“We’ll find another door,” Prudence said, looking at the cave wall where the bank of doors once stood. “Hell is chock full of doors into Heaven.”
“Yeah. Swift started a map.” He patted her back before sliding an arm around her waist. “We’ll find them. We’ll find them all.”
She took his hand and squeezed. “We’ll have to do it without Swift.”
“What?”
Patting his breast pocket for a pack of cigarettes that wasn’t there, Jack swore and then joined them.
“Not sure what happened. When you two fell to the floor, it was all we could do to keep your bodies alive and then to keep them from sweeping out the door. When I looked up, he was gone. So was Baalberith.”
Jesse’s heart broke anew. “We can’t leave him behind.”
“We’re not going to abandon him, son. But we can’t do it today. We’re all too weak, and Baalberith doesn’t need to rest—his wounds are minor for a demon. He’ll heal in no time.”
“Did you say we?” Prudence cocked an eyebrow at her father.
“I did. Everything changes. The First Ring is closed, and the council will be fit to spit shit when I tell ’em.”
“What do you think they’ll do?” Jesse asked.
“Hard to say, but I know the first thing I’m going to do.” He hitched up his pants and started walking. “I’m butting heads with that asshole Deschamps.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
Prudence hauled the last of the boxes from the bed of Jesse’s truck and dropped them in the living room of his cabin.
He read the side labeled with purple marker. “How many pairs of shoes do you own?” Opening the lid, he peered inside.
“Oh for heaven’s sake, there’s only two, maybe three boxes. Half of them are running shoes.”
“I’m only interested in the boxes without sneakers.” He held up a strappy sandal with five-inch heels. “Any chance you’ve got a pair of thigh-high black stockings and lacy bra to go with this?”
“Maybe. If I can find them in all of this.”
“Hmmm. I don’t think I can wait that long.” He backed her against the arm of the sofa and wrapped his arms around her. His freshly shaved face nuzzled her neck, and a little thrill shivered through her.
She almost protested. But his mouth caught hers in a kiss hot enough to melt iron ore, let alone rational thought. He grabbed her ass and advanced until the backs of her knees buckled around the rolled sofa arm. They bounced onto the old cushions, a less than springy spring jabbing her in the back. She should have rolled him off of her onto the floor. There was so much work to do. Not only moving in together but their presentation to the council in Paris.
He slid a hand under her T-shirt and drove all the way up over her rib cage to cop a feel. Her nipple hardened, and heat pooled invitingly between her legs. She moaned into his mouth, and he smiled so broad it broke the kiss.
“I don’t really need the shoes or fancy bra. How about we christen the sofa? Right now.”
“How about you close the door?”
Groaning, he nudged the bulge in his jeans into her hip. “Let the squirrels watch.” He kissed her neck and massaged her breast while his thumb toyed playfully with her pebbled nipple.
“You’ve been insatiable since the demon trace disappeared.” She worked his shirt up his muscular back onto his broad shoulders.
He didn’t reply, simply ripped the shirt off and straddled her.
“How are we going to work together and live together? You can be quite distracting.”
“Only when I want to be.” His chest rippled with muscles like a jungle cat. He unclipped the fastener of her shorts and slipped the zipper. “And right now I want to be distracting. In fact, while we’re off, I intend to distract you until you’re Jesse-crazy.”
“Already am.” Scooting up, she raised her hips so he could remove her shorts and panties all at once. “I suppose we could consider our little sessions as training. You know, practice at not being distracted.”
“Like preparing for the Passion Pit?” He stole the inside of the couch, trapping one of her legs between his, and laid along the full length of her. His hand stroked along her inner thigh short of her aching sex. “Works for me.”
She pushed her toe against the sofa arm and booted her ass into his erection. “If we’re preparing for the Passion Pit. I need more room than this sofa.” Sitting up, she slinked off the couch and stripped away her shirt as she strolled into the bedroom. “Follow me, sweetheart. We’re going to shock the fuzzy tails right off those squirrels.”
»»•««
“Whew!” Jesse snuggled his new roommate in the crook of his arm and then rolled onto his back, exhausted from what was definitely one of the most intense orgasms of his life.
She fingered his chest hair and smiled at him, looking smug and satisfied she’d rocked his world. “Ready to get back to work?” Her eyes shone the cleanest blue he’d ever seen. Heaven had washed away all traces of gray.
“Give a man a minute, will ya?”
But she couldn’t. Like him, her mind constantly returned to their missing friend and their new jobs organizing the search for the doors.
She propped up an elbow and stopped caressing. “What if we locate the scrolls and can’t decipher them? What if Deschamps finds a way to pull the funding, even though he’s banned? And what if Baalberith keeps Swift as his prisoner?”
“I don’t give a shit about Deschamps. We’ll find other money, I’m sure. But I’ve been grinding on the same thing about Swift. Despite all his secret spy antics, Swift’s savvy and smart. If Baalberith has him, and there’s no evidence to prove he has, that demon is still part angel. He won’t kill his own son.”
“And if Baalberith doesn’t have Swift?”
“Then I’m certain he’ll find a way to reach out to us. If not his bent sense of duty, his curiosity will lead him back. He’ll want to find the doors.”
“Niall promised to be on the lookout.” She nipped at her bottom lip, and he guessed what was coming next. “I let him down. He was so close to being reunited with Siobhan.”
“No one let anyone down. He chose to help. I’ll spend the rest of his time in Hell repaying him. I swear.” He rolled to his side and nudged her shoulder until she lay flat. “And they were reunited, if only for a little while.” Maneuvering until she was pinned under him, he balanced his weight on his elbows.
Her cheeks may have been flushed from their extended time in bed, but he knew the glow on her face came from inside. Despite Jack’s mentoring and Swift’s friendship, despite his amazing success as a Hell Runner, he’d never experienced love.
Not until Prudence. He loved her completely and irreversibly.
The afternoon sun blazed through his bedroom window, brightening his plain room with light and life, the same way she had when she finagled her way into his heart.
He wiped the stray hairs out of her face and then kissed the tip of her nose. “But I now know what the shade sacrificed. Not taking full advantage of this gift would be a sin.”
She kissed his chin. “I think we’ve made a pretty good start.”
“No, we haven’t. We’re not the kind of people to do anything half-assed. And nothing is worth doing unless you give all of yourself.”
“What exactly do you want?” She reached under her head to plump the pillow.
“Marry me.”
She cocked an eyebrow. “Was that a question or a demand?”
“Neither. And don’t cop an attitude or play hard to get because I don’t have a ring. I’m no good at shopping. You pick it out. I’ll pay for it.” He kissed her lightly on the lips. “It’s simple. I love you. Marry me.” Kissing her again, he didn’t doubt her answer, but he wanted to hear it anyway.
Prudence broke their kiss with a hand against his chest and scooted to sit upright. “Well, before I consent, I think we should talk conditions.”
She rested her head against the wrought iron headboard and cross
ed her arms over her chest. He might have worried for a second, but her luscious lips gave her away. Curving them into a smile, she regarded him with twinkling eyes. “All relationships are conditional, you know.”
“Conditions? We have this cool cabin, a big bed, and the hottest sex this side of anywhere.” He cradled her face between both of his hands. “What more could you want?”
Her wide blue eyes crinkled at the corners as she slid a hand around the back of his neck. “Shave at least once a month.” She pinched his scruff-free chin between her thumb and forefinger. “You have a handsome face, and I want to see it sometimes.”
“That’s fair. I wouldn’t deprive you of my hotness. Anything else?”
“Dump the ice trays into the bin. Don’t pick out a couple of cubes and put it back half empty.”
“Hm. My lazy side is protesting. If I buy a new fridge with an icemaker will that count?”
“All right.” She rolled her eyes. “And—no more secrets.”
He crossed his heart. “Absolutely.”
“And no more rules.”
“None from me. Is that a yes?”
“Yes.” She leaned close, hovering her lips a fraction from his. “Still got one more condition.”
“One more?” He narrowed his eyes at her, but they flamed with love.
“Promise me, that forever and always—” she nipped his lower lip with a sweet kiss— “I’ll be your partner and…your princess.”
About the Author
Thanks to about a thousand gothic romances and creepy TV shows, Jacqueline Jayne prepared as a girl for writing paranormal romance. Raised in a small Maryland farm town, she dreamed of seeing the worlds she read about, but never dreamed she’d see. Fate intervened. She met and married the love-of-her-life, a big-city boy with itchy feet, who whisked her away on many adventures across the U.S. and the U.K. They’ve since settled down in the PA suburbs where she writes and prepares tax returns.
If you enjoyed this book, this author has other works available here:
Author's Web Site
Hartwood Publishing delights in introducing authors and stories that open eyes, encourage thought, and resonate in the hearts of our readers.
Table of Contents
Rule Breakers, Soul Takers by Jacqueline Jayne
Dedication
Author Notes
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
About the Author
If you enjoyed this book, this author has other works available here:
Hartwood Publishing delights in introducing authors and stories that open eyes, encourage thought, and resonate in the hearts of our readers.
Rule Breakers, Soul Takers (Hell Runners Book 1) Page 36
