Amber yanked the gloves off Cass.
“No, wait,” Cass said. “What if it doesn’t work, what if—”
“Then my brothers can bring my ass back.” Again. She wrapped her hands around his. And she felt the heat instantly. Warm, consuming…
Binding.
Not killing. A connection was forging right between them that had nothing to do with death and everything to do with love.
“I’m touching you,” Cass rasped.
She brought their linked hands up. She kissed the back of his hand.
“I’m touching you!”
Amber laughed.
And she put his hands right over her heart—the heart that the Reaper owned. “I love you.”
His eyes blazed at her. “Amber, you are my world.” He pulled her close. Kissed her frantically. “I love you.”
Joy pulsed through her again. It had been so long since she felt true joy…so long…she rose, her wings lifting her up easily and Amber made sure Cass flew with her. She knew—Cass would always be with her.
“Amber!” It was Luke, calling out to her.
She glanced down at him.
“Is he really what you want?”
“He’s everything I want.”
Then Luke nodded, grimly.
She’d be talking to him again—to him and to Leo and trying to figure out how to save them all. Just like in the old days.
But for that moment…she didn’t want to be with her brothers. She just wanted to be with the man she loved. The man who’d faced off against Luke. Against Leo.
For her.
Amber flew into the night with Cass.
***
“How long have you been planning that?” Leo asked, tilting his head as he watched Amber fly away.
Luke shrugged. Then he moved closer to his Mina. He reached for her hand. “Perhaps…ever since the day I realized that our sister would need a very powerful protector.” He tossed a grim smile at Leo. “Because she’s tied to us, she will always have a target on her back.”
“And Death can stop that target?”
“He’s almost as strong as we are.”
“I wonder…” Leo rubbed his chin. “Perhaps he’s stronger.”
Once more, Luke shrugged. “Hopefully, we won’t be finding out that answer any time soon.”
Mina gave a soft sigh. “You sent him after her because you knew they’d wind up together.”
He kissed her cheek. “I will confess that I knew my sister had a dark side…and I suspected Cass would appeal to her.”
She laughed. “You’re a matchmaker.”
No, he was something much darker. He was a man who had to plan for every contingency. And when his enemies came for him, he had to make sure that his sister lived.
And…perhaps…he’d wanted her to be happy.
When I was younger, Amber taught me about love. I could see it in her eyes. Now he stared into Mina’s eyes…
And he knew love again. A very, very different kind of love.
“You made one mistake,” Leo said from behind him. “You didn’t count on me.”
Luke glanced back at him. “Of course, I did. I knew you’d put the wings back for her.”
“No, no, I made a deal with Cass, too.”
Was that supposed to be a big deal? “Good for you.” He waved toward the sky. “Now, go fly away. I have plans.” He smiled at Mina. “Very important plans.”
His brother lingered.
Luke sighed. “Don’t you have an angel to find?” He tilted his head to glance at his brother.
And that was when he caught it…the briefest of flashes, but it was there. Envy. In Leo’s eyes. The great and powerful Lord of the Light envied him.
Because in the end, Leo is alone.
It hadn’t always been that way. Once, they’d been so close…until the world had said they must be enemies.
Until Luke had been told he was bad.
And Leo was good.
Only lately, Leo had begun to show more than a few bad qualities of his own.
“I do have an angel to find.” Leo nodded grimly. “Good-bye.” He turned away.
“I think you’ve got the wrong girl,” Luke said, truly considering things now. “You don’t need someone so…good. Perhaps, brother, what you really need is a walk on the darker side.”
Leo glanced back at him. “That side would lead me straight to hell.”
“Oh, yes, no doubt.” Luke smiled. “But wouldn’t it be a fun ride?”
Leo flew away.
Luke laughed.
And he knew just what trouble he would be sending his brother’s way.
Chapter Seventeen
I can touch her.
Amber stood before Cass, her skin bare, her beautiful wings fluttering behind her back. They were in his home, his sanctuary, in the middle of the North Carolina’s Smoky Mountains.
“What are you waiting for?” Amber asked as she stepped toward him.
Part of him was still afraid. He wanted her so much. And if he lost her—
She caught his hand in hers. He felt that surge of warmth again. Their connection. No death.
Life.