Page 88 of Playing with Fire

A flash of gold light alarmed me into lifting my head. I spotted Sylvester on the far end of the arena, and he teleported closer. I squealed, pulled free of Quinn’s hold, and bolted across the arena. “Devil angel!”

With his laughter chiming in my head, Quinn’s grandfather stalked me across the sand. “We must take you home safe, little granddaughter. Don’t run away. I must check on your health for my little grandson’s sake.”

“No, you smite me.” I flattened my ears and backed away.

My traitor husband doubled over laughing. “He’s not going to hurt you, Bailey. He came with me from New York. He insisted. Grandfather Xavier is taking care of some other matters.”

“Which one Xavier?”

Quinn sighed. “I didn’t introduce you by name, did I?”

“No.” I kept backing away from Sylvester, displaying my teeth for the angel to admire. “You no smite me. Bad angel.”

“I’m afraid to ask what’s going on,” Chief Hollands admitted.

“Bailey is very sensitive to angels. Their song, their light, their halos—you name it, she’s weak to it. Bailey, he isn’t going to hurt you, I promise.”

I didn’t believe him for a single instant. I stomped my hoof and kept retreating from his grandfather.

“And Xavier?”

“An incubus. Grandfather Archambault Quinn’s also here; he’s a former gorgon king. He’s off to grill one of the clan who lives in the area to see what he can find out about Audrey’s hive.”

“And he’s your grandfather.”

“Father’s side. My grandmother is my grandfather’s harem queen—his formal surrogate. They’re married. She’s a centaur.”

Chief Hollands stared, his mouth hanging open.

“Me feel same way, too, when I learned. No feel bad. His family? Is insane. This bad devil angel is from his mother’s side. Very bad devil angel. Bad. No smite me!”

Sylvester laughed and cornered me despite my protests.

“No smite me.”

“You’ll live, I promise.”

Damned angels.

I came back to my senses as a human, wrapped in a blanket and cradled in Quinn’s arms. The soft murmur of voices included his, and I spent a while listening to him.

After a few minutes of listening to him discuss cross-jurisdiction procedures and personal interest in a case, I decided it was too much work to make sense of the conversation. I blinked and winced at the throb in my head, which forced my to squint through my lashes. We were in an office on a couch, and I decided I liked my spot situated across Quinn’s lap with my head nestled against his chest. Snuggling closer, I made myself more comfortable and stifled a yawn.

“Quinn?”

The discussion halted. “Hey, Bailey.”

“The angels keep smiting me. It’s not fair.” Although I slurred, I got the words out. My effort to grab Quinn’s shirt was thwarted by the blanket, which smelled like him and his cologne. I could get used to being held, but I missed the use of my hands. How could I rub his chest and reassure myself he was whole and healthy without the use of my hands?

“I’m sorry he smote you, but it’s hard to hold you while you’re a unicorn. Grandfather offered to help. We discussed it on the way, and we thought it was wise to get you back into your human form as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, he needed to use his halo. With it, he was able to force you back into your proper body. You spent fifty minutes after that in a neutralizer bath. I refused to let them put you in a glass coffin. We vaccinated you to be safe, though. No one at the CDC knew what would happen with an overdose of those pills, so we may have gone overboard purging your system of it. Next time, take one. Not twelve, one.”

Since I couldn’t free my hands, I rubbed my cheek against Quinn’s chest. “I’m sorry. I panicked. I didn’t want to be an incubus’s date.”

He scowled at me, but the corners of his mouth twitched. “Hey.”

Smiling, I pulled up my knees to get closer to him. He hooked his arm under my legs and shifted me on his lap so my head rested beneath his chin.

“I only want you.” I wanted to tell him I loved him, but the words stuck in my throat. He had come for me, and he had brought his insane grandfathers with him. Audrey had been wrong.