Touch of the Angel (Demons of Infernum, #3) (18 page)

“This is not love. I barely know her. Besides, when did you become such an expert on love?”

His mouth tightened, and Cresso took a long sip of his beer.

“
You
?” He couldn’t be serious. “Don’t tell me you’ve fallen in love?”

Cresso finished off his beer without responding.

“Who is she?”

“Someone who can’t stand me. Like I said, love is a mystery.”

Cresso, the fun-loving incubus, the man who must have a thousand black books to his name, had fallen in love? Ronin forced his mouth closed. He’d have to process that later.

“I don’t love her,” Ronin said, “but there is something there. Beyond pure chemistry. I feel for her. I don’t want her to get hurt. So let’s give up this fantasy and get on with it. Once she’s conscious, she can decide all by herself how she’ll handle feeding in the future.”

Cresso cocked a brow. “So that’s it?”

“That’s it,” Ronin forced himself to respond, even though his stomach churned so badly he feared he might puke up his beer.

“Okay. If you say so.” Cresso braced his hands on the table and rose to his feet. “See you...soon.”

“Yeah.” As Cresso left, Ronin swallowed the rest of his beer down in one desperate gulp.
Yeah
.

He was going to need a hell of a lot more of these.

§

Cresso sat on the side of the bed and stared at the unconscious woman.
Ronin’s
woman, no matter how much his friend denied it. Though she was beautiful and her heavy succubus allure blanketed the entire room, making his body respond on a basic level, he couldn’t think of a time he’d been less excited about being with a woman. For one, an insensible bed partner was not his idea of a good time. He preferred his women alert, and on fire for him and no one else. More than that, he could only imagine how he would feel if he was in Ronin’s place. If he had to helplessly sit back and wait while some other man fed his woman in the only way sex demons could feed.

He didn’t want to do this, yet he couldn’t let her waste away.

Amara moaned and her head thrashed about, hair covering her face. He smoothed it back.

If only he’d been able to create some sort of antivenom. It would have helped if he’d had a few drops of blood from someone immune to the toxins that sex demons emitted. That would at least have given him a fighting chance. He’d tried using Maya’s blood, since she could see through glamours, but it turned out her magical immunity didn’t extend to sex demon toxin. Not that he’d really expected it to. This wasn’t magic at work here, rather pure biochemistry.

Those who were immune to the toxin were few and far between, and it wasn’t as if most of them even knew what they were. Tracking one down was next to impossible.

Wait a minute
...wait.

Damn it, why hadn’t he thought of it before? Brynn’s ancestor, the one who’d mated with the succubus, had been an immune. Sure, the bloodline had been highly diluted in the thousands of years since he’d first lived. Still, perhaps by some stroke of luck, there might be the slightest bit of immunity left in her blood. The odds were low, but he’d worked with less than that before.

When Amara let out a moan, he checked her heart rate again. Sluggish, though steady. Was there enough time? He did some rough calculations. If need be, he could put her in a medically induced coma and keep her in a barely living state for up to two more days. Yes, he should have long enough.

If his experiment failed, he would give her what she needed. But maybe, if luck was on his side, he wouldn’t have to.

He stood and raced to the door, throwing it open, then ran down the hall. He found Ronin where he’d left him, sitting at the kitchen table with his head in his hands.

Ronin looked up when he heard him, and by the tortured grimace on his face it was clear he thought Cresso had already done the deed. Then he saw his eyes, and the horror gave way to cautious hope. “What is it?”

“Get Brynn on the phone. Tell her to get three vials of her blood here.
ASAP
.”

Ronin’s mouth dropped open and he rose to his feet, clearly in shock. “What do you mean?”

“Do it,” Cresso snapped, and left the room. He headed to the lab in his third bedroom to do some calculations. Perhaps one portion of Brynn’s blood added to the chemicals he’d created. A smidgeon of Keegan’s healing blood, of which he already had several vials to experiment with, could possibly give a temporary boost of energy. That would come in handy.

Devil’s balls, this might work. Grinning, he continued with his equations.

Chapter Sixteen

Waiting for a miracle was pure hell, especially since it had never been Ronin’s style. Growing up with his father had taught him that miracles came far too seldom, and never without a price. But Cresso believed he might be onto something with his idea for a vaccine. Brynn’s blood had arrived almost twelve hours ago, and Cresso had been holed away in his lab ever since, emerging every half hour or so to draw more blood. He’d given her something to put her in such a deep sleep that she barely seemed alive. If not for the slightest rise and fall of her chest, Ronin would have sworn she was dead.

“Come on, Amara,” he soothed, grasping her hand. “Be strong. Fight.”

Damn, he was so tired. It seemed like months since he’d last slept, and his worry over Amara had taken a lot out of him. Even though her seductive allure thickened the air, making every nerve ending on his body feel electrified, he could barely keep his eyes open. The empty side of the bed where she slept called to him, inviting him to rest his head. Only for a moment. Giving in to it, he lay down. He fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow.

Some time later, Ronin was woken with a rough jerk to his shoulder. He blinked until Cresso’s tired face came into view. “How long was I out?”

“Over ten hours.” Though Cresso had deep, dark circles under his eyes and his hair stood on end, something in his voice gave Ronin pause.

“What is it?” he asked, sitting up in the bed.

“I think I did it.”

Something in Ronin’s chest twisted and jerked hard, leaving him breathless. “What?”

Cresso held up a syringe with a cloudy pink substance inside. “Not a formal cure, but close enough. A vaccine.”

“A vaccine...” When his throat closed up on him, Ronin waited a moment before continuing. “How does it work?”

Cresso laid the syringe on the bedside table and checked Amara’s pulse. “Okay, think of the toxins her body emits as a disease. This vaccine, which I inject into you, prompts your cells to create antibodies that protect you against her toxins. That way her body can produce as much life essence as she needs without fear of killing you. Now, as part of the feeding process, she’ll still take some of your life force along with her, but it won’t be permanent. Think of it more as borrowing your energy. With this vaccine, you shouldn’t feel weaker, but you may sense some loss of vigor when it’s close to time for another injection.”

Ronin blinked at him. “How often would I have to inject it?”

“I’m still trying to work that part out.” Two bright spots of color darkened Cresso’s cheeks. “You have several hours in between at least.”

Good enough for Ronin. He asked the truly important question. “It works?”

“I mixed this concoction eight hours ago and I tested it against some of her blood and yours. I’ve checked every half hour since and the toxins still haven’t bound to your cells. Theoretically, the vaccine should work. It hasn’t been tested on a person, so I won’t say there’s
no
risk, but I wouldn’t be giving it to you if I didn’t believe it would work.”

Holy fuck. This was crazy, and part of Ronin supposed he should be more wary of the consequences. Yet right now he found he couldn’t be. Cresso seemed certain it would work, and the man was nothing but cautious when it came to science. He would trust in that.

Ronin rose off the bed and ran a hand through his hair. “I can’t believe this.”

“Me either.” When Cresso’s voice cracked on those words, the importance of this moment struck Ronin. Amara wasn’t the only one Cresso had helped by creating this vaccine. He’d also helped himself and every other sex demon. To know that he could feed without having to worry about anyone getting hurt? Must be amazing.

“I can’t even imagine how you’re feeling right now,” Ronin said.

“Pretty fucking good.” Cresso’s eyes were suspiciously moist. He blinked hard and grabbed the syringe off the table.

Ronin’s heart stuttered as he stepped forward, holding his arm out. If Cresso had somehow miscalculated, this might kill him. But if he didn’t do it...if he didn’t...

Cresso must have noticed his internal struggle, because he said, “It should work.”

Amara. Ronin would do it for her. He had no choice. Not as far as his heart was concerned. Much as he’d tried to deny it, she’d stolen a piece of it the very first night they’d met. These past few days with her had only solidified their bond. Who knew what the future held? There was no guarantee this would last, or even that one of them wouldn’t die tomorrow. But he couldn’t walk away from her any more than he could stop breathing. He needed Amara in his life.

When Ronin nodded, Cresso grabbed his arm and pushed the syringe into the side of it, then dispensed the contents into his body.

“How long for it to take effect?”

“Given your bloodstream...pretty close to instantaneously.”

Cresso stepped back and pulled another syringe out his pocket, this one clear. “This is for Amara. If I calculated correctly, it should give her just the amount of energy she needs to regain consciousness and have use of her motor functions. It won’t last long though, not with her genetic makeup. She needs...well, you know what she needs.”

“Yeah.”

He was suddenly nervous. What would Amara think of all this? How would she react to him taking a vaccination that hadn’t undergone the customary amount of rigorous medical testing? Maybe she would think he was nuts.

“Ready?” Cresso asked, cocking a brow.

“Yeah.” With his heart hammering against his ribs and his stomach flip-flopping, Ronin watched while Cresso lifted Amara’s arm and injected the fluid. Cresso stepped back.

“How long do we have to wait?” Ronin asked.

Amara sucked in a deep, labored breath, and her eyelids fluttered open.

§

For the longest time, Amara lived in a land of nothingness. A vast cavern of dark that extended on for all of eternity. Every once in a while a sharp, searing pain would strike, and she would remember.
Oh, I’m in hell.
But then the darkness would take over once again, dredging away the pain, and floating all awareness away.

Until a ribbon of consciousness curled around her and dragged her forward so quickly she could not fight it. Gasping, she opened her eyes.

And saw a stranger.

He was devastatingly handsome, but pure good looks didn’t cut it for her anymore, not when she knew what monsters might lie beneath.

The man smiled, the corners of his eyes crinkling with what appeared to be pure joy. “How do you feel?”

She pondered that for a moment. Actually...not too bad. Her stomach twisted in hunger and her limbs were heavy, but she was lucid and rapidly becoming more so. What was the last thing she remembered?

Oh yes. She was discussing something. Asmodeus. In Ronin’s living room.

“Who are you? And where’s Ron—?” Her eyes traveled from the man farther down. “Ronin!”

He stood at the end of the bed, his body taut and his hands curled into fists. The intensity on his face was somewhat terrifying. He looked wrung out, like he’d been to hell and back.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, struggling into a seated position.

“Wrong?” His laugh was harsh, like iron scraping steel. “You collapsed, Amara. Days ago.”

“I...collapsed?” She blinked at that bit of news. No wonder she was so weak. Every move made her body ache.

“I flew you to London.” Ronin motioned toward the stranger. “To Cresso’s place.”

“Your incubus friend?”

“Yes.”

She was in London. With Cresso. The obvious reason for her being here made her want to weep. Now the expression on Ronin’s face made sense.

Amara was here to feed off Cresso.

As if he’d read her train of thought, Cresso shook his head. “That’s not why you’re here. Something has happened that you need to know about.”

The way he paused underscored the gravity of the situation. “What is it?”

“A vaccine. A temporary protection against the toxins your body carries.”

Her brain couldn’t seem to process his last sentence. It was too outlandish. Too inconceivable. “You created a vaccine?”

Cresso nodded. “Ronin has already taken it.”

The earnestness in his gaze, more than anything else, penetrated the doubt in her mind. Eyes widening, she turned toward Ronin. “You mean we can...?”

Cresso cleared his throat and checked his watch. “Ronin, I’ll need to come back in two hours, no later, to draw some of your blood for testing purposes.”

Even though Ronin avoided meeting her eyes, she couldn’t tear them off him. She got to have two whole hours alone with Ronin. Two hours in which they could do anything they pleased. Her biggest fantasy come to life.

Could this really be happening? Maybe she was still unconscious and simply dreaming up this fairy tale. That wasn’t unconceivable.

“If you need me for any reason, I’ll be down the hall.” With those words, Cresso turned and left the room, clicking the door shut behind him.

Ronin watched him go before turning back to her. The fierce look in his eyes shocked her. Her heart pounded with sudden ferocity. A muscle in his jaw ticked. “I thought you were going to die.”

There was clear agony behind those softly spoken words. Something inside her melted. “What happened after I collapsed?”

“I called Cresso. He had work obligations that prevented him from going to New York, so I flew us here to London. He worked a miracle.”

Oh, Ronin.
The tone of his voice spoke a million times louder than his words. With effort, she swung her legs off the bed and tried to stand. Her legs wobbled.

He rushed to her side. “You shouldn’t move. You’ll burn all your energy.” He grasped her arms and sat her back on the bed, then started to pull away.

“No.” She took his hand, halting his retreat. “I only wanted to touch you.”

A low sound escaped him and he dropped to his knees, staring into her eyes. “Amara, I didn’t know what to do. What you would want. I feared for you, and...hell, I don’t know what I’m trying to say.”

“Shush.” She touched his cheeks, scruffy from a few day’s growth, then traced the lines and ridges of his face. So masculine, so handsome. He’d done this all for her. She couldn’t even begin to express how she felt about that. “I can’t believe you did this for me. Ronin, it’s dangerous.”

“I trust Cresso with my life,” he said simply.

Yes, apparently he had.

His lips curved into a slow grin that flattened her. Her hungry body took in his pure scent and something inside her exploded with desire. She let herself fall forward onto him, pressing her lips to his. He caught her with a groan, opening his lips and sweeping his tongue inside her mouth. The world tilted as he lurched forward, depositing her on the bed and laying on top of her. She whimpered at the feel of him. There were far too many layers of clothes in between them.

He must have read her mind, because he sat back long enough to grasp onto the satiny material of her pajama top with one hand. One sharp tug and the material rent in two, exposing the peaks of her breasts. Her back arched on a gasp when he did the same thing to her bottoms, leaving her nude with the exception of the scraps of cloth that still clung to her body.

“Damn Amara, but you’re beautiful,” he whispered.

“Your clothes. Take them
off.
” She tried to rip his T-shirt the way he’d done to her, but didn’t have the strength for it. With a low laugh, he yanked it off for her. While he fumbled with the button on his jeans, she slid her hands down his chest. Skin so soft, yet the muscles underneath so firm. His pectoral muscles twitched when she ran her fingers along his flat nipples, and his abs pulsed when her hands moved lower. Finally—
finally
—he slid his jeans off, and exposed the object she most wanted to worship. Hard, heavy, and huge—his cock was made to dominate. To ruthlessly conquer. Later, when she was more energized, she would show him how much that pleased her, but right now she was too weak and too crazed with desire for him.

He closed his hands over her knees and spread her thighs, touching his tongue to his lower lip as if she were a delectable dessert he longed to devour. “You don’t know how badly I want to taste you. I’ve done nothing but think about it for the past month.”

His words drove her insane. She could imagine his mouth and tongue driving her to new heights of ecstasy. But that would have to wait. “Later, Ronin. I need you.
Now
.”

“Yes.”

He moved over her once again, repositioning his arousal at her entrance. His eyes bored into her, their depth of emotion betraying the immensity of this moment. Sudden panic chased away her ecstasy.

If Cresso was wrong, if he’d made the slightest miscalculation with the vaccine, this would
kill
Ronin.

No.
She couldn’t take that risk. It wasn’t worth it. What good was her life if Ronin wasn’t around? He was the only decent thing in it. She
couldn’t
risk it.

“Ronin, wait—”

Before she could finish her sentence, he drove forward, ramming in to the hilt. She let out a cry and froze, the myriad of sensations as arousing as it was overwhelming. What had he done? What had he—?

He groaned and slid out a fraction, only to thrust back in. Then he did it again.

Wait...he could
move
. He was still moving. If the toxin had been present, it would have paralyzed him by now.

“You’re okay,” she whispered, not even knowing who she reassured: him or her.

A throaty rumble of pleasure escaped his lips. “I’m okay.”

She couldn’t remember ever feeling this
full
. Physically or emotionally. His eyes were locked on hers, as if they could see into her heart. A wide-eyed expression of joy and wonderment lit his face, more than likely a mirror of her own.

This was more than sex. It was a connection on a spiritual level that she’d never experienced before. A melding of their souls.

Ronin changed everything. He’d changed
her
. She’d never wanted anyone more.

“Amara.”

“Please,” she sobbed, a tear escaping her eye and running down her face.