Tempted by Two Angels [Notorious Nephilim 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (14 page)

When the movie ended, Caleigh got out of her seat to take a bathroom break while the others debated which movie to watch next. Blair wanted to watch another musical, but the men wanted
Seven Sinners
or
Lady From Louisiana
.

“Why don’t you flip for it?” Caleigh suggested, calling over her shoulder.

She was washing her hands when the door opened and Blair walked in, frowning. “John Wayne it is,” she said.

Caleigh smiled. “You don’t like the Duke?”

“Oh, that’s not it. I love all kinds of films. But this evening was supposed to be for you, and since you’re a singer, I told the guys we should watch musicals.”

“Blair, that’s really sweet of you, but I’m all right with a western. I’m just happy to be here with all of you.”

Blair’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. “Really? Oh, I’m so glad to hear that. Sterling was so worried you wouldn’t come after…you know. After they told you what they are.”

Caleigh glanced toward the door then pulled the stool out from under the vanity and sat down. The men could wait. This was her chance to talk to Blair alone. “May I ask you a personal question?”

“Of course.” Blair perched on the counter top.

“How do you know…I’m not sure how to ask this?” Now that she finally had her chance, she had no idea where to begin.

Blair smiled. “Caleigh, I don’t understand it any better now than I did seven years ago when I first walked into this place. A mob boss was chasing me. I took some jewelry that belonged to him. I’m pretty sure it was a drop. When they came looking for me, I fled my father’s home. It’s a complicated, painful story, but that’s it in a nutshell.”

Whatever Caleigh had been expecting, it wasn’t that. She leaned forward, hoping the guys wouldn’t come looking for them too soon. She wanted to hear the rest of this story.

“Leo and Andras were the first two people I met, and as soon as I looked into their eyes, something happened to me. I can’t explain it. I felt like I’d come home. That’s the best way I can explain it. They took me to the office Andras shares with Zach, and I told them all a nonsense story about having no parents and being on my own. It was so weird because I could tell none of them actually believed me, but they went along with it anyway.”

“What happened with the mob boss?”

“Hang on. I want to try and explain this to you because I’ve been where you are right now. I know how it feels to be terrified of them yet drawn to them at the same time. That is what you’re feeling, isn’t it?”

“Not exactly. I’m not afraid of them. I just feel…” Caleigh’s voice trailed off. What did she feel? She wasn’t sure she could put it into words. “I need to know something. After you found out what Leo and Andras are—what they were, I mean—how did you know what you felt for them was real, and not just the result of them using their powers on you?”

Blair chuckled softly. “I remember asking myself the exact same question. Caleigh, it’s real. They can’t interfere with free will. They can change the air around them, and they can sense when a woman is aroused and enhance those feelings, but they can’t make you do anything you don’t already want to do. Does that make sense?”

Caleigh nodded. “Yes. It makes perfect sense. It’s like being hypnotized. The hypnotist can’t actually make you go out and do something illegal.”

“Yes, exactly. What they’re able to do is pick up on emotions that are already there, and manipulate the immediate environment so that conditions are ideal for those emotions to explode, so to speak.”

“Which explains their prowess in bed.”

Blair laughed and blushed.

“Does that fade when they’re mortal?”

Blair’s flush deepened. “Ah, no. Rest assured, it definitely does not.”

“Good to know. So, what happened with the mob boss?”

“Well, remember I told you I was caught with a necklace belonging to a guest?”

Caleigh nodded.

“This guest made an offhand remark to someone, and mentioned my name, and it got back to Frankie Fillipone. He sent two men to look for me, but Leo and Andras took care of them.”

Caleigh hugged her elbows and shivered. “They killed them?”

Blair shook her head. “Oh, no. They planted a story in their minds and sent the men back to Frankie.”

“Planted a story?”

“As in some sort of hypnosis. I watched the whole thing but I’m still not sure what they did.”

“And then you just stayed here.”

“Yes. I was safe here, I had a job, and I was in love.”

“You still are.”

Blair smiled so sweetly Caleigh felt tears sting her eyes. What would it be like to love a man that much? Would she ever feel that way about anyone? Could she feel that way about Hugh or Sterling?

“They’re my whole world, Caleigh.”

“No regrets? I mean, didn’t you want to get married and have children?”

Blair shook her head, and a shadow passed across her face. “No. That was never in the cards for me. I have no regrets at all.”

“Thank you for sharing this with me, Blair.”

Blair stood. “You’re welcome. Anytime you need to talk, just let me know.”

* * * *

Hugh sat on the shore of Pine Lake and watched the sun rise. The clean scent of pines and the birdsong were a poor substitute for Caleigh’s smell and the sound of her voice. She’d been quiet during the second film, and Hugh didn’t know if that was because she hadn’t enjoyed it or because Blair had said something in the bathroom to upset her.

He and Sterling had agreed beforehand that they wouldn’t try to seduce Caleigh last night. Sterling had said he wanted to give her time and space to earn their trust. Hugh hadn’t disagreed with him, but last night he’d been more concerned about why she’d suddenly grown so quiet than about whether they could persuade her to make love to them again.

After the second film, Hugh had wanted to confront Blair and ask her what she’d said to Caleigh, but he knew better. Leo would hand him his head if he tried to harass Blair. After he and Sterling had seen Caleigh to her room, Sterling had tried again to get Hugh to admit his feelings for her, but Hugh had simply ignored him and gone to straight to his own suite.

Hugh lit another cigarette and took a long drag, recalling the look of delight on Caleigh’s face as she sang and danced in the aisles with Blair during
Holiday Inn
. It was then, at that precise moment, he knew he’d fallen head over heels in love with Caleigh Kensington. But he’d be damned if she or anyone else would ever know it.

He took another long drag and watched a cardinal take flight. He’d been able to fly once. They all had. Now, he could barely make his wings materialize, and he knew several of them no longer could. How long before he lost his powers completely? Would that happen to each of them? What was the point of being stuck on this rock forever if you couldn’t have your powers?

There was one obvious solution, but Hugh wasn’t sure he could handle it. One woman, shared with Sterling, for the rest of his life? The idea was ludicrous. Not that he hated Sterling, but Hugh had never formed friendships with the others the way Sterling had. But he couldn’t have Caleigh to himself. He knew that. The only way to keep her was to share her, but she had to make the decision, and he wasn’t sure she would do it. The look on her face when they’d told her what they were still haunted him. It had been somewhere between revulsion and terror. If he never saw that look on her face again he’d die a happy man.

Hugh tossed his cigarette into the lake and snorted. Die? He wasn’t going to die. None of them were except Leo and Andras. Not unless they did what those two had done—not unless they chose a mortal woman to share. Hugh was backed into a corner, and he knew it. As he listened to a group of robins chirp their morning song, he started to laugh. He laughed so hard tears ran down his cheeks. Backed into a corner wasn’t exactly the correct way to describe his feelings. He didn’t feel trapped at all. He was delirious with joy at the thought of spending a mortal life with Caleigh. The only question was, how the hell would he tell her and Sterling that and still keep his pride?

* * * *

Caleigh had no idea how she was going to perform that night. She hadn’t slept more than an hour at a time, and even then vivid dreams had kept her from getting any useful rest. Images of Hugh and Sterling sporting wings and haloes, making love to her until she could barely walk or think, had filled her head all night. Caleigh even swore she had an orgasm or two in her sleep.

But in the harsh light of morning, the reality of what they were paying her to do loomed, like a storm cloud that promised not only rain, but a tornado as well. Maybe she could take a nap before the performance?

Yeah, and maybe you can keep pretending what you feel for them isn’t real?

She’d believed Blair when she told her the emotions were real, and a sleepless night hadn’t altered that belief. Caleigh knew she’d done the impossible. She’d fallen in love with two men. But they weren't men, were they? At least, not yet.

Caleigh let out a cry of frustration and fell back onto the bed. She was assuming a lot again. They hadn’t told her they loved her or wanted to spend the rest of their lives with her. And she certainly wasn’t going to tell them how she felt. Men fell at her feet, not the other way around. Caleigh didn’t like being on the opposite side of the love game. She wasn’t used to it and didn’t know how to deal with it.

Every fiber of her being had wanted to pull them both into her room last night and fuck them silly, but she’d resisted their charms and her overwhelming horniness. Now, she wished she hadn’t. She’d spend most of the second film,
Lady from Louisiana
, going over everything in her mind that had happened since she’d come here to work. No matter how she twisted the events and tried to rationalize them, she’d reached the same conclusion.

She had two clear choices. Stay with them and break their curse, or leave and try to forget them. The latter was out of the question. She knew her life would never be the same, and no men would ever affect her the way Sterling and Hugh had done. It was ridiculous to even entertain the possibility. How do you forget the two most charismatic, intriguing men you’ve ever met? Not to mention the sex was incredible.

But sex didn’t sustain one relationship, let alone two. Caleigh had been around the block enough to know that much was true. Sure, there was more to both of them than expertise between the sheets. Even she wasn’t shallow enough to fall for a guy simply because he was good in bed. They were easy to be with, she found them each fascinating in different ways, and when she looked into their eyes, she felt peaceful and secure.

But what would happen when they became mortal and their powers were gone? Blair had said their sexual prowess stayed, but what about the rest of their charms? Would she still feel the same way toward them when everything changed?

Caleigh opened the window and took a deep breath. The air smelled like rain. Birdsong filled the air, and puffy white clouds dotted the sky. She wished she’d had the presence of mind to ask Blair more pointed questions last night. Blair had stayed because a mob boss had hunted her, but surely there had been more to her decision than that.

Caleigh had no idea what sustained a long-term relationship. She’d never really been in one, and that realization hit her like a slap in the face. Stringing guys along didn’t count. It was all one-sided because she’d never completely given her heart to a man. If only she could speak to Babs. She needed a good cry and a best friend to share it with.

When Caleigh stepped on stage to sing her first set, she had the uncomfortable feeling something was wrong. Sterling and Hugh were at a front table, along with Leo, Andras, and Blair, just as they’d been every night she performed recently. There was nothing about their facial expressions that indicated they were upset or worried.

In between her first and second sets, one of the bellhops handed Hugh a piece of paper. As he did so, he looked toward the stage. Caleigh watched Hugh glance toward the crowded dance floor and give the area a long, searching look. If he could see her peeking through a slit in the curtains, he gave no indication of it. She debated whether to reveal her hiding place, but something about the way he held the piece of paper in his hands made her hold back. It was as if he expected it to bite him.

During her second and third sets, Sterling and Hugh both watched her with cautious looks, and Caleigh shivered involuntarily. What had happened? It was all she could do to finish the last song, take her bows, and run backstage.

Hugh and Sterling came into her dressing room as she was gulping a glass of water. Sweat had broken out along her hairline and her hands wouldn’t stop shaking. “What’s wrong?”

Hugh held the piece of paper in his hand. “This came for you during the show.”

Caleigh began to tremble. She licked her lips because her mouth had gone bone dry, despite all the water she’d drunk tonight. She stared at the telegram but didn’t take it. Telegrams never brought good news.

“Sweetheart, do you want me to read it for you?” Had Hugh just called her “sweetheart?” Now Caleigh knew something was terribly wrong. Tears stung her eyes as she looked from one man to the other.

“Yes, please,” she whispered.

Sterling put his arm around her. She breathed in his scent and tried to draw warmth and strength from his strong body, but she might as well have been hugging marble.

“Do you know a man named Harold Greggains?”

Caleigh nodded and leaned closer to Sterling. Harold was one of the men whose marriage proposals she’d turned down. He was currently overseas, in an undisclosed location. Caleigh wasn’t even sure he’d received her letter yet.

Hugh frowned. His beautiful gray eyes filled with concern, and Caleigh put a hand over her chest. “He was…he was a friend. A dear friend,” she said. “Please tell me he’s not dead.”

“I’m sorry, Caleigh. He is.”

Caleigh shook her head. Images from her teen years swam in her head. She had been stringing Harold along since they’d been in high school. He couldn't be gone. It wasn’t possible.