Michael lifted a dark brow. “It will kill you, and it won’t be a painless death.”
“I don’t care.” Devon surged toward the angel. “Do it!”
There was no sign of intimidation or even anger on the angel’s face, only mild curiosity. He didn’t understand, couldn’t understand. A branch of lightening briefly lit the skies, followed by a rumble of thunder. Camile’s spell, or God’s displeasure?
Slowly, Michael nodded and Devon almost sank to his knees in gratitude.
“Very well.” He extended his arms and raised his hands, palm up.
“Devon?” Ashley started toward him, but Cristian was quick to wrap an arm around her waist and draw her back. “What’s happening?”
“Let him be,” Cristian said softly. “It’s his life to do with what he pleases.”
Devon didn’t dare respond, didn’t dare look anywhere but at Ellie. He sank to his knees beside her and focused upon her pale face, trails of rain marking her skin with crystalline kisses that sparkled in the moonlight.
“Are you ready?” Michael asked.
Devon nodded.
Almost immediately a ray of light pierced the clouds and surrounded them with its warmth. The rain faded. It was as if the sun had suddenly burst to life, night turned into day. Heat soaked through his flesh, tingling inside his body. A feeling that felt oddly comforting, not deadly, as Michael had implied. Heaven on earth… for the briefest of moments.
“What’s happening?” Ashley asked.
What was happening, indeed? This was not the doom and pain Michael had warned of. Frantic for answers, Devon looked toward the angel, but Michael’s eyes were closed, his face unreadable. Slowly, his arms lowered and the warmth faded just as quickly as it had come. Darkness fell as if someone had thrown a curtain over the sun. The night sky was clear. The full moon providing an ethereal silver glow to Ellie’s pale face. Was it his imagination, or did her chest rise higher?
“Ellie?” he whispered, too afraid to talk any louder.
Her dark lashes fluttered against those high cheekbones. Devon’s heart leapt. Unable to believe what he’d seen, he reached out with trembling hands, touching her cool skin. Her fingers curled ever so slightly into the damp grass.
“Ellie?” he whispered.
Slowly her lashes lifted, those brilliant eyes focusing on him. “Wh…what happened?”
“Ellie!” He gripped her shoulders and jerked her upright into his embrace.
He didn’t know if God was giving him a brief moment to say goodbye, he didn’t care. He only knew that Ellie was alive and warm in his arms. Weakly, she hugged him back, her breath heated upon his neck, her heart pounding steadily against his chest.
“Ellie,” he said softly, his hands smoothing her silky hair from her face. “You came back to me.”
“Always,” she whispered. “I’ll always choose you.”
The words wrapped around his heart and squeezed until he could barely draw breath. She had chosen him over the afterlife. He, more than anyone, knew how difficult that choice could be.
“What happened?” Cristian asked.
“We have decided to take the negative energy and disperse it,” Michael explained.
“Is he gone this time for sure?” Ashley asked.
“Of course there will always be evil in this world, but…” Michael clasped his hands gently in front of him, always patient, always unemotional. “Yes.”
Ashley stepped closer to Cristian, slipping her arm around his waist, offering him comfort. The demon had been his father, after all. “We’re safe?”
“From him. Indeed.”
Devon was barely aware of their conversation, couldn’t manage to tear his gaze from Ellie’s beautiful face for more than a moment.
“They wanted me to come with them, but I couldn’t,” she whispered, her hands moving up his chest, clutching his t-shirt in a firm grip as if she never meant to let go.
He cupped the sides of her face and pressed his lips to hers, a gentle kiss. The air between them mingled. He didn’t need to question her further, he understood. She’d chosen to stay here, with him, instead of going to heaven. But she didn’t realize that he would most likely be sent to the other side. He was no longer needed on this plane. He’d evaded the afterlife too many times. It didn’t matter as long as Ellie was well.
With his lips a breath away, he rested his forehead to hers. “I love you, Ellie.”
She didn’t respond as most women would. Instead, she pulled back slightly, her worried gaze scanning his face. She had heard the unspoken goodbye in his statement. He didn’t need to explain his emotions to her, she understood.
Her hazel eyes swam with sudden tears that sparkled in the moonlight. “I love you.”
Words he’d never expected to hear. Words he felt in his soul.
“Devon,” Michael stated, interrupting their moment. “We need to talk.”
Dread fought with confusion. Cristian rested his hand on Devon’s shoulder and leaned toward him. “It’s worth it,” he whispered.
Devon tore his gaze from Ellie to look at the man who had once been his best friend and worse enemy. “What?”
Cristian grinned. “Being human. Knowing love. It’s worth it.” With those words he turned, heading straight toward Ashley.
“What does he mean?” Devon demanded, turning his attention toward Michael, but not daring to give into the temptation of hope.
Michael sighed. “I suppose I could give you the same choice I gave him. Lose some of your abilities… know heartache, death…”
Devon’s grip on Ellie tightened, his heart leaping with joy. “And?”
“Become human.”
His gaze met Ellie’s. The hope there was almost his undoing. She didn’t say a word, but she didn’t need to. In her eyes he saw love. He saw belief. He saw what his life could be.
“Well?” Michael stated. “What say you?”
Epilogue
2 Months Later
“You’re sure you can’t see?”
“Yes!” Ellie laughed as Devon tested the silk tie around her eyes.
His excitement was almost tangible and his eagerness to surprise her, endearing. He was like a child on Christmas morning. His warm hands cupped her shoulders as he led her forward. They’d been so busy tying up loose ends in the last couple months that they’d barely had time for each other. When he’d suggested a vacation, she’d been only too eager to agree.
Her feet shuffled over wooden floorboards. She knew they were outside, she could feel the warm breeze coming off the Indian Ocean, ruffling her hair. Some sort of gulls cried overhead and waves roared temptingly in the background. The mere vacation had been enough for her, but apparently Devon had another surprise up his sleeve.
He reached around her, his muscled arms brushing her shoulder and sending a heated tingle of awareness to her fingertips and toes. She wanted to lean back into his hard chest. Wanted to turn and press her lips to his. But he was so eager to give her this gift. So instead, she waited impatiently for his surprise. The soft screech of door hinges momentarily interrupted the sound of waves tumbling to the shore.
“All right, we’re here.”
Before she could question him further, he pulled the silk cloth from her eyes. Ellie blinked her vision into focus, attempting to take in the picturesque scene and understand it within the few moments of quiet he gave her. A beach hut. A large room with a massive four poster bed settled in the middle, white netting around the posts, fluttering on the ocean breeze coming through the open door and windows.
Atop the bedside table was a tray with fresh fruit and a vase of brilliant pink orchids that only added to the picture perfect scene. She rested her hand to her heart, tears blurring her vision. It was a scene out of a romantic movie. The dashing Victorian, always polite and kind. Her own Knight in Shining Armor.
“Is it… all right?” Devon questioned.
She could feel the rapid beat of his heart against her back, knew he w
as nervous and waiting for her response, but she suddenly found it hard to speak. Emotion she’d never experienced before rushed through her body, making it hard to breathe. Since making that decision to return to earth, she hadn’t regretted it once. Every day was like a dream, and this moment a piece of Heaven.
“We’ve had so little time together in the last couple months.”
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, her voice catching.
“You said you wanted a bed,” he added, hesitant and unsure.
“You got me one.” She turned, slipping her arms around his neck and molding her body to his. She never wanted to let go. “I love it.”
He smiled, those blue eyes alighting from within. She’d thought he belonged on an English manor, the elegant Victorian that he was. But here, with the white t-shirt hugging his broad chest, cargo shorts low on his slim hips, and his golden hair tosseled by the ocean breeze… she realized Devon could belong anywhere, as long as he was with her. Yet, even human he looked like an angel, too good for this world.
“Devon, you’re sure?”
He lifted a brow. “About the bed?”
“No.” She leaned back, putting a bit of distance between them. She couldn’t think when she was molded to his lean body. She was much too interested in doing other things. “You sure about everything…about being here with me?”
They hadn’t discussed it much since that fateful night two months ago. They’d been busy merely trying to clean up the mess they’d made. Devon had been getting used to his new human body and she certainly hadn’t wanted to add more pressure to an already tense time. She and Devon had procured a cottage not far from Ashley’s pub. It was her first real home, although they’d barely had time to settle in. Between her new life, new friends and new relationship, she needed this getaway almost as much as Devon.
His smile fell, his gaze taking on a seriousness that left her breathless with worry…with hope. “There is nothing I’m more sure about than being here with you.”
Her heart expanded, pumping madly. “I love you.”
Before he could respond, she stood on tiptoe and pressed her mouth to his, a slow, sweet kiss that showed him just how much she cared. Devon’s arms tightened around her and the kiss changed from sweet, to heated. His tongue swept into her mouth, coaxing her to respond… and she did. Lord, she did. Much too soon it ended.
“It’s so much more,” he whispered. His blue eyes had darkened, his breath harsh against her mouth.
“What?” she asked, just as breathless.
His fingers slid into her hair, grasping the strands and tilting her face up toward him. “Kissing you, the feelings it stirs within.”
His mouth found her neck, his lips heated on her sensitive flesh. Ellie moaned, tilting her head back to allow him better access. His trembling fingers moved to the buttons of her sundress. He had the straps of the short gown down her arms, letting the white material pool to the floor, in a breathless moment. She wore no bra and the warm breeze hardened her nipples into tiny buds.
“As a human I feel so much more physically when I kiss you.” He pressed his lips between her breasts, as his hands caressed the soft mounds, cupping and squeezing gently.
Ellie arched her back, her eyes closing in pure bliss. It was all too much, always too much with him.
“I didn’t think it was possible, but I want you so much more,” he mumbled.
She felt the proof of his desire throbbing against her thighs and shifted her legs apart, nuzzling his erection. “So you’re saying you didn’t want me before?”
“No.” He cupped the sides of her face. “It’s more… primal now.”
“Not angelic anymore? No holy desires?”
He grinned. “You’re teasing me.”
She pressed a kiss to his neck, breathing in his musky scent. She felt it as well, the subtlest shift in energy, even in his scent, now that he was mortal. She pushed the thought aside, not wishing to dwell on the past. Instead, she gripped the hem of his t-shirt and jerked it over his head, tossing the garment to the floor, frantic to feel all of him. He was no longer an angel, yet he looked the warrior still. Muscles, hard planes, the slightest sprinkling of dark golden hair that trailed down his chest and to the waistband of his shorts. So damn beautiful.
Skimming her fingers along the scruff at his cheeks, she whispered, “As long as you still want me.”
He wrapped an arm around her back and another under her legs, lifting her with ease. “Shall I show you how much I want you?”
She quirked a brow, loving his polite way of speaking. “Shall you?”
In three steps he was at the bed, settling her upon the mattress, his hard body following, so lean and warm against her. A muscled thigh nuzzled between her legs, parting her thighs. The ache low within her belly twisted almost painfully. Ellie wrapped her arms around his neck and gazed into his brilliant blue eyes. Eyes the same color of the ocean just steps outside their door. How she loved to feel his body against hers.
“I shall show you.” His lips found that sensitive spot on her neck. A shiver, hot and cold, spread throughout her form. “I do love you, Ellie.”
Her heart skipped a beat. Lord, but she never tired of the words. She felt the honestly of his words all the way to her toes. She tightened her arms around him and as he lowered his mouth to hers, she met him eagerly. There was something in that kiss…something that had never been there before.
A promise.
No more running. No more hiding. Devon had given her life. Ellie wrapped her legs around his calves and held tightly. When he drew his tongue across her lips, she was only too eager to open her mouth. No other man had ever made her feel the way he did. No other had ever burrowed into her heart, her soul. For the first time in her life, she felt as if she’d finally found a home. A place where she belonged.
With a groan, she lifted her hips, pressing her pelvis to his. His erection throbbed against her thighs, hard and ready. The ache inside her intensified, twisting almost painfully. She couldn’t resist lifting her hips and rocking against him.
“I wasn’t supposed to love you,” he whispered, kissing the valley between her breasts. “I was never supposed to fall in love with a human, but I couldn’t control my body, my emotions, my soul when I was with you.”
He took a hardened nipple between his lips. Ellie cried out, arching her back. Rippling need wavered through her body, ending between her thighs. Finished sucking on her breasts, his warm mouth moved down her stomach, leaving behind a trail of wet kisses. Ellie quivered, sighing. How he could make her body sing!
“He was right, it is so utterly worth it,” he whispered.
She didn’t understand the meaning of his words and didn’t much care. As his warm breath tickled the area between her legs, she thought she just might die after all. His fingers slipped underneath her underwear, drawing the silky material down her thighs so that she was completely and utterly naked. Before she could prepare herself, his mouth was there, taunting, tasting, his tongue slipping between her damp folds until she thought she’d go crazy.
Ellie clutched at the duvet. “Please, Devon.” Lord, she couldn’t take the torment much longer. She squirmed against him, urging him to relieve that aching need. His mouth was at her stomach again, his breath ragged against her sensitive skin. He moved up her like a lion on the prowl. Animalistic in his need.
“Please what?” he asked, grinning down at her.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and drew his hard body to her. “Now you’re teasing me?”
“Indeed.” His lips found hers and as his tongue swept into her mouth, his fingers traveled up her thighs, brushing the sensitive skin between her legs, his touch gentle, yet passionate.
She loved this moment with him. The moment when she could see the need, the vulnerability in his gaze, the moment right before they became one. His fingers slipped between her damp folds and the atmosphere shifted. The teasing was gone.
“So lovely,” he rasped
against her lips, his voice rough with emotion. “So very lovely.”
He shifted, his fingers leaving her. Ellie swallowed her cry of protest, needing him to ease the throbbing ache low in her belly. Desperate, she reached for the waistband of his shorts and pushed at the material until his erection sprang free. Unable to keep her hands from his body, she wrapped her fingers around the velvety hard shaft, drawing a startled hiss from his lips.
“Devon,” she demanded, her hands cupping the thickened bulb at the end of his erection. “Now.”
His lips found hers, searing in a desperate kiss. Her hands traveled around to his back, further down to clutch his tight ass and draw him closer.
Devon groaned against her mouth. His hands moved to her hips, his touch more ruthless. A quiver of need swept through her body. There would be time later, so much time, to explore each other at length. For now, she was desperate to have him inside her. As he kissed her thoroughly, he shifted her thighs further apart. She felt the damp tip of his arousal pressed to her entrance and lifted her hips, rocking against him and urging him further.
“Say you’ll be with me forever?” she whispered.
Devon thrust into her, becoming one with her body, heart, soul. “Forever and ever.”
****
He’d lived so many years, yet had seen so little of the world. Standing in the soft sand, watching the waves crash upon the shore, Devon was truly awed. How funny that he, a fallen angel, hadn’t truly understood the miracle of life. He did now. Now… he was free. Free to make his own choices, free to love whomever he pleased. Free to have a life with Ellie. Pure bliss wrapped around his heart, a happiness he’d never known. This is what life was about, the peaceful moments with someone you loved.
Down the beach, other huts held couples, and although there were certainly visitors on the island, few walked the beaches or laid upon the lounge chairs lining the water. No, it was a honeymooners paradise. Perhaps he and Ellie would return once they married, and he had no doubt they would. The thought brought a soft smile to his lips.