“You made it in time, Ramel. They weren’t able to steal my magic.”
I pulled away, looking down at her in disbelief. “They crucified you on a cross, Lilith. Rafaelraped you.I would hardly call that ‘getting there in time.’”
She shrugged. “I rotted his dick off for what he did, and honestly, I would go through it all again if it ended with the same result. We’re together. We’re home. Shemhazai, you, me, and I guess now Gabe… We’re all okay.” Her gaze darkened. “Iwish we could have Jezebel here too, but she would be happy we won. I know she would.”
“Of course she would,” I murmured, brushing a lock of butterscotch hair out of her little round face. “I still feel like I failed you,” I whispered, and she smiled up at me, the curve of her lips so devastatingly beautiful that I felt like she could stop the very world from turning.
“You didn’t fail me, Ramel.” She stroked the side of my face. “You promised me forever, and you kept your promise. You’re still here.”
“I’ll always fucking be here,” I vowed fiercely. Threading my fingers into her hair, I gripped her tightly. She gasped, and I could hear her heartbeat speed up. My gaze dropped to the pulse in her throat, and my mouth watered. She didn’t miss the way I licked my lips, and she smiled.
“Is my Nightmare thirsty?” she whispered. I glanced up at her, barely daring to breathe.
“You don’t mind that I now seem to crave your… blood?” I asked, unsure why I was surprised. She wiggled closer to me, the heat of her body sending a shiver of pleasure down my spine.
“It felt good when you bit me,” she admitted, her voice growing hoarse with the memory. I smiled at her. “Mmmm. Is that so?”
She nodded urgently, and I lowered my lips to her throat, shuddering at the feel of her pulse against my lips.
Fuck. It would feel so good to just…
The bedroom door slammed open, and Shemhazai strolled in. I jerked away from Lilith and glared at him for interrupting. He gave me a sly grin—the type of grin that I had come to learn meant he had an evil, disgusting idea, and I would likely enjoy whatever it was he was planning.
“Get up, both of you. Gabriel has made it clear that he is owed his pound of flesh, and he insists he will not wait another moment.”
Gabriel was behind him, glowering and angry, but he crossed his arms over his chest defiantly, still gripping the golden scepter in his right hand. His black wings were held tight to his back, his glossy feathers gleaming in the green light of the fire.
“You promised me. Don’t make it sound like I’m asking for more than what I’m owed.”
Lilith cocked her head to the side, confused. “What is it, exactly, that he’s owed?”
Shem grinned at her. “We promised if he helped us overthrow Yahweh, you would turn him into a demon, and he would sit on the Watcher’s Council.”
Lilith’s eyes widened briefly in surprise, but the look of shock quickly spread into a warm smile.
“Of course I’ll change you, Gabe. You didn’t need to make a deal with these two assholes for that. You only needed to ask.” She got out of bed, and I was unable to suppress the animalistic growl that erupted from my chest as she moved awayfrom me. My canines throbbed with an unfamiliar pain. I had beenso closeto sinking my teeth into that beautiful throat filled with blood so good that my eyes rolled back into my head. I shot out of the bed after her, wrapping my arms around her waist and slamming her back into my hips.
“Don’t you walk away from me, deathtrap,” I growled against her ear, feeling my pupils dilate as she shuddered beneath me.
“I’m not walking away, I’m just going to change Gabe, and then we can pick up where we left off,” she assured me, and I ground against her from behind. The growl in my chest intensified despite her attempt at placating me.
Gabriel was staring at Lilith like he was trying to figure her out, and Hazai looked absolutely fiendish.
“A couple things first.” Hazai glanced back at Gabriel, a mischievous smirk on his lips. “It’s true; we owe him for helping us, but Hecate had given me a clue on how to find her, and because of hisimpatience,I have lost sight of my prey.”
Gabriel rolled his eyes. “Whatever, Shemhazai. Like you won’t be able to still track her down.”
Hazai snarled and wrapped his hand around Gabriel’s throat. His grip was so tight the angel’s face reddened.
“As much as I appreciate your confidence in my hunting skills, Hecate has proven to be…especiallydifficult to track. She is gone now until shedeignsto give me another clue, and it isentirelyyour fault.”
Gabriel narrowed his eyes at the cat demon but said nothing. After another moment of intense eye contact, Hazai let go of the angel and turned back to Lilith.
“You will turn him, but he will be mine. For his punishment, he will serveme.He’smy pet.And you will change him into whatever I tell you. Is that clear?”
A rush of excitement rolled through me at Hazai’s tone. I pulled back from Lilith so I could see the look on her face. That was the first time he had used that tone with her since she had gotten her memories back. I was interested to see if she would make good on her threat to use her newfound powers to put a stop to our controlling ways.
She scoffed. “And what if I don’t?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest, mirroring Gabe’s stance. Hazai looked at me, the evil smile on his face widening before his gaze snapped back to Lilith’s.
