Desiring A Demon (Archangels) (8 page)

Chapter Seven

When Asta woke again it was storming. The rain pattered against the windows and thunder rumbled in the distance. Rafe slept beside her, his even breaths a calming presence in the storm. The weather mirrored her inner turmoil. She tried to roll away from him but his arms tightened. She froze and considered her options. When she faced him again, his blue eyes gazed back with a hint of amusement.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“Nowhere, I guess. We gonna stay in bed all day?”

He shrugged
,
and she couldn’t help but run her palm over his broad shoulder.

“I wish we could, but my brothers are waiting to hear what happened to you.”

“Damn
.
An inquisition.”

He chuckled. “It won’t be that bad.”

“Promise?”

“Yes
.
If they start coming down too hard I’ll put a stop to it.”

“Thank you. I need to shower again and get dressed.”

“Nah. I’ll tell them to keep their eyes closed.”

She hit his chest none too gently and he released her and rolled onto his back. “Ouch.”

“Wimp. No way am I going to walk around naked. Even when we’re alone.”

He pulled her on top of him as if she didn’t weigh a thing. “I don’t see why not. I like looking at you naked
.
Just as much as I like taking care of you.”

She knew he did but this was the first time he’d admitted it aloud. Kissing him felt so natural she didn’t think twice about it. Then he wrapped his arms around her
,
and his warm skin rubbed her enticingly
.
She lifted her head to gasp in much
-
needed oxygen
,
and he tried to pull her back down.

“Rafe.”

“What? Kiss me.”

That made her laugh unexpectedly
,
and he smiled in return.

“Damn you have a one-track mind,” she said.

“Well…yeah. Come here.”

She gave in and kissed him but stopped his wandering hands before he could do more than squeeze her ass. “Hey, wait.”

He groaned and released her. “You’re killing me, Asta.”

“Not yet. Some of us aren’t total horndogs, ya know.”

“Obviously not.” He remained silent as she left the bed and pulled on his shirt. “Where are you going?”

“First, the shower. Then the kitchen.”

He hopped out of bed. “You’re hungry?”

“A little.”

He grabbed her for another kiss before gently pushing her toward the bathroom. “I’ll rummage something up while you do your thing.”

She was tempted to stop him and tell him to go back to bed, but he was already pulling on his jeans.

…

Rafe felt Asta’s frustration as she closed the bathroom door but he had no clue what caused it. Hadn’t he made it obvious he wanted her? Maybe she was unsure about what was happening between them. He sure as hell was and didn’t know what to do about it. There wasn’t a single promise he could make to her with a clear conscience. If Mike told him she’d become a liability
,
Rafe had to abide by whatever his brother dictated. That was how things had always been. But his loyalties were shifting
,
and he’d fight to remain at Asta’s side if he could
.

But what about Forge? This new development unsettled him even more than her skin color. Forge couldn’t be trusted, but could Asta? That hadn’t been in question since the first week they’d met. He’d sensed the good in her then and still did, but the questions she couldn’t answer were piling up
,
and he wasn’t sure what to think.

As he turned to walk out of the room
,
a tremor went through the wards around his house. He froze and used his angelic senses to search the perimeter. There was a disturbance somewhere near the back door. After a mental call to his brothers, Rafe rushed to the kitchen. His back door had a divided window pane with nine small squares of frosted glass. A shadow moved across the glass and he ran for the door. By the time he opened it there was no one there. He stepped out onto his porch and scanned the storm-darkened sky. His senses reached for the essence of evil he’d felt from the bedroom, but it was gone without a trace. As he stood watching
,
Mike landed in his backyard.

“What is it?” he asked.

Rafe shook his head and hurried out to meet him. “A disturbance against my wards. Evil and anger. I can’t tell much else.”

Mike scowled and moved past him to walk the perimeter. Rafe was about to do the same when he spied Asta in the open doorway wearing nothing but his shirt.

“Shit.”

He jogged back to her and nudged her inside, then shut the door behind them.

“What the hell is going on?” she asked.

“I felt something hit the wards back here. Mike’s checking it out. Go wait in the living room.”

One imperial brow went up as she gave him her go-to-hell look. “Yeah
,
right. Just because you’ve fucked me doesn’t make you my lord and master. Move.”

She tried to shove him out of the way but he didn’t budge. “We made love, we didn’t fuck. And I don’t think I’m your lord and master. I just want you safe until we determine what was outside.”

Her annoyance didn’t seem to lessen one bit as she tried to step around him. “Fine. I understand that but I still want to get a feel for what was at the damn door.”

“Why?”

“So I’ll know what to be leery of, genius. Just because you’ve encountered everything unholy doesn’t mean I have. I need to get a sense or scent of it while I can.”

A hint of foreboding and distrust crept into his mind but he ignored it as he stepped back. “All right, but stay close.”

She rolled her eyes as he opened the door and stepped out before her. Mike had returned to the backyard and was standing with his hands on his hips as he searched the sky. “Nothing.”

“The woods?” Rafe asked as he motioned to the wooded area to one side of the house.

“Nothing,” Mike repeated. “I felt what you did when I landed, but by the time I began my search it was fading quickly. Now I sense almost nothing out of the ordinary.”

“Great,” Asta said.

Mike frowned at her. “Why does that matter? Trying to determine if it was a friend?”

“Hey,” Rafe said automatically
.
He might have his doubts, but his sense of loyalty to her beat them out.

Asta laughed without humor. “Mike, you already know all my friends.”

Of course, she meant Isadora and the angels themselves. She didn’t count anyone else in her life as a friend.

“Enough,” Rafe said. Frustration filled him over the whole situation
,
and his doubts made him edgy.

Mike raised a brow at that but remained silent. Asta stalked across the large yard, not stopping until she reached his eight-foot wooden fence. The men watched as she slowly walked the perimeter, running her hand along the wood slats as she went. She was looking at the ground and mumbling something under her breath, but Rafe couldn’t make it out
,
even with his superior hearing.

“What’s she doing?” Mike asked.

Rafe shrugged. “Checking things out in her own way, I guess.”

Mike frowned but said nothing else. Soon enough she’d finished her circuit and headed back inside.

“I smelled demon,” she said as she walked past Rafe.

He followed with Mike close behind.

“I did
,
too,” his brother said. “But it was faint and familiar, so I thought it was you.”

The pain in her gaze made Rafe want to deck his brother, but he hadn’t meant it as an insult.

“Are you saying I stink?” she asked, hands fisted as if ready for a fight. Despite wearing no more than Rafe’s shirt, she looked ready for battle.

“I’m not trying to insult you, Asta. Your demon side affects our heightened senses. You don’t
stink
. But you do have a light scent that speaks of demon. I’m sure we smell different from humans.”

She sniffed and looked away rather than reply, and Rafe hid a grin as his uneasiness calmed. He reached over and ran his finger down her cheek, bringing her gaze to him. “Do I smell?”

“Yeah, like sex.”

With that she spun on her heel and stalked out of the kitchen. Rafe watched until she disappeared
,
and then he heard the bathroom door slam.

“So it’s finally happened,” Mike said.

It wasn’t a question so Rafe remained silent as his brother paced across the kitchen.

“I had a feeling you two were getting close, but…I had no idea.”

Rafe crossed his arms and tried not to scowl. “What’s the problem? All of us have sex with humans on a regular basis.”

“Yes, but with demons?”

“She isn’t full-blooded.”

“Exactly. She isn’t full-blooded
human
. You have no idea if there’s an ulterior agenda going through that cute little head of hers, brother. I told you when she first appeared to remain on your guard.”

Rafe huffed out a breath and ran his hands down his face.

“I remember your warning. And do you remember what I told you?”

Mike smirked. “Yes, smartass. But I’ve never seen you act this way around a woman before. I’m just reminding you not to let your guard down no matter what happens between you two. I’d hate to have to save you from demons because you were distracted.”

The warning irked not only because he didn’t need it, but because some part of Rafe feared the possibility of Asta giving in to her demon side. What the hell would he do then? He couldn’t bring himself to hurt her.

“I’ll be on my guard. Especially now that something’s messing with my wards.” He paused to get a feel for Asta and learned she was still in the shower. “Do you think Forge was coming for her?”

Mike looked thoughtful as he stroked his black goatee and continued to pace. “Maybe. What do we really know about mid-level demons? They can look like any human on the street
,
and have their own agenda. The lower spawn are minions and the higher-ups want to take over the realm. But the middlemen…those are the ones we’ve always had the most trouble pinpointing.”

“Yeah. They like to fly under the radar and then turn around and cause the most damn trouble.”

“Exactly. Plus a mid-level would have the ability to mess with your wards where a lower-level wouldn’t.”

A higher-level demon wouldn’t bother trying to hide for long. But there would be a high body count already if a high-level demon had come through to the human realm again. They’d banished Armoros a few weeks ago. The last thing they needed was to deal with that asshole again so soon.

“Any luck finding Forge?” Rafe asked.

Mike shook his head and growled in frustration. “He really knows how to hide and cover his tracks. Zerach is using the internet and other mundane means to look for him. He still has that human who also answers to him. But Luther doesn’t seem to hang around in Forge’s circle anymore. With Isadora being pregnant I’ve told Zerach not to go on foot patrols anymore. She doesn’t need the stress of worrying over him.”

Rafe chuckled. “I’ll bet that went over well.”

“He bitched and moaned until Isadora found out. Then he didn’t say another word about it.”

They shared a look and a laugh over that.

“What has Asta said about him?” Mike asked.

Though he’d been expecting it, the question still gave Rafe pause. How to answer when they hadn’t really discussed it? “Not much. She doesn’t remember much. I think the concussion might be messing with her memory, or maybe it was too traumatic and she’s blocked it out.”

“Did he hurt her?”

“She had a few scrapes and bruises, but nothing more than skin
-
deep.”

The sound of the water shutting off caught his attention and anticipation filled him at the thought of Asta stepping naked from the shower.

“I’ll see myself out,” Mike said with a hint of humor. “Don’t forget to reinforce your wards …before you become distracted.”

Rafe grinned and slapped his brother lightly on the back as he walked him out. “I’ll reinforce them as soon as you’re gone.”

Mike nodded and left without another word.

As soon as the back door was closed again Rafe set to work strengthening the wards around his house. Every door, window, and crack was sealed against any penetration from demons and humans alike. Not even a stray spider could get through now.

As soon as he was done
,
he dropped into a chair and rested his head in his hands. It took a bit out of him but he would quickly recover. The most important thing was making sure Asta felt safe in their home.

Her warm palm against the back of his neck brought his attention to the fact that she’d entered the kitchen without him being aware of it. He must be more tired than he thought. He looked up to find her dressed in cut-off shorts and a tank top.

“You looked better in nothing but my shirt.”

She rolled her eyes but didn’t try to hide her pleased smile. He pulled her onto his lap.

“Hey. I’m not your ragdoll, you know.”

“I know…you’re my sex toy.”

She gasped and hit his shoulder with her small but strong fist.

“Ouch, hey. That kinda hurt.”

“Of course it did. I’m tougher than I look.”

He kissed her
,
and she softened against him. “Yeah, I know you are. But I still don’t want you leaving the house without letting me know where you’re going. I’d rather you not leave without me at all, but this isn’t a prison.”

“You’re not my keeper, Rafe.”

“No, I’m not. I’m your lover and I’m worried about you. I don’t want you disappearing again.”

…

She had to look away from the true apprehension in his gaze. She couldn’t handle it. No one had been worried for her safety for most of her life, and she wasn’t sure she trusted Rafe’s concern. He was an angel after all, and she a demon. Talk about some crazy Romeo and Juliet bullshit to the max.

“Talk to me, Asta.”

She whipped her head around to look at him again. His frown spoke of confusion, not anger. But it still annoyed her
,
so as usual she lashed out with sarcasm. “Arf, arf.”