She had run away from him and now he was going to kill her.
Lenora knew better than to piss off an angel, but she’d panicked at the last moment. She was lucky enough to find a place to hide where she could think things over before she made a colossal mistake and mated with Pravuil. She had years to grow accustomed to belonging to him, but less than twenty-four hours before their mating ceremony, here she was darting in and out of dank, smelling alleys and back to her apartment before Prav found her and freaked out for disappearing on him.
Less than five years ago, she was a mild manner autobiographer who was paid very well for recording the life stories of others. Mainly her clients were of the supernatural variety, such as vampires, gargoyles and on occasion an angel. She knew things would never be the same the moment she came upon Prav’s brother, Casziel, bloody and beaten nearly unconscious. She should have never stopped to help—angels could hardly stand humans since they considered them to be subpar, but the way Casziel had groaned in pain and begged for her aid, she couldn’t leave him like that. And the moment she brought the injured angel into her home, Prav and her were then connected in ways she would have never expected.
If Prav didn’t punish her for hiding from him, he sure as hell would when he found out she’d gone to Nicholas for sanctuary. A two-thousand year old angel was very possessive of his property and she could imagine him going ape shit when he smelled her scent in Nicholas’s rooms; a vampire’s domain of all places. Nicholas would get a kick out of that since he loved sticking it to Prav whenever he could. Things would be so much easier if she hadn’t spent that one night with Nicholas, seeking comfort after Casziel had been murdered…
Her cell phone beeped and she pulled it out, looking over the missed calls from her friends. Prav wouldn’t call or text. He preferred to communicate in her dreams, but she found a way to block him, glad she hadn’t took that final step yet in cementing their bond for all eternity.
Bonded and mated to an arrogant and at times maniacal angel left her cold inside. She had seen both sides of Pravuil and would never forget the justice he meted out when he finally found Casziel’s killers.
She shook her head, those memories better left ignored. Prav would eventually find her and expect answers. She could only hope he wouldn’t go ballistic on her like he did the last time she ran away after they had sex the first time.
The usually busy sidewalk and streets were vacant of life. Not a good sign. Sighing, she dug into her jean pocket and took out her keys. She unlocked the front door and climbed up the steps to the third floor. The lights flickered on and off around her and the air felt thick and muggy as if an unpredictable spring shower approached.
She reached her door and rested her palm against the cool wood. Her heart pounded in her chest and her stomach complained since she’d barely eaten anything in days. And to top it all off, her body itched with the need to be pleasured.
“Help me,” Lenora whispered and rested her forehead against the door. She listened for any movement inside. All was silent. Her stomach growled again at the same time acid coated her throat. If she tried to eat anything, she’d puke. She was way too nervous, and had been for almost a week. The last meal she enjoyed was with Prav after an insane bout of lovemaking. He fed her French breads, different types of cheeses, and for dessert¬fruit covered in whipped cream, which he ate off of her body with lusty enthusiasm.
Her thighs clenched together. She was a mess, hungry for the one man who owned her heart but one she also feared.
She placed the key in the lock and turned it. Pushing her door open, she walked in to her gloomy apartment and engaged all the locks. She caught her breath and then walked quietly down the hall, past her living room where no one hid in the dark, waiting to jump out at her. Relaxing, she went into her bedroom, turning on a small lamp. She flopped down on her bed, staring up at the ceiling and grimacing over the cracks that had been there ever since she first moved in.
It needs to be painted. Lenora wiped her palms over her face. She’d been meaning to fix up her apartment for years but was always too busy. And then Prav waltzed into her life, where one thing led to another and more times than not, she was at Prav’s beck and call.
Now because of her dumb move, she’d probably end up in one of Prav’s holding cells where he kept those stupid enough to strike against him and his kind.
Musing over her new status as a traitor, who no doubt would be mentioned in every tabloid newspaper and magazine when she failed to show up for her wedding tomorrow, she sat up, her head spinning.
Her stomach cramped again, begging to be filled. She poked the annoying muscle and walked over to her dresser where she combed her fingers through her short black curls, frowning in the mirror. Her face was blotchy and her eyes red with dark shadows under them. Her lips were raw and chapped where she’d chewed at them. She glanced down at her hands, pleased she hadn’t gnawed off her nails like she used to when she was younger. She took care of them since Prav loved it when she ran her nails and fingers up and down his back and into his wings, making made him shiver in delight.
“Stop thinking about him,” she said to herself and groaned. Every waking moment of every day since they met four and half years ago, he’d latched onto her mind and wouldn’t leave.
Tears filled her eyes and she leaned her palms on top of the dresser. Suddenly the drapes covering the windows swayed.
What the hell? I didn’t leave the windows open.
Standing upright, she cracked her knuckles, another bad habit she never gave up, and calmly walked over to the windows. She grabbed hold of both sides of the eggshell colored drapes and pulled them apart. Crouched on the ledge was her heart’s desire—Pravuil, the angel scribe and keeper of the eternal records for Heaven and Earth.
Lenora backed away, stopping when the bedroom door slammed shut behind her as Pravuil waved a hand and climbed into her room. He rose to his full six foot six height and his wings spread out, brushing the ceiling above him. Lenora’s knees trembled and she almost fell to the floor in awe.
Pravuil was a treat for the eyes; his beauty unparalleled to even his own kind. His hair was spun gold, his arms and legs powerful tools to protect or used as weapons. His eyes were the lightest and clearest of blue; only found in the oceans off the coast of some island paradise.
She was his complete opposite in every way—short and stubby with undersized breasts and a face that was completely average, or in her opinion, plain, with boring brown eyes and hair that never did what it was told.
Lenora dipped her chin down in respect as Prav walked toward her. His attire consisting of slate gray slacks and a white button down shirt that felt smooth as butter against one’s skin. She dug her fingers into her palms; longing to rub her hands down his arms encased in the material and undress him.
One of Prav’s fingers lifted her chin. She looked at him straight in the eyes and waited for him to dazzle her. When he didn’t, she swallowed and tugged on her bottom lip. His hand wrapped gently around her throat, his thumb pulling on her abused lip. He frowned, his eyes growing thunderous.
“I’ve been searching for you for days,” he said softly, cocking his head to the side as he continued caressing her mouth with his thumb.
Lenora’s eyelids fluttered and she inhaled deeply to stop from falling into his arms and wrapping her legs around his waist.
“I know,” she replied, at a loss for words. There was no use in explaining why she did what she did and where she had been. He knew anyway.
“You still fear me after all that has happened between us?” Prav’s voice grew harsh as he curved an arm around her waist. She squeaked as her face landed against the middle of his throat, breathing in his comforting scent that left her lightheaded whenever he was in close proximity.
“Yes, I do.” Lenora licked her lips, leaving her arms at her sides when all she wanted to do was drape herself around her angel.
“You have nothing to fear. You are my sun and the moon, the reason I rise each day.”
Tears escape Lenora’s eyes. She wiped them away, tilting her head back to look at Prav’s beautiful face. Strain lines appeared around his mouth and eyes. They’d never been there before. She was the cause of them.
“How can you say that? I’m nobody. You have so much beauty surrounding you, men and woman who I could never compete with. I can’t…oh god, you’re going to kill me for running away. Get it over with and put me out of my misery.”
Prav stepped over to her bed and sat her down on the mattress while he knelt before her. Her breath caught in her throat as he curved his arms around her waist and dropped his face into her lap. He’d never knelt submissively before her, even when they made love. Her hand came down on his head and she sifted her fingers through his hair that fell across her knees and down his back.
“I died inside when I found out you went to him.” Prav growled and held her tighter. “Nicholas taunted me when I confronted him. He explained in graphic detail how you went to him for help and stayed in his bed for days.”
Lenora rolled her eyes and cursed Nicholas silently. “You know how much he likes to make you suffer. He’s still bent out of shape that I choose you over him. Yes, I did stay in his bed. But alone. He knows I’m over him.” Lenora lifted Prav’s face in her hands and gasped in dismay as a tear fell down his cheek. “Oh, my angel, the only feelings I have for Nicholas are friendship. I had no idea I would hurt you so deeply by staying him.” Lenora blinked away her tears. “You don’t deserve me. My mind is a jumbled mess because of tomorrow. I…I’m so scared to stand in front of all those people who are expecting so much of me.”
Lenora covered her face as she cried tears of shame for her selfish actions. Prav exhaled her name and enclosed her in his arms. His wings came around them and they fell back on the bed. She cried until her throat grew raw.
“Forgive me for being so cruel,” Lenora said, peeking up at Prav’s face.
Prav caressed the side of his hand down her damp cheek and kissed her forehead. “There’s nothing to forgive. I love you. We can stop the proceedings until you’re ready to commit to me.” He cupped her by the back of her head, his eyes blazing with authority. “I won’t allow you run away a second time.”
Lenora held back a wince. All their planning for the past six months would be ruined because of her. She groaned, covering her face with her arm.
She heard Prav shift and his hand slid under her T-shirt where he spread his fingers across her stomach. She smiled as she remembered the first time he’d done such a thing when she suffered from horrible cramps.
When Prav didn’t say anything and continued stroking her stomach, she moved her arm away from her face. His head rested in his palm and a smile was perched on his lips. He looked relaxed and content.
“What do we do know?” she asked as a headache started to build behind her eyes from all her crying.
Prav glanced over at her dresser and snapped his fingers. Her cell phone beeped and then went silent.
The room fell into dark, the light from the moon casting silhouettes on the walls. He then glanced back down at her and his hand slid up higher and rested in the middle of her chest.
“Do you love me?” he asked in a hushed voice.
Lenora nodded. “Yes, I do. Desperately.”
“If I was a run of the mill mortal man with no money or power, would you still love me?”
Lenora nodded again. “I love you for who you are inside and not the power or money you have.”
Prav pressed his lips against her cheek. “And what if I couldn’t make you tremble in passion? Would you reject me then?”
Lenora sniffed and swiped her fingers over his cheek. “Having a mate with no money or power is one thing, but if he can’t satisfy me in bed, that’s where I say bye-bye.”
Prav gave her a playful growl and she yelped as he pulled her astride him. They stared at one another in silence until Prav reached behind her head and gave her a kiss that made her body tingle all over.
“Be mine forever then. Take a chance on me like you have done from the first moment we met,” Prav said in a near plea against her mouth.
She kissed his lips, sucking over them as her tongue slipped inside his mouth to lick and taste. “What if I disappoint you? There’s no thirty day return policy.” Lenora joked, breaking off the kiss and plucking at the buttons on Prav’s shirt.
He lifted up on an elbow and cupped her in between her legs. Her head fell back as his fingers dug in.
She responded by spreading her legs further apart. Closing her eyes, she unzipped her jeans, and tugged them down where they pooled around her hips. Prav’s hand slid inside and into her panties where he found her weeping.
“You’ll never disappoint me, my heart and soul.” Prav twisted them to the side until she lay under him. His hand went to work on her as he sucked down on her neck. She cried out, arching up.
“Take me to heaven like you promised me you would when you asked me to be yours forever,” Lenora whimpered and grabbed hold of Prav’s hair as he placed kisses on her chin, chest and stomach while he pulled off the rest of her clothes, leaving her naked and open for him.
“That’s a promise I intend to keep, and one you’ll fulfill as well,” Prav ordered, and as Lenora fisted her hands into the sheets around her, she screamed out her vow.
Prav’s answer was to suckle in between her legs, his husky laughs bouncing off the walls to join in on her moans of pleasure.
***
The next day would have been perfect for a wedding, but the bride and groom were nowhere to be found.
Lenora upheld her promise to Prav and stood beside him on the beach on an island in the middle of nowhere. They both pledged their bond to one another in front of one of the most ancient of angels residing on Earth.
Afterward, Prav took his new bride to another secret hideaway where he fed her the richest of foods and drink, spending hours making love to her, and honoring his own promise to show her heaven and much more.
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