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Pain scraped every cell of my body and my eyes blinked open to black so thick, I couldn’t see anything, our tumble into oblivion still sharp in my mind. I tried to sit up but hands pushed me back.
“Don’t move,” Naomi said, her voice drowning all my other senses, layering a blanket of relief over me. Tears burned my throat and traced hot paths down my face, blurring the darkness and dulling the agony.
Wire snapped and I groaned at the fire burning my shoulder, choking me. I clamped my eyes closed, pressing my teeth together while she pulled the metal shard from my shoulder, unwrapping my arm before placing it on my stomach over my other freed appendage.
“Where are we?” I asked once the ability to articulate returned.
“I don’t know,” she answered and something delectable pressed against my lips.
The minute my teeth pierced her skin, power flowed into me and I had to temper the burn, the need to suck every last drop from her. The knowledge that she’d let me, if it meant my survival, brought a fresh wave of tears to my eyes and after a few draws on the angel infused blood, I released her wrist, opting to pull her against me in the darkness instead of feasting on her blood.
Crying was not normal for me. It was something that I hadn’t done since I was a little boy and the strange outpouring gripped me, flooding my ears with hot liquid. My arms tightened around Naomi, my form shaking to the core with silent sobs. I buried my face in her shoulder and her tender lips found my ear.
“I love you,” she whispered and I squeezed tighter.
Light filled the space and I opened my eyes, staring up into Michael’s magnificent form. His melancholy expression blurred and I blinked the sheen of tears from my eyes, meeting his hard gaze. I scrunched my eyebrows together, wondering if I had seen the warm expression or if it was just the tears that distorted his features.
Naomi pulled out of my arms and stood, crossing to the angel and giving him a hug.
“Thank you,” she said and placed a kiss on his cheek. Michael closed his eyes and gave her a quick squeeze before meeting my gaze.
“How’s Valerie?” I asked.
“She’s with her uncle in a safe place,” Michael answered and then looked at Naomi. “Lucifer is still alive”
Naomi nodded and looked at the floor.
“My sources tell me he's in bad shape,” he said and slid his gaze to me. “So it looks like you’ve got a reprieve while he heals.”
Confusion clouded my already emotionally charged brain and I attempted to sit up again, succeeding, despite the protest of every muscle. I glanced around at the familiar surroundings of the cottage bedroom and the bags on the floor, including my computer bag, before my gaze snapped back to Michael.
“How?” I asked and pointed to the luggage, but really what I wanted to know was why he saved me. I just didn’t know how to ask without setting him off.
Michael’s eyebrow rose in that arrogant gesture that always infuriated me.
I bit down on a derogatory remark and traded a glance with Naomi. “Okay, then why,” I asked, finding the curiosity too overwhelming not to ask.
“Because she asked for my help,” he said, but I saw something underneath the sternness that told me there was more to it than that. He sent a warning glare in Naomi’s direction and added, “The bloodline still needs protection.” Which sounded logical considering, but it didn’t explain the underlying fatherly vibe I was getting.
“You sure it isn’t because you care?” I asked, offering a smirk as compensation for the dig.
Michael’s laughter filled the room and then he was gone, leaving Naomi and I alone in the dark.
I stood on shaking legs and crossed to where she stood, wrapping my arms around her. “What you did was stupid and foolish,” I whispered and she stiffened in my arms. “And insanely brave,” I added and before she could voice any argument, I crushed her lips under mine, kissing her with every ounce of love and passion filling my soul.