A wispy tendril of smoke curled up from Killian’s shirt, and he swore and yanked off the burnt, stained, and torn material. In the bathroom mirror, he stared in wonder at the markings across his chest. No longer simply lines and whorls, they’d taken shape—a shape Killian recognized. Angel wings.
Killian traced shaking fingers over the design. They were nearly complete. Thick lines arced from his sternum all the way along his collarbones. The feathers bore reddish hues, and as he inhaled deeply, they almost seemed to move—just as Maddox’s feathers had done when he’d extended his wings.
Fuck. He understood now. Maddox was his curse. The Divine had given him a second chance, but Thea had taken it from him—from both of them. Because there was no way Maddox would ever accept him. Not after what he’d done. And with how badly Delphine wanted what Maddox had stolen, the angel’s life—his earthen life—was forfeit.
He had to convince Maddox to go back to the celestial realm. It was the only place he’d be safe.
Turning on the shower, Killian stripped, tossing all of his clothes into the trash. As worried as he was about Delphine and Jezebel tracking them down, he needed a few minutes to think. To figure out how to drive Maddox away without destroying the angel—or himself—in the process. The hot water ran down his back, easing the tension in his muscles, and for a moment, he let himself remember kissing Maddox. How good he’d felt held in the angel’s embrace as they’d flown over the city.
He’d been terrified. Contrary to all the stories that involved brooms, most witches didn’t actually fly. But with Mad…the terror had quickly faded.
“Killian.” Maddox stepped into the shower, wrapping his strong arms around Killian’s waist from behind.
“Don’t.”
“Don’t what?” The angel’s cock pressed against Killian’s arse, and his hands traveled up to the wings branded across his chest. “Don’t touch you? Don’t comfort you?”
“None of it.” Killian pulled away, wiping the water off his forehead and slicking back his hair. “I don’t deserve—”
“What do you know about angels, Killian?” Maddox turned him, cupped his cheeks, and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips.
“Nothing, it seems.”
A bottle of body wash sat on a little shelf in the corner, and Maddox spilled some into his hands, then started massaging Killian’s shoulders and back. “I’m a lesser angel. All of us are, other than the archangels. I don’t have power over life and death. I can’t cure disease, can’t take away pain.”
His strong fingers worked a particularly tight knot at the base of Killian’s neck, and Killian groaned. “I beg to differ. You’re doing a bloody good job of that at the moment.”
Maddox’s chuckle settled Killian in a way he hadn’t known he needed, and he relaxed as the angel’s hands traveled lower, down, over his ribs, to his obliques, carefully avoiding the now sodden bandage on his side.
“We can fly, of course. Those of us who have earned our wings. We have a small bit of glamour. You might call it…a perception filter of sorts. It’s what allowed me to sneak into Magnolia House without being seen.”
Now, his fingers cupped Killian’s arse, and his voice lowered as he pressed closer. “We have one more ability.”
“If you’re going to tell me you have a magical willy, be prepared to prove it.” Killian’s own cock stood at attention, and he ached to bury himself deep inside the angel, but he didn’t deserve even this much closeness, let alone more.
“Well, to be honest, I don’t know. I’ve never…”
“Never?” Killian angled his head to catch Maddox’s gaze over his shoulder. “You’re…beyond fit.”
“Fit?”
Killian almost laughed. “Sorry. It’s a phrase where I come from. Means…hot. Handsome. Fuckable.”
“Oh.” Maddox curled one arm around Killian’s waist and rested his cheek on Killian’s shoulder. “Fit. I like that.”
Get over yourself, Killian. Of course he’s a virgin. He’s a bloody angel. And he’s certainly not going to come down to earth to fuck you.
“I want you, Killian,” Maddox whispered in his ear. “That last ability? We can sense emotions. Human emotions. Joy, sorrow, regret, fear…all of them. Including need. And arousal.”
Thick fingers wrapped around Killian’s cock, and Maddox angled them so the water sluiced down their joined bodies, providing just enough lubrication for him to start stroking slowly, up and down Killian’s shaft. He rubbed his thumb over the crown, and Killian shuddered.
“I killed—”
“I know, baby. And you need to tell me all of it. But I used my gifts to sense your feelings at the cafe, and I know…I know you’re a good person. One who’d never kill on purpose. It was an accident, yes? You lost control of your magic?”
He was still gripping Killian’s arousal, his movements slow and controlled, and Killian groaned, “Yes.”
With his free hand, Maddox traced the lines across Killian’s chest. “I may not be able to work miracles, but I know a sign when I see one. This is a sign. A beautiful, perfect sign.” Quickening his strokes, Maddox closed his teeth over the shell of Killian’s ear, and pleasure shot through him, all the way down to his balls.
