“They had no problem watching me fall. They’re no brothers of mine.”
His mouth forms a tight line. “I’ll be right by your side. I won’t let them touch you, Tori.”
“Who? The angels or the demons? Since apparently they’re all coming for me.”
“Both,” he stresses. “But the angels aren’t coming here for you.”
“No shit. We both know they’ve slammed their gate on me.”
“That’s in the past. It’s you and me now.”
I let Zeke’s words fall over me, cocooning me with his promise of protection. I’ll never understand why he’s so hell-bent on defending me, but I’m not going to look a gift horse in the mouth.
“Tori… I want to talk to you about something, but you’re not gonna like it.” My arms cross over my chest, already geared up for another fight. Zeke groans. “Just hear me out before you go getting moody.”
My hand flutters in the air, signaling for him to proceed.
“With the arrival of the new demons and their working with the witches, we’re going to need all the help we can get.”
“What are you proposing?”
“Blaine and his group.”
“No.”
“Tori, see reason.” Zeke grunts. “They are good hunters.”
“They’re weak and slow. Things have progressed beyond their capabilities. It’ll only get them killed.”
“Can’t you feel it, Tori? Something has shifted. They can join the fight, and die helping the cause, or they can be sitting ducks with the rest of the human population and die anyway. At least in my scenario, they leave this earth as heroes in their own right.”
His hand darts out, moving a piece of my long blond hair behind my ears. I nuzzle into his palm, needing the comfort that Zeke offers in that simple touch.
“What will Michael and his minions think about that?” I purse my lips.
“I don’t give two fucks, T. They abandoned us here to make do in our new circumstances. If we join forces with a group of mortals to rid the world of demons, what are they going to do about it?”
“End us and your human friends?”
“Then I guess you get to leave Earth sooner than you thought.”
I scoot to the end of the bed, coming to sit up on my knees. Running my hand down Zeke’s arm, I lean in and say, “I was just starting to like my circumstances.”
His lip quirks into a sexy-as-sin smirk. “Is that so?”
I nod my head, smiling flirtatiously up into Zeke’s big blue eyes that match the color of my own. “In fact, I think we could find something to do to tip the scales even more in Earth’s favor.”
His brow quirks. “Do tell.”
I place a kiss on his lips, lean into his right ear, and whisper some salacious ideas. Zeke doesn’t waste another second, lowering me to the bed and trailing his kisses south. Right where I want him.
An hour later, we’re dressing and heading downstairs to set up a makeshift training facility. If we’re going to get Blaine’s crew involved, we need to determine just what they’re capable of. They know about demons and it’s time they learn that there are other supernatural beings roaming Earth. Only then can they have any hope of being useful in the coming fight. That’s a conversation for another day. Getting prepared is the current goal.
“I’m starving,” Zeke says, after what’s likely been four hours of back-breaking labor, trying to get this place in shape. “Wanna go grab dinner?”
“Not exactly. Why don’t we do a night in?” I waggle my brows suggestively.
“What, pray tell, do you have in mind?”
