Chapter Eight
Raven’s sweet smell penetrated his nostrils and infused his brain. “Nobody you know.”
She took a step closer to the bathroom, and he watched her nipples harden under the clingy top. All he wanted to do was fuck her till neither of them could move. But he knew that would be the last thing that should happen between them. He had to think like a rational man, not act like a hormonal teen.
“Why were you talking about me?”
His dick twitched at the husky sound of her vulnerability. “It’s complicated.”
“Always is.” Stepping closer to him, she reached out and touched his arm. Her heat seared through his shirt to his very being. “Tell me who you were talking to.” Her hair was free and wild, her eyes were full of doubt, and her nipples pressed against her blouse reaching for his touch.
In the dark room, he saw her natural light. Nothing pure evil could possess it. The arch-angel was wrong about this succubus, and Marcus had to prove it. The only way to do that was to get her to trust him. If he told her his secret, then maybe she’d trust him enough to open up. “You figured out my secret, didn’t you?”
Raven smiled at him, but he could see the lack of understanding in her eyes.
“Yeah, thought so. I’m an immortal too.”
By her surprised expression, he knew she hadn’t put it together yet. Now he had to see if she trusted him enough to tell him the truth.
“You’re an immortal?”
“I’m a Nephilim.”
“Part giant, part human?”
“Yeah,” he admitted, then smiled sheepishly. If he didn’t win her trust, he’d have to fulfill the arch-angel’s orders. “I was talking to my boss.”
“About me?”
“Yeah.”
She stepped closer.
The bathroom was too small a space for all their immortal senses clashing together. Being this close to her, he smelled the heat of her flushed skin, the pull of her weeping core, saw her raw sexual energy. If he didn’t get some space between them, he’d lose control and rip off her clothes and fuck her tight pussy.
Pointing to the door, he took a step forward, forcing her to back out into the main room.
“Who do you work for?” she pondered, as though denying what the only answer could be.
“Heaven.”
She stepped closer, and this time he knew she wasn’t trying to entice him. She just wanted information. “Doing what?”
“I’m a bounty hunter, just like you. Same job, different side.” He smiled to soften the cold, hard fact.
Her eyes widened. “You’re a bounty hunter for heaven?”
Marcus nodded.
She worried her bottom lip and looked up at him with expectant eyes. “I’m your job?”
He shrugged, and she pulled away from him. He decided the truth was best. “At first.”
“And now?” Her stance tightened and he saw she was readying to bolt for the door.
“Look, I could tell that you were surprised by the crime scene. The captain didn’t tell you about the new werewolf that bolted in front of us or what happened to your late partner, did he?”
She looked at the floor as if seeking answers, and Marcus knew she was trying not to cry. This woman looked so vulnerable, but looks could be deceiving. He’d been warned that a succubus would use every female trait available to get what they wanted.
“So you think I’m innocent?” she asked timidly as she faced him.
Marcus saw her eyes darken and became wary. “Yes.”
She nodded then crossed the room and sat down on the bed. She curled up her legs, hugging her knees close to her chest. “Thanks, I guess.” She looked across the room and he knew she was processing the information. “But I don’t know that you’re innocent.”
“Me? Of what?” wondered Marcus in surprise.
“Whatever they hired you to do?”
“They hired me to take you out,” he answered coldly.
Fear filled her eyes. “You don’t mean dinner and a movie, do you?” She hugged her knees tighter, looking back at him anxiously. “You’re to kill me?”
“Yeah, seems the captain has been a bad boy. Since we both know he’s an agent for hell, he has been a very, very bad boy. And according to my boss, you’re his accomplice.”
“No. I’m not.” Anger not only filled her words but flared in her eyes, and for a moment, Marcus believed her but decided to push her.
“Word on the street is you are.”
“No. I’m not. Look, he’s my master incubus so I work for him, but I don’t know what he’s into. The first time I was sure something was wrong was at the crime scene. Only two things could have killed Stephen that way—the boss and me. And I know I didn’t do it.”
“But you had to sense something was wrong.” He kept his demanding tone.
“Like what?”
“You’re a succubus. You’re obviously good at your job. What did you see?” Marcus saw her eyes veil and knew he was losing ground. “You had to have heard something.”
She shrugged, but Marcus saw anger flare in her darkened eyes. “He never discussed anything in front of me.”
Marcus heard the truth in her voice. He pulled a chair over to the bed so he could face her and then sat down. “Who gave you the list of bounties to collect?”
Raven slid off the bed and sat on the floor at his feet. “List? The captain never gave me a list. He gave me one name at a time.” Her voice was low and sexy as she rested her hand on Marcus’ knee.
He wanted to believe her, but, sitting coyly at his feet and trying to excite him, he knew the succubus was playing him. “Where did he get the names from?”
She wiggled around so she could rest her head against his thigh, her breasts pressing against his leg. “The arch-demon I guess.” She trailed her finger up his thigh, lust filled her eyes, and her sensuous lips curved into a smile.
Marcus had hoped she’d be more human and less of a succubus, but he would deal with her on her terms and she’d lose. “Some of your bounties were supposed to go to heaven.”
She froze in her attempt to titillate his senses. “What?”
Now that he had her attention, maybe she’d stop playing the seductress and get real. “You were poaching our territory. Not the captain.” He smiled as he pointed at her. “You.”
Raven bit her lip. “No.” She glared at him. “How stupid do you think I am to get caught between heaven and hell?” Her expression changed, and he could see that she not only regretted her words but had just realized the magnitude of them.
“Pretty stupid. The one you were after last night—he’s ours.”
“The senator?” Shock resonated in her words as realization settled in her eyes.
“He’s one of the good guys.”
“An elected official?” She shook her head. “A good guy? Doesn’t seem likely.”
“Definitely one of ours.”
“But I didn’t get him.” Raven ran her fingers through her long mane as if punctuating her words. Then she glared at him. “Remember?”
“Funny how that worked out.” Marcus struggled to keep his voice controlled and low.
“You stopped me. Why?”
Marcus shrugged. “I had a job to do.”
Her eyes widened as if wondering why she was in trouble. “You’re a bounty hunter. You were supposed to take him.”
“I was sent to stop you from taking him. He’s supposed to live a little longer. Souls are like fruit. You shouldn’t pick them before their time.”
Raven stood and sat down on the bed. She couldn’t seem to look at him, just stared at the floor working her lip. “So all of this, you becoming my partner, was just a ploy to kill me?”
“Stop you.”
She looked him in the eyes. “You just said you were sent to take me out. We both know that means to kill me. So why are you lying now?”
Marcus stood and then sat down on the bed beside her. The instant he took a breath, her luscious scent fill him, aroused him. If he wasn’t careful, he could easily succumb to her allure and not get the job done. He’d never experienced such lust before and needed to feel her pussy squeezing around his cock.
He wanted to press her down against the bed, strip her, and fuck her. Hard. “Look, I’m not lying. I don’t believe for one minute that you knew the captain was setting you up. But I still have a job to do. Help me prove you are innocent.”
She took a deep breath, and her breasts quivered. Her hard nipples budded against her blouse, as if inviting him to claim them. She shook her head. “I don’t know.” Her voice cracked.
“You don’t know who gave the orders, or you don’t know how to help me?”
She looked up at him, her eyes filled with doubt and terror.
Marcus placed his hand on her shoulder and was surprised when she leaned into him. “Both,” she whispered, as if afraid of the answer.
He wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer, and quietly said against her neck, “Don’t worry. I’ll prove you’re innocent.”
Raven dropped her head against his chest, exposing her neck to him. “They’d never let that happen.”
Unable to resist any longer, he feathered a kiss across her elegant neck as he answered, “They wouldn’t be able to stop us.”
A moan escaped her lips, sending fire through him. “They’ll stop us.”
He nibbled her earlobe, enjoying her shiver of excitement. “Never.”
She pulled away from him and pushed her hand against his chest as if needing some distance. “They sent you to stop me.” Her eyes were wide with fear. “What makes you think they won’t send someone to stop you?”
Marcus wanted to believe Raven was concerned about him, that she thought enough about him to mean what she said. But he knew a succubus would do anything, even play on a man’s softer emotions, to get her way. “Not if we give them the captain first. He’s the one poaching souls.”
She looked up at him and, for the first time, he saw the truth of the situation in her eyes. “Yeah, but I can’t prove it. And as you just said, I was the one taking the souls.” She sighed. “I don’t know who is giving the orders. It could be the captain or someone higher.”
Her loyalty could get her killed. “It’s either you or him.”
Raven shook her head. “Yeah, but it’s just—I don’t know for sure it’s him.”
Marcus understood how hard this whole business was for her, but he had to make her understand that by protecting the captain she was sacrificing herself. “I understand you not wanting to decide if he is innocent. But he can prove it. You don’t have to.”
He kissed her forehead, then forced himself to stop. He needed her to understand her power. “Let’s start with the captain.” He pulled her closer and felt the heat of her breasts pillowed against his chest. “Tell me everything you know. The smallest detail might be what we need to expose them.”
Raven clung to him for a moment longer, then pulled away. He could still feel her heat, her touch, against his shirt and his soul.
A tiny nod of her head and a weak smile told him she was finally willing to trust him. “There’s not much to tell. I was transferred here a year ago. At first, he seemed like all of the other incubi I’ve worked for, then one day he changed.”
Unable to stop himself, Marcus took her hand and pressed a gentle kiss across her fingers. “How did he change?”
Her eyelids fluttered as he kissed her fingers again, and his need for her flooded through his body, causing his dick to twitch against his pants. “He seemed mad, didn’t talk anymore, just barked orders.”
He turned over her hand and kissed her palm. “Did he ever give you a list of your bounties?”
Lust filled her eyes as the corner of her mouth turned up in joy. “No, just one name at a time.”
He sucked her thumb, and she moaned as she dropped her head back. He lightly kissed her neck. “How did he act toward the arch-demon?”
Raven took Marcus’ hand and kissed his knuckles. “He hated the arch-demon or at least that’s what he told me. The big guy was always threatening him. I don’t know why, but he didn’t approve of something the captain was doing so it must have been something big. I mean, how bad could it be if hell didn’t want it done?”
She grabbed Marcus’ hand and sucked his fingers. His breath caught, and his cock pulsed with anticipation. He knew she was trying to sidetrack him. He also knew that if he wasn’t careful, it would work. “Damn, if you keep doing that, I’m going to pull out my dick and let you work your magic on it for a while.”
Raven laughed out loud as she reached for his pants. “If I remember correctly, you’re big enough to satisfy me.”
She knelt on the bed and kissed him hard on the lips. Her tongue teased across his teeth.
Pulling away, he said, “Before we get lost in each other’s bodies, tell me how the arch-demon threatened the captain.”
She looked at the floor and her long, black mane hid her face from view. Then she looked him in the eye. “He didn’t actually threaten him, but one night I caught him in the captain’s office. He tried to pass himself off as human, but I can tell an immortal when I see one.”
She paused as embarrassment raced across her cheeks. “Well, I don’t know how I couldn’t sense you. Each immortal usually has a distinct scent. I asked him what he was doing. He told me I wasn’t being paid to ask questions and walked out. I checked the desk drawers and the lock was broken on the left side. I looked inside, but it only held stationary supplies. I mean, why would you lock up pens and note pads? He had to have taken something out of that drawer the captain was worried about enough to lock up.”
“And did you tell that to the captain?”
She let her hair fall over her shoulder, veiling her face, as if hiding from the truth. “Of course, he’s my incubus. I had no choice but to tell him. If I crossed him, he’d kill me.”
“So the arch-demon was looking for something, and the captain knew about it.”
Raven’s expression became wary, and she stood up. “Look, I should go.”
Marcus sprang from the bed and grabbed her wrist. “No, it’s not safe for you out there.”
She glared at him. “It’s not safe for you if I stay.”
“Not letting you go.”
“You have to. Look, I don’t want to be responsible for you getting hurt. I told the captain about the arch-demon. I’m not an innocent. If I was, I wouldn’t be working for hell. But I didn’t bring this all on me. If he wasn’t doing something on the side, then none of this would have happened.”
Marcus reached out to touch her but stopped. “I’m trying to figure out what the captain was up to.” He took a step closer and gently took her hand in his. “I’m trying to prove you’re innocent. Please remember that.”
She nibbled her bottom lip. This bounty hunter from hell had melted his heart, and now he had to melt hers to get her to trust him.
“Yeah.” She seemed glued to the floor.
“Look, I know you’ve been doing what you thought was right. He lied to you. He was setting you up to take the fall.” Marcus lowered his voice. “I believe in you.”
“You do?” Raven’s amazed wonder couldn’t be faked. “No one has ever said they believe in me.” She surveyed the room. “Why do you believe me?”
“Someone is trying to kill you. It isn’t me or my employer, so it has to be from your side.”
She took a step closer to him, then smiled. “It’s nice to have you on my side.” Quickly closing the space between them, she stopped in from of him. Standing on her tiptoes, she reached up and pulled his face to hers. Raven kissed him hard on the lips. “I need you,” she whispered in his ear, then she kissed him again.
Marcus knew he shouldn’t let this continue. He should be professional and keep his distance, but her sweet floral smell and the heady scent of sex clouded his judgment.
Raven hopped up on the table so she was closer to his height, grabbed his shirt, and pulled him toward her. “I need you.” She wrapped her legs around him. “Now.”
Unable to resist her any longer, Marcus kissed her hard and deep, savoring her sweet taste and her soft lips.
A groan escaped her throat as her mouth became more demanding, making his need more urgent. He ground his pelvis into hers, creating a torrid, raging fire between them.
She reached for his shirt, undoing the buttons as she kissed down his corded neck across his exposed skin to his tight nipple. When she suckled, he felt a jolt of pleasure flooding his cock.
He grabbed her head with his hands and pulled her away. “We have to stop.”
Her lust-filled eyes shined up at him. “I don’t want to stop,” she confessed between kisses.
Raven worked her way down his taut abs and grabbed his belt, undid it, unzipped his pants, and let them fall to the floor. She smiled as his erect dick strained against his black briefs. Then she slipped her hands under the top of his briefs and wrapped her hands around his throbbing shaft as she moved off the table to take him in her mouth.
Marcus grabbed her by the wrists as he smiled at her. “No. I don’t want this to just be work for you. I want you to experience pure pleasure.”
She smiled. “I’m all yours.” He heard the teasing in her voice.
Marcus pulled off her blouse and watched as the cool air puckered her nipples. Looking at her, he smiled. “I’ve never seen such an invitation before.” He closed his mouth around her nipple, plying her supple skin with his tongue. She moaned as she leaned into his touch.
He wrapped his arms around her waist, and her arms encircled his neck as he carried her to the bed, kissing her while he laid her down gently.
He trailed kisses down her neck, between her breasts, peeled off her panties as he kissed across her belly to the nest of soft, black curls. His hand gently brushed across the hood of her aroused clitoris to her moist lips. She seemed to shiver with anticipation of his next touch.
Marcus dropped his head into her lush snatch and nuzzled her mons. She gripped him by the hair, holding him against her until an animalistic moan escaped her lush mouth. He nipped and suckled her little bud until it swelled, her belly tightened, and her toes curled.
Raven whimpered as his tongue dipped deeper and deeper into her flesh, while his massive fingers teased her bud. When his thick, firm fingers drove into her pussy, she tilted her pelvis up to meet him, begging for more. She moaned, and he knew she enjoyed his touch.
He forced her outer lips open and nibbled her pussy until his tongue flickered over her throbbing clit, building the pressure. He wanted to drive his dick into her, but he wanted to bring her pleasure first in spite of how swollen his cock was or how tight his balls had drawn up.
“Oh. Oh,” she screamed, as he thrust his fingers into her core deeper and deeper.
“Say my name,” he demanded.
“Marcus, Marcus. Oh hell, Marcus,” she shrieked with each thrust until her body writhed uncontrollably, until he ensured the pressure broke, and she shattered in a blissful release. Marcus hoped he had captured her soul.
He rested on the bed beside her and whispered in her ear. “My little succubus, that is how a man loves a woman.”
She turned to him, her eyes glowing with pleasure. “Or the way an immortal loves an immortal.”
He dropped his mouth onto hers until their tongues entwined. She grabbed the back of his head and kissed him back. Her tongue teased his teeth, his tongue. She kissed with such an emotional force that he thought she’d take all his breath. With this sexy creature, his soul was safe, but his heart was certainly in danger.
She pulled away from him, satisfaction shone in her eyes. “Now, it’s your turn.” Raven rolled over onto her stomach and arched into him. Looking over her shoulder, she rasped, “Take me.”
Marcus leaned over, grabbed a condom from his pants pocket, and knelt eagerly behind her. Ripping open the foil packet, he rolled the snug latex over his cock. He swallowed as the head of his penis nudged along her wet, swollen pussy. He’d take her the way she wanted to be taken—fast, hard.
Wiggling her ass at him, she let out a low giggle.
He gripped her waist and entered her with a long, driving stroke. Raven pushed back against him as he pumped harder and deeper into her grasping core. She matched the rhythm of his thrusts as he covered her from behind. He nipped her back, her shoulders and she squealed in delight. His hands slipped around her breasts and rolled her nipples between his fingers. She arched into his hips as she climaxed. “Marcus, oh, Marcus,” she screamed.
His whole body stiffened as he felt her constrict around his cock. He fought to hold off his release, but he couldn’t and, with one powerful thrust, his seed burst into her. He wet his dry lips as he slumped against her. He nuzzled her ear. “My little succubus.” He pulled out of her and pulled her against his chest and knew he’d met his match and nothing—not heaven or hell—would come between them.
****
Raven woke to the smell of coffee and the after effects of the best sex she’d ever experienced. Marcus had loved her with a passion matching her own. With him, she didn’t fear her powers and could experience an intimacy she never knew existed before.
Marcus was dressed and smelled of soap and satisfaction. The sensation teased Raven’s senses, and she knew she’d never forget his scent.
“Good morning, sleepy head. Here’s coffee.” His low, raspy voice sounded so sexy.
Coffee always woke up her senses, but this morning it was Marcus’ heady aroma that stimulated her. “Thanks.”
She sat up, letting the sheet fall away as she took the mug from his massive hands. She could still feel those hands bringing her to orgasm more completely than she’d ever dreamed of, and her sex turned to liquid again.
Taking a sip of the hot coffee, she scanned Marcus’ office attire as her nipples tingled with need. “Going somewhere?”
He smiled. “We are going to work. It will be too conspicuous for partners to miss a day together.”
She patted the mattress beside her. “They might think we’re holed up having sex.”
“Nice thought, but we have to get to work.” He couldn’t stop looking at her breasts as he spoke, and she knew he wanted to taste her again. “I don’t have any fresh clothes. What do you have in your closet that I could wear?” She dropped her legs over the side of the bed and stood, giving his eyes time to explore every inch of her nakedness.
“Get dressed. I’ll take you to your place to change.”