Page 12 of Always Eros

Eros smiles. “Told you I could protect you.”

I nod, torn between staying right here or going where I know I should. I tell myself I have to get the right help. Eros is kind, but he doesn’t know what my life has been like at all. No one does except the people on the other side of that wall.

“I can’t thank you enough for getting me here safely, Eros.”

Reaching out, he gently touches my face, but it’s so light and over so quickly that I almost wonder if I imagined it. “Take care, Justice.”

“I will.”

I step out of his car and walk over to the keypad by the gate. Glancing at the paper, I type in the code, and wait as Eros slowly backs away but doesn’t leave completely.

“Name?” says a crackling voice over the intercom.

“Justice. Carina gave me the address. I’m from Nightsky.”

The gate buzzes, slowly opening, and I turn to wave goodbye to Eros before slipping inside. I watch from the other side as the gate closes again and his headlights disappear. He might not admit he’s an angel, but he just has to be. How else did he find me in the woods at night and deliver me to safety?

I fold the card with his number on it and tuck it inside the front pocket of my jeans as I walk up the gravel path to the large house. The front door opens and Carina is there, along with a tall, lanky man, and an older woman. All former members of Nightsky. Carina must be an angel too.

“Welcome, Justice,” Carina says as I approach. “We’re so glad you made the decision to come.”

“Thank you.”

I step inside the house and a sense of freedom I’ve never experienced hits me straight in the chest, buckling my knees. Carina’s arm goes around my shoulders.

“I know. It’s overwhelming at first, but you’re safe now. They’ll never find you here, Justice. Take a breath. Your life starts now.”

Nodding, I offer a shaky smile. “I’m ready.”

Chapter Three

EROS

Still parked at the end of the street where I dropped Justice off, I inhale his lingering scent filling the car. He smells of fresh grass after rain, and my favorite flower, gardenia. It’s obvious to me now that he was what I was sensing from deep inside the club. When his fear hit me, I was on my feet and searching for him before I even knew what I was doing.

His scent was nice, but his face? Could there be a more beautiful human in this universe? With my eyes closed I recall the innocence in his soft blue-gray eyes, the way they dominated his tan skin, and the soft tumble of curls falling across his forehead. His lips, pink and full, his fear slipping away as soon as I appeared. He thinks I’m an angel, but if they exist, surely it is Justice who is the angel.

I don’t want to leave him here. I want him close again. I want his scent to seduce my senses while he tells me his story. How will I see him again? There must be a way.

My phone buzzing in my pocket snaps me out of my lovesick stupor.

“Yes, Thorn?”

“Guess what, boo? We caught a scent. We’re heading over to the north side.”

“Where Tru was taken?”

“That’s the spot.”

“I’ll head back that way.”

“Did you take care of your errand?”

The curiosity in his tone brings a smile to my face. “I did. I’ll tell you about it later.”

Since I have to drive, I do my best to get back to the club as quickly as possible. When I pull up to the barrier, Thorn appears with Tru and Midnight close behind him.

“The others are with Yves,” Thorn says, waiting as I step out of the car to move to the passenger seat.

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