Page 107 of An Unexpected Ascension
Lucifer’s mouth lifts in a slow smile, his gaze lighting with delight at the angel before us. In less than a full week, I’ve managed to turn a worshipper of God into the Devil’s soldier.
“And how do I know I can trust your intentions?” Lucifer’s brows dip in subtle accusation.
“Because I finally know how I fit into this equation.” Her eyes find mine and she holds my stare.
There’s an unspoken apology in her gaze and it’s taken me until this moment to realize, I don’t need it. I just need her – to fight this battle with us.
The Devil sighs in what seems like relief. As if it took all his effort to keep my past tucked away and hidden from her. I roll my eyes but knock my body against his in a brotherly gesture.
“Then, I guess, do not get caught.”
Chapter 34
The Angel
“Inever thought I would see this cave again.” I groan as we land on our feet.
A spell of dizziness brings me to my knees and my stomach threatens to purge itself at the quickest travels known to exist. All those colors – swirling and blending and twisting – oh Gods...
Luckily, I haven’t eaten since the other night, and nothing comes up.
A hand flattens on my back, rubbing in soothing circles and as good as it feels, I still have the urge to shake it off. Instead, I stand, steadying myself with Hermes’ help. His fingers linger on my elbow as he watches me wearily.
“What?” I snap, dragging myself away from him and toward the edge of the fall.
“Just making sure you’re okay.”
“Fine. Just fine.”
“Yeah, seems like it,” he mutters.
I narrow my eyes on him.
“And if I wasn’t, would you care?”
“I don’t need you to screw this up.”
There’s the demon I know.Quick to dismiss his feelings and eager to prove they don’t exist.
Despite the yearning for a much different answer, I ignore him. My mind is just too exhausted to detangle what it means to want something more. “We should climb down the side. Diving will only bring attention,” I tell him.
Before I can slip off onto the side of the cliff, he pulls me back and I nearly collide into him.
“What’s gotten into you?”
“What do you mean?”
That navy blue gaze settles on me, etched with an unwarranted concern. I try to avoid letting it heat me from the inside, that blundering cold still aching my bones, reminding me of the nightmares brought on by the Demon of Fear.
An inked hand cups the side of my face, and his thumb brushes my cheek.
I drop my gaze.
“I don’t know, Angel. I kind of thought we had a truce going on, but maybe I'm mistaken.”
His voice is soft, gentle. Unlike the one I keep hearing inside my head before that trigger?—
“I didn’t know you wanted a truce.”
