20. Lucifer
Chapter 20
Lucifer
H is chest ached, and he wasn’t sure if it was the mark, or whether it was seeing Scarlet so vulnerable. So… terrified. It was the first crack in her carefully constructed facade, and he wanted to shatter it entirely. To tear it apart, piece by piece until there was nothing left of the secrets she held so close to her chest.
He should have just ignored her from the very first moment. Put her as the inconvenience that she was, and maybe teased her a little just to fuck with Cassiel. He wasn’t sure why he didn’t, or why he insisted on picking her up and taking her to the meeting.
It was the strange cat and mouse situation he’d found himself in. It had been a long time since he’d been the mouse, and that alone had caught his attention. She intrigued him, the woman with the secrets and scowls that called to his darkness.
Even her tears he found interesting. At the sorrow she’d buried so deeply.
“I’m here, angel,” he whispered, pulling her tightly against his chest. “You’re okay. It’s going to be okay.”
She let him, which just showed how much Ilzake had shaken her.
Lucifer felt himself stiffen at the thought of the fucking Fae, forcing himself to relax as Scarlet continued to weep against him. As soon as she’d left he’d had to lock his legs to stop from following her immediately, and the only reason the sin-eater was still breathing was because he had information Lucy needed.
Ridiculous. He was there to hunt down other Daemons and recruit them against Gideon. Not chase after a celestrial who was told to be there. The Archangel’s little obedient pet.
Fuck.
Lucy didn’t even feel his wings release until they’d ripped through the back of his shirt to curl around her, blocking her from the street’s sight. He wanted to give her privacy, for her to cry for as long as she needed. But her sobs continued to rattle her body, and he knew if she didn’t calm down she was going to hurt herself.
She wasn’t allowed to hurt herself.
Lucifer didn’t think, sinking his hand into her hair so he could tilt her head back with the intention of comforting her. Instead he found his lips pressed against hers with a barely leashed hunger.
She tasted fucking perfect, and when she didn’t immediately punch him, he pressed even closer until she had no choice but to concentrate on him. Not on the memories that had torn at her control. Or at her duty to that prick Archangel.
No, she was only allowed to think about him. Think about his touch, and his fucking lips that were demanding hers.
She didn’t get to insert herself into his life and ignite something he’d never felt before.
A carnal need that took him precariously close to the man he was before.
Pulling back a fraction, he waited for her to react. To shove him away with a force he wouldn’t ignore. Instead a soft exhale parted her lips, and the urge to fist her hair once more and coax her mouth open until he claimed it burned in his chest. He wanted to nibble her pretty lips, bite them until that taste of copper mixed with her tears. Until he’d marked her permanently as his.
Scarlet had stopped crying, and the surrounding air thickened, almost suffocating with its tension. It pulsed, the electricity waiting to ignite at the slightest movement.
“Open for me,” he whispered, and desire darkened her eyes at his command. It was all the response he needed, angling her head for his next bruising kiss. To consume her like the savage he was.
He untangled his hand from her hair, moving down to grasp the flare of her hip. He ached to press her body tighter against his. To have her breasts crushed against his chest, and her legs wrapped around his waist.
He needed…
A sting against his cock, sharp enough for him to still.
“Ah, there’s my girl.”
Scarlet panted, her eyes burning when she tilted her head back to better meet his gaze. She’d found her knife he’d placed in his jeans, and was promptly holding his cock hostage.
He didn’t move, even as he throbbed against the inside of the denim.
“You had no right to do that,” she hissed, pressing the tip forward until he felt the fabric split.
Lucy licked along his bottom lip, amused when he found her following the movement. “Do what, love?”
Her nostrils flared, and he was wondering how far she was willing to go with her little knife. He’d heal a scratched penis, but he wouldn’t be impressed if she cut it off, however. And yet, he didn’t step back. Wanting to see what she would do.
“Say it,” he demanded. “I had no right to do what?”
“Kiss me.”
He almost did, again. “You were losing control, so I helped you get it back.”
“With your tongue?” she said, a delicate growl vibrating her throat.
“Don’t lie to me and tell me you didn’t enjoy it.” He pressed forward, and he felt it when the blade pierced into his skin. He didn’t care, liking a little pain. Liking it even better when he got to do it to someone else.
Her hand jerked back, relieving the pressure. She went to protest his words, a blush darkening her cheeks.
Lucifer dipped his head closer, cautious of the knife she still held. “I bet if I dip my fingers between your legs, I’ll find you wet for me.”
Scarlet swallowed, the blush deepening even as her eyes blazed with defiance. And right there, in that moment, he decided that she was his.
Even though he knew she shouldn’t be.
“How’s your hand?” she asked instead, her body so close he could feel her heat.
“See, you do care.” He didn’t move back, instead bringing his hand up between them to show the slice her knife had made.
She hesitantly reached up, brushing her fingers against the blood. It had cut to the bone, but already it was barely a pink line. Most people would wish for such a healing ability, but he knew it was fuelled by dark magic that had corrupted his body over time.
The tension seemed to leave her shoulders as soon as he dropped his hand. “Did you get what you came for?”
“Ilzake gave me a list of names.” The sin-eater didn’t even try to negotiate, offering the names without payment. “Gideon is too powerful to take out alone. I need more of my kind.”
“Do you recognise them?” Her wings had relaxed, yes he still cocooned her with his own.
Lucy nodded. “All of them. The majority are already dead.”
“How do you know they’re dead?” Scar’s brows pinched together.
“Because if Gideon hadn’t been the one to kill them,” he said, watching her reaction. “I was.”
Scarlet blinked, but didn’t recoil. “So, what does that mean?”
“It means there’s still hope.” He recalled his wings, the wind instantly pressing between them and ruffling against her feathers. “He’s given me their summoning names, taken from memories. Which is a pretty smart way to get around the rule.”
“What’s with all these rules?” she murmured more to herself.
“That’s how it works,” he said, deciding to be honest with her. “As part of the ritual, we’re bound to our new names. But power requires a sacrifice, and that sacrifice was freedom. It’s why we protect our true names, because it gives others control over us.”
Scar’s eyes were fierce as she listened.
“Bar one person,” he continued, leaning closer, “whom I call a friend, I’ve killed everyone who knew my true name.”
“Are you threatening me, Lucifer?” she whispered, no fear in the way she held herself.
“Just a warning, love,” he muttered, eyes dipping to her swollen lips. “Now, what did Ilzake show you?”
Those delicious lips parted, the words seeming caught on her tongue. “My brother,” she finally said.
Lucy waited, watching her struggle to control her emotions. She was truly cracked, scrambling to replace her mask. That was the moment to take advantage, to press her on Cassiel and her role in everything. But something was stopping him. A strange ache beneath his ribs that had nothing to do with the mark.
“He showed me the moment I found him.” A single tear dripped down her cheek, but Lucy was there to wipe it away with his thumb. Her skin was warm, and when she didn’t jerk away he cupped her jaw. “And reminded me why I was here.”
She tilted her head even further back, and the look she gave him made his chest tighten further.
“And why are you here?” he asked, his voice low.
Scarlet swallowed, and he didn’t expect her to answer. “To find the person who hurt Silas.”
“And then what?”
Another tear, and this time he let it fall. He wanted her to feel the depth of her emotions, to understand the drive they had. “I’ll save him.”
Lucy frowned, wanting to ask more, but she’d already pulled away.
She’d left her home realm to become a soldier for an Archangel. He didn’t need to know much about celestrials to know that wasn’t normal. Even less being female.
“Are we done here?” she asked, looking up at the sky. The clouds above had darkened, the rain threatening with every passing moment. “I should get back.”
He knew he should let her go.
“Did you want to get some dinner?” he asked before he could stop himself.
She eyed him like he’d lost his mind, which caused him to laugh.
“Shouldn’t it be me who’s cautious? You’re the one reporting back to your Archangel every time I piss.”
“I do not.” Scarlet pursed her lips. “Dinner?”
“Yes, love. It’s usually the meal towards the end of the day.”
“Why?” When he frowned, she shook her head. “Why would you invite me to dinner?”
Lucifer shrugged, not wanting to reveal his strange need for her. “Because we’re partners. Plus it will give you some great stuff to share with your Archangel. Things like, how many sausages I can fit in my mouth at once. Spoiler alert, it’s seven.”
“I don’t… I’m not sharing stuff with him.”
She was cute when she lied, the tip of her nose pinking. But rather than piss him off, it just made him want to figure out the reason behind it.
“Come on,” he urged, holding out his hand. “Unless you’re too scared?”
“I’m not scared,” she said, anger creating a pretty flush across her throat.
“So you’ll come to dinner?”
Scarlet frowned, the golden blonde of her hair framing her face like the perfect depiction of what an angel was supposed to look like. “No.”
Lucifer laughed as she launched into the sky, watching her silhouette disappear into the distance with a grin.