Page 24 of Semi-Fallen

If Lucien was surprised or disgusted or anything other than turned on by her kiss, he didn’t let on. He didn’t hesitate to kiss her back with equal intensity while the earth continued to quake beneath their feet.

She would’ve loved more time to reflect on what she was feeling. On what he was feeling. On the situation in general. But she didn’t get a chance.

Pain, pleasure, and everything in between faded as her world went black and she was plunged into sweet, sweet oblivion.

CHAPTER 13

Lucien was not going to take Lane back to her home—the home where everyone had tried to kill him at least once, some twice or thrice—unconscious.

Besides, he wasn’t ready to let her go. Not just yet. So, he took her to the only place he knew no one would find them.

His home.

Well, he supposed it wasn’t technically home. Or his, for that matter. But the cabin in the wilds of Idaho was everything he wanted while inhabiting this realm—quiet, remote, and comfortable.

The owner had crossed over to Heaven years ago and had no family to bequeath the place to. Lucien had discovered it while wandering the woods shortly after his liberation from hell.

At that time, he’d wanted nothing more than to explore the realm and be left alone to think. And this wild, beautiful, untamed place that was somehow teeming with life and utterly lonely all at the same time was exactly what he’d needed.

Now, with Lane in it, it was more than that.

It felt like a real home.

What was far from right, however, was the fact that she wasn’t awake yet. It had been hours since he powered the spell that would help hide her from others like him, and still she slept.

He’d already checked her breathing and heartbeat more times than he cared to admit. Both were steady and strong. She should be awake by now. The process had been painful and might’ve killed a human, but she was Nephilim—nearly as strong as he was.

“So why aren’t you awake, sweetling?” he murmured aloud, knowing full well she couldn’t hear him.

She looked so peaceful, sleeping in his bed with a tiny hint of a smile on her lips. So damned lovely it made his chest ache.

And she was his.

He’d known it the moment their lips met.

Lucien knew certain humans had pre-destined mates. There were angels responsible for nothing more than making sure those pairings met as planned. But he’d never heard of such a pairing between a human (well, semi-human) and an angel.

He wouldn’t have thought such a thing was possible until Lane had kissed him.

He wondered if she’d felt it, too. Their connection. The invisible string that seemed to bind his heart to hers. Or would she wake and deny it had happened at all?

That was another thing he’d heard from angels responsible for guiding fated mates to one another. Both individuals didn’t always welcome the mating. Some fought it.

In this case, he knew he should fight it. Being together could cost them both everything they knew and loved.

Lane sighed delicately in her sleep and the sound was nothing short of enchanting, which meant if he did want to fight what he was feeling for her, it would be the hardest fucking thing he’d ever done. If an insignificant thing like a sigh made him want to wake her with kisses, what kind of unthinking animal would he become if he ever had her naked, writhing under him, whispering his name in that sweet voice of hers that only he was able to hear?

That’s when her eyes fluttered open, and if the fate of the known universe was at stake, he couldn’t have looked away.

He’d wondered how she’d react when she awoke. Would she be scared of him? Angry for the pain he’d caused? Would she forgive him? But in all his musings while she’d been asleep and he’d been sitting watch over her like a damn gargoyle, he never thought she’d smile at him, wide and guileless, as if he was the only thing she’d hoped to see all day.

How are you? he signed, not trusting his voice to even form words.

Her smile grew, and she stretched her arms above her head. He absolutely would not notice the lean, lithe lines of her body while she stretched like a satisfied kitten, and he would never imagine what he could do with his hands, tongue, or cock to put a similar satisfied look like that on her face.

But he did.

Damn it.

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