Page 74 of Angel I Am Not

The name escaped before I had time to think better of it. “Asmodeus?”

His entire body reacted.

His pupils expanded until they nearly swallowed the green, and one hand flattened hard against the door behind him like he suddenly needed something solid to brace against. A dark horn began pushing through the twists near his temple while his tail appeared behind him and struck once against the tile.

“Well.” His voice had dropped several notes, rougher than it had been in the hallway. “That was rude.”

I swallowed, unable to stop watching the changes moving through him. “Deus?”

“Better.”

He pushed away from the door and crossed part of the space between us, slow enough that I could’ve moved if I wanted to. I didn’t. His attention had narrowed so completely onto me that I could almost feel it before he ever touched me.

“You know my full name.”

“Dante sent me.”

Deus stopped close enough that I could see the way his jaw tightened. “Of course he fucking did.”

“He’s been doing that a lot lately.”

“I’m going to kill him.”

The irritation in his voice was real, but it faded almost as quickly as it appeared. His eyes dropped to the water still clinging to my cheek, following one droplet as it slid toward my jaw before he slowly lifted his hand.

“Can I?”

I nodded. “Yes.”

His thumb touched my cheek, and heat flashed beneath my skin so quickly that I gasped.

Every nerve beneath his thumb seemed to wake at once, pleasure spreading along my jaw and down the side of my neck before sinking lower. My fingers tightened around the edge of the sink as the sensation moved through my chest and settled hot between my legs.

“What the fuck are you doing to me?”

Deus’s smile widened as his thumb traced slowly toward my mouth. “Touching you.”

I shook my head, my breathing already uneven. “That isn’t what touching normally feels like.”

He brushed his thumb over my lower lip, and my knees nearly gave out from something that should’ve been ridiculously simple. His gaze followed the movement with open fascination, as if the way my mouth reacted beneath his touch was something worth studying.

“Not when I do it.” He leaned closer, green eyes darkening again. “I’m Lust, Sweetness.”

His thumb pressed lightly against my mouth, and another rush of heat moved through me hard enough to pull a gasp from my throat.

“See?”

I stared at him, breathing unevenly. “Fuck.”

Deus smiled, but his attention never left my face. His other hand settled at my waist, and that same impossible heat spread beneath his palm while he stepped closer between my legs. His body crowded mine without forcing me back, and his tail curled slowly around my ankle, warm against my skin.

“I’m going to have a lot of fun overwhelming the shit out of you,” he murmured, his thumb still moving lazily along my lower lip. “But you need one word before I do.”

It took me a second to drag my attention away from where his hand rested against my waist. “What word?”

“Veyr.”

“What does that mean?”