Waiting for Mercy (Cambions) (22 page)

He was right.  It had been crazy.  I hadn’t known much about full demons or shifters then.  So many things happened at the lake house.  When I turned back, the wings were gone.  It was just him and I in the darkness again.  “What else can you do?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” he said trying to sound humble.  “We have more strength than your average human, we can move quicker, the angel light,” he said drifting off.

“Anything else,” I asked.  I wasn’t going to let this go.  I was tired of being in the dark about everything.

Hesitating, he said, “My father was once an archangel.”

Yeah, I’d figured his father was the angel in the family.  But nothing prepared me to know he was an archangel.  I didn’t have to be religious to know that was a big deal.

Luke reached for my hand and entwined our fingers.  It almost felt like he was trying to ensure himself I wouldn’t run.

“He fell because he was in love with my mother,” he said.  “He’d known what he was giving up to be with her, but now he resents her.”

His grip around me held firm.  I couldn’t move to turn to face him.  That is what I wanted to do at this very moment.  Luke’s dad fell in love and fell from grace.  Luke’s love for me could cause him damnation.  Just when I was about to press that point he spoke.

“It wasn’t my mother’s fault for his decision.  I hate him for what he’s done to her.  That will never happen between you and me,” he said, with sheer determination.

“How do you know?” I asked, silently because really I didn’t want him to let me go.

“Because I accept all the decisions I make and their consequences,” he said. He moved forward with his words.  “And because there is nothing I haven’t already done that wouldn’t lead me to damnation on my own.”

I wasn’t mollified by his words.  He wasn’t finished.  “My father seeks to use me in some grand plan of his.” He looked away, but not at anything in particular.  “I’ve been doing my best to make sure I wouldn’t be worthy of him to use long before I met you.”

Well if that statement didn’t make me leery of our relationship, I don’t know what would. “So you decided to add to your list of crimes by dating a succubus,” I said, with bitterness.

“No,” he said vehemently. The disgusted look on his face almost had me convinced.  “I didn’t even know what you were when I pursued you.”

“Well, I guess it didn’t hurt when you found out,” I added sullenly. “Now I know why your father hates me.”

“My father is an asshole,” he said.  “And you are better than all of us, me, my dad, Flynn, Sebastian. You are what is good and you’re good for me.” There was pleading in his tone as he bent towards me.

Wanting to believe him, wasn’t enough.  I had a more important question to ask. “Why do you like me?” I questioned. 

Okay, it wasn’t just out of lack of confidence I asked.  I asked because I still wondered why I was worth the risk to him.

Feeling the gentle pull, he tugged him into his embrace.  He kissed the top of my head before pulling back just enough to look in my eyes.  “There are so many things I love about you,” he said with utter sincerity. “Besides the obvious beauty you are, you are the most amazing girl I’ve ever met.  Your intelligence is highly attractive.  I love your independence and quiet resolve to do what needs to be done.  Your innocence shows in this little dimple,” he said touching a spot close to my mouth. “When you are truly happy, that dimple pops out.”

Unable to help it, I smiled.  His face warmed and his thumb brushed over the spot where he said I had a dimple.  “There it is,” he whispered right before he kissed me.

The heavens exploded behind my closed eyes.  That sensation of flying in space zooming past stars filled my closed eyed vision.  When he pulled back, the light went away and I felt lost.

Confused by everything he said, I suddenly felt a little reckless.  All my life, I’d been the good little girl.  And what had that gotten me.  I had Luke, but what if I made a mistake like with Paul.  Would I lose him again?  All this time he was bubble wrapping me up like I was too fragile I’d break.  Maybe it was time to do something he didn’t expect.

Moving fast I peeled off my top and bottoms, left in a bra and panties I saw his eyes roam every inch of me for the very first time.  His look was predatory.  Something in me on a primal level smiled. 

“Mercy,” he said barely audible.

I grinned at him and turned.  I ran.  I hopped.  I dived into the heated pool.  When I reached the bottom, I held there as all the sound of the outside world were lost in this place of peace.  The only sound was the water settling back from my explosive entrance.

When my lungs began to burn, I still didn’t surface.  Just when I was about to exhale my final breath of air before I’d make a decision to surface or pass out, a mass hit the water.  I felt the tug and didn’t fight it.  Breaking the surface of the water my lungs screamed with satisfaction from oxygen.

“What are you doing?” he asked me.  His eyes were narrowed and he looked quite perturbed.

Darkly, I looked up at him. “I don’t know.”

His eyes softened on me. Quietly, while the water rippled all around us. I noticed that I wasn’t moving my legs to keep afloat yet here I was.  He must be using his power to keep us steady, I thought. “You don’t have to take your clothes off for me to want you,” he said.

Shame colored my cheeks, so I turned away from his gaze.  “Did you have sex with Lexi?” I asked.  The question just popped out my mouth.  But I turned back to look at his face.  His expression was frozen with questioning. I wasn’t quite done yet. “Nina or Adelina?”

He closed his eyes briefly. “Lexi is a lost soul,” he said.

“That isn’t an answer,” I said.

“I know,” he said defensively. “I…, I showed her attention but not the kind she wanted.”

“And what does that mean?”

“It means I let her know that her value wasn’t in her pants. It means I let her feel beautiful because she is.  It means I hope she will see from my kindness that not all guys think the only thing she can offer is when she is on her knees or horizontal,” he said stoically.

A part of me wanted to say that was the angel in him speaking.  But I knew if he was only human, he would still be that same.  And even though I heard what he said, I focused on one thing.  “You think she’s beautiful?”  She was very pretty, even I had to admit that.

“Yeah, but I think your beauty surpasses hers.”  The warmth his eyes had lacked earlier filled in as he held my gaze, I had no choice but to accept the truth in his words.  “Plus, you were with that guy avoiding me all night.  Then when you need help, it was Flynn who was there for you.”

“I,” I started to say.

“And don’t think I don’t see the way he looks at you, the way he’s been trying to block our relationship from the beginning. I’m the fool,” he said. 

Acrimony filled his face now.  This was something I didn’t want.  I did not want to be the cause of their friendship ending.

“There’s nothing going on between us,” I said.

Warmth gone, his stare was cold and maybe a little frosty.  The glacier blue reminded me of Flynn’s eyes and my heart sank.  I didn’t want that heat to be gone.

“Flynn and I are barely friends,” I said.

He laughed but it wasn’t friendly.  “When I saw the two of you on the ground staring at each other after playing in the water the other day, the look on his face was less than friendly.”

Feebly, I said, “We weren’t a couple.”

He nodded. “I know that’s why I can’t be mad.  But if he doesn’t back off and stop poaching we won’t be friends.  I don’t share.”

“You have,” I said referring to how they’d played numerous games of spin the bottle and who knows what else with previous girlfriends.

His face tightened. “Not you I don’t.”

There was a noise from the back of the house.  Luke reached a finger to cover my lips.  Flynn walked down to the pool and turned towards our abandoned clothing.  I hadn’t even noticed Luke wasn’t wearing his jeans.  It must have been his bare chest that distracted me.  My head began to dip to see when he made a slight movement to shake his head.  Flynn turned back and looked at the spot we were at.  I moved my eyes to see that the water was not moving.  I held as still as I could.

“Luke, Mercy, I know you’re out here,” he said walking towards our clothes. “Luke you can turn that invisibility shit off.”

So that explained why he looked right through us.  We were invisible.  Luke had a cache of abilities.

“Well, let’s see how you do without these,” Flynn said scooping our clothes up and holding them out like a prize.  He turned back to the pool but then he headed back inside the house with our stuff. 

When the door closed, I exhaled.  “What are we going to do now?” I asked.

Luke’s smile returned and we ascended into the air.  Not over my fear of heights, I kept my eyes on him.  “Can anyone see us?” I asked.  He shook his head. “Good,” I said.  Next thing I knew we were laughing back in my room.

Turning, I saw myself in the mirror.  I was reminded that I wasn’t wearing any clothes other than my bra and panties.  I turned back to Luke and saw his boxer briefs for the first time.

“Go get dressed,” he said pointing to my bathroom.

But I didn’t listen.  Boldly, I walked over to him. “Why are you always trying to save me?”

He searched my eyes like he couldn’t believe what I was saying. “We have forever.  There is no need to rush anything. This isn’t something you should take lightly,” he said.

When my words to Maggie were flung in my face by my hot boyfriend, for the second time tonight I felt stupid.  Why was I being stupid?

“You’ll be leaving to go to college soon,” I said when something in me broke. I felt the hot tears seer down my face.

Leaning in, he gave me his famous airbrush kiss letting his lips press against my cheek before his mouth was close to my ear.  “Is that what this is about?” he whispered.

Nodding, I gave a feeble, “Yes, and I want you to be the one.”  No, I wasn’t sure I was ready this exact moment, but I knew deep down inside when I was ready I wanted it to be him and nobody else.

“I’m not leaving tomorrow,” he said softly.  “We have time.”

Feeling a bit stupid that’s he’s turned me down again, I nodded. I turn from him and walked to my bathroom closing the door as silently as possible.  Tears welled in my eyes for being irrational.  He didn’t want me, my subconscious tried to tell me.  Even though I knew better than that, the reality was that rejection stung.

After getting myself together, I’d come out of the room to Luke.  He sat on the bed.  I curled in his arms still ready for a whole lot more. 

McKayla

Finally she’d gone to sleep, a really really deep sleep.  Her boyfriend’s arms were warm and darn it to Lucifer if the angel wasn’t one sexy piece of male hotness.  I wasn’t stupid enough to think he’d be happy to see me.  He’d send me away and it had been far too long since I had a turn up at bat.

Moving slowly, I made my way from his warm embrace without waking him.  Twisting and rolling my neck, I checked that everything was working. I looked down at the ensemble she has us wearing and find it’s her signature look of a white tank and her sweat pants.  Today she was wearing the light blue ones.

Opening the door to her room, I closed it carefully to make as little noise as possible.  Stopping, I listened and only heard television noises coming from down the hall.  So maybe he wasn’t asleep.  I didn’t bother to waste time, I sashayed my way down the hall.

The knob turned easily.  The room was dark but I had no trouble seeing him lying on the bed.  His eyes are closed, but I knew he knew I was here.

At his feet, I made my assent.  Creeping up on all four, I crawled the entire length of his body. I reached my hand to caress his beautiful face.  His hands captured mine and I found myself on the bottom beneath a pile of covers and sheets he’d been underneath moments before. He moved fast wearing nothing but loose fitting bottoms.  His well toned chest hovered over me.  Trapped, I longed to reach out and touch him.