Heart of an Angel

by Rosalie Lario

  How on Earth had he been able to resist her slumbering in his bed? And why was he continuing to fight this attraction?

  Think of Talitha. Respect what you had with her.

  But that frame of thought was no longer holding sway. Talitha had been a wonderful woman. A good life mate. But she was dead. She’d been dead for a dozen years, and she would have wanted him to be happy. To move on and find another love.

  So then, the only thing left was fear. Fear that he would fall in love with Abby only to have her ripped from his arms. Fear that he wouldn’t be able to survive it this time.

  Maybe I am better off alone.

  Yet he couldn’t deny how very right it felt to see Abby here at the rebel camp. Or, even better, back in his rooms at the compound.

  She belonged here. And his heart—his body—thought she might belong with him.

  When Adam, the only male nephilim in Ruby’s group of rebels, came to a stop in front of Abby and repositioned her hips, Nate’s body tightened with primitive fury. How dare the man touch her?

  Just as he was about to go charging across the room, a comforting hand squeezed his shoulder.

  “Easy, brother.”

  Seth stood beside him, his eyes on Adam and Abby. Waves of empathy poured from the other angel, enveloping Nate like a warm, comforting embrace.

  “The instinct to protect is so strong when we first meet our mate,” Seth continued softly.

  Nate opened his mouth to protest that Abby wasn’t his mate, but the words wouldn’t come.

  Yet, she wasn’t. Not yet, and not for certain.

  Was she?

  “Besides…” Seth’s lips gave a wry twist. “You don’t have to worry about Adam.”

  Nate caught the irony in his brother’s tone. He didn’t have to worry about Adam…because the man was in love with Seth’s estranged mate, Lily.

  How he would have liked to reassure Seth that things would work out between him and Lily, but he couldn’t. They had long been estranged, and who knew what the future held?

  Seth’s bittersweet reassurance loosened Nate’s muscles and chased away his unjustified anger.

  “I do desire her,” he admitted to Seth. “How could I not? She’s brave, and beyond beautiful. Stunning to my eyes.”

  “But you’re afraid to lose her,” Seth said.

  Nate stifled a dry chuckle. The ability to read emotions was a bond that united him with his brethren, but it could be a curse as well as a blessing. At times he wished he could hold his feelings close, could come to terms with them before being forced to acknowledge them. But with what they could all do, that was next to impossible.

  “I…how could I not be?”

  “I understand,” Seth said softly. He held his silence for one more moment before releasing Nate’s shoulder. “But if there’s one thing harder than losing the one you love, it’s foolishly throwing that love away. Trust me.”

  Nate supposed Seth would know.

  “Claim her now, brother,” Seth said, though his gaze had fallen on Lily rather than Abby. “Who knows how long you will have together?”

  With those words, Seth strode across the room, toward where Lily stood training with some of the rebels.

  Nate turned back to Abby.

  Seth was right. Nate had learned firsthand how quickly circumstances could change, and there was no denying his desire for Abby. He should seize the opportunity while he had it.

  But the question still remained. The question that had him all but paralyzed with indecision.

  Desire and passion aside, was he willing to take a chance on love, knowing it might all end tomorrow?

  Until he knew the answer to that, nothing could change.

  *****

  Some other woman had her eyes on Abby’s man, and it was all Abby could do not to race across the room and gouge the bitch’s eyes out.

  When Nate had first taken her to the rebel camp, located in a remote valley no more than fifteen minutes from the Fallen compound, she couldn’t help but be impressed. As she’d expected, it was much more than a simple rustic campground. A huge log cabin sat on the bank of a fresh water stream.

  Two stories high, it contained an industrial kitchen, a common room, and enough bedrooms that the twenty or so humans who lived there could comfortably stack up, three or four per room, to sleep. Tacked onto the back of the cabin was a large gymnasium with wooden floors and walls. Nate had explained that the gym had been recently built when the backyard became too cold for the humans to conduct their daily training. Then he’d proceeded to take her there, where he introduced her to the rag-tag group of humans who made up the rebel group. They’d seemed friendly enough, and had quickly welcomed her into the fold. And when Ruby had promptly taken her aside for a personal training lesson, she’d realized they expected her to pull her own weight.

  Good. She didn’t want to be a burden on anyone.

  What wasn’t so good was the pretty, petite brunette who kept eyeing Nate in all his shirtless, muscle-bound glory. Yes, he was hard to ignore, especially when engaged in mock combat, as he and the brunette were now. His glistening muscles flexed with every lunge, and his ass looked so good in his jeans that she wanted to drool. But that didn’t mean some other woman could take her fill, too.

  Gritting her teeth, she tried her best to concentrate on Ruby’s lesson. While she’d taken basic martial arts lesson back in New York City, she’d learned nothing close to the sort of street fighting Ruby taught her now. It would be wise for her to pay attention, considering if they went to war with the angels, the creatures would have a marked advantage. But her eyes kept wandering to where Nate and the brunette stood halfway across the room. The woman had large brown eyes that took up half her face, and a personality that could only be described as fiery. In between rounds, she stared at Nate like he was the last man on Earth.

  The woman was clearly smitten, and Abby hated her for it.

  “Who’s that again?” she finally asked Ruby when she couldn’t take it anymore. She’d been introduced to the woman when she and Nate first arrived, but with the deluge of faces and names, Abby couldn’t for the life of her remember who she was.

  Ruby followed her gaze and let out an inelegant snort. “That’s Susan. Don’t worry, she’s pretty harmless, even if she does have a monster crush on Nate.”

  Yep. Abby hated her, alright.

  “Have they ever…?”

  Ruby scoffed and expertly executed a maneuver that wrenched Abby’s arm behind her back. “No. Susan is human.”

  Abby struggled to get out of the hold. “So he isn’t even interested?”

  Much as she might hate the woman, she had to admit Susan wasn’t ugly. Not by a long shot.

  Ruby let go of her arm and she turned to face her. “Angels and humans mating are not unheard of. Clearly, since that’s how we came about. But no, Nate wasn’t interested in her. Honestly I think he’s still a bit hung up on the memory of his deceased mate.”

  Abby’s heart sunk, and her emotions must have carried over to Ruby, because the other woman’s expression grew sympathetic. “He’s been waiting for the right woman, Abby. And I think you’re her.”

  “I hope so.” Abby’s gaze traveled back to Nate and Susan. God, she hoped so. Because she’d been waiting a long time for the right man…and there was no doubt in her mind it was him.

  At that very moment Susan turned her head, and their gazes locked. Susan’s lips twisted into a smirk, showing a clear challenge.

  Abby gritted her teeth and turned away. She wasn’t about to confront the woman in her own territory, but if Susan dared try to fight her for Nate…

  Well, Abby wouldn’t be the one backing down.

  Chapter Eight

  Later that evening, after Nate and his fellow angels had trained with the rebels and then eaten a communal dinner, one of the humans named Robbie suggested they gather back in the gym to watch a movie on the giant projection screen they’d acquired. Abby had cast Nate a questioning glanc
e, but rather than motioning for them to leave, as he so longed to do, he shrugged.

  “Why not?”

  That was how he came to find himself seated on one of the cushions laid out in the gym, watching a movie he cared nothing about, while sitting next to a woman he could hardly resist.

  This was the finest sort of torture, no doubt. Abby’s soft, clean fragrance drifted toward him, making his body hard with desire. Even after a day of training, she smelled amazing. He could only imagine the feel of her soft skin against his. The insistent press of her body.

  Damnation.

  Thank heavens the room was moderately dark, or his current state of arousal would have been quite an embarrassment. As it was, he had to fight to keep his emotions centered in his own body, rather than releasing them to the wind.

  The scene on the projection screen changed, from a dinner conversation to a late-night scene. The main characters, a couple, slept in their bed while a fire began to blaze in their kitchen.

  His stomach turned, and a sense of unease began to drift in the air from his fellow Fallen. While nobody could have predicted this particular scene of the movie, it hit too close to home. Sparked too many memories, of a different time and place. A different blaze altogether.

  No.

  Abby must have caught a hint of his emotions, because she leaned toward him. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes,” he managed. “Excuse me a moment.”

  Rising, he made his way through the sea of bodies and exited the darkened gym, heading blindly down the long, narrow hallway connecting the gym to the log cabin. Some minutes later, he found himself standing in the large kitchen, where they’d built several picnic-style tables and benches to seat the entire group during mealtimes. He came to a stop in front of one of the large windows lining an entire wall of the kitchen, and gazed out to the nighttime view of snow upon snow.

  Despite everything that had happened, despite the losses he and his kinsmen had suffered, the world kept turning. The seasons kept changing. Something about that brought him a sense of comfort.

  The soft pad of footsteps broke him from his quiet musing. He turned, half expecting to see Abby heading toward him. But it was Susan who had broken away from the rest of the group.

  His shock gave way to immediate discomfort.

  Susan had made her feelings for him no secret, but even though he’d never specifically turned her down, he believed she understood there could never be anything between them. Yet, from the way she looked at him now, she seemed to have forgotten that little fact.

  “What are you doing out here?” he asked.

  One of her thick eyebrows rose as she boldly stalked toward him. “I saw you go this way.”

  He swallowed hard and backed away from her. Susan’s fiery nature had always been something to admire, but at the moment it frightened him more than a little. “Perhaps we should—”

  “It struck me that I’ve never told you the way I feel.” Her eyes shone boldly as she continued her approach. Slower this time. More catlike. “I mean, I’m sure it was evident. I know you can read emotions. But still, I never told you. And I thought maybe I should.”

  “I…” He didn’t even know how to respond to that. Perhaps if he let her down gently. “Susan, you know that we could never—”

  “You might be surprised at what I can do.”

  His back hit the wall, and a moment later Susan stood right in front of him, invading his personal space.

  “Maybe you should find out, before you make any decisions about who you do and don’t belong with. Before it’s too late.”

  He opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, the air around him changed, became thicker and denser. A heavy wave of anger blasted toward him.

  Nate’s gaze moved over Susan’s head…to the woman who’d just entered the room.

  “Abby,” he whispered.

  *****

  Abby was still waiting for Nate to come back when she saw Susan rise from the back of the gym and slump out after him. Just the fact that she was following Nate was enough to propel Abby to her feet.

  I don’t think so, beyotch.

  Even though logic told her there was nothing between him and Susan, she couldn’t help her reaction. Nate was hers. Every cell in her body told her so.

  Her nerves pulsed with anxious energy as she walked through the rooms of the large cabin. She followed the ever-so-slight pulse of Nate’s aura, that soft tingling in her chest that told her she was getting closer to him. It led her to the kitchen, where she came to a standstill.

  Susan stood in front of Nate, far, far too close for Abby’s liking. Nate didn’t particularly look like he was enjoying it, but that didn’t stop her chest from tightening or her veins from pulsing with blood.

  She spoke before she even realized she’d opened her mouth. “Am I interrupting something?”

  When Susan turned to her and smirked, a haze of red colored her vision. She stalked forward, coming to a stop right in front of Susan.

  “Listen, I don’t know what your problem is with me, and I really don’t care. But Nate is mine, and I won’t have you throwing yourself at him.”

  Oh God, had she really said that?

  While part of her cringed at the possessive words that had come out of her mouth, the rest of her couldn’t care less. And that was the craziest thing about it. When had she ever been like that before?

  Susan bristled, drawing up to her full height, which unfortunately for her was even shorter than Abby. “I don’t know who you think you are, but I was here first.”

  “That doesn’t give you the right to throw yourself at him now that I’ve arrived.”

  Susan’s jaw clenched. “Just because you say he’s your mate doesn’t mean he is. He obviously hasn’t claimed you, which tells us all something, doesn’t it?”

  Abby resisted the urge to draw back. Much as she hated to admit it, Susan’s words hit a sore spot.

  Was it possible that Nate didn’t feel the same way she did? Her feelings were so strong, so intense, that she couldn’t imagine it. But if he didn’t, how would she have the strength to walk away?

  Nate stepped forward, placing his hands on their shoulders before she could stammer out a response that didn’t make her sound like a fool. “Ladies. Please.”

  Something in the tone of his voice stopped her cold. What was she doing?

  This wasn’t her. She didn’t fight over anyone. And she certainly didn’t throw herself at a man.

  Not even a man as wonderful and amazing and meant for her as Nate.

  Shame set in, spiraling through her gut and rounding her shoulders. Dropping her gaze, she turned on her heel, away from both Susan and Nate. “I…I can’t do this.”

  Nate’s hand reached out to her, shocking her out of her haze of self-recrimination.

  “Come then,” he said, his voice low and comforting. “Let’s go.”

  Something in his gaze set her heart to pounding. Susan all but forgotten, she swallowed hard and placed her palm in Nate’s. With a small, reassuring smile, he wordlessly turned and led her toward the front door.

  Oh boy.

  Something in the air subtly shifted, telling her things were about to change.

  The question was: how?

  Chapter Nine

  The frigid winter wind whipped Nate’s hair as he soared through the black sky with Abby in his arms. Though it didn’t affect him much, the cold coming from Abby’s body seeped through her heavy winter coat. He wrapped his arms tighter around her and quickened the beat of his wings to increase the flow of heat. Within minutes, her chills subsided.

  “Better?” he asked.

  “Yes.” Her voice was a soft murmur that caressed his ears, sending waves of frenzied desire through his chest and down to his groin.

  The fierce way in which she’d claimed him, followed by her burst of shame, had almost been his undoing. That she could feel such pure, pulsing emotions regarding him said a lot. More than he wanted to admit
right now.

  He was finding her more and more impossible to resist.

  “It’s so beautiful here,” she said. “Cold…but beautiful.”

  “This is my favorite place on this Earth.” In many ways, its beauty eclipsed even his former dimension.

  “What’s your favorite spot?” she asked.

  “It’s just a few minutes from here.” On a nearby bluff that had a straight drop to the stream below. The water ran a bit more quickly at that spot, and when he had time he liked to just sit there, listening to the water rush below him.

  “Show me,” she said.

  His arms tightened around her. “I’d love to, but…it will be cold.”

  “Then keep me warm,” she said simply.

  Nate bit back a groan at the desire her words elicited. How he’d like to do just that.

  He hung a left and flew them to the bluff, where he gently set her to her feet. When she turned and looked down toward the pitch-black drop to the stream, he wrapped his wings around her front, overlapping them to create a blanket of luxurious down that protected her from the elements.

  “I love your wings.” One of her soft hands crept out from the long sleeves of her coat, and she ran her fingers down the appendage.

  This time he couldn’t stop the rumble that purred in his throat.

  Abby stiffened and tilted her head back to meet his gaze. “That feels good?”

  He twisted his lips into a grin. No use denying it. “Yeah.”

  “Good good?” Her shock was evident in her tone.

  “You didn’t know?”

  “No,” she said. “I mean, I’ve studied angels, but there wasn’t anything in the books about that.”

  “There wouldn’t be. Angels are very protective of their wings.” It wouldn’t be likely for one of them to freely admit their sensitivity to humans.

  “Huh.” One of her brows lifted, and she appeared to consider his words before dropping her gaze back to where her fingers still rested on his wing. “They’re beautiful.”

  When she continued her downward slide, he sucked in a breath, going hard as a rock as all the blood rushed away from his brain.