A Beast For The Eyes: A Steamy Shifter Romance (A Ravenswood Romance Book 2) (34 page)

Willa watched, helpless and filled with despair. Though she knew the angel was her only hope of surviving this ordeal, the fear she felt was for him alone and not for her own safety. She wanted to rush over and help him, however weak and feeble her own strength was compared to Flick, but her legs refused to obey and her stomach felt like it was being held in a vice.

Instead, she remained an impotent witness as the demon beat the angel to death.

Suddenly though, something amazing happened. The angel struck out with his leg and kicked Flick hard in the knee. The demon’s eyes boggled in pain and surprise and he loosened his grip. Like lightning, the angel spun round and punched Flick hard in the stomach and grabbed at the pincer. Flick screeched in agony as the angel yanked at the two segments of the pincer stretching them apart as far as possible. Willa stared in shock, her eyes fixed on the angel’s face. Though Flick had reduced it to a bloodied ruin, it was slowly healing over, the bones of his broken nose knitting together until it was good as new.

A feral snarl twisted the angel’s face as he snapped the pincer in two. Flick tried to grab the angel’s throat in retaliation, but he was too slow. The angel took him off his feet with several brutal body blows, and before Flick could get up, he grabbed his left arm and held it fast. It was then that Willa noticed the strange bracelet the demon was wearing. It was made of gold and set with precious stones. The angel ripped it of his wrist and kicked him hard in the face. Flick let out a piteous groan.

With a look of contempt the angel released him and swept back towards Willa. He glanced over to her, his expression full of concern. “Are you hurt?”

She stared up at him with wide eyes. Though much of the damage had started to heal over, he was still covered in blood and seemed unsteady on his feet. She nodded mutely to his question, and then pointed back to the three demons. They were getting back up, glaring at the angel. He turned back to them, setting his mouth into a determined line and spread his magnificent wings threateningly. Flick bared his fangs, but inside of attacking he lumbered away toward the mouth of the alley. His two cronies scuttled after him.

It was over. A deep silence settled over the alley, punctuated by the ragged breathing of the angel. He was shaking, and sweat plastered the elegant contours of his back. Willa swallowed hard and managed to find her voice again.

“Are you, are you okay?”

He turned back round to face her and promptly passed out.

CHAPTER 3

Thunder growled overhead as Willa drove back to the bungalow she rented on the east side of town. The last half hour had been utterly surreal as she had somehow dragged the unconscious angel out of the alley and bundled him into the back of her car. By some miracle she’d stopped shaking enough to get the engine going and drive like a sane person, all the while fearful that Flick and his two goons would come back for a rematch. Fortunately though, the journey went without incident and she got home in one piece. The angel hadn’t woken up the whole way, and his breathing was shallow. Several times, she was tempted to drive over to the hospital and leave him there for someone else to deal with. This was so far out of her sphere of experience she just wanted to pretend this had never happened and get on with her life. But she knew she couldn’t bring herself to abandon him. He’d saved her life and the thought of him being prodded around by doctors and probably sent to some kind of government lab to be experimented upon was too terrible to contemplate. The angel deserved better than that, and she would do all she could to help him.

There was no-one about when she pulled up onto the drive. It was late and most of the people who lived on her street were senior citizens so they had already gone to bed. Thankful for small mercies, Willa set about getting him into the house.

After much trouble and effort, she finally got him onto her bed in the tiny bedroom at the back of the bungalow. Catching her breath, she switched on the bedside lamp and took a proper look at the patient.

He looked like hell and was still unconscious, but to her amazement the savage wounds the demons had inflicted on him were healing up. In his one hand he tightly clutched the strange bracelet he’d taken from Flick, and she couldn’t pry it loose. He was still caked in blood so instead, she went to the kitchen to get a bowl of water and a cloth. When she got back, she sat down on the edge of the bed and almost reverentially began cleaning him up.

His skin felt pleasantly warm to the touch, and though he’d been in a brutal backstreet brawl he smelt really nice, like cherry blossom. Her pulse quickened as she moved the cloth over his sculpted torso and along his firm jaw. He was shockingly beautiful, and the damage inflicted during the fight had by now completely vanished. Only a few new scars, like veins of silver running along his body, bore testament to the ordeal he’d been through. Willa stared at him in open wonder, a tingling feeling running up and down her legs. She bit her lip trying to fight the surge of desire that was gathering inside her. She shouldn’t be feeling like this after what had happened and she certainly shouldn’t be getting the hots for something that wasn’t even human. The wet heat in her panties told a different story.

Taking a deep breath, she got off the bed and moved round to pull off his boots. His feet were bare underneath, lean and narrow with long toes. Like the rest of him they were perfectly formed and she fought the urge to lean down and kiss them. Instead, she went back to the top of the bed and tried to figure out what to do next. Her heart was beating hard in her chest and her pussy growled in feral hunger. It had been a long time since she’d felt so turned on.

Unable to stop herself, she reached out with one tentative hand and gently stroked the side of his face. The angel’s eyes flickered open.

“Oh!” she exclaimed, snatching back her hand and feeling very guilty. “You’re awake at last. That’s a relief.”

He blinked at her and sat up straight. “Where am I?” he demanded gruffly.

“Erm, you’re in my home. You got beaten up pretty bad, but you seem like you’re on the mend,” Willa said quickly. “You really showed those freaks though! You were amazing!” She trailed off, feeling very idiotic. “Thank you for saving me.”

The angel’s face remained impassive. “I must go.”

“Wait!” Willa snapped, stopping herself from grabbing him. “You can’t just go. I need to know what happened. What the hell were those things? What the hell are
you?
”

“The demons need not concern you. They won’t harm you again.”

“Demons,” the word tasted unpleasant in her mouth. “Like creatures from Hell. That means you really are an angel.” She looked at the feathered wings folded behind his back.

The angel pursed his lips. “Some humans call us that,” he conceded.

“Some humans? This is absolutely crazy!”

The angel made to get to his feet. “I must go. I’m sorry that they tried to hurt you.”

His tone was flat, but Willa heard a sliver of genuine regret in his voice. His concern enveloped her in a warm fuzzy feeling. “Please,” she said, making herself look into his penetrating eyes. “Don’t go yet. At least you can tell me your name.”

His face clouded over and his jaw worked silently as if he was arguing with himself. He dipped his head shyly. “My name is Jeremiel. It is unusual name here. You can call me Jeremie.”

“That’s a nice name,” Willa replied. “I’m Willa.”

“I know,” he said. “I read it on your name badge when I came into the diner.”

“Really?” Willa said in surprise. “I didn’t think you noticed me.”

A half-smile played at his lips. “Of course I did, as soon as I came in. How could I not?”

Willa’s eyes widened. Had he just paid her compliment? The half-smile vanished and his face looked troubled again. He kept his eyes downward and scrutinized the bracelet he was still holding. When he made no further attempts at conversation, she worked up the courage to come back to the bed and sit down next to him.

“So,” she said brightly, trying to break the awkward silence, “I thought angels’ wings were white.”

He glanced at his own wings.

“The colour depends on our rank. Mine are blue because I am merely a soldier-spy. Host Generals have red wings, and only the Sacred Ones, the wisest and noblest of our kind, have white ones.”

Willa nodded, trying to make sense of this. “You come from Heaven.”

Jeremie smiled at this, it made him look endearingly boyish and cute. “Again, some humans might describe it like that, but we call the place we come from Astros.”

“Astros?”

“Yes,” Jeremie said enthusiastically. He lifted his eyes and they shone brightly. “You see, three Great Realms exist in the void, Astros, my home, the Artifice, which is what we call your universe, and Deimos, the kingdom of the demons.”

Willa frowned. “Deimos, that’s like Hell then?”

“In a way,” Jeremie replied. “It is a place of pure darkness and evil. Once, long ago, there was only Astros and Deimos and they went to war. There was a great battle between the angels and the demons and Astros and Deimos were almost destroyed. Vast supernatural powers were unleashed in the battle and there was a great explosion, the energy of which created the Artifice. Ever since then, Astros has defended the Artifice and Earth from the demons of Deimos.”

“Then, there is a God and . . . a Devil?” Willa had never really believed in religion until tonight.

“We call Him the Essence,” Jeremie said. “He has pledged to protect the human race from Deimos. If they could, the demons would conquer your world and use you as their playthings.”

Willa thought about Flick and his gang and shuddered. “Is that why you’re here? To protect people like me?”

“In a way,” replied Jeremie. He raised the bracelet. “Flick was wearing this because it has the power to locate a magical copper scroll. Many years ago, the founder of this town, Samuel Moon, made a pact with a demon lord offering his soul in exchange for the secrets of dark sorcery. The scroll contains his most powerful spells and was hidden somewhere in the town after he died. The demons want it now, and I’ve been sent to get it before they do.”

“If they were supposed to be out looking for a scroll, why did they hang round the diner?” Willa asked.

“Demons can only stay on your world for a short space of time, and when they’re here they let their animal instincts take over,” Jeremie said in open disgust. “They gorge themselves on all the things they can’t get on Deimos, and have an overpowering urge to satisfy their lusts.” He gave Willa a meaningful look. “I was tracking Flick and his men when I came to the diner.”

“Lucky for you they got sidetracked then,” Willa said.

“No,” Jeremie said firmly. “They could have killed you. If I hadn’t got to you in time, they would have ripped you to pieces.”

The anger in his voice thrummed through her. Heat suffused her body at being so close to his raw power. She felt her large breasts strain against her bra and her pussy was a slick patch of aching need. She wanted so badly for him to touch her, to hold her in his strong arms. She edged close to him, and felt the downy softness of one of his wings brush against her skin.

“But they didn’t kill me,” she said softly. “You got to me in time. You’re my guardian angel.”

He frowned at this, but Willa could read the brooding desire in his eyes. She sensed he felt the same thing she did, but he seemed unwilling to act on it. “I am pledged to protect all humans,” he said in a strained voice. “We’ve talked enough. I must go and find the scroll.”

Outside, the thunder growled and Willa heard the first splatter of raindrops on the window. It made her want to move closer to him. “You shouldn’t go out now,” she said in a low voice. “Not while it’s raining.”

“Rain is nothing to me,” he scoffed, but made no move to leave.

“Stay,” she whispered. She held his gaze and her hand slipped over his hand that didn’t hold the bracelet. He didn’t stop her when she lifted it up and gently kissed his knuckles. His skin tasted soft and clean.

“We mustn’t,” he said in a ragged voice. His fingers tightened round her hand as she carried on kissing them.

After a while, she brought his hand down to touch the cleft between her breasts. The heat from his body poured into her, filling her with a deep sensual energy. Her nipples hardened and her breathing became shallow. Jeremie’s face was a mask of lust and his hand slowly began to caress her left breast. She let out a deep throaty moan.

“You’re beautiful,” his gentle voice caressed her.

Unable to stop herself, she leant forward and kissed his lips. They were soft and feathery and tasted sublime. He trembled against her like a new born lamb and after a few moments hesitation, returned the kiss. Dimly, she was aware of him dropping the bracelet and then he brought his hand up to slip round her waist.

Fire surged through her bloodstream, and her hands caressed his bare skin. The kiss deepened and became more urgent. She pressed against him, luxuriating in his strength. His cock was an iron rod in his leather pants and it ground into her groin.

After a blissful eternity they surfaced from the kiss. He wrapped her in his arms, and she hugged him tight. His fingers played with her silky soft hair and he trailed kisses along her slender neck. Willa sighed in delight.

He shifted his weight and gently laid her back on the bed. She sank into the duvet as he slowly undressed her. Her skin tingled from his touch and he caressed her breasts as he gently slipped her out of her bra. He crouched between her legs and slipped his fingers into her panties. When he touched her lips, now wet and swollen, her breathing hitched and she let out a throaty moan. His eyes shone with a glowing blue light as he hitched down her panties leaving her open to him. His strong hands parted her legs and he sank his mouth into her triangle of neatly trimmed pubic hair.

“Oh God!” she gasped.

Ravenously, he devoured her sucking and licking the velvet folds of her labia. Her wet heat spilled from between her legs and she grabbed at his hair as he pushed deeper inside her. She writhed as he moved from her lips and sucked hard at her strawberry bright clit.