Damned If You Do (12 page)

“No! No, you're not understanding me at all.” Seth bit his lip, and Abaddon feared he was fighting tears. “I don't need you to share my beliefs, but I need you to respect them.”

“I do.”

“But Abaddon—”

“Is this because I laugh at you when you throw bible quotes at me?”

“No!” Seth smacked him lightly on the chest, half laughing, half crying. “I don't care about that. But how can we— I can't—” He gestured helplessly toward the trailer, looking so hopelessly frustrated that Abaddon was tempted to laugh again. “There's only one bed!”

And suddenly, like somebody had flipped a light switch, Abaddon saw the problem. And the solution. It was so simple, and yet so obvious, it made him laugh out loud.

“What?” Seth asked, trying to pull away. “You're laughing at me again.”

“No,” Abaddon assured him, holding him tight, refusing to let him get away. He made Seth meet his eyes. “You're right, there's only one bed, and I don't want it to be your bed. I want it to be our bed. I'd drag you in there right now, if I thought you'd let me. But despite what you think, I do respect you. I may not share your beliefs, but I love you for having them.” He wasn't sure he was explaining it well though. Seth still looked confused. “I can tell you that in all my years in Hell, I never met a single soul who was there just for having sex. But I don't want anything between us to make you doubt yourself, and there's only one way to make sure what happens in that one bed doesn't feel like a sin to you.”

For a moment, Seth held very still, soaking that in. The embarrassment on his face began to look like hope. “Do you mean it?”

“Of course I mean it!”

“I don't want you to feel like I'm forcing you into anything.”

“Are you kidding? I love you so much I can hardly stand it. ‘But if they have no self-control, let them marry; for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.'” He laughed, debating that. “Although frankly, I don't see why we can't do both.”

Seth's smile had never been brighter. “Get married
and
burn with passion?”

“Exactly. What do you say?”

“I think I like that idea.”

And this time when Abaddon kissed him, he didn't pull away.

They sealed the deal that very day, with Thaddeus presiding. And that night, Seth left Abaddon absolutely no doubts about his feelings. They made love with a quiet passion that left them both shaken, kissing away each other's tears, trembling in each other's arms.

Abaddon had no idea what Heaven was like, but he couldn't imagine it was better than what he'd found.

The next morning, they climbed into the truck, Seth driving, and Abaddon in the passenger seat, wearing some of the revivalists' donated clothing.

It turned out corduroys really were more comfortable than they looked.

“I made us a list,” Seth said, handing Abaddon a lined piece of paper that had been ripped from a spiral-bound notebook. “It's flexible though. There's no particular order or anything. We can mix it up. Maybe do some of them more than once.”

Abaddon read it, and all he could do was laugh. He unwound Seth's scarf and tossed it aside before pulling Seth into a kiss.

He still tasted like cotton candy and honey.

“I think it's perfect.”

And as they started down the road, he taped the paper to the dashboard.

Grand Canyon

Star Wars

Bryce and Zion

Disneyland

Lots and lots of sifting

About the Author

Marie Sexton's first novel,
Promises
, was published in January 2010. Since then, she's published nearly thirty novels, novellas, and short stories, all featuring men who fall in love with other men. Her works include contemporary romance, science fiction, fantasy, historicals, and a few odd genre mash-ups. Marie is the recipient of multiple Rainbow Awards, as well as the CRW Award of Excellence in 2012. Her books have been translated into six languages.

Marie lives in Colorado. She's a fan of just about anything that involves muscular young men piling on top of each other. In particular, she loves the Denver Broncos and enjoys going to the games with her husband. Her imaginary friends often tag along. Marie has one daughter, two cats, and one dog, all of whom seem bent on destroying what remains of her sanity. She loves them anyway.

Marie also writes dark dystopian fantasy under the name A.M. Sexton. You can find her at
www.mariesexton.net
, and on Facebook and Twitter.

Facebook:
www.facebook.com/MarieSexton.author

Twitter:
www.twitter.com/MarieSexton

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This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locale or organizations is entirely coincidental.

Samhain Publishing, Ltd.

11821 Mason Montgomery Road Suite 4B

Cincinnati OH 45249

Damned If You Do

Copyright © 2016 by Marie Sexton

ISBN: 978-1-61923-536-6

Edited by Christa Soule

Cover by Kelly Martin

All Rights Are Reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

First
Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
electronic publication: June 2016

www.samhainpublishing.com