I’m on fire where he touched me. I can still feel his warmth on my skin, and his hunger in my mind. He came for me, came to take me away from all the hurt and the hate. I want to fight him. I should be fighting him. But I’m ablaze, burning from the inside out.
Through the blur of the water I searched for the marks on my skin—there were none. But I knew where they dwelled. I knew where I’d find them. I pressed my fingers to the bone between my breasts and felt the ache.
That’s where they were, hidden, secret…a knowing only for the two of us.
Shadows moved behind the flapping curtain. Those eyes…those eyes came to life as he stepped from the bedroom to find me. And I knew in that moment I’d lost.
I can’t look away, mesmerized by the predatory way he moved, and yet there’s an air of fear. I can see it in his eyes now…I can see it all.
He wants me…
He needs me.
They all do.
He reached for his shirt and dragged it over his head. Buckle rattled, jeans shoved from his waist.
My heart thundered, feet moved, stepping backwards as he dragged the plastic curtain all the way to the side.
“See me,” he whispered. “See me, Harlow.”
And with the sound, another curtain parted, only this was the inky darkness of my mind. Fragments of memories slipped into place. Strong arms held me close as we left the remains of the lab behind…I remember now, remember the green flash of brilliance as Kris blackened and crumbled where he stood.
He was disease, this man who saved me…this…Horseman of the Apocalypse.
He was the enemy…he was the dark—and I…I fought for the light.
I fought for redemption.
I fought for God.
Hoarse words tore free. “What do you want from me?”
“Protect you, love you. Use you, and be used by you,” his words echoed, slipping from the past.
He touched me again. Fingers skimmed the length of my spine, taking their sweet time, and lingered at the small of my back.
“Come,” he whispered as his fingers crested the curve of my ass and slipped lower, only this time it’s no command—this time it’s a plea for release.
But not his…mine.
I couldn’t breathe. My lungs clenched tight. I coughed and tasted ash as his fingers dipped. His hand cupped my breast. My nipple slid under the gold band. The ring came to life, filling the shower stall with green.
“Only for you,” Pestilence murmured. “The ring comes to life only for you.”
And somewhere in the apartment, Angel howled.
The mournful sound sent a tremor along my spine. My body tightened with his touch. Heat raced under the freezing spray.
His hand cupped my breast as he slid his other fingers between my legs. I arched my spine as a heavy thud tore through the apartment.
I could hear her now, out there—my Angel, my warrior. She was fighting the horseman…fighting for me.
“Come.”
My feet quaked, sliding wider on their own. Fingers pinched my nipple, molding, forcing my flesh to yield through his fingers and spill against his palm.
Savage growls echoed through the space, a backdrop of terror as his other hand found my center. “Come for me.”
I shuddered, narrowing in to the vicious sound of her fighting, and the soft touch against my core. This was a battle, a cruel, merciless war—a fight not just for survival—a fight for soul.
“Stop,” I growled, but my voice mirrored my words—weak…spineless. “Stop this…”
My breast burned, nipple plump and swollen from the assault of his fingers before he left it to the mercy of the icy water, grabbed my shoulder, and pushed.
My body bowed, yielding to this monster with the perfect face. The icy spray hit the nape of my neck, plastering strands of my hair to cover my face as I bent at the waist, legs splayed wide.
He was nowhere and everywhere, touching, caressing, sliding against my core to rub higher. Lightning raced…and that storm—that violent, wild storm still brewed.
But it wasn’t the tempest of vengeance in the sky. This storm was lust and rage all tangled in the howling wind inside me. Lightning cracked through my mind. In this moment, I was the storm—I was the vengeance.
Hate raged inside me, hate and loneliness—and there was no redemption—not in this moment—not for me. I was cast from Heaven, beaten and bloody…I was broken.
“That’s the way.”
I shuddered, hands hitting the wall, fingers splayed wide. I was holding on…holding on as he slipped inside. My heartbeat raced, filling my mind with thunder.
“You can’t fight me,” he whispered. “So just give in.”
His fingers…I shuddered…his fingers circled the tight nub high on my crease.
“Do you want this?”
I couldn’t answer—couldn’t scream, only tremble as my body pulsed. He felt the tremor, muscles tightened around his fingers as he slipped inside.
“I want,” he whispered as my knees trembled. To use you, and be used by you…
One knee buckled, and then the other, but I was captured in the fall. I was lifted, and not by God’s hands—but by his.
Strong arms held me as he moved. My feet left the shower floor, hands found his arms as he turned me, and I was lost in the eclipse of his gaze.
Thick, dark lashes clumped together, a rivulet of water carved a path along his nose. I’d never seen anyone so breathtaking, so perfect…like a god himself.
He gripped my waist, hands slipping until he dropped lower to grip the back of my thigh. I was lifted, weightless like a bird, as he twisted the tap and ended the spray.
“You’re not lost, Harlow,” he murmured, and carried me from the shower, and into salvation. “You were never lost—not to me.”
Power raced like a drug through my veins. He was my Nirvana—my speed. He was the one I’d gone to, the one I begged—the one I’d pleaded with. I searched for him, but it was he who found me.
Midnight air licked my skin as he held me against his chest and strode from the bathroom. I could almost taste the night, cold, sweet, and cruel.
Pages fluttered near my bed as he lowered me to the covers. Cotton sheets stuck to my skin. Angel’s growls filled the room as he loomed above me. Drops of water smacked my skin as he leaned down.
His lips were fire against my skin, brushing my shoulder and then my breast. White paper flicked with a frenzy. I turned my head to stare at the open Bible beside my bed.
Reach for it…see if it saves you this time…the words raced through my mind as Pestilence lifted his head and seized me with his gaze. There’s a flicker of terror, bone deep, hungry, terrifying…and I’m seized with urgency to turn and run.
My nails find the comforter, fabric crumpling under my fist. I grip the covering and yank myself higher, millimeter by millimeter toward that sound.
Fluttering…fluttering…fluttering.
His knees press against mine, forcing me wider and wider. I’m drawn to his power as muscles ripple…
Fingers reached higher, falling from the side of the bed. I skimmed the hard surface of my bedside cabinet as he gripped my hips.
There was no waiting, no warning, only one body meeting the other as his cock found my entrance and drove in deep. My spine arched, fingers helpless…reaching for the pages as he withdrew, only to thrust again.