wild minotaurs, she knew which one. “Crete?”
“No.” Rafe tugged at his luxurious locks.
She scratched her chin, channeling her high school geography class. Her teacher had been a huge ancient Greece fan. “Rhodes?”
“Rhode Island?” Frankie rolled his eyes. “I wasn’t a geography major, but I do know that’s not a real island.”
Everyone burst into laughter, including Rafe. His silver eyes sparked with mirth. Absolutely amazing.
Frankie bit his lip. “What’s so funny?”
“Duh,” Gerardo said with a roll of his eyes. “There’s a big different between the island of Rhodes and Rhode Island.”
Frankie shrugged then allowed a small smile to curve his lip. “I hated geography class.”
She ran out of islands to choose. There was only one left, and she didn’t want to go there.
“Lesbos?”
Kalli arched her glare from Lilith to plant it on Lucy. “Just because I was
one of Sappho’s muses means nothing.”
Lucy’s head reeled from all this creepy reminiscing. Sappho’s muse? Suddenly, nothing about this woman surprised her. She stifled the giggle that threatened to spill. “That’s interesting.”
“I’ll have you know. I was Homer’s muse too. So I’d quit that train of thought.”
Okay, she’d had enough. She and Rafe were vacating—now. The sooner they were alone, the sooner she could learn how to block out the Misses-Pick-Your-Brains—both of them. She grabbed Rafe’s arm and yanked him toward the door. “We’ll be safe,” she said as she pushed the door open, not leaving him any chance to refuse.
“Fine,” Lilith said with a wave of her hand. “Don’t worry about Kalli and me wreaking havoc in your salon. I’m leaving. You know how to reach me.” She snapped her finger. In a swirl of fire and smoke, she spun into her more familiar form. Wild, violet, orchid-laden muumuu and tan orthopedic shoes adorned her now plump form. “See ya.” The high-pitched whine she remembered so well filled the salon.
“Mrs. Gunderson?” Frankie gasped, swooning to the floor.
Good ol’ Mrs. Henrietta Gunderson. She would miss that old broad.
Chapter 14
“Which car is Gerardo’s?” Rafe asked as the door shut behind them. He stood tall, the crisp cold air whipping his hair behind him. He kept his jaw firm as he gazed down at her. Damn! He was tall! Even at five-eight, Lucy wasn’t exactly short. But she was when she was with Rafe… massive… muscular… sexy. Her mind drifted back to earlier, to Rafe’s mouth on hers. She could still taste the spicy sweetness of peppermint as his tongue rolled against hers. She had to do it again!
Muscles strained against leather as he led her across the street to the parking lot. Her breath caught. He was magnificent. She fidgeted with her new designer sunglasses and pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. Snow swirled around them like big fluffy puffs of cotton. Some clung to his hair, sparkling against the sun’s rays. Once again, this man had rendered her speechless.
“Lucy!” His firm tone sent jolts of awareness racing through her.
“W-what?” she managed, glancing away sheepishly. Thank goodness, this man couldn’t read minds, or he’d know how badly she wanted to jump his demonic bones.
He raked a hand through long locks. “I asked which car was Gerardo’s.”
“Oh.” Come on brain, don’t fail me now. “Umm, the purple PT Cruiser over there,” she replied, pointing at Gerardo’s car. “So I suppose you can’t poof in broad daylight?”
Rafe nodded, his gaze searching. Silvery mists circled their depths, like two giant oceans. Deep and mesmerizing, like someone who’d experienced life. “You figured correctly.”
Blinking, she approached the car and laughed. “Funny, Gerardo,” she said, perusing his new bumper sticker. In big blue letters, with a rainbow in the corner, it read “We Are Everywhere.” Doo-bee-doo-bee-doo.
Rafe came to stand next to her, his body inches from her. She loved the heat that rolled off him. “Should I ask?”
“Probably not,” she replied with a click of a button. Gerardo’s car beeped in response as the alarm was disabled. “I promise I’ll be gentler this time,” she said, lacing her reply with innuendo. Lord knew her inner naughty girl had no gentle intentions.
Rafe snorted. “I hope so.”
“Gerardo’s car is roomier.” She extended her arm. “After you.”
Rafe swung the door open. “These modern inventions never cease to amaze me.”
Did she amaze him? He certainly amazed her. With a smile, she opened the door, sending a pile of snow flying in her face.
With a shiver, she brushed off the cold flakes. What a wonderful way to make an impression on the Adonis.
“Cold?” Rafe asked as he stepped into the car. Was that a wink? Was she now an object for his amusement?
She shrugged. “Just a tad.”
Taking a seat next to Rafe, she slipped on her seat belt and popped the key in the ignition. With a quick twist, the car hummed to life. The sooner they blew out of here, the better. She pressed her foot to the brake, turned to Rafe and smiled. “Hold on to your shorts.” With a quick tug, she pulled the car into reverse and backed out.
The expression on Rafe’s face would remain etched in her mind. Ramrod-tall, teeth clenched, and fingers firmly gripping the door handle. Like they were going to the moon, not her mom’s.
She shook her head and rolled her eyes. “Have you ever ridden in a car before today?”
“The last car I’ve traveled in was a 1910 Model T.” Rafe’s lips curved into a wide grin.
Whoa! That long? “Wow, it’s been a while, hasn’t it?”
The silver in his eyes sparked. “About twenty years.”
“Huh?”
With a tiny grin forming on his lips, Rafe raked a hand through his hair. “The Fore-Demons sent me to stop a small blood-demon attack at an antique car show. It was the only thing available.”
“Did you get the bad guys?”
Jaw twitching, Rafe nodded. The bright silver of his eyes swirling and stormy. “Not without some casualties, but no humans died.”
“That’s awesome.”
Shrugging, Rafe looked away, out the window at the passing scenery. “A small success.”
“Small?” Lucy’s eyes widened. This guy had a serious inferiority complex. And she thought she was bad. “You saved lives. There’s nothing small in that.”
“I suppose,” he said on a sigh.
That was an improvement… of sorts. The bout of awkward silence announced the conversation was done. And they were making such progress, too. Taking a right onto Lover’s Lane, she secretly wished she’d brought a safety helmet. There wasn’t anything lovely about the road at all. Potholes, snow, and ice didn’t mix. With a jerk and a jolt, she drove over a hole the size of Lake Michigan.
“There goes the alignment. Gerardo will be pissed.” This time she swerved to avoid the Atlantic Ocean. Three things were certain when traveling Michigan roads in winter: ice, snow, and huge-ass potholes.
Rafe winced as his head bounced against the roof. “How much longer?”
Slowing down the car, she hung a left onto Stonebrook Road. “About five or ten minutes.” She’d never felt so awkward in her life. Here this totally sexy man sat in her car, and she was at a complete loss of words. Small talk had never been her forte.
It was time to change that. “So how old are you?”
“Old enough.” Rafe scrubbed a hand through his hair. Apparently he wasn’t much of a conversationalist either.
“Look, Rafe, I know you have things you’d rather be doing,” she said as she took another right. “But if we’re going to work together, we need to you know… communicate.”
“Four hundred and fifty-five.”
Lucy arched a brow. “Huh?”
“I’m four hundred and fifty-five years old.” Rafe shrugged. “I stopped keeping track in the late nineteenth century, so I needed some time to go back and count.”
Talk about the fountain of youth. “Wow. You don’t look a day over one hundred.”
Rafe smirked. “Thank you, I think.”
“You’re welcome.” She took the final turn onto Wellington Road—her mom’s street.
“That’s my mom’s house right there.” She pointed to the two-story canary-yellow Cape Cod. Wreaths bedecked each window. Santa and his reindeer stood guard in the front yard. Blow-up snowmen and polar bears bearing gifts sat proud. Strings of sparkling icicles and snowflakes dotted the eaves. Gaudy, yet pretty in a strange sort of way.
“Wellington, eh?”
Lucy shrugged. “The people here have a thing for historical names. I live on Waterloo Drive.”
“I aided Wellington at Waterloo,” Rafe replied, his gaze somber.
“Don’t tell me Napoleon was a demon?”
He shook his head. “No, but he was plagued by them. Greed, power, and envy, mostly. It was one of our tougher assignments.”
“Didn’t the English win that battle?”
“Not without casualties,” Rafe said, his voice nondescript.
Would he ever give himself some slack? “It’s war. There’s bound to be deaths. And since Napoleon was defeated, I’m guessing you sent some demons packing.”
“I suppose.” Rafe’s jaw twitched.
Pulling into her mom’s driveway, she craned her head to meet Rafe’s gaze. Maybe she could soften him up another way.
With boldness she didn’t know she possessed, she reached across the seat and traced her finger along his jaw—slowly, tenderly. Heat crackled between her finger and his skin, a heavy inferno racing between them.
He sucked in a breath. “Lucy…”
“Shh,” she whispered, drawing her fingertips down further and lingering over the thrumming pulse at the base of his neck. “You are a hero.”
The silver in his eyes swirled and sparked like sensuous waves of a turbulent sea. She didn’t care much for waxing poetic, but it was worth a sonnet or two. With more brazen wanton, she leaned across the seat.
“What do I have to do?” she asked, her tone seductive, or what she hoped was seductive. She was new to all this sexpot stuff and didn’t know what the hell she was doing. She fumbled with the zipper of his jacket, her mouth curving into a wry grin.
“For what?” Rafe asked on a choked breath.
She angled her gaze upward and brought her pinkie to her mouth. Nothing like a little teasing to lighten the mood. She reached back over and rubbed Rafe’s shoulder.
“To block Kalli’s and Lilith’s mind breach, of course.”
A frown curved his lips. The silver oceans of his eyes became placid ponds. “It’s easier to instruct you in a more comfortable environment.”
“How about a tiny clue?” she asked with a little pout.
“Close your eyes,” he said, his tone firm yet gentle.
She obeyed him like an obedient puppy. A cute fluffy puppy, nonetheless. “And?”
“Hmm,” he said, his tone thoughtful. “Turn your head to face me.”
Without reservations, Lucy angled her head to face his. “Okay?”
