Ashley resituated herself in the recliner and a lock of her hair fell away from the side of her neck. Red marks and bruises trailed below the neckline of her sweatshirt.
His hands tingled with the energy stirring inside him, and he clenched them into tight fists as he imagined wrapping them around Max’s throat, choking the life out of him. That bastard needed to be put down like the rabid dog he was—like yesterday. A sudden streak of protectiveness shot through him at the mere thought of what Max had done to this beautiful girl.
Ashley sighed heavily. His frown softened as he looked down at her, the ache of compassion swelling inside his chest. He raised his hand to touch her golden curls, seemingly unable to help himself, he was so mesmerized by this beauty. Liam’s words suddenly echoed in his head and he caught himself before his hand grazed the silky curls. Balen snatched his hand away as if he were about to get burned. He turned abruptly and sat down on the couch across from her, anxious to put some distance between them.
What in the hell did he almost do? Good Lord, had he lost his mind? He could see right now this was a mistake. Warriors should not be guardians. It was just that simple.
Chapter Twenty-One
Clay was standing at the register when Olivia walked out of the aerobics room. Her last class finished a few minutes late, and she was headed for the showers. Clay didn’t get off until five, so she had almost an hour to kill. As she walked past the large picture window, she didn’t even stop to look for Liam in the parking lot. She’d told him not to come, and why would he after the way she’d made a complete jackass of herself.
“Hey, Liv, your boyfriend’s waiting for you in the parking lot,” clay called when she turned down the hall, about ready to step into the women’s locker room.
Despite herself, a rush of excitement woke the butterflies in her stomach. “He’s not my boyfriend,” Olivia called back, not sure if she was telling Clay or reminding herself of that unfortunate little technicality.
“Well, maybe someone should tell him that. Whoa, it looks like some guy in a yellow Mustang is about to! Holy shit, he looks pissed!”
“What?” Olivia spun around and ran over to the front window. She stood beside Clay and watched, shocked, as Liam bore down on Max like a freight train. Even from here, she could feel the power and energy radiate from him. Her heart jumped into her throat as she helplessly watched the inevitable confrontation.
Bits and pieces of their heated exchange carried over to her on raised voices. “Isn’t yours… doesn’t belong to you… get the fuck out of here…” and “going to kill you,” was more than she wanted to hear.
“Love triangle…” Clay teased in a smooth voice.
“Shut up!” she snapped, slapping him hard on the bicep.
“Oww,” he chuckled, rubbing his arm.
“Don’t you have anything better to do?”
Clay shrugged. “Can’t say as I do. My four o’clock cancelled.”
“I gotta get out there before somebody gets hurt.”
Clay turned serious, a side of him she rarely saw. He put his hand on her arm, stopping her as she tried to walk away. “You go out there, that somebody’s going to be you.”
“Clay, let me go. You don’t understand how bad this is going to get if I don’t stop it. Someone’s going to call the cops and then my personal business is going to be tonight’s entertainment on the ten o’clock news. I’ll have my job for a whole two seconds if Ronnie hears about this.” She wrenched her arm out of his reluctant grasp and pushed through the double doors before she lost her nerve. Liam and Max looked about ready to lunge for each other when she ran up to them.
“Get back inside, Olivia.” That probably wouldn’t have been a bad idea, except her legs refused to cooperate. She was literally frozen in fear. She hardly recognized Liam’s voice. His low, commanding growl prickled her skin. He didn’t take his amethyst glare off Max for even a second to look at her when he spoke.
“I just want to talk to her,” Max insisted, feigning innocence, as if Liam were the true aggressor here. But there wasn’t anything innocent in the blackness of his eyes as they slowly dragged over her like a lion watching its prey. Talking was the last thing on his mind. He’d hoped to catch her here alone, without Liam, and she’d nearly made that happen by telling him not to come back for her.
“She doesn’t want to talk to you!”
Olivia could actually feel the barely controlled rage exude from him as he restrained himself from publicly strangling Max.
“I want to hear that from her,” he challenged.
Olivia took a few steps closer and slipped her hand into Liam’s. Drawing courage from his touch, she leveled a cold, hard glare at Max. “What are you doing here?” she demanded icily.
“I wanted to see you, to talk to you.”
“I think you said just about all there was to say last night, right before you tried to hit me! I don’t have anything left to say to you except, stay away from me and good-bye!”
Fury flashed in Max’s coal black eyes, and for a moment, she was certain he was going to kill her right then and there. Liam must have felt the surge of panic erupt inside her because he gave her hand a comforting squeeze, as if to tell her everything was going to be all right.
“So this is how it’s going to be?” Max growled, no longer trying to sound like the wounded, lovesick boyfriend. In that moment, something happened. She wasn’t sure what Max did, but he suddenly looked different. Dark shadows clung to him like a dark, ominous cloud.
Olivia gasped, suddenly realizing what he’d done, what she was seeing.
A sadistic sneer spread across Max’s face. “You can still see me, can’t you? From the smell of your fear, I’m going to take that as a yes. Don’t think for one second that this is over, sweetheart. The fun is just gettin’ started.”
A low, threatening growl tore from Liam’s chest. He took a step toward Max, who eyed him with a defiant grin.
“What’s the matter, Warrior? Why don’t you come on over and play?” Max spread his arms wide, challenging him to come across. Shadows poured from Max’s outstretched arms like a cloak of darkness.
The air crackled as Liam’s energy surged. She was certain he would follow Max over and have it out with him, but Liam hesitated for only a fraction of a moment and then spun abruptly, grabbing her arm.
“Get in the car,” he commanded, dragging her along faster than she could run on her own two feet. They reached the car in what felt like two seconds, and Liam shoved her none-too-carefully inside. He was in the driver’s seat before she could look to her left, and the Mustang was peeling out of the parking lot.
Road signs whipped past them as they flew down the highway at far from legal speeds. Olivia reached over and grabbed Liam’s arm. Her nails dug little crescent-shaped moons into his flesh.
“What’s happening? Why are we running?”
“It’s a trap.” Anger still resonated in his voice. His eyes still shone brightly with rage.
“I don’t understand. How did you know?”
“Max is baiting me to step across and fight him when he knows damn well he can’t kill me. If I crossed over, you’d be left unprotected. Someone else was there, waiting for you.”
A shiver of fear racked her body. Her heart pounded with dread. Max was actually trying to kill her. Until now, she’d been grasping on to the slightest bit of hope that this was all just some terrible mistake. “Where are we going?”
Liam didn’t answer her. The only response she got was the acceleration of the Mustang as it flew down the highway, weaving erratically in and out of traffic.
“You have to talk to me, Liam!”
“What do you want me to say?” His tone was razor sharp. The amethyst glow of his eyes haloed deep violet as he struggled to get his temper under control.
“How about the truth? I mean the whole truth, from the beginning!”
Liam didn’t speak again for several painstaking minutes that felt more like an eterni
ty. They pulled into the parking lot of Clearwater Beach. She wasn’t sure why they were stopping here, but she supposed this place was as good as any to get the truth out of him.
He climbed out of the car and walked around to the passenger door. She reluctantly took his outstretched hand, but she wanted the comfort of his touch more than she wanted to make her point.
“Come on, let’s take a walk.” The fire in his eyes was finally starting to dim, the sharp edge in his voice dulled. They walked down to the water’s edge and waded along the shoreline in silence. She gave him time to think, sensing what he was about to tell her wasn’t going to be any easier for him to say, than it would be for her to hear.
“I’m not exactly what you think, Olivia.”
His voice was so soft, it nearly carried away in the breeze. For a second, she wondered if he really spoke, or maybe she was just imagining it. She glanced over at him. His brows were pulled together in a troubled frown.
“So you’re not my guardian angel?” It felt ridiculous to say those words out loud, but there wasn’t any other way to put it. This whole thing was one surreal event after the other.
“I am your guardian, Olivia, but I’m not a guardian. There’s a difference. I was created a Ronnin warrior, and except for the last eighteen years, my entire existence had been war, battles, and bloodshed. Upon your birth, I was commissioned by the High Court to serve as your protector. Apparently the guardians haven’t had the best track record in the past of keeping the Sighted alive, so they chose me. Admittedly, over the years, your survival has been a challenge.”
Olivia’s heart dropped into her stomach. She could hardly comprehend what he was saying. “Over the years” was there ever a time in her life when she wasn’t in danger? This was just all too much. “I don’t understand, why are they trying to kill me, and what are they?”
“Fallen angels. They know you’re sighted, and they don’t possess the ability to block your gift. They can’t hide from you, and that makes you a threat because you can expose them to other humans.”
“So that’s why Max is doing this?”
“He’s doing what he’s been sent here to do.”
“Just like you?” Olivia stopped abruptly and pulled on Liam’s hand, turning him to face her. “You’re just doing your job. Is that right?”
Liam sighed. “It’s more complicated than that, Olivia.” His eyes searched hers for understanding, but she had none to give.
“Enlighten me, then. Can you block my sight?”
Liam nodded. “All angels can block you. You only see us if we allow it. The day on the boat… there was a legion of angels behind us.”
“A legion…” She paused as her mind tried to absorb what he was saying. It suddenly made sense to her why the demons fled. “So why are you letting me see you now?”
“I didn’t really have much of a choice. I had to get you away from Max before it was too late, so I came here to win your heart away from him.”
Olivia gasped. His cool, matter-of-fact explanation struck a nerve that sparked her temper. Anger and indignation rose up inside her like a volcano ready to explode. She jerked her hand out of his and took several steps back. “You came here to win my heart? This isn’t some game, Liam! I’m not a prize you can claim and then stuff away on a shelf when you’re finished with me!”
“That isn’t what I meant, Olivia. Dammit,” he growled, roughly dragging his hand through his hair as he stepped toward her. He moved too fast for her to see. One minute he was standing several feet away, the next he was so close she was nearly crushed up against his chest. His hands circled her arms as he stared down at her, eyes smoldering. “You don’t get it. I’m not supposed to love you,” he whispered harshly.
Olivia’s heart stuttered—she ceased breathing. “Do you…love me?” Her own voice was whisper soft as hope surged through her. Could it possibly be true? That this amazing, beautiful angel loved her? If he did, he certainly didn’t look happy about it. The determined frown on his handsome face was a cold bucket of water on her joy. “How long? How long have you loved me, Liam?”
“Forever…” His confession tore from his chest in a low growl as his lips came crashing down on hers. Olivia felt a dam of love and hope burst inside of her. She crushed herself up against him and boldly returned his urgent kiss. Her hands slid up the back of his shirt, tracing her fingers along the muscular curves of his blazing hot skin.
She drank in his soft strangled groan, drawing his breath deep into her lungs. She could feel his heart pounding against her breasts. The spike in his energy excited her. She boldly let her fingers travel higher up his back. Her hands stilled as they lightly ran over two diagonal ridges streaked across his shoulder blades. They felt like flesh covered bone as she traced the inverted V with her fingertips.
Liam flinched, his muscles tensed, and he broke their kiss, abruptly pulling away from her. The sudden movement startled her. His eyes flashed from dark sapphire to violet in seconds, and she knew why.
“Your wings, where are they?”
Liam’s lips were pressed into a hard thin line. Clearly, he didn’t want to discuss his wings or lack-there-of. “I gave them up to come here. I won’t get them back until I go home.”
Olivia’s head was spinning—gave them up, go home… She took a step closer and slowly slid her hands back under his shirt, inexplicably drawn to touch the sacrifice he made to save her. “Does it hurt?” she whispered.
“Yes.” He looked away from her probing stare, but not before she saw the intense blue flame flash in his eyes again. He reached up and gently pulled her hands away from his back.
“I’m sorry.” She shouldn’t have touched them again, at least not without asking first.
“You don’t have to be sorry, you didn’t hurt me. They ache all the time, serving as a constant reminder that I don’t belong here.”
“Oh…”
He reached up and placed his hand against the side of her cheek. The way he looked down at her, with such love and adoration, made her knees go weak. “So, you gave up your wings to come here, and if you don’t go home, you’ll never get them back? And you did all of this for me?”
“I did this because I love you,” he whispered, sliding his hand down the side of her neck. Olivia felt her pulse jump under his thumb. Tears filled her eyes as she folded herself into the safe haven of his embrace, burying her face into his chest. All of his sacrifice, everything he’d done to protect her, to keep her safe…
A slow, drawn-out clap bit the air. Liam stiffened and his arms tightened protectively around her.
“Bravo, bravo,” Max drawled. The black shadows still clung to him. That was how she knew he hadn’t stepped back into her dimension yet.
“It’s okay,” Liam whispered, letting her go to face Max. “Don’t be afraid. He can’t touch you from there.”
“It’s really too bad, our very own Romeo and Juliette, with a twist. Has he gotten to the part yet when he tells you that you’ll never be his? And if he tries to claim you for his own, you’ll die?”
The triumphant sneer on Max’s face made her stomach turn. The words that came from his mouth made her blood run cold. Was he telling the truth? It must be a lie, but then, why wasn’t Liam denying it?
“Oops.” Max covered his mouth with his hand. “Did I just give away the best part of the story? Should I have called out, ‘spoiler alert’ first?”
Olivia cast Liam a worried glance, but he wasn’t looking at her. His murderous glare was fixed on Max with seething hatred. Max ignored Liam and walked up to Olivia. He leaned close to her and held his hand up to the side of his face as if he intended to whisper a secret to her.
Her skin crawled, having him this close to her. The shadows that clung to him reached out to her as if they had a life of their own. She forced back the shudder that threatened to rack her body, refusing to give him the pleasure of seeing how unnerved she was.
“What I can’t decide, is how long to let this little sa
ga drag out before I kill you.”
The vicious snarl coming from Liam made the little hairs on the back of her neck prickle. He stepped in front of her, wedging himself between her and Max. The shadows which were so eager to touch her only a moment ago, shrunk back from Liam in fear. They were alive…
“This ends when I say it ends!”
“So end it,” Max taunted. “What are you waiting for? Not ready to say good-bye to the girl yet, are you? She is a succulent little treat. I’ll give you that. I don’t believe I’ve ever tasted anything quite so delicious. Although, Ashley was a close second.”
“What?” Olivia cried. Fear and panic tore through her heart.
Max inhaled dramatically. “Mmm, gotta love that smell—terror on a salty, ocean breeze.”
“Enough!” Liam commanded. A bolt of lightning split the sky in a deafening crack as the ground shook with thunder.
“Ooo…” Max sneered, feigning fear. “Looks like I made Daddy angry.”
“Don’t do it,” Liam warned.
“Or what?” he taunted.
“Why don’t you step back into this dimension and find out?” Liam growled.
The sound of a barking dog echoed in the distance. Riotous laughter and cheery voices poured from the cars that pulled into the parking lot. People began to pile out of their cars, more people than the cars could hold. Not people, Olivia suddenly realized, seeing the white tips of wings poking out from behind five sets of wide muscular shoulders. Angels…
The group suddenly split into two directions. One headed toward them while the human group headed down to the beach, arms heavily loaded with chairs, wood and cases of beer. Two Springer Spaniels jumped excitedly around the people, barking excitedly for someone to throw a Frisbee. Someone gave it a toss toward the ocean, and the two dogs yapped excitedly and charged off into the water while everyone around them was oblivious to the cosmic battle brewing thirty yards away.
The Redemption Series Page 18
