Los Angeles

by Tiffany Aaron

  “What do you want to know, Nevan? You don’t have a problem with me calling you by your first name, do you?” She leant back in her chair while focusing in the general direction of his face.

  “My cousin was into the occult and very interested in our ancestry.” He grimaced.

  She narrowed her eyes. “And why was he so interested?”

  Shrugging, Nevan tapped his fingers on the table. “Our family legends say that we’re descended from some Druid high priestess. She was supposed to have had some kind of magical powers. I think if it is true, then she must have had the sight like me.”

  Cassandra grinned. “You found out that I’m an expert on druids and Irish history.”

  “Yes. Danielle Weston got me your name.”

  “Danielle is a fallen in Chicago, I believe,” she murmured. “Why would she give you my name?”

  He stood then touched her shoulder. “Why don’t we clear off the table then move this conversation to the living room? It’d be more comfortable.”

  She didn’t stiffen at his touch, so he took it as a good sign.

  “Good idea. You start clearing while I go let Kaiser in.”

  When she rose to her feet, Nevan found himself standing entirely too close to her for his piece of mind. She glanced up at him and licked her lips. All the reasons it was a bad idea fled his mind as he bent to kiss her.

  Cassandra pressed her hand to his chest, but she didn’t push him away. She simply remained where she was and let it continue. Nevan ran his tongue along the seam of her mouth while encircling her waist to pull her against him. She fit into the angles of his body like she’d been made for him.

  Utterly ridiculous thought, since Cassandra has been around since the world began. Yet knowing just how old she was didn’t make a difference to his cock, which seemed to have taken over his mind. He slid one of his hands down to cup her ass and the other up to cradle the back of her neck.

  She capitulated to his demands and opened, allowing him to sweep his tongue in. He enjoyed the taste of the wine in her mouth, wishing he could drink it from there. Her unique flavour mixed with the heady bouquet of the merlot to create something he wanted to sip every day.

  A bark from outside caused her to jerk away. He kept a hold of her, not wanting her to fall or run into anything. Another bark and she moved away from him towards the back door.

  “Something’s wrong. Kaiser doesn’t bark unless someone’s here,” she informed him.

  For some reason, the image of the hooded man standing in his yard flashed through his mind and Nevan tensed. He reached Cassandra before she got the door open.

  “Let me go out there.”

  He took a second to be surprised that she didn’t protest, yet maybe because Kaiser didn’t sound like he was hurt or in pain, it was better for him to go. She might be a fallen angel, but she was still vulnerable simply by way of her blindness.

  Taking out his gun as he stepped out on the patio, Nevan searched for the dog in the waning light. Kaiser stood, hackles up and growling, in front of a large tree. As he approached, a soft whistle came from behind him, and Kaiser trotted to where Cassandra waited in the doorway.

  Even before he got there, Nevan knew whoever—or whatever—it was Kaiser had cornered was gone. He went around the whole yard, checking the fence and looking for footprints. There weren’t any, and a hint of unease made its way into his mind. Could this have anything to do with last night? He didn’t know, but he was going to warn Cassandra.

  Whether she was in danger or not, he didn’t care. She needed to know there might be something else going on besides there being a possible killer out there. Cassandra needed to be prepared in case this became something they weren’t expecting.

  Once he’d returned to the house, he entered then locked the door behind him. He went to the living room where he found Cassandra curled up on the couch with Kaiser sitting on the floor next to her.

  “There wasn’t anyone there and I didn’t see any prints anywhere,” he announced.

  Cassandra nodded before sipping from her coffee mug. “There’s a cup on the table there. I didn’t know if you took it with anything.”

  “Black is fine.” He settled at the other end of the furniture, picking up his mug after he was seated.

  “There was something out there. Like I said, Kaiser doesn’t bark at nothing, plus I sensed a strange presence.”

  “Is that why you didn’t come out with me?” Nevan eased back against the cushions, relaxing slightly. He inhaled the fragrant aroma of the hot liquid. God, how he loved the smell of coffee.

  She nodded. “I can sense things and get a general idea of where things are, but I’m not very helpful in a fight or anything like that. It took me a long time to come to terms with my limitations.”

  “That’s understandable.” He set his cup back down. “Can I hold your hand?”

  Cassandra held out her hand and he entwined their fingers. Again, he couldn’t help thinking how perfect it felt to hold her like that, though he admitted silently that he wanted to wrap her naked body in his arms while he made love to her. Shaking his head, he knew what he wanted wasn’t important at the moment.

  “Last night, I couldn’t sleep. It happens quite often, especially when I’m in a new place. The spirits are trying to get used to having someone around who can see and hear them. It’s like a jumble of noise in my head.” He tapped his temple with her fingers. “They invade my dreams and it ends up being easier just not to close my eyes.”

  After putting her mug down, she cupped his face with both her hands. He rested his forehead against hers and breathed in her air.

  “Maybe you need to rest somewhere there aren’t any ghosts,” she murmured.

  When she said that, he realised what had been playing around in the back of his mind. No spirits vied for his attention and none had since he’d first approached her house.

  “How is that possible? All the fallen I’ve run into are haunted by hundreds of souls. People they’ve hated and loved during the centuries.”

  Cassandra had to have known what he was asking because she said, “I deal with my own memories and ghosts. Being blind gives me a lot of time to think and listen. I’m not distracted by the visual world around me.”

  “And your house? It’s not new. How did you manage to clean it?” He slid his arm around her waist, drawing her closer to him.

  Laughing softly, she snuggled into his side. “I had it built when I first moved out here and over the decades, I’ve modernised it. I cleansed the land before I let them begin to set the foundation.”

  Nuzzling along her hairline to her ear, he absorbed the subtle feeling of safety seeming to emanate from her. Nevan had never had the need to feel safe before, but she’d created an atmosphere where he wasn’t constantly trying to block out the wraiths and spirits dogging his every step.

  “It’s quiet in here,” he whispered against her ear.

  She shivered and he couldn’t help but smile at her reaction. He took her lobe between his teeth then tugged. Cassandra gripped his shoulders with her hands.

  “I don’t think this is a good idea,” she said.

  “You’re probably right,” he admitted, yet it didn’t keep him from sucking on the sensitive flesh right behind her ear.

  Letting her head fall to the side, she gave him silent permission to continue even while she said, “No, I mean it, Nevan. What do we know about each other except I’m a fallen angel and you’re a seer?”

  With a mental sigh, he eased away from her. As much as her body might be saying she wanted it, her mouth was saying she didn’t and he wasn’t going to push it further. That didn’t mean he was going to let her go. He kept her in his embrace while he tried to get his mind back on whatever they’d been talking about before.

  “Right. Anyway, since I couldn’t sleep last night, I went to get a glass of milk. While I stood in my kitchen, looking out my back window, I saw a hooded figure standing there in my yard.”

&nbs
p; Cassandra didn’t stiffen, but he could tell she had all of her attention on him.

  “After getting my gun, I went out to look around. Of course, he was gone by then and to be totally honest, I can’t be sure he was there physically anyway. He might have been a spirit. I just know he was there.”

  “Of course he was.” She patted his hand. “You have to remember you’re not talking to a mortal, Nevan. I know all about what exists in the world that most people can’t see or aren’t willing to acknowledge are real.”

  “Right.” He did need to remember that, because it might be her knowledge that helped him solve the problem of his cousin. “I wanted to let you know about what I saw, just in case whatever it was is connected to my case.”

  Cassandra kissed his cheek. “Thank you for the warning.”

  “It’s the least I can do. I wasn’t very nice to Danielle before I left Chicago. She’d never treated me with anything except respect and I was a complete ass to her.” Nevan chuckled. “Though in my defence, I was inundated by fallen and Lucifer made an appearance as well. Not something a man like me wants to get involved in.”

  Tension touched her shoulders at the mention of Lucifer.

  “You met Lucifer? What did you think of him?”

  It was a question he’d never been asked before. All of the Enforcers had been more worried in protecting him from the fallen angel, they hadn’t been interested in what his impressions of Lucifer were. He went back to his memories of that night and shuddered.

  “Lucifer is horrifyingly beautiful and tragically triumphal. He professed to disdain, yet I saw worry in his eyes for me that I’m sure the others missed,” Nevan muttered as he gave voice to what he’d thought in those moments he’d been curled up in the corner of the lab at the Field Museum.

  Cassandra relaxed into his arms again, and he wondered what he’d said that made her react that way. Then she shot him a questioning look. “You were involved with the Peruvian angel?”

  “Yes. There were a few deaths that weren’t part of the whole skeleton thing. Those dead had to do with a jewellery heist down in Peru and the thieves used Dr Carson’s shipments to get them across the border.” He resisted adding anything else. It was over and done with, and all he wanted to do was move on. “Do all fallen angels know each other?”

  “Meaning do we have like a special connection or something?”

  He nodded, brushing her hair with his chin.

  “Are you nodding?”

  “Yes. Sorry.”

  Another pat to his hand. “No problem. It’s just something you’ll have to get used to if you hang out with me.”

  He tugged her until she curled up on his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck.

  Why does it feel like we’ve been doing this forever? I’ve never got so attached so fast to a woman, and I never imagined it’d be a fallen.

  “We can talk to each other mentally if we choose to, but most of us tend to stay isolated. Even Enforcers prefer not to gather together. Though there will be a higher concentration of us in bigger cities.” Cassandra stroked his chest while she talked and he wondered if she realised what she was doing. “To be honest, most of them stay away from me. It’s like they’re worried my blindness is catching and they’ll get it from prolonged exposure to me.”

  “That’s silly.” Then he paused before continuing, “Of course mortals do that to those with disabilities as well, so I guess fallens aren’t the only silly ones.”

  She laughed. “Anyway, the biggest and closest link we have is Mika’il. The archangel knows where each of us is located throughout the world. He can find any one of us with a simple thought.”

  Nevan swallowed. He’d run into Mika’il and just the idea of those silver eyes looking into his soul again made him break into a cold sweat. He’d rather face Lucifer a thousand times than spend one more minute with Mika’il.

  “Lucifer might be able to do that as well, but I don’t think he can be bothered keeping track of us. He has his mind on other things.”

  “Like taking over earth for his own purposes,” Nevan quipped.

  Cassandra shook her head. “No. God already gave him dominion over earth, why would he continue to torment mortals? He’s truly not interested in taking souls or gathering more power. I think he wants to be left alone.”

  Nevan wasn’t sure Cassandra was talking about the same Lucifer. Not after what Danielle had told him about Lucifer taking Christian’s soul, but he wasn’t going to tell Cassandra about that. If she didn’t know about it, then she didn’t need to.

  “Are you friends with Lucifer?”

  “I wouldn’t call us friends, but he does come and visit me from time to time.” She slid her fingers between the buttons of his shirt to tease the hair on his chest. “Maybe it’s because I’m one of the few who doesn’t blame him for my fall.”

  He frowned. “Why not? Seems he’s the one who suggested it and led the way.”

  She twisted a few strands and he sucked in a sharp breath.

  “He might have suggested it, but I didn’t have to go along with him. I could’ve stood with Mika’il on the other side.”

  “Why didn’t you?”

  Chapter Three

  Why didn’t you?

  Nevan’s question echoed through her head. Why hadn’t she been one of the smart ones and stuck with the status quo? What had convinced her Lucifer was right about the rebellion?

  She shrugged. “I’ve gone over it through the millennium and haven’t come up with one good answer. I did it, and it was my choice, so I can’t lay blame on his shoulders when he doesn’t deserve it.”

  “And that is why I come to visit you from time to time. I’m not hounded by ‘it’s all your fault’. Christ knows I’m tired of listening to people not taking responsibility for their own actions.” Lucifer’s voice danced through her head.

  Cassandra heaved a sigh. “Can we not do this tonight? I don’t want to reopen old wounds.”

  “You might have wounds that have scabbed over, Cassandra. My wounds are reopened every day and will never heal until the end comes.”

  “You’re so dramatic, Lucifer. Now get out of my head.”

  A soft laugh and a gentle touch spoke of his leaving, and Cassandra blinked back the tears from her eyes. It wouldn’t pay to have Nevan notice them and ask her what was wrong. No one seemed to understand how she could cry for the most infamous fallen angel in the world.

  Nevan caressed her shoulder and she savoured the heat coming from his touch soaking through her T-shirt. She let her head rest on his shoulder while working the buttons of his shirt through their holes.

  “Danielle knows I’m an expert on druids and pre-Christianity Irish history, but she doesn’t realise I’m a fallen. We never met face to face. I consulted on some objets d’art for her and we communicated through email.” Cassandra peeled his shirt open then rubbed her cheek against the thick carpet of hair she could feel covering his chest.

  “Umm…Cassandra,” Nevan said.

  “Yes?” She nuzzled the flat nipple peeking out.

  “Didn’t you say earlier that we shouldn’t do this?” He gripped her shoulders, but didn’t move her away from him.

  She thought about it then licked the hardened pebble of flesh. “Yes, but I’ve changed my mind.”

  “Far be it from me to turn down an offer like this, but are you sure? I don’t want you to think you should do this or anything.”

  Frowning, she asked, “Why would I feel like I should do this?”

  Nevan cleared his throat. “Maybe out of pity or something because I told you I don’t sleep well and that I feel comfortable here. It might make your feel like taking care of me.”

  “Oh dear.” Cassandra started giggling and soon she was laughing so hard, she had to prop herself up using his body.

  He kept silent, but she could feel his annoyance building and she took a deep breath to get her mirth under control. When she could talk without laughing, she cradled his face and br
ought his lips to within inches of hers.

  “I want to have sex with you because I find you shockingly attractive. It’s also an amazing turn-on to be able to be with someone who knows all your faults, yet fully accepts them and you.”

  Bringing their mouths together, she kissed him with all the passion she had in her. What she said was the truth. For the first time since she’d fallen, she would be sleeping with someone who knew everything about her. Well, all the important things anyway.

  The moment he demanded that she open her mouth, she did so. Nevan swept his tongue in and she sucked on it. He grunted as he shifted her until she straddled his thick thighs. She’d known he was taller than her by the height of his voice when he’d stood next to her. Also, his shoulders were broad and she could feel the definition of his muscles in his chest and stomach.

  She’d noticed when he’d first arrived at her house, he’d had walls built around his emotions, which she understood completely. When he could see spirits and get mobbed by them, he had to find a way to keep them out of his soul. Yet her touch seemed to be removing those walls brick by brick.

  Cassandra couldn’t stop running her hands over his crisp, rough hair, exploring from nipple to nipple then down to where a thin line trailed under his pants. She broke their kiss when she scooted back to fumble with his belt buckle.

  “Cassandra.” He stopped her with just her name.

  She looked up as his gaze caressed every inch of her face. “Yes?”

  “Can we find your bed? I’m not interested in our first time being on your couch with Kaiser staring at us.”

  Putting her hand down to the side, she grinned when Kaiser stuck his wet nose in her palm. “I guess we can. First we need to make sure everything’s cleaned up down here and locked.”

  “Is that something you do every night?” Nevan gripped her hips then lifted her off his lap to set her feet on the floor.

  “Yes. I like to have a routine and putting everything away at night before I go to bed helps. That way when I come down in the morning, I don’t have to worry about a knife in the sink or something like that.”

  She listened as he stood and with his help, putting everything back in place didn’t take long at all. They rinsed the plates then put them in the dishwasher while Kaiser went out one last time. She gestured towards the stairs.