Crave (Tainted Angels Book 1) (17 page)

I hadn’t understood him at the time but a smile formed on my face as I remembered his choked up voice.

“Nice place,” Rax whispered in my ear.

I huffed and spun around. “How do you keep finding me?”

He smirked, amusement bursting on his handsome face. “It’s really quite simple.” My breath caught when he gradually swiped his mouth up the edge of my neck until his soft lips rested at my ear. I hated my body when, as he gently bit my earlobe, a forbidden moan gushed from me.

“I’m outta here!”
Delilah chuckled.

“I just order my hatch to take me to you.”

“You mean I don’t have to picture a specific place?”

“Nope,” he whispered as he ran the tip of his tongue across my jaw and then down the centre of my throat. “I’m going to have so much fun teaching you.”

My body fired up as if someone had flipped a switch. My thighs trembled, my lips parted to cater to the frantic pants bursting free. My breasts felt heavy, my nipples tingling and hardening as I shamefully clung to Rax’s biceps. “Rax, don’t …please …”

“You think I’m scared of God, Willa?” I stood, frozen to the spot when his fingers played at the buttons on the front of my shirt, the breeze catching more and more of my hot skin the more buttons Rax popped open.

“You don’t understand …”

He pushed my open shirt off my shoulders, his pupils firing at the sight of my silk-covered breasts. “What you don’t seem to understand, Seraph, is that I’ve been fighting God since my birth. I’m a Gehenna, it’s what we do.”

Giving in, I lifted his t-shirt over his head, my eyes dropping to his magnificent chest. Unable to resist, I laid my palms delicately over his pecs and ran the tips of my fingers down between the deep contours of his abdominal muscles. I smiled to myself as I watched the six perfect bulges jump beneath my touch. “Then you need to teach me, Halam.”

He paused, regarding me for a moment. “What? The guy is on your side.”

“Apparently not,” I whispered as I softly followed the line of his jeans’ waistband with my fingernail. “Apparently he wants to end my life, just like he did with my mother.” I knew I’d revealed too much and I stiffened, angry at myself.

He snatched my shirt off the sand and pulled it over my shoulders. Then he took my hand in his and I frowned as a hatch opened beside him. “Where are we going?”

He looked back at me and pulled, then when we appeared in a huge courtyard, I gasped when I was welcomed to the sinister smile of the man greeting me.

“Diablo!”

“H
ello, Willa.”

His voice was a lot softer than I had ever imagined. My body jerked and I blinked when Delilah threw her arms around Diablo.

“Hey, pretty girl,” he whispered in Delilah’s ear, his arms holding her tight to his long, thin body.

He wasn’t anything like I’d imagined. He was tall, roughly 6 ft. 7, and his head was a manic array of blonde, brown, red and silver hair. He reminded me of a peacock, as his hair spread out in a fan over the top of his head, the most colourful Mohican I’d ever seen. He was packed, his muscles bulging through his long sleeved red cotton shirt.

He laid his hand softly to the back of Delilah’s hair and tenderly brushed down its length, smoothing it away from her face so he could take a good look at her. “How you doing, honey?”

“I’m good.”

When his eyes swept back around to me, Delilah stepped away. Smiling to me, she held out her hand.

Hesitantly, I clamped hold of her and stepped forward. I caught the hitch of Diablo’s breath as, cautiously, he ran his finger down my nose. “You have your father’s nose, dear girl.”

His pain was palpable, the grief he still held for his son making my eyes well with tears. He turned to Delilah. “I gather you have told her everything.”

When she nodded he turned to Rax. “Thank you for bringing her.”

Rax remained silent, bowing his head respectfully.

“So you know who I am?” Diablo looked back at me.

“You’re my … my grandfather.”

His smile could have broken world records. His chest stuttered and he took hold of my hand. “You have no idea how many years I have waited for that word to leave your lips.”

My heart burst as his love for me poured from him. His smile was soft, as though he was scared of frightening me. Grabbing his hand, I clasped it between mine and squeezed tight. “I believe it is around two thousand and forty eight years.”

Rax gasped behind me and I smirked, turning and giving him a wink. “How does it feel to bed an older woman, lover?”

The range of mouths that popped open caused me to blush. “I can’t believe I said that out loud!”

Diablo barked out a laugh, his pure blue eyes twinkling delightedly. “So like your mother.”

“Hey,” Delilah elbowed him none too gently. “What you trying to say, old man?”

“I wouldn’t have you any other way, pretty girl.”

She palmed his face, dropping a kiss to his other cheek. “While I’m here, can I go see her?”

Diablo regarded her for a moment then nodded. “She’s in the rose garden.”

Delilah skipped off, her long legs still encased in her thigh high boots, the heels clicking loudly on the stone floor as she hummed a happy tune.

Silence descended and Diablo gazed at me like I was a gift from heaven – or maybe not, considering where I was. Noticing my uncertainty, Diablo gestured to a long blue couch to the left of us. “You must be wondering what the hell is going on, huh?”

“A little.”

He nodded then beckoned for Rax to sit down also. “When I found out about your relationship with Rax, I asked him to do me a favour.”

I eyed Rax suspiciously but Diablo quickly took my hand. “He didn’t go behind your back, Willa. Nothing like that. I told him he wasn’t the one who should tell you the story of your … existence. Delilah wanted to do it, even if it took her a while.”

I nodded, understanding. After all, I was her daughter so it should have been her decision. “I understand.”

Rax blew out a relieved breath and I smiled his way.

“But I don’t understand why now.” It was a question that had been hurtling around my head since Delilah had filled me in on everything.

Diablo’s face dropped, his eyes lowering to the floor. “God has created a new breed, a breed specific to hunting your scent. The disease that is possessing so many is crafted by him so the ones affected will kill to take your blood, the only cure, or the thing that will put them out of their misery. He’s getting close, Willa. Marie … Marie’s death wasn’t just a mugging. They smelled you on her.”

“No!” My head shook furiously as my hands tightened into fists. The air in the room crackled as I thought of what my best friend had gone through. She’d died. No, she’d been slaughtered – because of me. “Why am I so important?” I whispered, burying my face in my hands. “Why? Why does he want to kill me? I’m his grandchild for pity’s sake!”

“I’m so sorry, precious. It’s also because you are my son’s child,” Diablo choked out as he enveloped me in his arms, the heat from his body already making my skin pop with perspiration. At least something of the stories was true; the man was fire itself.

“Sorry.” He grimaced when he felt my body tremble under his scorch. As if switching off the central heating, his body cooled down and once again he gently pulled me against his body.

As insane as it sounded, I could feel his love sweep around me. It was as intense as any hatred I had dealt with throughout my existence. I sniffed softly, smiling at the scent of chocolate and honeycomb. “You smell like a Cadbury’s Crunchie,” I said, my filter broken again.

Rax’s eyes popped wide open and I cringed at my rudeness.

Shit!

“Uhh …”

Diablo fell back onto the sofa, holding his belly as he cackled loudly and freely. “A Cadbury’s Crunchie.” He shook his head in amusement. “I’ve been called worse.” His laughter died down and he smiled. “And you smell like your father. Truffles.”

A nice feeling settled into my belly and I smiled. “I wish …”

“I know.” Diablo nodded. “Me too.”

He stood up abruptly and cleared his throat. Picking up a crystal decanter full of amber liquid, he poured three glasses then passed one each to Rax and me and then sat back down, downing his own in one go. “You’re not going to like what I have to say, I’m afraid.”

I noticed Rax flinch beside me and I placed my hand on his arm, calming him instantly.

Diablo smiled and looked around me to Rax. “You’re good for her. Have you mated?”

My eyes widened and my whole body flushed with heat. “Uhh.”

“Yes,” Rax said. “We have.”

Diablo nodded then grinned. “That’s good. Did you feed?”

This time he looked at me, waiting for my answer. He was so casual he could have been asking me if I’d been to KFC for lunch. I just nodded quickly.

“Good,” he mumbled. “I knew you were assigned but I know Willa can be …” He quickly shut up and grinned sheepishly at me. “Uhh, I mean Willa is … sensitive … and rightly so.”

I cleared my throat, my shoulders snapping straight. “What do you mean ‘we’re assigned’?”

He frowned at me. “Assigned. Fated to be coupled.”

“What?” Both Rax and I croaked out.

Diablo’s brows shot high and he gulped. “Ahh, I take it Delilah didn’t mention that bit.”

“No she did not!” I snapped, standing up and glaring at him. “You mean mine and Rax’s relationship is … a set up? Fated?”

“Well, it’s not like that …”

“The hell it isn’t. You mean he only fancies me because he’s supposed to!”

“No, no, no, no ….”

“Yes! That’s exactly what you’re saying.” My belly hurt but not as much as the pain in my chest. I’d lost my virginity to a man that had been ‘coded’, if you like, to do just that. It wasn’t because he liked me, was attracted to me, or even just wanted to get off. He’d only made love to me because it was set in stone that he should. His soul had been manipulated to find me desirable. Man, how was that for a slap in the face?

“Willa,” Rax tried as I stood clenching my teeth together so I didn’t say anything offensive.

Yet as was the norm with me, my hurt too potent to hold back, I swallowed back the bile that lifted up my throat. “Well, I’m sorry that you
had to
fuck me because it was an order.”

“What?” he choked out. “You weren’t an order!”

“I want to go home.”

Diablo’s face saddened. “I’m afraid I can’t allow that, Willa.”

“What?”

“You’re in danger, precious. If God discovers who you are, no one is safe!”

“If you think I’m going to sit back and let him hurt my friends and family then you can think again. They need me there! No way am I leaving them to get slaughtered because of me!”

“Willa,” Diablo urged when he saw the warp of air beside me. “You can NOT be alone. It’s too dangerous. If he finds you, he will kill you, granddaughter or not. You’re too much of a risk for him.”

“A risk of what?” I snapped. “I’m just me. I’m just Willa Eden, soul taker. I can’t even fight properly for hell’s sake. Why am I so damn special?”

“You’re the Alpha’s granddaughter Willa!” he cried out, growing angry with my flippancy as his hands held on to my arms so I didn’t jump through the hatch.

Rax’s gasp made me flinch.

“Oh yeah!” I scoffed bitterly. “Hadn’t you heard that one?”

He blinked at my rage but remained silent.

“Have you no clue to what that means, Willa? What that makes you?”

“It makes me her granddaughter. That’s it. I’m still just Willa Eden!”

“No,” he whispered. “It makes you more powerful than The Almighty herself.”

The air in the room froze with his revelation. My heart jumped inside my chest, my skin prickling with unease. “What?”

“Sit down, please,” Diablo urged. “Please, Willa.”

Giving in, unable to process anything, my legs wobbled and I dropped on to the sofa. “How can I be more powerful? That’s impossible.”

“The Alpha created me and God. There was no one else to impregnate her because she was the primary being, the first ever. She didn’t birth me or God, we were just created, summoned from the stones. She doesn’t run in our blood, she isn’t related to us like that. We just are. We were both given the realm Gehenna to create our own kingdom. Others were summoned from the stones, but none as powerful as God and I. We were the primes, the first to be created so we held the utmost of the stone’s powers. Of course, with each creation afterwards, the magic was less powerful, hence what you know as ‘the food chain’, some more powerful than others but each worthy in their own way. But The Alpha wanted a family of her own so badly. Anyway, one day, she called to me. She wanted me to impregnate her. She craved for a blood child.”