Page 43 of Wicked Savior
She sighs and closes her eyes as if she can’t bear to look at me.
I stand and grip her head in my two hands. “Open your eyes, Evren.” I need to see them. To know what she’s feeling. Her lids lift, and she stares solemnly up at me.
“Why did you leave?” I ask her softly.
She shakes her head. “I want to find my mother and go home. I can’t do this anymore. You’ll have to get your revenge some other way.”
My brows draw together. “Your mother?”
She tries to look away, but I refuse to let her. “Tell me.”
“I heard you talking to Daire. He’s right. You need to move on from me, and all of this, before it destroys you. Let it go. Let karma and the fates punish Gabriel,” she urges me, her voice soft, but I hear the pain in it.
I shift closer to her. “Stop trying to push me away. I promised to fucking protect you. Promised, Evren. When you’re safe, I’ll go.”
She opens her mouth to speak, but I’m tired of listening. I lean down and capture her lips, silencing the words on her tongue. Soft and warm, the feel of them against mine tempts me beyond the simple kiss I intended to place on them. I tilt her head up and back, kissing her deeper and longer, needing to imprint myself on her. My body tightens with desire and fear.
She tastes like forever. But I know firsthand, humans don’t last forever. They break… and die. I can’t go through that again. I need to stop, but my lips cling to hers, mingling our two breaths. Her heart is pounding against my chest, and mine matches its every beat.
Her heart beats. She’s alive, I reassure myself.
Still, my lips move against hers, needing more of this complex woman.
A furious roar sounds behind me, and I turn quickly, sword in hand, to stand in front of Evren. But for once, Gabriel’s not focused on her. All his attention is on the angel standing in front of him.
“Did you happen to bring my dagger?” Evren asks quietly.
Hearing she left without her knife infuriates me, and I step to her side so I can look down at her and watch Gabriel at the same time. “I ran out of The Abbey as soon as I heard you were taken,” I reply, shaking my head. “By the way, I’m still pissed that you left. I told you to stay put. Did you not believe me when I said he was dangerous?” I wave a hand at the scorched earth in front of me. “Does this not prove to you that he’s losing his mind?”
My voice rises with each question, and Gabriel shifts his attention from the angel to us. Indecision wars on his face.
I rein in my anger and pluck my dagger from my belt. “Here. It has the same spell as yours engraved on it.”
She pulls it from my hand and flips it over to read the spell. The sharp edge slices into her hand, smearing blood on the blade, but she barely flinches. “Thanks. I feel a lot better with a weapon in my hand.”
“Damn it, Evren. Be careful,” I tell her, my voice gruff. I reach down and rip off a piece of my shirt and press it to the cut. “This will have to do for now.”
Her hand brushes against my side, bumping the hilt of my sword, as she pulls me close.
Gabriel leaves the angel and heads straight toward us.
I knew it.
The thought of helping him makes me grind my teeth. “I’m guessing you need some help to clean up the fucking mess you’ve made?” A part of me is tempted to say no, but we don’t have time to fuck around with games. Human lives are at stake. Those beasts can obliterate a city and its residents in minutes. “Let’s go.”
He stops and stares at me.
“You can grovel later. If we don’t hurry, they’ll mow down everyone in their path and move on to the next city,” I say impatiently. “We’ll follow you.”
He stalks off toward the angel waiting across the field.
My arm goes around Evren, and I draw her close. Her subtle scent wraps around me, and I inhale deeply. With a snap, the wings I keep confined spring free, and my back flexes in anticipation.
Evren’s eyes immediately focus on my wings.
I expect to see her usual analytical gaze, but instead her face is full of awe.
She fits her body to mine and throws her arms around my neck. “They’re magnificent, almost a pearl white. I knew you used to be an angel, but it didn’t occur to me to ask if you still had your wings.” Her finger reaches behind my head and strokes one of them. “Soft too.”
