Fallen: William Read online

  She shook her head. “I’ll only feel safe if you hold me in your arms while I sleep. I won’t blame you in the morning. I need you tonight.”

  He didn’t have the heart to deny her anything. He stripped off his clothes and climbed into bed next to her. He cuddled her up to his side and tucked her head under his chin. “Go to sleep. I’ll be right here all night. Nothing will harm you again.” He felt her sigh with relief. Kissing her hair, he willed her to sleep.

  CHAPTER TEN

  William woke up to see Abby staring down at him.

  “Hey,” he said softly. “How are you?”

  “That should be my line. I’m not the one who had a run-in with a demon last night.” She touched his face.

  “I’m used to it, sweetheart. Did you have any nightmares? True Demons aren’t the most pleasant things. I’ve only met one that wasn’t overtly evil.”

  “How did you know I needed you?” She rubbed her thumb over his cheek.

  “I had been sitting outside since I followed you home.” He put his finger on her lips to stop her protest. “I wasn’t going to leave you unprotected. I would have left you alone. You wouldn’t even have known I was around if it hadn’t been for the demon. You were crazy to think that I would expose you to any danger.”

  She pulled away from him and sat up. She wrapped her arms around her knees. “I can’t complain since you saved me. Thank you.”

  He slid his hand up and down her back, trying to offer her some comfort. She didn’t flinch away from him. “What scared you last night, Abby? Why did you want to get away from me?”

  She sighed. “I started worrying about losing myself and becoming your shadow. A relationship with you would be overwhelming and intense.”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize I was being overprotective.” He sat up and took her hands in his. “You’re so fragile, not because you’re female, but because you’re mortal. I’ve lost so many friends that I can’t stand the thought of losing you. I don’t know if you can understand how much I care about you.”

  She could hear the pain in his voice. His losses explained the deep sorrow she had always felt in him. “Your watching over me isn’t being overprotective. I know that you’re keeping me safe. I had a flashback to my childhood. My mother lived for my father. She allowed him to do anything he wanted. I vowed I would never do that.”

  “I don’t want you to let me do whatever I want unless it’s in bed.” He leered at her.

  His eyes sparkled with laughter. She realized he was trying to make her laugh. For a while she wanted to forget about her worries and just enjoy having him in her life. Smiling, she reached up and wrapped her arms around him. She kissed him while her hands ran down his sides to tickle him. He jerked and then attacked her sides with his nimble fingers.

  They wrestled around with the pillows and blankets falling to the floor. Soon she was shrieking and he had her pinned to the bed. He trailed his tongue down her throat to the shadowed valley between her breasts. She bowed her back, offering up her nipples to him. He licked her through her nightgown. The feel of the damp silk against her sensitive skin excited her. She felt her pussy flood.

  He left her nipples and moved to her feet. He kissed them and she couldn’t help but giggle. He glanced up from the end of the bed. She basked in the glow of his smile. She was surprised when he leapt off the bed and raced out of the room. She heard a crash and then a curse as he ran into something. A thud came from the direction of her kitchen.

  He ran back in holding a red and white can. “I thought I saw this in there.”

  She helped him strip her gown off. She let him push her back against the pillows he had picked up off the floor. She gasped as he squirted whipped cream crowns on her nipples.

  “The cream has always been my favorite part of any dessert.” He eyed her breasts like a starving man eyes a steak.

  She cried out as his hot tongue took a long swipe through the cool mounds of whipped cream. She reached out to touch him and he moved away. When he came back holding a pair of her stockings, she shivered.

  With an anxious look on his face, he asked, “Are you okay with this?” At her nod, he chuckled. “Good. I don’t want any distractions while I eat.” A wicked gleam shone in his eyes.

  She allowed him to bind her hands to the headboard. Silk was tied around her wrists tight enough to ensure she couldn’t touch him, but she knew they would easily come undone if she tugged hard enough.

  He grunted with satisfaction when he tied the last knot. “Now you’re my captive. I can do as I please with you.”

  She couldn’t keep a shiver of fear from making her skin flinch. He leaned down and brushed a kiss over her lips.

  “You do know that what pleases me the most is making you come. I could get off just on the sound of you screaming my name. All you have to do is say stop.”

  She knew he was waiting for her acknowledgment. Deep in her heart, she knew he would never hurt her on purpose. This moment was the point of no return. She was committing herself fully to this fallen angel. She nodded and felt an easing of her fears. Whatever came, they would face it together.

  Another gentle kiss and a whispered thank you came as a heartfelt prayer. He looked down at her cream covered breasts and back up at her with a glint in his eyes.

  “You seem to have lost some of your cream, darling.” He sprayed more cream on her and then he settled in to feast.

  The combination of his hot mouth and the cool silkiness of the cream intensified the sparks flaming through her. Soon she was crying out with each suck and nibble. Her cries and his groans mixed to create a symphony of passion.

  The pressure built inside her until she was arching her back and begging him to fuck her. Her juices were flowing and making the inside of her thighs slick. He found his place between her legs and never broke contact with her breasts. A single hard quick thrust and they both cried out. She milked him dry.

  When he could move again, he untied her wrists. She quickly pushed him over on to his back and secured his arms.

  “I always wanted to try a cream covered cock.”

  His cock proudly jutted out almost begging for her to taste it. She mounded the white cream on it and over his balls. He grew harder and his sac tightened. He wrapped his hands around the wooden slats of her headboard. He was afraid he would tear the stockings, grab her head and fuck her mouth hard and fast. He didn’t want to take control like that. He loved being in her power.

  He yelled as her mouth took him. She licked and swirled. She nibbled and sucked. She took his shaft as deep into her throat as she could. She barely let the head get past her lips. Her hands fondled his sac and made side journeys to his ass. When the tip of her finger slid past the rosette opening, he almost came apart. He could hear his voice pleading with her to fuck him.

  She pulled away and smiled at him. Straddling his hips, she rubbed her wet pussy against him. He tried to penetrate her but she wouldn’t let him. Finally after torturing him for a few more minutes, she took him in her hand and placed his head at her entrance. With one thrust, they came together and they came apart.

  He wasn’t sure if he had lost consciousness or not, but when he became aware of the world around him, he could feel tears on his cheeks and chest. Abby was laying over him like a blanket. Her face was buried against him and she was sobbing.

  Jerking his hands free, he wrapped her tight to him. “Hush, love. It’s okay.” He stroked her back and arms until she quieted. He rolled them onto their sides. Brushing the tears off her cheeks, he kissed her gently. “What’s wrong?”

  She laughed shakily. “There’s nothing wrong. That was the most intense orgasm I have ever had. I felt like I had left my body and for a moment, I didn’t want to come back. I wanted to stay in that place and feel those emotions forever.”

  He nodded. “I felt the same way.” He touched her face with his fingers. “Never in all my centuries of living have I ever experienced that.”

  He knew she was feelin
g overwhelmed, so he suggested they call Dominic and drive up to Virginia City. It would be a relaxing way to spend the day and make her more comfortable spending time with him in public. She agreed and Dominic was called. The other Enforcer didn’t mind going sightseeing, so the trip was planned.

  * * * *

  William stood watching Abby and Dominic cheer on the gun fighting actors in the main street of Virginia City. Her hair sparkled and her eyes shone. Her laughter rang out like a bell. He felt lightness in his heart as if a heavy load had been lifted.

  “You love her.” It wasn’t a question.

  He didn’t look at Mika’il. “Yes, I do.”

  “Good. You weren’t meant to be alone.”

  “Why do I feel scared for her then?”

  “Well, there is the fact that a True Demon is stalking her. Once that is cleared up though, you’ll still feel scared because she’s mortal and of this earth. You will always fear for her.” Mika’il reached out and gripped his shoulder tight. “If you embrace that fear, it’ll make you strong. Your love for her will free her in so many ways. It’ll be like you’re helping a butterfly emerge from her self-imposed cocoon. Without you, Abby would never have enjoyed a gunfight in the Old West or a jazz concert in the park. By embracing your fear and your love, you’re allowing her to lose her own fears.”

  He looked up into the eyes of the archangel. In them, he saw the deep loneliness that always seemed to haunt Mika’il like a half remembered dream.

  “Tell her.”

  “I will,” he promised.

  Another hard squeeze and Mika’il disappeared. He went over to her and put his arm around her waist. Tucking her close to him, he allowed her joy to swamp him.

  * * * *

  They were sitting on William’s couch after a relaxing loving session on his living room floor. She had pulled his shirt on and looked at him. There had been something weighing on his mind ever since they left Virginia City. She figured she would let him work it out and he would tell her in his own time. He hugged her for a moment. She felt him take a deep breath and she tensed waiting to hear what he had to say.

  “Abby, do you know how much I love you?”

  She jerked back from his chest to look at him in surprise. “How could I know? This is the first time you’ve ever mentioned love.” She felt tightness in her chest. She couldn’t believe he was saying the words.

  He set her aside and stood. He walked to the fireplace while she tried to ignore how wonderful his ass looked clothed in tight jeans and nothing else. He took a photograph off the mantle and brought it back to her. She stared at a picture of a young blonde woman.

  “Her name was Monica. When she died five years ago, I swore never to get involved with another mortal.”

  “You asked me out.”

  “Yes, I did when I realized I’d rather risk an eternity of pain than go through one more day without you in my life.” He took the picture from her and set it on the coffee table. Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her onto his lap. She was speechless. She had never inspired anyone to love her enough to risk heartbreak for her.

  “My father was never around much when I was a kid. He was always gone chasing another crazy scheme. My mom did her best but there wasn’t any way she could make enough money to cover my father’s debts. I learned not to rely on anyone but myself. I figured I didn’t want to find someone to love. I had only seen the selfish betraying kind of love and the truth hiding behind a pretty lie.”

  She met his eyes. “Then I yelled at you in a bar and everything changed. I had never met a man who could walk away from a pot and a deck of cards. When I needed you the night that demon attacked me, you were there to protect and support me even after I pushed you away. My father never would have done that.”

  “You will never be alone again.”

  “I’m here for you as well, love. I will be yours for as long as I live.” She cupped his cheek with her hand.

  “That would be forever if I had my way.” He smiled at her.

  Linking her hands behind his neck, she pulled his mouth to hers. The kiss started gentle and calm, a testament to love and promises. It quickly turned into something hot and explosive. Drawing back, he took a deep breath and went back for more. He seemed to be drinking from her lips like she was the finest Chardonnay and he was a wine connoisseur. She played with the hair at his neck, running her fingers through it and enjoying the soft thickness of it.

  He caught her face with his hands and tilted it at a better angle so he could get deeper access to her mouth. His tongue thrust in and out as his hands moved from her face and slid to her hips. He shifted her so she was straddling him without breaking contact with her mouth. With each thrust of his tongue, he ground his erection into the vee of her thighs and he showed her how much he loved her.

  * * * *

  William loved her. It was still hard to believe that someone as perfect as he was would fall in love with her. How could she love a man who thought he was a fallen angel? She had been so stunned by the recent events that she hadn’t thought about his story. The battle with Thompson was strange, but her own fear of the man could have distorted her image of him and convinced her he was a demon. If she thought William was crazy, she would have to think the same thing of Dominic.

  Panic made her heart race. Was she a magnet for crazy obsessive people? What an idiot she was to overlook all the crazy comments he had made throughout the days they were together. She must be desperate to just accept everything on face value.

  “How is he supposed to prove he’s a fallen angel?” A voice came from behind her.

  All activity had stopped like someone had pushed the pause button. The same man who had convinced her to go out with William stood before her when she had turned around. He gave her the impression of immense power and enduring timelessness. His silver eyes told her he had seen a massive amount of heartbreak and yet still survived.

  “There isn’t a union card to prove who he is.” Sarcasm dripped in his voice.

  She shrugged. “Who are you?”

  “You may call me Misha if you wish.”

  She could tell it made no difference to him what she called him. “How do you know William?”

  His eyes got a thousand-yard stare like an old soldier reliving his war days. “I’ve known him since time began. We have been through a lot together.”

  “So you’re a fallen angel as well?”

  He looked insulted. “Of course not. I would never have followed that lying Daystar.”

  She took a step back from the rage that burned on his face. “Can all angels stop time?”

  He glanced around. “No, only a chosen few can.”

  “So that makes you a very special angel, Misha?”

  “You can think that if you like. What are your problems now with William?”

  “Aside from the fact that he believes he’s a fallen angel and I don’t believe in them, there’s the question of his loyalty.”

  “Loyalty?” Misha looked puzzled.

  “If he was an angel and rebelled against God, then he must not have a strong sense of loyalty.” She shrugged. “I’m not sure I can commit to a man who wouldn’t stay loyal and honest to me.”

  He reached out to grab her shoulders. She moved a step farther away. “I could just shake the brains out of you, but I’m not sure you have any.” At her look of outrage, he sighed. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. The fact that William rebelled only proves his impulsiveness, not his lack of loyalty. He regretted it as soon as he was banished.”

  “Sure, once he was punished, he would be upset. Why didn’t he think of the consequences before he did anything?”

  Misha smiled. “The best thing about William was always his impulsive nature. He loved to try anything once. He would tease and joke around, but if he knew it hurt someone, he would apologize. He was never cruel. His banishment changed all that. Now, he is cautious and not nearly as much fun.” His eyes darkened. “Daystar could charm the leave
s off trees when he wanted to. He is the ultimate deceiver. So I wasn’t surprised when they rebelled.”

  “They were angels. They weren’t supposed to turn against God.”

  He shrugged. “Maybe not, but they should have been given some leniency because of the ‘spell’ he put over them.”

  “Instead of leniency, they were turned out of Heaven, stripped of their wings and branded. That’s fairness for you.”

  “Fairness exists in their punishment. He didn’t destroy them. He chose to allow them to live here on earth. He chose to allow them to work for Him still if they wished to.” He turned his eyes on her and stated, “I didn’t come to you to talk about the fallen. I came to tell you that your fears are ungrounded. William can’t hurt you. It would destroy him. You are his soul mate, Abigail, and you must find a way to let him into your heart.”

  “Letting him into my heart isn’t the difficult part. Mending my heart after he leaves will be the hardest thing I’ve ever done.”

  “He won’t leave you. Not on his own. If he has to leave you, please understand that he would have a very good reason to do it. Now that you have connected, his heart won’t let him leave.” Misha looked disgusted. “I could stand here all day and argue that he loves you and won’t leave you, but in the end, it will be an act of faith for you to believe him. Faith in him will help you find his love.”

  She held her ground as he reached a large hand out to touch her face. He cupped her cheek and stared at her for a moment. She could feel warmth coming from his hand and entering into her body. It went to her heart and she felt the chains she had built around it unlock and fall away. Tears filled her eyes when her heart beat for the first time without the constrictions of her past.

  “I have freed your heart, Abigail. Now it’s your job to find the man who will free your soul.” Misha touched his lips to her forehead and disappeared.

  She jolted back to herself when the ringing of the slot machines shrilled into her ears. Everyone was playing and laughing like they had been before time had stopped and her life had changed for good. She felt lighter. Staring at the men sitting in front of her, she didn’t feel the usual disgust in her heart for them. Instead she felt pity and a sadness that they would never be loved the way she was. They would never love anyone like she loved William.