He was surprised when Lucifer stumbled, then halted.
“We have a connection, Gabe. I’ve been exploring it, but I don’t quite understand it yet,” Luc confessed.
Connection could mean anything from a friend bond to romantic feelings to a mental link, but her ability to touch the untouchable was baffling. “What sort?”
“I can read her thoughts, and I imagine if she tried hard enough, she could read mine in turn.” Luc hesitated as if deciding what else he wished to impart. “Added to the puzzling fact that she can touch me,” he said.
A ball of worry formed in Gabriel’s stomach, and he had the overwhelming urge to whisk Nadia away to hide. Was this the paternal feeling human fathers felt for their children? He couldn’t say, having never procreated before.
“We aren’t prolific breeders. Not without divine intervention,” he said musingly. “How is it she came to be?”
“Perhaps it was the pure act of love between you and Adalyn,” Lucifer suggested. “Mother once said, on rare occasions, a child can be created in love.” Shaking his head to dislodge the memory, he continued toward Nadia’s building. “How do you feel knowing she is your offspring?”
“I haven’t quite processed it yet. But I do know one thing.” Gabriel waited for Luc’s questioning glance to meet his. “You will not mate with my daughter. I expressly forbid it.”
Lucifer’s laughter followed him as Gabriel quickened his pace to find Nadia. The bastard’s arrogance unnerved him.
But he wasn’t wrong.
She already had a target on her back, and any deeper bond between them would have more than Michael gunning for her. Heaven forbid she caught the Creator’s notice.
They were all royally fucked if that happened.
“Damn him!” Michael’s shout rattled the hotel room walls. He paced in his fury, and Raphael wanted to tell him to calm the fuck down. But one didn’t dare stop his brother mid-rant. “How did no one know of this development? We have spies living throughout their complex, yet not one of them reported that Lucifer’s touch wouldn’t burn her alive.”
Raphael remained silent. Over time, he’d found the best solution for Michael’s temper was to let it play out without fanning the flames.
“You’ve had plenty of time to seduce her to our side. How could you fail in your duty?” his brother demanded.
Shaking his head, Raphael pulled on a clean shirt. “I haven’t been able to get close to her. After today, it would take a millennium to seduce Nadia. She has no interest in anyone but Lucifer.”
Michael drew up short and glared. “What do you mean?”
“You should’ve been able to clearly see her preference for him.”
“I did, but when has that ever stopped you?”
Raphael scowled.
Because of his stunningly handsome face and abundance of charm, he was always selected for these missions. Not that he’d ever complained prior to today, but being used as a man-whore was degrading.
“It hasn’t stopped me. I take my work seriously, brother. But this woman isn’t susceptible to an archangel’s spell.” He’d tried to sway her with his magic, but she’d frowned and run away. More than once. And wasn’t that humbling?
“Do you suppose it is the celestial part of her makeup?” Michael asked.
“Perhaps. It’s possible her angel and daemon DNA are stronger than the human part. Who can say?” Raphael shrugged. He’d never been unable to influence another.
“I imagine he’s taken her back to his lair. I cannot get a read as to her location.”
Michael was grim, and Raphael could understand why.
His brother would be required to report back to the Creator, and he hated to fail as much as their father hated failure from his children. Lucifer had paid the ultimate price for displeasing him. Now, the majority of their kind hated Luc. Because of him, they all had to strive harder for approval and acceptance.
But Raphael didn’t blame him for rebelling. Living up to the Creator’s expectations was difficult at best. Contrary to popular belief, angels were no more perfect than humans. Although they were the original creations, their kind were subject to emotions such as love, hate, envy, greed, and jealousy, as well as pridefulness, every bit as much as Father’s second creation, mankind.
Raphael directed a wry look at his brother.
Michael cornered the market on prideful and stubborn.
