The angel cleared his throat. "Yeah." Abruptly, he reached out and put his hand on her knee. "Hey, hey ... you need to stop thinking about all that. That's not your biz."
"If Jim felt that way, I'd still be in Hell."
"Doesn't mean you have to be a hero up here." He took out another cookie. "Or down there."
Sissy was quiet a long time. And then she heard herself say, "She hurt him."
"Excuse me?"
"I saw Jim ..." It was so hard to put it into words, and she didn't know why she was bringing it up now. "She hurt him. Her ... people hurt him. Bad."
When Adrian didn't reply, she glanced up. His face was set in stone, no expression to be found within the composite of his features. And that was when she knew ... he'd had the same abuse done to him.
"Sissy, do me a favor?"
"What?"
"Don't tell him you saw that, okay? It'll kill him."
"That woman needs to be stopped," Sissy said darkly.
"That's what Jim's trying to do."
Sissy was silent for a time. "There's another thing I've been wondering. How did he get me out?"
"He traded a win for you."
As those simple words sunk in, Sissy felt her head go a little fuzzy. "I'm sorry ... he did what?"
As Duke traced Cait's blond hair with his eyes, a feeling of dread hit him hard. You don't suppose ... oh, come on, there was no reason to be paranoid.
"I thought it was natural," he heard himself say.
"You don't like brunettes?"
"Ah, no, that's not it." He shook his head, thinking, Enough with that psychic. "The blond looks good on you."
"Thanks."
As she picked up her fork and started to eat once more, he tried to forget Yasemin Oaks' warning, the strange men sitting shotgun with him, the sense of foreboding that was killing his otherwise healthy appetite. He should be talking to Cait, pulling a little uncomplicated chatter out of his ass, pretending that he was focused on normal things...
"God, this is so awkward again," she said. But then she looked up in a flash, as if she hadn't meant to speak out loud. "I'm sorry--I didn't mean--"
"No, I know what you're saying." He pushed his hand through his hair. "I just ... I want you to know that no matter what happens ... I want to be here. With you."
He held her stare with his own, and was surprised to find that regardless of the intentions he'd started out with? That was the God's honest. Sitting in this neat little kitchen, in her neat little house, eating her perfectly cooked lasagna? There was nowhere else he'd rather be--and not because he was making a revenge fantasy real.
And for some crazy fucking reason, he seemed to want her to know that.
He broke the eye contact first. "I haven't ..." He cleared his throat forcefully, and thought that he really should shut the hell up. "I don't feel things anymore, you know? I don't ... well, I haven't had emotions like this in forever."
"Emotions like what?" she whispered.
Duke rubbed the center of his chest, and skirted the question. "You want to know the irony? I was going to be a cardiologist. I was always fascinated by hearts, how they work, why they work. Didn't get that far, of course. But that was my plan."
"What really happened?" She reached over and put her hand on his forearm. "You can tell me."
Well, my brother found out that I was in love with a woman, and he seduced her and left her pregnant ... and it fucked with my head so bad, I've never gotten over it. Especially because I knew him all along--I knew what he was capable of. And I've been waiting for years to get back at him ...
Duke looked across the table at Cait, and finished the thought: You were the way I was going to do it.
For the longest time, he'd been watching G.B. from a distance, checking up on him from the sidelines, monitoring that career of his. And his fraternal twin had proven to have nothing in common with Duke, except for one thing--he never, ever dated anybody seriously. There had been casual hooks, yeah. Things that happened in bars or clubs or behind the scenes. But the bastard had never once invited a woman to see him sing or perform, a specific woman, a woman who was a quality female like this one.
Duke had known the instant Cait had shown up at the Palace Theatre why she was there--G.B.'s fans always came in pairs, besties doubling or tripling up to ogle him and hear him spout shit that was the polar opposite of the person he really was.
Cait, on the other hand, had been there alone, and sure enough, there to meet up with him at his request.
She'd had to be someone special to him to break G.B.'s pattern, and it was not a surprise that both he and his brother were attracted to her--hell, any man with half a brain would be. So Duke had known instantly what to do--yeah, sure, it wouldn't be even close to what had been done to him, but then, G.B. had always had a much, much thinner skin.
Less was required to have the same effect--
Abruptly, Duke started shaking his head, and before he knew what he was doing, he got to his feet. "I have to go. I'm sorry ... I can't stay."
As Cait blanched, he knew he really had to leave. She deserved so much better than all this--even though she wanted him, too, his motives hadn't been clean at the beginning, and for some reason, that seemed to taint everything about his presence here tonight.
"I--"
He cut her off. "This is just a bad idea. I came here for--shit, nothing that you're going to want or merit."
She looked at the dinner she'd so carefully prepared for them--and he felt worse than he had in a very, very long time.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I really am."
As she put her napkin down and got out of her chair, she straightened the pretty dress she had put on for him. "Okay. And things are awkward, I know. I just..."
"It's not you--"
"Oh, my God, that line." She actually smiled a little. "I never thought it would be used on me."
Duke stepped into her and touched her face. Goddamn, she was so lovely, and as he paused to soak everything in, he knew he was doing the right thing. The beef with his brother was nasty, evil stuff, and nothing this woman needed to get sucked into--he was still going to take his losses out of that asshole's hide; he was just going to find another way.
Duke dropped his arm. "I don't want this to end."
She frowned. "It doesn't have to."
"Yes, it does."
Cait took hold of his hands. "Listen, I know you say you're not good at relationships--and I get that. But I'm willing to give it time if you are."
"Cait--"
"I'm serious. I'm no better at this than you. I haven't even been on a date in years. After Thom left me for someone else, I've just been working and doing all the 'right' things. I've also been living half a life. I got a wake-up call about six months ago, and I just decided I had to stop putting things off, I had to get out there. I think you're the same."
"You don't know me."
"So give me a chance to. I'm not going to beg you to stay--that's up to you. What I am saying is that I'd like the chance to find out where this is going. If that's not something you're comfortable with, then you know where the door is--but I think you're making a huge mistake."
In the tense silence that followed, Duke was astonished to find himself agreeing with her--even though it was probably a bad idea. As much as he hated to admit it, she had woken him up, and he didn't want to go back to the shadows--but at the same time? The stakes were high.
He'd already lived through a loss like this once...
And then he realized, the solution to everything might be easier and more honest than he thought.
Taking Cait's face in his hands, he tilted her head back and stared into her eyes.
"Are you seeing anyone else?" he demanded.
The answer to that question was the only thing that mattered tonight.
Chapter
Forty-four
As Cait looked up at Duke, she was astounded at how still he had become, as if her answer was the only thing in the world that mattered
to him. And right now, that vulnerability was the most attractive thing about him.
It was also what made her mind up once and for all. G.B. was a wonderful man, a truly sensitive and kind soul--and she enjoyed his company. But it was not anything close to what she felt with Duke, and she has to fully commit to whatever relationship they had together or there was no chance of things going anywhere.
Live now. Take a chance.
Safety was only a step away from suffocation.
"No, I'm not seeing anybody," she answered him. "You're the only one I'm interested in--"
At that moment, her cell phone began to ring by her purse, the vibration rattling it across the counter.
"That's good," Duke said roughly. "That's what I want. Oh, God, that's what I need--"
His lips found hers, crushing her mouth as strong arms tightened around her. His body was exactly as she remembered it, rock-hard and dominating, and as she fit her curves to his power, her breasts felt heavy and a burn lit up in her core.
This was what they both needed.
When he finally lifted his head, he said in a voice full of gravel, "I want you on a bed. Now."
Cait nodded and took his hand, leading him through the living room and up the shallow stairs. As they ascended, he filled the stairwell just as he had her office--and the same was true when they got into her bedroom. Everything seemed to shrink in, the walls and the ceiling pulling closer together.
But she didn't have a lot of time to think about that.
They came together without words, bodies meeting by her bed, her dress and hose disappearing fast to the floor. Before she knew it, Duke had stretched her out in her bra and panties and was covering her with his weight just as she wanted him to. As he kissed her some more, her hands dug into his hair and she writhed under him ... especially as he slowly worked his way down to her breasts, his mouth lingering on her skin as if he liked the taste of her. With quick finesse, the front release of her bra was triggered, the cups slipping free of her sensitive breasts, his broad palms replacing them for a moment.
And then he found her nipples with his lips.
As he licked and sucked at her, one of his hands kept going, drifting over her hip to her upper thigh, moving in between her legs--
Arching up against his mouth, she felt the first stabbing precursor of an orgasm blow through her sex, and he must have known it, because he groaned in response.
"I gotta get you naked," he growled, rising up as he hooked his thumbs on the fragile side strings of her panties.
Watching him pull them off her made her feel voluptuous even though she really wasn't--
"Oh, yeah," he groaned, his eyes glowing with heat as the last bit of her body was exposed to him.
Focusing on her core, he licked his mouth in anticipation.
"Let me see you," he said as he parted her legs.
Before he went down on her, though, she stopped him. Sitting up, she put a hand on his chest. "Wait, wait--fair is fair. I get you unclothed, too."
With hands that shook from impatience, she yanked the bottom of his muscle shirt out of his waistband and dragged the thing up his--
Holy ... crap. First time she had seen this real estate up close and naked--and boy was it worth the eye-time. His torso might as well have been carved, the muscles bulging at his pecs and flexing across his abdomen. There was no fat on him, and no hair to obscure the incredible expanse.
"You are ... unbelievable," she said.
"Enough about me." He bent down to kiss her neck. "Now, where was I--"
"Nope." She held him off again. "Too many pants left on you."
Shifting the dynamic, she assumed the job of directing things by tugging on his arm, urging him to lie flat. But, as strong as he was, he wasn't going horizontal on the bed unless he decided to--
Well, what do you know, he accepted her lead, angling down and putting his head on her pillows, his long length dangling his boots off the foot of the bed. He took care of those combats himself, bringing each leg up, hands ripping the laces free. And as soon as he'd kicked them off onto the carpet, she took over, straddling his thighs, going for that button fly.
His half-lidded eyes stared up at her as she released his incredible arousal. "You sure you want to waste time getting those jeans off?" he drawled.
He had a point. She could do what she wanted with him just like this.
Slipping her hands onto his erection, she relished the way he torqued, that incredible body contracting all over, his white teeth clamping down on his lower lip as he hissed in a lungful of air.
Standing his arousal up, she led with her tongue, drawing a circle over the blunt head. And then she sucked him in, filling her mouth with all that erection. Now it was his hands tightening in her hair, his hips rolling upward as his head arched back, his breathing getting labored.
"Oh, fuuuuuuuuuuck..."
There was something totally intoxicating about having him undone, thanks to what she was doing to his sex. And that was even before she found a rhythm with her hands and her lips.
"Oh, Jesus--fuck..."
Without warning, he shot upright, dragging her off of him. His hands were rough as he tilted her face and took her mouth with a hot, hungry kiss.
"You're going to be the death of me," he said.
"Why? Because I like the way you feel in my mouth--"
That growl came back, vibrating against her lips as he flipped her onto her back and mounted her.
"Drawer," she said, reaching out to her bedside table.
He was quick and efficient with the condom, and then he was between her legs, making room for himself. As he angled his arousal against her, he slowed down and looked in her eyes.
And that was when she feared ... she could fall in love with him.
Downstairs, directly below the pair of frickin' lovebirds, Jim was sitting on the living room couch, his legs stretched out, his arms crossed over his chest, his lids low--but not because he was tired.
Duke had not given shit up during the day ... and except for a roommate who appeared to have a pot problem, and this nice woman he was taking care of upstairs? There didn't seem to be anything dramatic going on with the guy.
Further, Devina wasn't lurking around this house. No minions, either.
And Adrian had just texted to let him know that Sissy was reading in her bed, and the angel was counting the lint in his navel.
Too quiet. Waaaaay too quiet, considering they were what, seventy-two hours into this round? Or had it been four days? He didn't fucking know.
Frankly, he could have used a good fight. Maybe something with a lot of hand-to-hand.
He hated having time to think--with every blink of his eyes, he saw Nigel on that chaise longue, that silver blood everywhere, those eyes staring up sightless of whatever happened to be above Heaven. And then there was Colin.
Jim knew what that white rage felt like--and looked like. Adrian had felt it, too, when Eddie had been killed. Jim himself had known it after his mother had been taken from him.
Less stability was exactly what they did not need--
Sitting up, he twisted around to the front door.
"Speak of the devil," he muttered as he got up and walked through the locked panels.
Devina was standing out on the lawn, right underneath the streetlamp, the glow around her an unholy one, rather than anything thrown by that light. She was dressed in skintight black jeans and a tight black top that was low-cut enough to flash the lacy cups of her bloodred bra--no coat to warm her against the chill, but then, she was a reptile like that. As usual, her heels were tall enough to make it look like she was standing on her tiptoes, and her hair was all curled around her shoulders.
So yup, SOP all around. Except there was one thing that was completely and totally off: no bravado. No swagger. No anger. She was as quiet and still as a dagger left on a table.
"Out for a stroll," he said dryly.
"You got anything you want to tell me?"
&n
bsp; "How much time you got."
Down at the end of the street, a car turned in, its headlights flashing brightly on the approach. Neither one of them was visible to the human eye, though, so there was no slowdown, no gawking at the bombshell "woman" in the pool of illumination.
Luckily for the contingency of humans, they just sped right by, getting out of range.
"Nothing?" she prompted.
Jim narrowed his eyes. "Not that you'd want to hear."
"I know about Nigel."
No reaction. He refused to show any reaction at all. Maybe the Maker had told her? "Do you."
"That puts them at a disadvantage, you know." She waited as if expecting something, anything to come back at her. "They're vulnerable."
"'They' as in who?"
"Don't be a fucking asshole, Jim."
He shrugged, but she did have a point. The pair of them were kind of beyond any coy routine. "And you're telling me this because...?"
"I thought you'd want to know. Assuming you don't already."
"No offense, Devina, but I find it impossible to believe you're trying to help me."
"Everything's changed now."
"Because Nigel bit it? I'm not sure he's that important, frankly--but the point's moot."
She shook her head. "You don't get it, Jim. You're the one they're going to have replace him."
Years of training and experience were the only reason his expression didn't change. But shit, that had certainly never dawned on him.
"Not in my job description," he drawled, like he didn't give a shit.
"Wait for it. Whether or not you win the war--"
"When I win it--"
"That's your future now, Jim, and you're not going to have a choice. You're going to be conscripted."
"Oh, come on, Devina, you're so full of shit--"
"How do you think those four got their jobs? You think they were born up there? Don't be naive, Jim. Your fate's been sealed."
He stared at her for a long time, connecting the dots and not liking the map that came into focus. "And you're telling me this why?"
Even though he knew. He just wanted to see if she'd admit it.
Devina's voice was the most level he'd ever heard it: "You need to think long and hard about where you're at. You're going to be in a jail for eternity. You're going to be Nigel."
"And you really think I'm going to believe you. About anything."
It was satisfying to see her wince as the barb hit home. "I knew you were going to say that," she whispered thinly. Except then she seemed to recover. "But that doesn't change what is fact.There is a way out, however."