There was this sensation deep inside me, connecting us on a molecular level. Our breathing moved in time. Our hearts beat as one. I wondered if he felt what I did—tranquility. “What does it feel like?” I asked, outlining his new markings with my fingertip. Our symbols mirrored one another down to the tiniest detail. I could not find a single flaw.
His fingers combed through my long hair, detangling the knots. “It’s weird, sort of as if my mark is singing. I’ve never felt like this—complete. There is a quietness inside me—peacefulness.”
My heart faltered. I was so happy I could weep. “I feel it, too.” Actually I felt like a freaking rock star.
He turned, a sheet loosely lying over his waist, and we faced each other side by side. “That pull to the darkness is gone. I don’t feel the raging beast. He is still in there, but we don’t feel separated, tugging each other in opposite directions. It’s as if he is finally part of me. The struggle is gone. I’ve never felt such freedom, and it’s all because of you.”
I couldn’t believe what he was saying. Okay yeah, that part about me being an amazing girlfriend—totally believable. But the other stuff…it sounded very similar to the deal Alastair had tried to bribe me with. And to think I had seriously considered it, trading my life here for one in the underworld. “Alastair said—” I stopped myself, quickly realizing my blunder. We hadn’t gotten to the goods about my one-on-one session with the Lord of Hades.
Silver eyes turned to steel, fixing on me. “What did he say, Angel?”
I needed to sew my mouth shut. Instantly, I wanted to white out those last words, pretend they hadn’t been spoken. I knew he was going to be upset. Upset might be an understatement. The last thing I wanted was to ruin a perfect, undisturbed evening, but the damage was already done. I buried my head in the pillow. “It was really nothing. Not even worth mentioning. I don’t know why I thought about it.”
“Angel!” he barked.
I lifted my head and seared him with a dry look, and then I plucked a hair off his chest. “Don’t growl at me,” I scolded.
His brows slammed together. “Your reluctance is making me angry.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, I can feel that. Is it demon angry?”
A flash of gold hit the center of his eyes. “Stop stalling, but to answer your question…no. My control seems to be greater.”
I sighed. At least there was that. “He told me that if I went willingly with him, it would break our bond and you would no longer be chained to the demon inside you. You would be free of the hold it has on you. All I had to do was say yes.”
Silence stretched out between us as he processed the offer I was given by Alastair. “But you said no.”
I shrugged. “It was too painful imaging a life without you. Here or in Hell, I knew that we both would be miserable without the other. I don’t need a bond to tell me how much I love you.”
His lips twitched. “It’s about time you realized that.”
I refrained from pulling a larger clump of chest hairs. “What can I say? I learn everything the hard way.”
He shook his head. “I can’t believe you almost bought into his deception. Demons lie. They will spin a web of false truths so temping it is impossible to resist.”
I was beginning to fully understand how far demons were willing to go to manipulate humans and get what they wanted. Tucking the sheet under my arms, I asked, “Do you think it is possible that your link to Alastair and to Hell has been severed as well?”
He stared at the ceiling. “Do fish get thirsty?”
I punched him in the arm. “So you’re saying not to assume miracles.” I felt his flicker of hope that was swiftly doused. He was afraid to hope. And so was I…understandably.
A devilish grin slapped on his lips. “I need a shower,” he announced.
I scrunched my nose. “I’ll say.”
He arched a brow. “You weren’t complaining a few minutes ago.”
No I wasn’t. How nice of him to remind me.
While I was tumbling down memory lane, he took advantage of my distractedness and promptly tossed aside the covers. Striding buck-naked to the bathroom, he flashed me a grin of pure wickedness before closing the door. Modesty definitely wasn’t a problem for the notorious Chase Winters. That hadn’t changed. I know I shouldn’t ogle, but I had. All that glory was hard to ignore.
I glanced around his bedroom and giggled. It was an unholy mess. Clothes were strewn everywhere. My bra was on the TV, my jeans were halfway under the bed, and my shirt was missing. Let the scavenger hunt begin. In the end, I was missing a sock, and my poor purple shirt had a hole in it, so I borrowed one of Chase’s.
Slipping the soft, black t-shirt over my head, I took a heaping, drawn-out sniff of the earthy material. It smelled like pine, rain, and sin. A deadly combination that had me missing him even with him just on the other side of the door.
I stretched, wincing slightly at the soreness between my legs. Hopefully my super-healing would cure those aches sooner rather than later. Unlike Chase, I couldn’t dismiss the nagging feeling that Alastair hadn’t been entirely lying through his teeth. Maybe I was gullible, maybe I had my head in the clouds, but I just couldn’t let it go.