Broken Angel (Bad Things Book 4) Read online

  “I’m…tired.” A hushed confession.

  He looked back at her. She was still standing just inside the doorway. Still looking so fragile. He wanted to take her into his arms. But if he did…

  She has no clue what I want from her.

  And for once, he could be something more than just the big, bad beast.

  “Take the bedroom on the right.” He pointed toward the door. “Strip, get under the covers, and relax. I’ll bring you something to eat.”

  She blinked, and he clearly saw the surprise flash on her face.

  “I can be more than an asshole,” he told her, flashing a smile.

  Her breath caught. “Do you…have a dimple?”

  His smile slipped away. She was shivering. “Go get in the bed, Lila. I’ve got some soup in the kitchen. I’ll get it ready for you.”

  “You’re being…kind.” She tip-toed toward him. Lila stopped when she was less than a foot away. Close enough to touch.

  Close enough to take.

  “Why are you being kind?” Lila pressed as she nibbled on her lower lip.

  She should stop the nibbling. It made him want to bite. “You think just because I’m bad…I can’t be good?” His hand lifted and his knuckles brushed over the silk of her cheek. “Sweetheart, you’ve got me all wrong. I can be very, very good to you.”

  Her lips parted.

  Don’t do it. Don’t…

  But he’d wanted a taste for so very long.

  “Or I could be bad,” he rasped. “It’s all about what you want.”

  Then he did it—he put his mouth on hers. Rayce kept the kiss easy at first because he expected her to wrench away from him.

  But she didn’t.

  Her hands rose to press to his chest and she leaned into his kiss.

  What in the ever loving fuck?

  Since Rayce wasn’t a fool, he didn’t pull away. He did take that kiss deeper. His hand curled around the nape of her neck as he tilted her head back. He thrust his tongue past her lips.

  Lila gave a quick moan.

  And he tasted his angel. He stroked and he licked and he savored her, and the woman was even better than he’d imagined—and Rayce had one very active imagination. Her tongue tentatively met his, and he growled his pleasure at the sensual contact.

  Then his left hand was sliding down her body. Curling around the edge of her hip and pulling her even closer. His dick shoved against the front of his jeans. She had to feel his arousal pressing against her, but Lila didn’t retreat.

  The kiss got rougher. Hotter. He wanted to run his lips and tongue over every single inch of her. He wanted—

  She pushed him back. Her breath heaved out as she stared at him with wide, shocked eyes. But…

  There was desire in Lila’s gaze.

  “That was a kiss,” she said, voice breathy.

  “That was one hell of a kiss,” he corrected her. Rayce wanted the record to be clear.

  She licked her lips, as if still tasting him. Every muscle in his body clamped down. “Lila—”

  “That was my first kiss.” Then she smiled at him. She’d mentioned his dimple before, but when she smiled—she had two perfect, cute dimples. One in each cheek, winking at him. “Thank you for my kiss.”

  She was thanking him. He wanted to fucking eat her alive, and she was thanking him.

  Then she skirted around him and headed for the bedroom.

  It took a few moments for her words to fully register for him.

  If that had been her first kiss…

  “Lila!” Rayce bellowed her name.

  She stopped, her back to him, then, slowly, she turned on her heel so that she faced him. Her hand had risen and she was touching her lips.

  Breathe. Nice and slowly. Don’t sound like a maniac when you ask… “Have you had sex?”

  Her cheeks went pink. Pretty, pretty pink. “Angels don’t…” Lila began, but then her words trailed away.

  Angels don’t have sex. Right. They were supposed to be above those basic, primal, savage needs. “You’ve been on earth for a few months…” And she’d done a good job of hiding from him during that time. It wasn’t easy to hide from a werewolf, but she’d managed.

  Did she have help?

  She just watched him, her hand still close to her lips. If she hadn’t been kissed, then no, she hadn’t fucked anyone. So the jealous images he’d had in his head for so long should get the hell out of his mind—

  “I’ve been running.” Her hand fell to her side. “And I haven’t…I haven’t wanted anyone. Why would I have sex with someone I don’t want?”

  Do you want me? Could he make the angel desire him? The same dark and all-consuming way he desired her?

  “Angels don’t have sex.” Lila turned away from him.

  “But you’re not exactly an angel any longer…are you?”

  She hesitated.

  Shit, that had been the wrong thing to—

  “No, I guess I’m not.” Lila went into the bedroom and shut the door behind her.

  “I am such a fucking asshole,” Rayce muttered.

  ***

  Francis Sparrow pushed the feather across the faded table top. “It’s the real thing.” He offered his monocle to the man who sat, shoulders hunched, in the chair across from him. “An angel’s feather.”

  “Don’t need your fucking glass,” the guy snarled back. “I can see for myself what it is.”

  Right. Because that man before him was a paranormal. Not like Francis. Oh, but Francis wished he was more than human. He wished for the power—

  The fellow looked up at him, pinning Francis with his black eyes. Completely black. Soulless.

  Francis swallowed.

  “What I want to know…” the guy demanded. “Where the fuck is the angel who owns that feather? Didn’t I spread the word that I wanted her? And not just her damn feather?”

  Francis reached for the feather.

  The man’s hand flew out and his claws—razor sharp—sliced right through the top of Francis’s hand, pinning it in place. Francis screamed in agony.

  But the tough bastard across from him just smiled. “Let me ask again…where is the angel?”

  “I don’t…” I don’t know! But that would be the wrong answer. Very, very wrong. He gulped and tried to think past the pain as that black gaze held his.

  He was staring into the eyes of Kale Notch. Kale was the paranormal who owned this section of the Colorado Rockies. Nothing happened without his approval, and the instant Francis had seen that feather, he’d known that Kale would want it. Because Kale has spent the last few months looking for a fallen angel. “I tried to get her. I was putting her in the truck, planning to bring her to you.” That part was true. He had planned to bring the woman to Kale. For a price. “But a…another man was there.” His gaze fell to the claws still piercing his hand. “And he had claws just like you.”

  “There is no one just like me.” Kale’s claws wrenched out of Francis’s hand.

  Blood poured onto the table.

  “Tell me why you get to keep breathing,” Kale thundered at him. “A human…thinking he can play with someone like me…”

  Francis had been working with Kale ever since he’d moved to Colorado. Getting into the dark paranormal market wasn’t easy, but black magic had always been an obsession for Francis. Born human, but he could be more. Francis knew it. He just had to work the right deal…

  “I get to keep breathing…” Francis could hear the click of his own Adam’s apple as he swallowed. “Because I put a tracker on the angel.”

  Kale’s dark brows rose. His hair and his eyebrows were as dark as his eyes.

  “I paid her one thousand dollars for the feather.” He licked his lips. “And I shoved a tracker into her bag. Anytime you want her, we can find the angel.”

  Kale started to laugh.

  Feeling more confident, Francis smiled at him. “The tracker…I got it linked to my phone, see…” He pulled out his phone and swiped his fing
er across the screen. “You can find her anywhere—”

  Kale’s claws flew out and slashed across his throat. Francis tried to cry out, but there was no time. He could feel his blood pouring from his throat and soaking his shirt. Kale snatched the phone from Francis’s slack fingers.

  “I’ll be sure to find her,” Kale promised. “Good work, human.”

  Francis fell out of his chair. His body was jerking. He tried to put his fingers to his throat so that he could stop that blood flow. Things weren’t supposed to end this way. He was going to become immortal. He wasn’t going to die a human. The angel—she’d been his ticket. He’d planned to trade her—

  For immortality.

  Kale stared down at him. “Did you hurt her?”

  No, he hadn’t. He’d given her money.

  “I’ve been looking for someone like her for a very, very long time.” Kale had the phone in his hand. He was gazing intently at the screen. “I just have to be sure I’m the one who gets to her first.”

  A gurgle escaped Francis.

  Kale glanced up. He winked at Francis. “Thanks for your help.” He shoved the phone into his pocket and leaned over Francis. His claws pressed right over Francis’s heart. “See you in hell.”

  Francis felt a tear leak from his eye.

  And then he didn’t feel anything else.

  Chapter Four

  The soup was warming, and his dick was still fucking hard.

  He had it bad for an angel. So bad.

  Jaw locked, Rayce took out his phone and dialed Luke. He knew it was later in the Keys, but he didn’t really give a shit if he woke Luke from the guy’s precious slumber. Most of the world—the smart part—might fear Luke, but Rayce didn’t bow down to the fellow. They were friends, almost…family…and half of his fun in life came from needling the Lord of the Dark.

  Luke answered on the second ring. “You found her.”

  “Yeah, I found her.” Rayce moved to the large glass window in the kitchen. Actually, the whole cabin seemed to be filled with those windows. The cabin overlooked the mountains and those windows gave a killer view. The place was wired with top-of-the-line security. Video cameras were everywhere, plus a few fun bonus features that were specific to the paranormal world. We won’t be getting any surprise visitors. Actually, no unwelcome guests would get anywhere near the cabin, thanks to the supernatural safeguards that were in place.

  “Any sign of my asshole brother?” Luke’s tone had turned considering.

  “Not that I’ve seen. I beat him—or whatever dumb hunter he drafted into finding her.” A smile teased his lips. “The angel was good, I have to give her that. She kept moving, she stayed off the grid, and if I hadn’t gotten her scent…”

  “How did she stay off the grid?” Luke asked. “Was someone helping her?” There was a threat in those words. Woe be unto the paranormal soul who’d assisted the angel.

  Rayce swallowed, hating this part. “Something you need to know. I found her tonight, right after she’d sold a feather.”

  Luke’s curse was low, heated, and hard.

  “I’m guessing that’s how she stayed ahead of us. Someone did clue her in to the paranormal black market.” He’d be finding out exactly who that someone was. “She sold her feather tonight for a thousand cash. I’m thinking she could have sold other feathers in the past. A few other transactions like that and she was able to stay afloat.” I’m starving. I’m tired. Her words whispered through his mind. “It hasn’t been easy on her,” he continued softly. “Angels weren’t meant for this world.”

  Silence. The kind that told him he wasn’t going to like what Luke had to say next. “She’s not an angel any longer.”

  Rayce forced a rough laugh. “She looks like one. Still has the wings…”

  “Not for long.”

  Rayce stilled. “What in the hell does that mean?”

  “It means…she’s becoming one of mine.”

  Mine. His claws stretched and Rayce’s lip curled. No, Luke…she’s mine.

  “A dark paranormal,” Luke continued quietly. “Why do you think Leo can’t find her? She’s not under his dominion any longer. You said it yourself, wolf, angels weren’t meant for this world. Being here—it changes them. She fell, and that is just the beginning for her.” His sigh drifted over the line. “Or the end.”

  “Cut your riddle shit, Luke. This is me you’re talking to.” He yanked on the burner, turning it off with a flick of his wrist. “The woman is fucking innocence and light. She’s good. I can see it when I touch her. I can taste it when I—” But he broke off. Luke didn’t need to know about the kiss.

  “Be careful,” Luke warned.

  “I’m not going to hurt her.” Yeah, okay, his beast could take over sometimes and with his past… “I’m not.”

  “It’s not you I’m worried about. Watch her. Stay on your guard with her.”

  Rayce glanced back at the closed bedroom door. He’d heard the shower running before he’d put on the soup. A naked angel, covered in beads of water…yes, please. But Rayce cleared his throat. “She’s the victim. She was held prisoner, tortured, all because your brother wanted more power.”

  “That’s why she’s so dangerous.”

  He was gripping the phone far too tightly.

  “That’s why I sent you after her,” Luke continued carefully. “The first thing she knew on this earth…it was pain.”

  His teeth ground together. And I want to teach her about pleasure.

  “It…I think that made her wrong, Rayce.” Luke’s voice had turned gentle. “I’m sorry.”

  Sorry? Screw that. “There is more to life than pain.” He couldn’t even believe he’d just said that crap. What was he? A greeting card? A movie of the week? Rayce squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head. “What in the hell?” Was he having some kind of sex deprived breakdown? Maybe the angel could help him out with that issue…

  “There may not be more for her. She may…she may like the pain.” Luke’s words were halting. The guy was never halting. “She may only grow to feel alive if she’s in pain or if she’s giving pain.”

  “That’s bullshit.” Lila was sweet and good and pure. She looked at him and he…

  I want to be more than a monster. I don’t want her to think I’m a beast. He wanted her to see him as a man.

  “I’ve watched it happen before.” Luke’s voice was measured. “Angels don’t fall often—or if they do, they don’t live long.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I have to put them down.”

  Shock rolled through Rayce. “Is that why you sent me after her?” His voice thickened. “Because you think I’m going to have to put her down?” He’d been an assassin for Luke before. His hunting skills made him the perfect weapon but Lila…

  No. The bastard has not sent me to kill her.

  “I don’t know exactly what she’ll become yet.” Again, Luke had taken a measured tone. “We just have to watch her. You’re to bring her back here, understand?”

  “Yeah, I understand.” Steam drifted from the pot of soup. “Any other fucking little bombshells you want to drop on me?”

  “You’re in Colorado…”

  “At the cabin.” He pulled a bowl from the cabinet and worked hard not to smash it. Fury still rode him hard. Put her down? Hell, no. “And, dude, have I ever told you that you’ve got too much freaking money?”

  “You live as long as I have, and you accumulate a lot of things.”

  Serious understatement.

  “Stop hating on my cabin. Start appreciating. You need a safe place in Colorado. Those mountains up there can be dangerous.” A pause. “Consider yourself lucky to be in my second home.”

  Second? More like tenth. But Alarms began going off in Rayce’s head. “You’re holding back on me again.”

  “You should ask your angel…why Colorado? What drew her there?”

  Your angel. His eyes narrowed. “I could ask her, but I’m talking to your asshole self right
now—so just cut the games and tell me yourself.”

  Luke laughed. It was a scary sound.

  But Rayce wasn’t scared. He was pissed.

  Put her down?

  The bowl cracked. Shattered. He reached for another.

  “I don’t think my brother and I are the only ones who will hunt for her.”

  Rayce grunted. “Yeah, especially if she’s been leaving a trail of angel feathers in her wake.” That would bring out all kinds of paranormal poachers.

  “Watch her—carefully. Keep her in your sight at all times. Keep her close.”

  Staying close to Lila was at the top of his to-do list. “You still haven’t told me what you think drew her to Colorado.”

  The scent of lavender and candy apples drifted to him just as he heard the squeak of a door opening. Rayce glanced back, and Lila was there. She was wearing a white bath robe and her long legs were bare. Her toes curled against the wooden floor. His gaze drifted over her, up her, down her…

  He could see the curve of her breast. The top of the robe was loose, and it revealed the soft curve that he wanted to touch and taste.

  “Fate,” Luke was saying softly. “A very twisted fate led her there.”

  “I got to go. Check in tomorrow.” He hung up and slammed the phone down on the countertop without taking his eyes off Lila. Her hair was wet, curling over her shoulders. Her eyes were wide, and her cheeks were a bit pink from her shower. She inched forward and tucked a lock of her wet hair behind her ears.

  “I…I know you said to get in bed,” Lila murmured, “but I was hoping the soup was ready.”

  Stop staring at her chest. “It is.” He motioned to the table. “Here, sit.”

  She came forward and when she moved, the bottom of the robe slid open a bit, revealing teasing glimpses of her thighs. Sweet, sweet heaven.

  She stopped. “Rayce?”

  Look up.

  He met her stare and saw the confusion there.

  “Is something wrong? Was that…a bad phone call?”

  Put her down.

  His chin lifted. “It was nothing you need to worry about.” He pulled out the chair. “You can sit here.”

  Biting her lip, she slid into the chair. He pushed it forward a little bit, trying to get her closer to the table. Then he brought the bowl of soup over to her and gave her a spoon. “Be careful. It’s still hot.” He sat down in the chair next to her.