Mine.I had no idea where the possessive instinct came from, but the certainty behind it made me realize it was right. This woman, with her raven hair, violet eyes, and proud features wasmine,and I couldn’t have her.
“Yes, we enjoy it often and thoroughly.” The increasing pressure in my chest and my growing erection made speaking difficult. All I could think about was pulling her from her chair, taking her into my bed, and burying myself inside of her. To sink my fangs into her neck…
I broke the thought off. To sink my fangs into her would be a claiming act, one I had never committed before. What was she to me? I studied her as impulses I’d never experienced shot through my body and a new possibility started to dawn on me.
The color in her cheeks heightened as her fingers fidgeted on the table. The scent of her arousal tickled my nostrils; I had to sate her need. I bit back a snarl as the fangs I’d finally gotten to retract, extended once more.
She is the one you’ve been seeking. Do not get involved. Use her as she is supposed to be used. Fix what was broken six thousand years ago and claimyourthrone.
I kept telling myself these things, but I wasn’t nearly as excited about finally having Lucifer’s child in my grasp as I would have been a month ago. Now the only thing exciting me about having her was the possibility of actuallyhavingher.
“So what happened after the angels spent their time on Earth?” she asked.
“That is the question we would all like the answer to. Somehow, Lucifer figured out how to open a gateway and slip into Hell.”
“Maybe it was one of the other angels who did it?” she suggested.
“No, it was Lucifer. Believe me, that is something he made clear when he arrived. I’m not sure his followers know how he did it, or if it’s perhaps an ability only he possesses.”
I gazed pointedly at her with those last words and she sat up straighter in her chair.
“I’ve told you what I know of myself,” she replied defensively.
“But there may be more. We will find out.”
A muscle in her cheek jumped. “Okay, fine, Lucifer magically opened the door. Still not sure what that has to do with me.”
“Before he figured out a way into our world, he left a child behind, growing in the belly of one of the women he’d lain with. Perhaps he left more than one child behind, but we know there was at least one. That child grew up capable of surviving in your world, and producing offspring of their own. A line that would continue for over six thousand years. Once Lucifer entered our realm, he never produced another offspring. I believe he became constrained by our laws once he became Hell-bound and could only procreate with a Chosen, which he has not found.”
“And you believe I’m a descendent of that child?”
“I do.”
“Why?”
“Many reasons. The visions and the ability to dream connect are all powers that angels, and some demons possess. Your eyes are another sign—”
“The Devil’s eyes!” Her hand flew up to the corner of her right eye. The color drained from her face and a look of dread came over her. “My mother wasn’t crazy; she was right.”
The distress in her voice touched something deep within me. Without thinking, I leaned across the table and rested my hand on top of hers in a foreign attempt to try to offer comfort. I ran my fingers over her supple skin as she gazed at me.
“Your mother was completely wrong,” I said. “Lucifer’s eyes are now as black as mine. Lucifer’s eyeswereyour color;allangels have violet eyes. They are not the Devil’s eyes; they are the eyes of the angels.”
Unexpected tears bloomed in her eyes, and she ducked her head away before rising to her feet and pacing away from the table. The first chink in her armor, I realized, and it was because of her mother. Whatever she’d experienced with her mother over the years had left her wounded and vulnerable in a way I’d never imagined possible from her. If the woman had been standing before me, I would have torn her to shreds for inflicting such hurt upon her child, uponRiver.
I watched her rigid back as she stalked over to the flap of the tent and stood there for a minute. When she turned back to me, her eyes were dry. “So you’re telling me I’m part angel?” she demanded.
I couldn’t help but smile at the challenging, brazen tone of her voice. “I am. You’re also part human and part demon.”
“So there is evil within me?”
I settled back in my seat. “We are not evil; we are simply a means to an end. We are a natural process met by those who deserve it. Humans have such a limited concept of good and evil, expand your mind a little.”
She waved her hand at me as if she were brushing aside my words. “Okay, demons are not inherently evil, I can get that, butLuciferis, right?”
“River—”
“God threw him out of Heaven. He tore your world apart—”
