Page 27 of Found In Destruction

She gasped, pulling away from me. “You met with Rafael for me? You can’t stand him after he casted you out of heaven.”

“I would do anything for you.” I leaned down to kiss her on the cheek. My lips lingered for a few seconds, but I didn’t want to push her. “I’m going to bed early. Goodnight, Angel.”

“Goodnight, Zaz.”

Walking away from her was hard, but I knew it was the right thing to do. I was determined to win her back, and giving her space to process everything was necessary if she was going to take me back. That was what I told myself as I brushed my teeth and went through my nighttime routine. When I pulled my covers over myself, I was almost convinced.

I felt a large,warm body press into me from behind as a heavy arm banded around my chest. Ares had taken to sneaking in and cuddling me after I fell asleep some nights, and I never stopped him, because I needed it almost as much as he did. I rolled over and buried my face into…rough fabric, not chest hair.

Lifting my head,I opened my eyes to see Desmond, not the Greek god I expected. Desmond hadn’t really bothered with me after Diana left. He wasn’t cruel or dismissive, just absent. He was working through her leaving in his own way–drowning himself in whiskey–and didn’t really socialize with anyone unless he had to. It was a gut punch, because we were working on getting to know each other again and I thought our relationship was going somewhere.

I didn’t sayanything for a few moments, waiting for him to explain why he was here. When he buried his face in my hair and inhaled, it became obvious he wasn’t going anywhere.

“Couldn’t sleep?”

“Not exactly…”he said, rubbing my back. I quirked a brow at him in a silent attempt to get him to continue his line of thought.

“Bash can be…singular-minded.I think he was expecting your immediate forgiveness, and when you didn’t give it to him… I saw the wheels turning in his mind. I wanted to make sure he didn’t come into your dreams to fuck with you.”

“How would you even know?You can’t get into my psyche.”

“You talk in your sleep.”My face fell, and his smirk was enough to make me want to slap him.

“I do not!”Wriggling, I tried to get out of his hold, but he held onto me.

“You really do,”he laughed. “Diana and I used to laugh our asses off at some of the things you’d say in your sleep. ‘The ducks are chasing me, make them stop’was one of my favorites.”

“You didn’t haveto snuggle with me to keep an eye on me,” I said with an unintended bite. I knew we all grieved in different ways, but it felt shitty to be dropped by him while Diana was gone.

“I like holdingyou and sniffing your hair like a creeper while you sleep.” He ran his nose up my neck, inhaling along the way.

“Could have fooled me.I haven’t really seen you for the past three months.” I sounded so passive aggressive, but I couldn’t help myself. I didn’t even realize that Desmond’s absence bothered me until I told Bash how alone I felt earlier.

Desmond sighed,like he was gearing up for something uncomfortable. He tipped my chin up so I could see his golden eyes. They glowed in the darkness. “You’re right. I kept to myself and let everything and everyone I care about fall by the wayside. I should have been there for you, and I wasn’t. Emotions aren’t my thing…I’m making up for it, though.”

“I guess you are,”I murmured.

When I had grace,it was easier to forgive and forget. Angels had a moral code of goodness we were expected to follow to the tee. Once I had fallen, it was easier to hold a grudge. I stopped suppressing my emotions and started living for myself. For some reason, I didn’t want to hold Desmond’s actions against him. He wasn’t cruel–he was just a good man that made mistakes sometimes.

“When you leftBash and I, I wasn’t surprised. I was almost relieved because I saw myself screwing our relationship up and didn’t know how to fix it. It frustrated me and made me feel out of control…” He took a deep breath and squeezed me harder. “Now I see myself screwing up and I’m determined to fix it, because the thought of you wanting nothing to do with me, or with any of us, makes me feel empty.”

“I don’t thinkyou’ll ever truly be rid of me. We’re both becoming better people, and fate keeps bringing us together again. We’re good, Des.” I burrowed into his chest more, kissing his smooth skin. “It’s Diana I’m worried about.”

“Yeah,me too. Take us and all of our bullshit out of the equation–she’s upset about her mom, her magic isn’t right, and she feels guilty about the attack on the compound. She makes mistakes when she’s too caught up in her emotions.”

“Judas’healing team wants her back in training ASAP,” I reminded him. He threw his leg over mine, settling into the mattress more.

“Okay,then we have somewhere to start. We can focus on getting her on track. Keep a persistent presence around her. Cat-plan.” His grin shot warmth through my entire body. He truly believed in himself, and to see him taking charge, in his natural element, made me feel better. “Let’s get to bed. Good night, Az.”

“Goodnight, Des.”

12

DIANA

Judas had a dungeon at the very bottom level of the Costa Coven compound that I had only heard about in passing. Apparently, this was where all the torture magic happened. I was told by Lucifer to report there after breakfast for my first lesson since returning home. To say I was nervous was an understatement. My magic wasn’t right. It felt…off, like something was missing. I wasn’t sure hanging around the guys, even if it was for training purposes, was going to help me get back on track.

When I faded to the bottom floor, a techno, euphoric melody with a thumping beat blared through the hallway, and I had to fight the urge to ditch my training session and dance instead. The guys taught me to always expect the unexpected, but K-Pop as a torture method?Color me intrigued.

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