Where There's Smoke (20 page)

Except no matter how fast he went this time, he couldn’t outrun his demons. Damn, he broke his own rule and made love to Destiny.

He waited for the guilt, the anger at his weakness to emerge, but it didn’t. The only thing that came to mind was how good it felt to pull her naked body against his, to plunge deep inside her hot body.

He groaned as his dick grew hard. He shifted on the saddle but it didn’t ease his discomfort. Chance wanted to make love to her again.

Ah hell, he had to get his thoughts in order and plan what he would do next. Instead of giving in to temptation and returning to Destiny, he tugged on the reins and stopped his mount beside the barn. He wasn’t ready to go inside and face the others just yet. At least not until he cleared Destiny from his mind. Instead, he strode around the corner toward the pool, but when he got there, her face still filled his thoughts, her body begged him to return and make love to her.

Please
help
me
, he silently prayed as he began to strip out of his clothes, letting them fall to the pebbled surface in a heap. There was only one cure for getting Destiny off his mind so he could think straight.

He dove into the water.

When he surfaced Chance was gasping, his body one large goose bump. Damn, he didn’t expect the water to be that freakin’ cold! Shit! Fuck! What the hell was he thinking? But that was the problem, he wasn’t thinking at all. In fact, he couldn’t remember the last time he thought about anything other than making love to Destiny.

“What would possess a grown man to jump into frigid water?” Dillon asked, unable to keep the humor out of his voice.

Was nothing going right in his life? Chance’s whole body shook like a grass skirt on a hula dancer. He turned and faced Dillon. “I f-f-fucked her,” he said, trying to keep from shivering and having no luck.

One of Dillon’s eyebrows shot up. “And what, now you’re doing penance by freezing off your cock?”

“No, j-j-just trying not to think about f-f-fucking her again.”

“Is it working?”

“N-n-n-nooo.”

Laughter burst from Dillon as he scooped up Chance’s clothes. “Then get out of there before you don’t have anything left to fuck her with.”

“G-g-g-good idea.” He moved to the side, placed the palms of his hands on the side, and boosted himself out of the water, splashing water everywhere as he did.

Dillon dodged the droplets. “Hey, careful, that water’s freezing.”

“You d-d-don’t have to tel-l-l-l me.”

Dillon was still staring at Chance as he jerked on his clothes. Maybe his dick had frozen off and Dillon didn’t want to be the one who gave him the bad news. Chance was too afraid to look. Finally, he had to know what the hell he was looking at. “What?” he growled.

Dillon shook his head. “Nothing. I was only thinking you look kind of like a big Smurf.”

“Funny.” Great. Dillon, with his usual matter-of-fact attitude, was pointing out the obvious. “If I get pneumonia, then you’ll worry.”

“Nah, we can’t die. Well, at least not from doing something stupid like swimming in water which is well below freezing. If I were you, I would’ve turned the temperature up. You know Hunter likes the pool cold in the summer.”

“I don’t care what you would’ve done.” Chance stomped back toward the rec room doors. “And keep this to yourself.” If the others got wind of what he’d done, Chance would never live it down. Jumping into the freezing water just showed Chance exactly how much Destiny was screwing with his head.

“Of course I won’t say a word,” Dillon promised. “Why would you even think I would? We’re practically brothers. I’m deeply hurt you would even imagine that I would.”

Chance wasn’t sure if he believed Dillon or not. The guy had been laughing at him a moment ago. He didn’t have much choice, so he decided he wanted to stay on Dillon’s good side. “I’m sorry. It’s just that they would never let me live it down.”

They walked the rest of the way in silence. Once inside, Chance went straight to his room, then stripped out of his clothes. He moved under the spray of a hot shower and finally started to thaw.

Jumping into the water was really dumb and it didn’t solve his problem. He still wanted Destiny as much as he did before almost freezing his dick off.

What the hell was he going to do?

He planted his palms on the shower tiles and lowered his head, letting the water pour over him until the chill finally left, but then thoughts of Destiny returned.

She was going to be the death of him. He snapped the water off and stepped out of the shower, grabbing a warm towel off the heated rack.

He needed a plan. He had to try to convince Destiny there was another path than the one she chose. Surely he could manage that.

He glanced at the clock. It was still early morning. He’d grab something to eat then figure out what he was going to do. He only needed time to sort through everything.

The house was quiet as he went down the stairs. Where were the others? Chance didn’t wonder long as he made his way toward the kitchen. The clanking of pans sounded like thunder during a bad storm. Being alone was out of the question. Not that he really felt like being by himself.

Hunter was scrambling eggs and Ryder was putting canned biscuits into the oven. No one would ever accuse them of being good cooks. And Dillon? He glanced up from placing sliced bacon in a skillet. Dillon’s expression immediately went bland.

Chance’s eyes narrowed. Dillon looked innocent. Too innocent. Chance didn’t buy any of it for a second.

“You told them,” he accused Dillon.

Dillon’s eyes widened. “Told them what?”

Chance’s gaze narrowed. Maybe he was wrong. “Nothing,” he mumbled. “I’m starved,” he said to change the subject.

“It’ll be ready in a jiffy,” Hunter said. “The biscuits were nearly frozen so they might take a bit to thaw.”

“The OJ is nice and cold. Pour you a glass?” Ryder asked. “Unless you’d like something warmer.”

Chance glared at Dillon.

“I didn’t say a word,” Dillon promised, then cast evil glances toward the other two men.

“And after we eat, we can all go for a swim. I hear the water is rejuvenating.” Hunter snorted.

“Crap, I told you two not to say anything.” Dillon slapped the skillet on the stove, then turned the burner on high.

Ryder grinned. “What did you expect us to do?” He met Chance’s gaze. “I told you having sex with your assignment wouldn’t be the end all. Now you’ll be able to convince Destiny that demons only lie. Just tell her there’s a better life waiting for her.”

All three looked his way, waiting for a response. Chance pulled out a chair and sat with a deep sigh, finally giving in. “Yeah, maybe you’re right.”

“Of course we’re right,” Hunter said as he turned the burner off then carried the skillet of eggs to the table. He tossed a towel down then set the skillet on top.

There was a distinct odor coming from the skillet, and it wasn’t tempting Chance to scoop some out on the plate Hunter shoved in front of him. Dillon turned off his burner, but at least placed the bacon on a chipped blue plate rather than leaving the strips in the skillet. He carried it to the table after opening a window to let the smoke out.

Chance took one look at the greasy, burnt bacon and decided he would skip the eggs and bacon. Biscuits would be plenty. He wasn’t that hungry anyway.

Ryder opened the oven and grabbed a potholder. He juggled the pan before turning the biscuits onto a plate and brought them to the table. But when he pulled one biscuit away from the others, a glob of dough stretched all the way to his plate before breaking in two and snapping back.

“Maybe I should’ve left them in a little longer,” Ryder mumbled. “They’re brown on top, though.”

“I told you two that everything you fix is always undercooked,” Hunter groused.

Dillon snorted as he spooned up some eggs then dropped the burnt mess back in the skillet. “Do you think you might overcook things a little?”

Hunter’s eyebrows veed. “It’s healthier. Kills all the germs.”

“And taste,” Chance, Ryder, and Dillon grumbled in unison.

“Tell me what you really think.” Hunter glared at them.

Before a battle broke out about who cooked worse than the other, Chance spoke up. “I think Mama Paula’s.”

Hunter’s fuse snuffed out and his expression turned dreamy. “Mama Paula is definitely an angel when it comes to cooking.”

Ryder and Dillon nodded in agreement.

Anyone would think they would have learned to cook over the centuries, but none of them ever took the time to open a cookbook. Why should they when there were plenty of places to eat? But it didn’t mean they gave up trying. Hunter said it relaxed him. How anyone could ever feel relaxed after burning food Chance would never understand. He, on the other hand, didn’t even try.

They stood together then closed their eyes. In a few minutes, they were walking into Mama Paula’s café. The sweet aroma of her cooking filled the place. Chance’s stomach rumbled.

Maybe he wasn’t coming up with a workable solution at that very moment, but he would. He had to, for his sake as well as Destiny’s.

Vetis tossed the magazine to the coffee table where it hit with a loud whack that echoed through the small apartment. Cold chills ran up and down Destiny’s spine. Vetis appeared calm and collected until she looked a little closer. Red sparks glinted in his eyes.

“I expected you back long before now.” His voice was like glass breaking, the shards flying through the air and biting into her flesh.

She flinched.

No! They gave her a week. He wasn’t supposed to be there. She twined her fingers together.

A long time ago, Vetis swore that he could take away her pain. And he made good on his promise. The pain stopped. Once he got her to Hell, he seduced her into believing she could have everything her heart desired.

But she didn’t have everything. She barely had anything.

“Is something troubling you, my sweet?” He strolled toward her, stopping only a few inches away. He reached out and smoothed a wayward strand of hair behind her ear.

She flinched.

He smiled. His hand continued downward until he brushed his thumb across her nipple. She gasped as the fire of his touch burned her skin. When she jumped back, his eyes widened.

“What? You don’t like it when I caress you? There was a time when you craved me to stroke you just this way, even begged me to make love to you. Now you cringe?”

“No,” she quickly told him, afraid of his anger. “It burned a little, that’s all.”

“They say when one begins to see goodness in the world, a demon’s touch will start to burn rather than offer warmth. Is that what’s happening to you, Destiny?” He raised his eyebrows. “Has this world tempted you more than I can? Has a man tempted you?” His lips thinned.

For the first time, she felt fear for someone other than herself. If Vetis even thought she might care for someone more than him, he would destroy them.

She squared her shoulders. “No, of course I don’t care about this world or anyone in it. I’m here for one reason only, to get my quota. I haven’t lost sight of my goal.” But even she could hear the difference in her voice. Had she begun to change without realizing it?

“You never have been one who could lie well.” He shook his head. “How quickly you’ve forgotten what it was like. A pity that I will have to remind you.” He moved fast, grabbing her hand and pulling her against him.

Fire licked at her skin, burning wherever he touched. She cried out in pain. He held her chin in a firm grip, then lowered his lips to hers. His tongue set fire to her mouth. Tears ran down her face.

Please, stop, she silently begged, but he continued his assault on her body. Touching, pressing against her, forcing her to accept him.

When she thought it would be the end of her existence, Vetis stopped his torture, moving away only far enough so he could stare into her face.

“You think this life is what you want?” he spat. “You’ve created a fantasy world that can never be! Look and see again what life gave to you.” He moved his arm in a wide arc.

Like a movie theater, her past began to play across a large screen. She saw her mother walking away, leaving the store, and getting into a car with the man she’d been seeing. She never even looked back.

An invisible hand squeezed around Destiny’s heart. “No, please,” she begged, trying to close her eyes.

“Watch,” Vetis growled, clamping a firm hand on her chin.

Tears filled her eyes as she saw herself waiting in the store—scared, lonely. But Mommy didn’t come back.

Vetis forced her to keep watching. It made her sick to her stomach to see how low she had sunk. Why couldn’t she have found Chance back then?

“See,” Vetis whispered close to her ear. “None of those men loved you. Not one. They wanted only what you could give them.”

A shudder swept over her. He was right, of course. No one had wanted her.