The Redemption Series

by Melynda Price

  “Shh…” he whispered, cupping the back of her head, holding her cheek against his chest, against the steady beat of his heart that coincidentally quickened as she felt him hardening against her. “It’s going to be all right.”

  Liar. “Don’t say that. It’s not going to be all right! I’m in hell, Haden—literally!” She tried to pull away, but his grip on her tightened possessively.

  “That is not my fault, Olivia! You cut me loose, remember?”

  Yeah, she cut him loose, all right, and the second she set him free, he’d betrayed her.

  “How did Max get to you? When I left, you were ready to walk down the aisle.”

  “He caught me in the hall. Before I could get away, he grabbed me and yanked me into this dimension. He said Liam can’t come here. Is it true? Am I really trapped in Hell?”

  “It’s true that he isn’t supposed to enter Sheol, but I doubt he’ll let that stop him.”

  She clung to that flicker of hope with everything she had. “Why didn’t you do it, Haden? You could have killed him and ended this. Gahn was right there! You had the stone in your hand!”

  Haden grasped her shoulders tightly and set her a step back, meeting her blurry-eyed stare with an indignant glare that startled her. “You think I didn’t want to do it? That every fiber of my being wasn’t screaming to tear his heart out?” he demanded. “It isn’t that easy, Olivia. This is so much bigger than you realize. I have to know what Gahn is planning before I kill him. He’s not working alone. And his allies are powerful—powerful enough to free Maximus Octaine from the Abyss. Just stop and think for a moment what could happen across the realms of Heaven and Earth if all the creatures locked in the Abyss were to be set free. How vulnerable would the Kingdom of Heaven become with all the angelic armies on Earth fighting for the survival of mankind. And somewhere, somehow, stuck in the middle of all this is your child. Your death is not Gahn’s end game. Those rules changed the moment you got pregnant. The only reason you’re alive in this realm right now is by your child’s supernatural covering. The moment you give birth, you become nothing more than a sighted human again. If I cannot figure out a way to stop Gahn and get you out of here, your death will be just the beginning of millions.”

  “So you haven’t turned your back on me, after all.” She muttered the realization as hope sprung eternal in her heart.

  Haden sighed and took her face in his hands, tipping it to meet his sea-green stare. “That you even believed for a minute that I had, tells me you don’t truly know how much I love you. Now take your clothes off.”

  “What do you mean she’s gone?”

  “Just what I said. She’s fucking gone!” Liam growled, jacking his hand through his hair as he paced in front of the stables. Kyro followed on his heels, a low disgruntled growl rumbling in the beast’s throat.

  Niall cursed under his breath and cast a curious glance at the hell-hound. “You think that Nephilim took her? You know you can’t trust those bastards—.”

  “I might have if I hadn’t seen Max myself. She isn’t in this realm.”

  Niall’s scowl darkened, turning up the full degree of this warrior’s wrath. “Do you have any idea where she is?”

  “Sheol.”

  This time the curse was spat along with a slew of other expletives. “Are you certain?”

  “I’ve no doubt. We’ve known the Dark Court is after the baby. I’d just hoped to get her to Landaketa before they struck.”

  “What do you want from me, Liam?”

  “Give me a legion of Rogues to command. I’ll take them into Sheol and we’ll storm the gates, lay siege to the Dark Court, and I’ll get Olivia back.”

  Niall exhaled a sigh and dragged his hand across his face. “You realize what you’re asking? If you attack Sheol, you risk altering prophesy.”

  “If I don’t get Olivia back, prophesy will already be rewritten. The only question is by whose hand and sword will it be done?—mine or Gahn’s?”

  “The elders will be furious if they discover I’ve sent a legion into Sheol—.”

  “If anyone has the authority to command it, it’s you. You battle in realms beyond this world all the time. Should evil be allowed a place of rest? A refuge to plot their crimes to overthrow the High Court of our Living God? Make no mistake, they plan to do just that. What I don’t know is how they plan to use my child to do it.”

  “You’re doing this with or without my army, aren’t you?”

  Liam nodded. “I’ll give you an hour to gather a legion. If you do not aid me, I will enter Sheol alone and take Olivia back, or at least die trying.”

  “Haden, what are you doing? Stop it!”

  He tugged his t-shirt over his head and tossed it at Olivia. “Put this on.” His shirt smacked into her chest and she reflexively caught it, sending a whiff of Haden’s black licorice scent slamming into her. “I’m not going to put this on,” she protested. “I’m fine as I am.”

  Ignoring her protest, he turned around and rummaged through his dresser, grabbing a pair of black sweats. Haden mock dried himself with the pants and then they, too, hit her—this time in the face. “I have neither the time nor the patience to argue with you, Olivia. If I tell you to do something, I expect you to do it. You’re nearly busting out of the top of that gown, and I guarantee you won’t like the attention you draw in it. Besides, the next time Gahn sees you, you’d better be smelling like me or he’s going to know I haven’t claimed you. Now, I can think of some more enjoyable ways to transfer my scent. The choice is yours.”

  Olivia pinned him with a glare. “You never quit, do you?”

  Arching his brow, he gave her a crooked grin. Not that she’d ever admit it, but if she had to be stuck in Hell, she couldn’t think of anyone she’d rather be here with. This was Haden’s home, he was in his element. If anyone could get her out of here, it’d be him. She had to start trusting him.

  “Oh fine,” she huffed. Holding out her arm, she twirled her finger, signaling for him to turn around.

  Rolling his eyes, he indulged her command and presented her with his back while she quickly undressed and pulled on his t-shirt. The damn thing nearly hung down to her knees. Gathering the hem so she could see her feet, she tucked it beneath her chin and stepped into the sweatpants. She glanced up to make sure he wasn’t peeking as she hiked them up and double-knotted the waist. “These clothes are huge,” she complained, rolling the waist a few times to shorten the legs dragging on the floor.

  As she looked at her wedding dress pooled on the ground, Olivia fought the new rise of tears. She should be married right now, dammit—held securely in Liam’s arms as he took her away to Landaketa where she would be safe and they would live happily ever after.

  It wasn’t supposed to be this way. She wasn’t supposed to be in Hell—with Haden. Yet here he was, like a bad penny, turning up where she least expected him, and ironically when she needed him the most. She didn’t want to rely on him, and resented like hell that her life was literally in his hands—again. If what Max had said was true, and Liam couldn’t come here, then Haden was her only hope of ever getting out of Sheol.

  Helpless frustration boiled up inside her as she grabbed her gown off the floor, wadded it into a ball, and threw it at Haden’s back. It hit him square between the shoulders and he slowly turned toward her, casting her an arched glance laced with wry amusement. His pale green eyes darkened as they swept over her, standing there, drowning in his clothes. The headiness of it left her feeling painfully exposed and vulnerable. She was out of her element here, in his world, on his turf, and it was rather disturbing to see how easily he assimilated to this dark, horrid environment.

  “Stop looking at me like that,” she snapped.

  “Like what?”

  “Like you’re the Big Bad Wolf and you’ve just blown my house down.”

  His flash of white teeth couldn’t quite pass as a smile, and she wished for something else she could throw at his head. “I’m so glad I amuse you. I
don’t suppose I can trouble you to teleport me out of here, or whatever it is you do to move from one dimension to the other.”

  His half-ass grin fell, leaving a look of frustration behind. “I can’t. But thanks for the idea, I wouldn’t have ever thought of that,” he grumbled sarcastically. “The gates surrounding the Dark Court are warded, Olivia. No one can transcend in or out. That’s what makes Sheol secure.” He grabbed her gown from the floor and walked over to the window. “Don’t you think I’d take you away from here in a heartbeat if I could? The only way you’re getting out is on foot.” Shoving the hinged glass aside, Haden began stuffing her dress through the narrow stone-framed opening.

  “What are you doing?” she cried, wincing when the silk caught on a sharp edge of stone and tore.

  “I’m flagging your dress. What’s it look like?” he shot back, scowling back at her for the briefest moment before turning his attention back to his task of ruining her dress.

  “But why?” she asked as he proceeded to anchor the white satin to the window’s ledge.

  “Because despite what Max told you, Liam is coming here, and when he finds your wedding dress hanging out this window it will A: Confirm you’re here and tell him exactly where you are. And B: It’s going to piss him off so royally, he’s likely to storm the Dark Court and create the diversion I need to get you out of here, so I probably don’t have a lot of time. Which means before he gets here I need to find out what Gahn’s planning. And in order to do to that, you’re going to have to trust me.”

  Why did that sound like a warning? She almost hated to ask. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  He turned away from the window and walked over to her. The spark of regret she saw flashing in his eyes made her wholly uneasy. “It means that in order to get what I want I may have to do some things that I don’t want to do.” Stopping in front of her, he lifted his hand and tenderly brushed his thumb across her cheek. “And you probably won’t like me very much.”

  Closing her eyes, she rallied what little inner strength she had left and exhaled a sigh. She was about to tell Haden that she was proud of him—proud of how far he’d come from the male she’d met that night in a Vegas Casino, and that she understood sometimes good people had to do bad things for the greater good, but that didn’t mean he had backslidden.

  But all her accolades stalled in her throat when he said, “Until I discover a way to stop Gahn, I cannot, will not, let you go.”

  Oh shit…

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Olivia paled; she looked as if her heart had actually stopped. Before Haden’s eyes, all the color drained from her face. Her full, lush lips turned pallor as her breath seized in her lungs and her chest ceased moving. She stood there, frozen in stunned silence, staring at him in utter disbelief. “You’re what?” she wheezed in a barely audible whisper.

  “You heard me.” It was hard enough saying it once, he sure as hell didn’t want to say it again. His only hope was to discover Gahn’s plans before Liam arrived, and that would all depend on how quickly he could regain the bastard’s trust, which would depend on how necessary he could prove himself to be to the Dark Court’s cause. If he helped Olivia escape before discovering Gahn’s plans and who he was working with, Haden would never learn the truth, and her child would be in as much danger as before—perhaps more, because then they’d be fighting against an unknown enemy. He only had one shot at getting back into the bastard’s good graces and he wouldn’t risk it by helping her escape too soon. Bringing down the Dark Court had to be his singular objective.

  Olivia backed away from him, and with great restraint, he let her go. Shell-shocked, she walked over to the bed and plopped down on the mattress. Burying her face in her hands, she murmured in disbelief, “I can’t believe you just said that. What if Liam comes before you learn the truth?”

  “Then I’ll have no choice but to protect Gahn.”

  Her head flew up and she gaped at him as if he’d lost his mind, and fuck, maybe he had.

  “You would protect that…monster?”

  What part of he’d have to do things he didn’t want to do did she not understand? Before he could respond, the faintest echo of footsteps sounded down the hall, drawing closer… Aw hell... Locking down his emotions, he strode over to Olivia, scooped her up, and tossed her onto the center of the mattress. He followed her down, pinning her beneath his body and growled beside her ear, “I will do whatever it takes to stop that bastard. And if it means using you to do it, then so be it.”

  Olivia began to struggle under him, her emerald eyes growing wide with fright. “What are you doing? Get off of me!”

  He didn’t have time to explain that someone was coming, and if they weren’t wholly convinced he’d claimed her, she’d be considered open season—a fate far worse than enduring a few minutes of his attention.

  Since taking her home wasn’t an option right now, this was the best way to protect her. Not that she’d believe him, not that she should, it certainly was no hardship on his part to tussle with this female. If he scored a defensive mark or two in the process, then all the better. He was meeting with Gahn right after he was finished with her. If fact, those nearing footsteps were probably one of the bastard’s lackeys coming to collect him right now. He never had been one big on patience.

  Perhaps he should have taken the high road; the way she squirmed and thrashed beneath him, trying to dislodge his unyielding body, would coat him with her scent fair enough. But then again, he’d never claimed himself a saint, and the feel of her lithe body grinding against his, her panted breaths quickened by exertion, all drove him over the edge, shattering his self-control.

  “I’m saving your life,” he growled. Then, with a fierce hunger, he claimed her lips. His tongue swept past hers, tasting the delicious flavor that only belonged to her. She stilled beneath him whether, in shock or something else, he couldn’t know the reason. But his kiss most effectively tamed this shrew.

  Her body softened beneath his, yielding to his touch. He could feel the war waging inside her as she battled against partaking in his kiss—fight or surrender... For the first time since he’d dreamed of loving her, he prayed now wouldn’t be the time she’d choose to give in, because right now he fairly lacked the restraint to stop. To top it off, in the next thirty seconds, he’d bet his cock and balls, some asshole was going to be pounding on his door. But until then, he’d be damned if he wasn’t going to savor every second of his heart’s desire.

  He drank in her exhaled sigh, his name a plea as much as a curse spoken against his lips. “I hate you for this,” she whispered a moment before she crushed her mouth against his and kissed him back with a ferocity that bordered on savage.

  Fuck! Haden couldn’t holdback the hungry growl that swept through him as her little tongue swept past his lips and thrust against his—tasting, tangling, sucking... Wrestling her arms free, she dug her nails into his back. His muscles jumped and tensed beneath her touch as those crescent moon divots scored his flesh—a delicious ache between pain and pleasure.

  “Is this what you want?” she hissed with scorn, nipping his bottom lip. “To make a whore of me?”

  He could hear the anger and resentment burning in her lust-laden voice, and knew if he did not stop this now, she would indeed hate him for the rest of her life. But fuck if he could make himself care enough to stop. Her hands fisted into his hair and she jerked him closer, kissing him with reckless abandon that took his damn breath away. Bloody hell…

  The feral male inside him warred for release, clawing at his insides and shredding the last bit of his resolve. There was nothing gentle or loving in the way she touched him, it was purely raw and utterly hot—as if she could somehow punish him with her touch.

  A lesser male might have cowed to this woman’s passion, intimidated by the ferocity of need raging inside such a small feminine package. If she thought he wouldn’t meet her, toe-to-toe, in her bid for dominance, she was sorely mistaken. When a sharp pain stun
g his bottom lip, he let out a low-warning growl to take it easy. Haden shifted his weight over her and none-too-gently dug his jean-clad arousal against the soft flesh between her parted thighs. Olivia gasped—perhaps in pain, perhaps pleasure—maybe both… If she wanted to play rough, he’d show her rough.

  Her back arched, crushing her lush pebble-tipped breasts against his chest. The only barrier separating them was the thin cotton of his t-shirt. His fingers ached to tear the fabric free, the only thing that stayed his hand was the lingering awareness of someone standing outside his door. He couldn’t risk whoever it was busting in and feasting their eyes on the flesh Haden ached to touch, to taste, to devour…

  The knowledge they weren’t alone gave him the presence of mind to cling to his last scrap of control. He rocked his hips against her, purposely making the bed creak. Again, and again, he set a rhythmic cadence against her body that audibly mimicked the rutting he wished to hell he was giving her right now.

  Whoever was out there would have no doubt he’d claimed her, and that was the most important thing right now. The world-rocking pleasure of having her in his arms was an added bonus. He just prayed she didn’t unman him like some untried youth, coming in his jeans. With each thrust he grew closer and closer to losing himself in the scent of her, the feel of her...

  She nipped him again, and this time he tasted the coppery tang of his blood. The erotic shock sent a surge of pressure into the base of his spine and he nearly lost his seed. His guttural snarl morphed into a strangled groan as he bit her back. A startled gasp escaped her throat. He reveled in the hoarse cry resonating in his bones, sending a shockwave of pleasure straight into his shaft.

  He slipped his hand beneath her shirt and clasped her bare breast, trapping the peak ruthlessly in his grasp. Oh fuck… She felt amazing. Her beaded nipple seared the palm of his hand; her skin was soft as velvet. He’d sell his soul for a chance to taste her, to feel her tight wet sheath gripping him as he buried himself deep inside her.