Lucifer (Brimstone Heat Book 1) (2 page)

Before the deputy could say anything else, a white SUV with Briary Creek Sheriff’s Department blazed across the side, pulled into the parking lot and stopped next to the police cruiser. The driver’s door opened and a large man stepped out of the vehicle.

Angie’s jaw dropped as she stared at the man. His aura was strange. It was a mixture of gold, silver, white, and black swirls. She had never seen four colors combined like that. He wasn’t a shifter, but neither was he human. She knew it should have frightened her, but for some strange reason, it didn’t.

The police uniform he wore did nothing to hide his muscular body. The way he stared at her as he walked toward them, made Angie think of a Viking coming to take what was his. She shifted from one foot to the other. The sensations rushing through her body were completely new to her and were more intense than anything she had ever felt before. 

The urge to climb up his body and wrap her fingers in his blond hair was overwhelming. She didn’t just want to feel his lips on her skin, she needed to feel his lips on hers and his hands caressing her body. Her breasts grew heavy and overly sensitive. Her lacy bra irritated them to the point, she wanted to rip it off and replace it with his hands.

Her thoughts startled her. She shook her head, hoping to clear it of the more erotic thoughts she was having. All of which starred the man walking toward her.

Angie closed her eyes and took several deep breathes, letting each one slowly out, hoping she could regain control of her body which suddenly had a mind of its own.

She opened her eyes.

Why were the Fates being so cruel to her?

Human, or not, the man was a police officer, and long ago, she had made a promise to herself. Because of what happened to her parents, she would never give her heart to any man who worked in law enforcement, that way it could never be broken if he didn’t come home from his job. Yet, this man was making her rethink that promise.

Lucifer Fitch stared at the curvy beauty standing next to Deputy Martinez. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her as he closed the distance between them. Her shirt and jeans did nothing to hide her lush curves. Instead, the clothes accentuated the woman’s curvy beauty. With her perfect hourglass figure, she could have easily been a pinup model from the forty’s and fifty’s.

His hands itched with the desire to peel away her clothes so he could touch and caress each curve. He wanted to run his hands through her short strawberry blonde hair, and cradle her head as he pulled her close so he could kiss her pouty, pink lips.

And then she looked directly at him with her large, blue eyes. They revealed her desires and the war she was battling with them.

She was beautiful. She was more than beautiful.

She belonged to him.

The knowledge seeped into his brain and jolted him. For the first time in his life, Lucifer felt his legs go weak and he almost fell to his knees.

She was his!

After all the centuries, he had finally found his lifemate.

The fact that she was human didn’t bother him in the least, and definitely didn’t dampen his desire for her. His erection pressed mercilessly against the zipper of his dress pants. The urge to just pick her up and carry her away was strong…almost too strong to ignore.

Lucifer watched his deputy take a step closer to his beautiful lifemate. A low growl, that would have made any wolf shifter envious, vibrated from somewhere deep inside his chest. He clinched and unclenched his hands. The urge to completely destroy Deputy Wade Martinez was overwhelming. A flick of Lucifer’s hand  and a couple of words was all it would take, and the deputy would be a pile of ashes.

How would he explain his deadly actions to the mayor and the city council?
Deputy Martinez was standing too close to my lifemate, so I decided to teach him a lesson—a permanent lesson.
Lucifer shook his head. Even though most of them were shifters, he doubted they would understand. Most would probably fear him because of who and what he was, if they found out. Some of the shifters in Briary Creek were already suspicious of him because his scent didn’t match anything they were used to.

Lucifer almost laughed out loud. The whole thought was almost comical. He could imagine their horrified looks. Shaking his head as he walked toward his lifemate and Deputy Martinez, Lucifer turned his attention to his deputy, willing him to move away from the female. He would prefer to have Deputy Martinez to get into his car and leave, but Lucifer knew this wasn’t possible since the officer had a job to perform.

He watched the deputy pull at his collar as he shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. Martinez shook his head at something the woman said. He took a couple of steps away from her.

Lucifer smiled.

It wasn’t as far as Lucifer would have liked, but at least Deputy Martinez had felt the urge to move away from the curvy beauty who belonged to him.
His woman.
After all the centuries without a lifemate, the Fates had finally brought her to him.

And if anyone dared to touch her, there would be Hell to pay. No one but him was allowed to touch her gorgeous body. The sooner he could get his lifemate home and claim her, the safer it would be for everyone around her. At least, that’s what he told himself, though he knew better. After all these centuries, his father was still overprotective of his mother and most of his parents’ arguments stemmed from it. And Lucifer’s mother was from a time when women accepted their lifemates as their protectors, but she was very much an independent thinker.

Lucifer’s curvy beauty was a modern human with modern opinions. With that thought, Lucifer quickly crossed the parking lot, and stopped a couple of feet from Deputy Martinez. “What do we have here?”

Wade Martinez looked up at Lucifer. “I haven’t gone in the building yet, but from what Ms. Gunner said, it sounds like someone broke in and disabled the security system. I was about to go in and check the building.”

“I’ll go with you.” Lucifer turned to the woman who was his lifemate. “Are you Ms. Gunner?” His voice was softer when he spoke to her. He mentally shook his head.
Yeah, he had it bad! And he hadn’t even met her yet.

“I’m Angie Gunner, the librarian.” She looked up at Lucifer, meeting his gaze without looking away.

Lucifer smiled. She was obviously not intimidated by his size like most women were. “Sheriff Lucifer Fitch, at your service.” He held out his hand to her.

Angie stared at the sheriff. Her thoughts were definitely not on shaking his hand. She plastered a smile on her face. “Sheriff,” she said as she reached for his hand. As soon as her fingers touched his, an almost electrical warmth zipped through her body.

Her eyes widened.

Angie jerked her hand out of his, and stared at her fingers. Whatever it was, it hadn’t hurt, but her fingers tingled. Heck, her whole body tingled with the weird energy, if that was what she could call it. Slowly, Angie looked up at the sheriff. “What was…”

“Now isn’t the time. But we will talk about it later.” He grinned at her. “We will definitely talk about it later.”

She blinked several times, and then raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

Lucifer marveled at the fact she didn’t back away from him, but instead, looked him in the eyes. He saw the defiance mixed with desire. His smile grew wider as the front of his pants grew even tighter.

Angie Gunner was more beautiful up close. Her blue eyes reminded him of a stormy sea. He wanted to see her blue eyes filled with the stormy fire of desire for him. Every part of his being told him to grab her and take her to his bed, but as much as he wanted to do that, he knew he had to give her a choice. And then there was the matter of the break-in he had to investigate. Her safety was now a priority, especially since she worked in this building.

“So what exactly happened to make you think someone had broken into the library?” asked Lucifer.

“When I went to disarm the alarm system, it had no power, yet there is power to the building. As you can see, the lights are working.” She gestured toward it. “Last night when I left, the alarm was working because I set it.” Angie explained for a second time. “I figured it was safer for us to get out of the building just in case someone was still in there.”

“You made the right call,” said Lucifer. “Deputy Martinez and I will check the building.” He nodded to the man standing next to him. “Are you ready?”

“Yes sir.” Deputy Martinez nodded his head.

Both he and Lucifer walked over to the library.

Lucifer carefully examined the back door. It was clean and free of any marks that could indicate someone had the door as their point of entry. He drew his gun from its holster, though he really didn’t need it. But he had to keep up the appearance.

Without a word, Deputy Martinez followed suit, and pulled his gun.

Lucifer looked him. “Keep your eyes open and stay low. Just in case, someone is still in there.” He said in a low voice.

Martinez nodded. He drew his gun and followed Sheriff Fitch into the building.

Angie glanced at her watch. An hour had passed, and neither Sheriff Fitch nor Deputy Martinez had come out of the library. In fact, several more police officers had gone inside. “What’s taking so long? Shouldn’t they have already found something or collected evidence by now?” she muttered just under her breath. Angie pushed several strands of her hair out of her face.

“From what I know of the sheriff, he’s probably just being thorough with his investigation,” said Marcus Wolfe as he walked over to Angie.

“Mr. Wolfe, I didn’t expect you to come here.” Angie looked up at the tall man who hired her. Not only was he the alpha of the wolf pack residing in Briary Creek, but he was currently acting as the town’s mayor. He also owned a very successful construction company. She had no clue how he managed so many irons in the fire, so to speak. She was doing good just managing her job and her personal life, and the second was questionable at times.

“I wanted to make sure you, Teri, and Josh were okay, and find out how and why the alarm system was disabled. I’ve already called several techs, and have them working on the software side of the system until they can examine the device itself. I need to know how it was disabled so it won’t happen again.” A line was etched across his forehead and his jaw tightened as he stared at the building.

Angie noticed Teri had her head down and her neck exposed to the alpha, as did several other wolves who had gathered in the library parking lot. She watched Teri smile and then look up, as if she had been given permission to move out of the submissive stance. Angie felt the power too, but it didn’t have the same effect on her as it did the wolves around her. Angie figured if it was because she was human. She would have to ask Gracie about it.

Angie shrugged her shoulders and turned her attention back to the library problem. “As soon as I saw the alarm was dead, Teri and I left the building.”

Teri snorted. “You shoved me out of the back door.”

Angie raised an eyebrow at her assistant. “I did it because I care about your safety, and I would do it again. So quit whining about me pushing you out of the building. There are worse things that could have happened, trust me, I know from experience.” Sadness clouded her features before she shoved it away.

Marcus’s expression softened. “You know Teri is stronger than you, and is more than able to protect both of you.”

It was Angie’s turn to snort. “Yes, I know she is
special
.” She made air quotes with her fingers. “But she is my employee and therefore my responsibility to keep safe if at all possible. Being able to turn all furry or being stronger has nothing to do with this.”

“You would be a good mate for one of my wolves,” said Marcus. He smiled, thinking maybe he should have the unmated males in the pack visit the library to see if by chance she was a wolf’s mate.

“Deputy Martinez was definitely interested in Miss Gunner,” said Teri. A huge grin lit up her face. “That is until Sheriff Fitch showed up. I think our sheriff has staked a claim on our librarian, and I think the feelings are mutual.” She rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet.

“Is that so?” asked Marcus. He raised his eyebrows.

Angie turned several shades of pink. She had forgotten that Teri could smell her body’s reaction to the sheriff. “I don’t know what either of you are talking about. Besides, they are police officers, and are off limits in my book.”

“And what’s wrong with police officers?” asked Teri. “I’ve heard they often have bigger guns, and they can be very protective.”

Angie felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment. She knew the other wolves around them were listening even though they pretended not to be. “That may be so, but they’re police officers and I don’t date anyone in law enforcement.”

“Never?” asked Teri.

“Never,” said Angie.

“Is that right?” asked Sheriff Lucifer Fitch.

Angie squeaked as she whirled around to face the sheriff who had snuck up behind her. “Don’t do that.”

“Do what?” he asked as the corners of his mouth turned up.

Angie swallowed as she stared at his lips. Yeah, she was definitely in trouble. The man was walking sin. “Sneak up on me.” She rested a hand on her hip.

He smiled and winked at Angie, before his face returned to a business-like demeanor as he turned to speak to Marcus Wolfe. “The power to the alarm was cut from inside the building. We haven’t found a point of entry, but we are still looking. Several sections in the library were vandalized, while others were completely destroyed. I need Miss Gunner to look through the destruction and make a list of damaged or missing items for my report.”

Angie gasped at the mention of things being destroyed. She knew it had been a possibility, but she hadn’t thought much about it. “How bad is the destruction?” she asked. The thought of all their hard work destroyed made her sick at her stomach.

“It’s not good,” said Lucifer. He didn’t like the emotions coming from Angie. He wanted to pick her up and take her away from all of this and make love toher until she couldn’t think of anything else but him.

“Is it safe for Miss Gunner to go inside?” asked Marcus. “I don’t want anything harming her, or the others.”

“I will stay with Miss Gunner the entire time,” said Lucifer. “I don’t want anything to happen to her either.” No one would get close enough to harm her if he had any say in the matter. Lucifer stared at Marcus Wolfe. He wasn’t happy about the wolf alpha questioning his ability to protect Angie, especially in front of her. The silly wolf just didn’t realize Lucifer was his alpha.

Angie looked from Marcus Wolfe to Lucifer Fitch. She felt the powerful undercurrent flowing between them.

Marcus tilted his head. He stared at the sheriff. “As long as it’s safe for them to go inside, if anything happens to them, I will hold you responsible. I’ll let you finish your investigation. Call me when your report is ready.” The warning hidden in his words was very clear, even to Angie.

“I won’t let anything happen to Ms. Gunner. You can count on that,” said Lucifer in a low, menacing voice that sent heat coursing through Angie’s body instead of frightening her.

“See that you don’t.” Marcus turned to Angie. “Don’t worry about the cost or repairs of anything. Get me a detailed list of everything that needs to be fixed or replaced. As soon as the sheriff finishes with the investigation, I will send in a construction crew to help with repairs. I will take care of the insurance company. Reorder any books you need to replace, and don’t worry about the cost.”

Angie nodded but didn’t say anything. She was trying to prepare herself for what she was going to see, and having the sheriff with her while she surveyed the damage. Either one was emotional, but dealing with both at the same time was a complete emotional meltdown.

She closed her eyes and sighed.

The thought of someone breaking into the library just to destroy books anger her. She opened her eyes and looked at Marcus Wolfe. “I will email you a list of necessary repairs as soon as I can.”

“I know you will.” Marcus nodded to Angie. He looked at Sheriff Lucifer. “Make sure you keep her safe. I consider her a part of the family,” he warned the sheriff.

“Never doubt. I take care of what is mine.” Lucifer growled. He stared the alpha wolf directly in the eyes, refusing to back down.

Angie’s heart pounded as a surge of desire wash over her. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from moaning out loud.

Marcus Wolfe stared at Angie for several seconds. He sniffed the air and raised an eyebrow at her, but didn’t say anything. He turned and gave the sheriff an icy stare. “See that you do,” he growled. “Now, if you will excuse me, I need to talk to some people about making changes to the security system so this doesn’t happen again.” Marcus Wolfe turned and walked over to a couple of men who were working on laptops.

Angie shook her head. “Men,” she muttered. “Always playing the ‘mine is bigger than yours’ game.”

Lucifer chuckled. “Are you ready to do this?”

Angie looked at the sheriff. “It’s not like I can put it off indefinitely, so I might as well get this over and done with so that I can move forward.” She pulled her shoulders back and stood a little taller, though she can no were near the six plus feet of the sheriff. “Lead the way.” She gestured toward the library with her hand.

“After you, milady,” said Lucifer and stepped aside so Angie could walk past him.

Angie rolled her eyes, but started walking toward the library. “Is it really as bad as you said?” she asked Lucifer when he fell into step beside her.

“You need to be prepared for a huge mess,” said Lucifer.

Angie nodded. It was hard focusing on the library with the Sheriff so close to her. She wanted to reach out and touch him, but knew that wouldn’t be the smartest thing for her to do. She wrapped her arms around herself, hoping it would help her not to embarrass herself by doing something really stupid.

“Are you okay?” Lucifer watched the emotions flickering across Angie’s face. He sensed the inner turmoil she was battling because of her desire for him. He didn’t understand why she fought it. Maybe it was because she was human.

Angie cleared her throat. “I’m fine. I’m just trying to mentally prepare myself for what I’m about to deal with.”

“I won’t lie to you. It’s not good. But remember, you are not alone. I will be with you, and I will help you with anything you need.” Lucifer cringed when he heard the words coming out of his mouth. He was Lucifer, one of the princes of Hell…one of the fabled Four Horsemen, thanks to his cousins. He took what was his, and Angie belonged to him, but suddenly he cared about what was important to her.

Inwardly, Lucifer winced. If his brothers heard him, they would laugh so hard, they would be rolling on the ground and holding their sides. He shook his head. Yeah, he would just have to do a little pouncing on them until they learned to respect their older brothers.

“I know you have more important duties to attend to, than babysitting me.” She smiled at him. “I’m a big girl. I don’t need someone to hold my hands.” The smile quickly disappeared when she realized it was there.

Don’t encourage him,
she told herself.
It doesn’t matter what you feel. He is a police officer, and you said you wouldn’t date anyone in law enforcement.
She tried convincing herself. Her brain was listening but her body had completely different ideas.

“You are the most important person in my life,” said Lucifer. He held open the rear door to the library.

Angie paused at the door. “You don’t even know me. How can I be important to you?” She looked up at Lucifer.

“You are my lifemate. You belong to me.” Lucifer stepped in front of her, blocking the entrance to the library.

“You are funny. I don’t belong to you or anyone else. I am my own person. You’re not on any kind of medication, are you?” She put a blank, innocent look on her face. She didn’t want to admit it, but what he said rang true.
And didn’t the woman who saved you say you would meet a man who would be your lifemate?

He chuckled. “No, I’m not on any type of medication.” Lucifer leaned down. “Don’t ever doubt that you belong to me. You are my lifemate, but I think you already know that. Don’t you? So why are you denying it?”

Angie raised her eyebrows and propped her hands on her curvy hips. “Even if it was true that you were my lifemate, there is one really huge problem.”

“And what is that?”

“I don’t date cops,” said Angie as she smiled sweetly at him.

Lucifer grinned. His eyes sparkled. “That’s good, because I’m not a cop. I’m the sheriff.”

“Same thing just different names.” Angie shook her head and rolled her eyes. “It’s like trying to say teachers and instructors are two very different things when they are not.” She shouldered her way around Lucifer and went into the library.

“It isn’t the same.” Lucifer followed her.

“The answer is still no. I don’t date anyone in any type law enforcement. I don’t care if they’re a sheriff, cop, deputy, or whatever. The answer will always be no.” Angie stopped and stared at the alarm system, or at least what was left of it. “I don’t remember it looking like that when I left this morning.”

“I had the technicians go ahead and look at the alarm system so they could tell me what exactly happened to it. I know Marcus Wolfe is planning to replace the entire system,” said Lucifer.

“That’s costly.”

“But necessary. Whoever cut the alarm also fried it. The new system will be harder to disable.” Lucifer liked the idea of a better security system.

Angie nodded. She looked up at Lucifer. “I’m ready to see the rest.”

“Several of the officers are still collecting evidence, so don’t touch anything that is roped off with the yellow tape.” Lucifer watched her nod again.

“Look but don’t touch. I got it.” Without waiting for the sheriff, Angie walked through the doors leading to the main room of the library. As soon as she stepped into the room, she gasped and stopped dead in her tracks.

“Miss Gunner? Angie?” Lucifer walked up behind her. He put his hand on her shoulder, hoping she would draw some strength from his touch.