Page 6 of Sleeping Redemption
“Now, let’s not be dramatic. I’ve never known you not to be in the mood. Besides...” His tongue dragged over his upper lip as his eyes blatantly raked over my body.
He shifted his cane, slowly dragging the bottom of it up the inside of my leg. Higher and higher it moved until it pressed up between my legs. The deep gravel of his voice spoke with heated intent. “My first option was to strike you here, but you keep insisting we keep things ‘professional’.” His free hand provided the appropriate air quotes.
That was a nice way of putting it. I was technically his supervisor here outside of Hell, and getting involved with an off-kilter trickster demon was asking for a level of trouble I didn’t have time for.
I pushed his cane away from between my legs, ignoring the tug of need brewing in my lower stomach before crossing my arms in front of me.
“Stop with the bullshit. What caused you to grace me with your presence?” I asked, making it clear my temper grew shorter by the second.
In a blur of speed, he closed the short distance between us so his face was a single breath away from touching my own. The sudden movement caused the barest of breezes that shifted a few stray locks of my hair. Stubbornly, I stood my ground, refusing to flinch.
Rook waved his finger back and forth. “Tsk, tsk, tsk. Watch that temper, Kinley. We both know what happens when you get emotional.”
Thoughtfully, he tilted his head. “What is the name of that small town that fell victim all those years ago to a particularly brutal ‘serial killer’ during one of the worst blizzards it had seen in nearly a century?”
Oh, I was at my tipping point now, and my hand grabbed him by the curve of his jaw, pushing him back until he was shoved up against a large metal tool cabinet. The force rattled much of its contents inside the drawers.
My grasp remained locked on his face as I looked into his eyes, the rest of my body pressed up against his as I pinned him in place.
Venom laced my words. “Don’t youeverbring up what happened at St. Cassius again. Do you understand me? If you do, I will personally see to it that your life from here on out involves staring at four blank walls in an insane asylum.” The heat of my face grew quickly from the rage boiling beneath the surface.
To give extra emphasis to my point, I gave him an extra shove into the cabinet before releasing him. I stepped back so I could try to reestablish something resembling self-control inside me.
That shit-eating grin never left his face. Setting his cane down, it stood balanced on one end all by itself.
Show off.
With a light scoff, Rook’s hands brushed off the front of his clothes, smoothing out the lapels of his jacket, all while he snickered in amusement to himself.
“Your wish is my command, mistress.” He gave a flamboyant bow accompanied by a sweeping gesture of his arm. From that bent-over position, his face tipped up with a sparkle of humor in his features, a few longer strands of his dark hair falling forward in front of his eyes. Then, he straightened up.
“As much as it brings me great joy to pay you an unannounced visit, I came to alert you that I overheard some chitty-chatty-chat that one of your feathered comrades may be paying you a visit soon. I heard about it earlier while I was playing with the hallucinations of some woman who overindulged in a narcotic cocktail. You really should havejoined me; it was quite entertaining.” He chuckled to himself as he appeared to reminisce.
My eyes rolled in disinterest at playing with junkies. “And which one of my so-called friends should I be expecting?”
“I am not entirely confident that my information is accurate, but I believe it will be his royal highness, Sylas. He is always the bearer of bad news, you know. Always preaching about this or that. Quite the mood killer.” Rook rolled his eyes.
Sylas wasn’t Team Lucifer, but as business would have it, our jobs coincided with one another. He was the archangel who escorted departed souls from their bodies to the next realm where it would be determined whether or not they would be lifted into stuffy paradise or come on down to party town where we have all the fun.
Contrary to popular belief and despite differences of opinions, the entire Heaven versus Hell situation was blown far out of proportion by the wee mortals on Earth. Both sides relied on one another to strike a balance. Instead of being lifelong enemies, the dynamic was more aligned with two competitive sports teams relying on each other to have a league to play in.
Just what I needed today was Sylas, Mr. Grumpy Pants, to pay me a visit to further sour my mood.
“Lovely,” I said, speaking sarcastically. “If that’s all you have for me then you can disappear yourself out of here.” I waved dismissively at him.
Rook approached and firmly took my hips into his hands, leaning in and drawing in a deep breath against the side of my neck. “You sure you don’t have time for fun?” His gravelly whisper awakened something in my core. “I can smell how much you could use some release, love.”
His hands drifted down over the curve of my ass, kneading it in his hands. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t enjoying it. Rook had always wanted to show some of the other ways he likedto play, but I’d been hesitant. Not because I didn’t like a good time, but because getting involved with any demon was a tricky proposition—that was even more true when it came to Rook.
Deep within me, a part of me feared that I’d become addicted to his more unique methods of fun. A long time ago, I had already learned my lesson after getting involved with a demon, well…a half-demon. That lesson ended with Atlas being destroyed with a sword that was never meant for him–it was mine.
As I mulled over how desperate I felt, he raised a hand to wrap around the back of my neck firmly, and his mouth found the sensitive spot just below my ear. Growling playfully, Rook bit into my flesh possessively, tugging at it like a puppy claiming its new toy. Afterward, there was one long stroke of his tongue over the red crescents his teeth had left behind.
My lips parted as a whispered moan greeted the air. His attention made things challenging to the point where I found myself reconsidering my stance. Maybe a good fuck was what I needed to get my mind off of Alex’s immunity and Sy’s upcoming visit.
My hands slid up his arms onto his shoulders. “I swear, Rook, if I have any less than three orgasms, I will have you banished down to the fourth circle of Hell,” I warned.
Getting excited at the green light for him to continue, he smirked and looked at me with the weight of genuine promise in his eyes. “Love, if you have any less than five, I will banish myself.”
