18. Luke
Chapter 18
Luke
The next morning, Luke woke with the veritable furnace that was Malachi wrapped around him from behind. Malachi’s bed was unfairly soft, his thread count higher than Luke’s credit score, and Luke realized, with a sense of peace: I want to wake up like this every morning for the rest of my life.
The realization was like a sweet champagne, sparkling and fizzing in his chest, filling him with warmth and the certainty that choosing Malachi was the right move. He rolled onto his back, smiling at Malachi’s relaxed face and wild hair. Yeah, he wanted to wake up to exactly this. He’d never known happiness like this before Malachi came into his life, and he didn’t want to give it up for as long as he lived.
He pressed his mouth to Malachi’s, waiting. Malachi inhaled deeply as he woke, pursing his lips and angling his head to deepen it.
The cork was flying off, he was overflowing. Malachi’s arms wrapped around him, slotting their bodies together like two puzzle pieces lining up. He parted from Malachi, smiling, and said, “I love you.”
Malachi’s crimson eyes widened, his face slackening with shock. “You what?” he breathed. Fingertips brushed Luke’s scarred cheek reverently.
Luke nodded, more certain of this than he’d ever been about anything. “Yeah. I love you. I choose you. I’ll go and talk to Maxwell and Sloan today about handing in my resignation. I don’t ever want to be apart from you.” He’d sacrificed so much for the guild. It was time he did something for himself, and he wanted this. He wanted Malachi and the life they could have together. There was no future for him with the guild, just more pain and more sacrifice. The thought of choosing that over Malachi filled him with despair. He wasn’t happy with the guild, but he was with Malachi. And he was allowed to be happy, wasn’t he?
They might not like it. They would almost certainly try to talk him out of it. But logically, there should be no reason why he couldn’t leave. They couldn’t force him to stay.
Malachi’s face slowly split into a grin. “Luke.” He kissed him, rolling them over and clambering on top of him. “Move in with me.”
He didn’t have to give it a moment’s thought, smiling so hard his face hurt. “I’d love to.”
“I love you too,” Malachi said, then frowned. “I mean, I think I do. I don’t know if demons love the same way humans do. But you’re all I want, all the time, no matter what. From the moment I laid eyes on you, I knew you were all I wanted.”
“That sounds like love to me.” He couldn’t stop smiling. Nothing had made him this happy… ever. Nothing that felt th is good could be wrong, and nothing anyone said could convince him otherwise.
Malachi kissed him. “Are you sure about this?”
“Absolutely. A hundred percent. You’re the one I want. I’m going to resign today.”
Malachi closed his eyes rapturously. “Ah, that’s music to my ears, treasure.” But when his eyes opened, he frowned. “Will they be angry? Will they let you go?”
Luke sighed. “I’m sure they won’t be happy. I don’t know anyone who’s ever resigned from the guild entirely before, but as far as I know, there’s no rule against it. If I tell them I find the thought of retiring to administrative work too shameful, they might buy it.”
“Might?” Malachi asked fretfully.
Luke lifted one shoulder in a helpless shrug. “I’ll say whatever I have to say, Mal, and then I’m coming right back to you. It’ll be okay.”
“Are you sure? They can’t force you to stay, can they?”
Luke’s stomach turned at the thought. In the past, he would have sworn to Malachi that the guild wasn’t like that, but when he remembered the cold look in Sloan’s eyes as he said, “don’t disobey me again,” he hesitated.
Gentle fingers threaded through his hair, calling him back to the present. “Treasure?”
He met Malachi’s ruby red eyes. “I want to say there’s nothing to worry about. I hope there’s nothing to worry about.”
“But…” Malachi prompted.
“But,” he said slowly, “Sloan has given me pause a time or two since Hawk’s banishment. I can’t put my finger on it. I suspect my resignation will meet some resistance, but like I said, there’s no law against it. As long as I can be with you, it’ll all work out. I’m sure of it.”
The line between Malachi’s brows didn’t fade. “Are you sure you should do this? What if they’ve been watching us? What if they know we’re together?”
“I think they would have confronted me by now,” Luke said. Surely they wouldn’t be letting him walk around freely if they had evidence he was sleeping with a demon.
Malachi didn’t look reassured. “It’s still risky. What if you just disappear? Stop going to HQ?”
“They’d come looking for me. I need a clean break. Don’t worry. I’ll go in today, get it over with, and come straight back here, okay?” The truth would come out eventually, if they kept watching Malachi, but after Luke resigned, it wouldn’t matter. He’d be free. They could be as disappointed and disgusted as they wanted, and he would get to be with Malachi.
Malachi’s arms tightened around him. “You better. I want to ravish you properly tonight. Tie you up and take my time with you, show you how truly cherished you are.”
Luke shivered. “Sounds wonderful.” As eager as he was to get the ball rolling now that he’d finally come to a decision, he was still reluctant to abandon the warm, comfortable bed. He wrapped his arms around Malachi and groaned. “Now I have to get up and actually go .”
“Mm, yeah, that does seem like a hardship.” Malachi’s hands curled under his shoulders, and he rested his head on Luke’s chest. “What will I do without you here to act as my pillow?”
“No idea,” Luke drawled. “Cook me lunch for when I get back? ”
Malachi snorted indelicately. “How quickly you’ve gone from ‘no, we can’t ’ to ‘cook me food.’”
Luke sputtered out a laugh. “You like to cook! I’m only thinking of you, I swear.”
Malachi’s laughter filled the air, shaking his body on top of Luke’s, and he raised his head to peck a kiss to Luke’s lips, his dark hair falling around their face like a curtain. “I’m sure,” he drawled.
“All right, how about this?” Luke rolled them, bracketing Malachi’s head with his arms and grinning down at the glittering crimson eyes. “When I’m retired—which feels really weird to say at thirty-four-years-old—I will need a hobby, so I’ll start doing some cooking for you .”
Malachi tilted his head, teasing, “You’re going to take over my thing? Then what will I do?”
“Well…” Luke paused to think and felt himself flush as something came to mind. “I’ll learn to make desserts, and you can eat them off of me.”
Malachi’s eyes widened eagerly. “Seriously?”
“Mm-hm. Sounds fun.”
Malachi gave him a push. “Go on, then. What are you waiting for? Go get retired already!”
Luke threw his head back with a laugh and obediently climbed from the bed. He dressed, and when he turned around, Malachi had propped himself up on one elbow, watching him lasciviously.
“Stop looking at me like that or I’ll never get out of here,” he warned.
“Oh, once you get back later, you won’t be leaving again any time soon,” Malachi promised. He stood and pulled on yesterday’s jeans. “I’ll walk you down, at least.”
They walked from his apartment with their arms around each other. They both knew Malachi couldn’t go out onto the street with him, and Luke couldn’t be seen coming or going from the main entrance. Instead, they took the stairwell on the side of the building, plodding down the concrete stairs with no real hurry. When they reached the bottom, Malachi drew Luke into a long, lingering kiss that stole his breath and left him panting for more.
“Be safe, okay?” Malachi entreated, his fingers reverently brushing the numb side of Luke’s face. “Call me the minute you get out of there. And no matter how they try to entice you to stay, remember that I love you, okay? As soon as you’re free of them, we’ll start our forever. Together.”
Luke nodded. His heart felt full to bursting. “Sounds wonderful. I can’t wait. You be safe, too, okay? Stay inside and wait for me here.” He couldn’t stand the idea of something happening to Malachi, especially not now that he was finally allowing himself to admit that he wanted to be with him.
“I will,” he promised, kissing Luke’s knuckles before reluctantly releasing him.
He backed toward the fire exit. Malachi had the right idea. When Luke got back, he didn’t want to leave again for a long time. Maybe he could stop at his apartment for some of his things on his way back, that way there would be even less reason to leave again.
He opened his mouth to say as much as he reached behind him and pushed the door open. Malachi’s eyes widened in horror?—
Pain exploded in his abdomen. Luke arched, a choked sound he barely recognized coming from his throat. He raised one trembling hand to his stomach, and his fingers slipped on wet, sharp metal.
Horrified, he looked down. A sword protruded from his stomach, blood dripping from the tip like syrup. His head swirled, and he couldn’t draw in a breath. Every tiny movement sent a shockwave of pain reverberating through him.
“You are hereby banished from the Paladin Guild of Los Angeles,” a sinister voice said in his ear, “ demon fucker .”
He knew that voice. It was a paladin captain. They knew , and they weren’t going to bother banishing him.
Shock overrode even the blinding pain. He never expected this. Somehow, whenever he imagined what might happen to him if he and Malachi were discovered, he never imagined this. Banishment, condemnation, disgust, yes. Death? No. Killing a human was a mortal sin. It was unthinkable.
And yet…
His eyes found Malachi’s stricken face. He didn’t want that to be the last image he saw. He wanted to remember the smiling and happy Malachi from just a few moments ago.
Pain lanced through him again as the sword was wrenched free. His knees buckled, and he barely managed to catch himself with his hands so he didn’t concuss himself on the concrete floor.
Malachi screamed.
God, Malachi , Luke thought dizzily. They would kill him. He tried to open his eyes, but he couldn’t. Or maybe they were already open, and he just couldn’t focus. Was Malachi okay? Were they hurting him? He heard grunts and shouts, cries of pain. Please, God, don’t let him get hurt. He’s not evil. Please…
It couldn’t end like this. Not when they were so close to forever.