“I... I’m good. I’ll take care of myself.”
My expression was filled with concern. Sweet Cole, heart on his sleeve, desperate to help her. And truthfully, she looked miserable. The poor thing was starving. Her eyes had purplish bruises forming beneath them, cheeks pale, skin lacking its usual luminous glow. Sheneededme.
“Merri, you and I both know that’s a lie.”
She visibly startled. “What?”
“You can’t give yourself what you need. Only I can do that.”
Her mouth dropped open. “H-how?—”
I was close enough now that I was able to reach out and place my finger against her lips. “I know what you are.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You’re a succubus.”
Her eyes were so wide I could see the white on the top and bottom. “How did you...”
“You know I’m good with research. I looked you up when you first started your page.”
“There’s no record of me. Especially not as a succubus. The humans don’t know we exist.”
I grinned. “Meredith Devereaux. Foster parents abandoned you after your boyfriend died from an aortic aneurysm when you were in high school. You disappeared after that, but it wasn’t hard to figure out the rest. Especially after I learned to identify what succubi deaths look like. The dark web isn’t all insidious and nefarious.”
She shook her head, at a total loss. So I pressed my advantage.
“Let me help you, Merri. I want to. I told you I’d take care of you.”
“No. You don’t know what you’re suggesting.”
“Yes, I do.” Sliding my fingers into the hair at the base of her skull, I drew her into me. “I know what you need. I know how to give it to you. You won’t hurt me.”
“I will, Cole. I will drain you dry.”
“I’m not Jimmy. I’m not a human.”
“You aren’t?” she asked, cocking her head. I could practically see the wheels turning in her mind as she tried unsuccessfully to figure out what I was.
“I’m Nephilim,” I breathed, my lips hovering just over hers. “Part angel.”
Technicallyallangel, but she wasn’t ready for all my secrets just yet.
“I’m not agoraphobic. I’m in hiding, same as you. They don’t want me to exist. If they could, they’d trap me in a cage for eternity.” Also not a lie.
“An angel?” she whispered.
Taking her hand, I pressed it against my chest. “In the flesh.”
“So I won’t be able to . . .”
“Suck my soul from my body and kill me in the throes of passion?”
Her gaze left mine and dropped to the floor. “Something like that.”
“You won’t. It would take a lot more than a succubus feeding to kill me.”
She huffed out a disbelieving laugh. “I’ve heard that line before.”
