Beckett jumps back a little, like he was expecting an attack, only to smirk once he realizes what just happened. “You were saying?”
“I…”
Crap. I’m caught dead to rights, and I know it.
I tug my wings back before they can do something stupid like try to brush up against Beckett.
For a second, neither of us moves. He’s looking at me with a dark, assessing expression, the green of his irises gleaming as my skin burns under his gaze. But underneath the anger and mistrust, there’s heat in his eyes too. He sort of looks like he wants to eat me for dinner instead of the salmon.
“Um… I’ll get the plates,” I mutter quietly, shifting away from him a little. I’m close to scrambling up onto the counter just to put a bit more distance between us.
He keeps me pinned with his large body for a second more, then steps back, making a mocking gesture toward the cabinet with the plates. I never got a chance to grab them before he busted me earlier.
I grab two large plates, and when I turn back to face him, he’s still watching me. But some of the intensity has faded from his expression, replaced by a thoughtful frown—as if I’m a puzzle he’s trying to piece together. “So, you really are an angel. What are you doing here on Earth?”
I shrug. “The same reason any other angel is on Earth.”
It hurts to say it, but there’s no point in denying it. There are secrets it’s important I keep from this man, so telling the truth about everything else is the wisest option.
“You’re fallen.” Beckett’s eyes gleam with interest and he leans back against the kitchen island. “Which leaves me wondering what a fallen angel is doing following me around.”
I can’t tell him the full truth. If I even whisper the word “redemption,” he really will throw me out the window. If the sins could so easily be turned toward one side or the other in the war, it would’ve happened long ago. He’ll never listen to me if he thinks I’m just here to preach at him and recruit him to fight on our side in the war. Which I suppose is kind of what I’m doing, but I don’t want to think of it that way. I’m doing what I have to do to get back home.
And he’s a sin, so it’s not like I’m hurting some innocent person here. It could be worse. I’m saving him, after all. Aren’t I?
“Well…” I tuck my wings back inside me. “I’m trying to get back home.”
“To Above.” Beckett winces slightly, like he doesn’t want to say the name.
“Yes. And I thought… I don’t know. You’re a sin, right? You’ve been around for ages.”
“You thought I might know how to get you back home?” Beckett shakes his head, like he thinks that’s adorable. “Sorry, angel, but I don’t know squat. And if I did, I wouldn’t be sharing that information with any random fallen who crossed my path.”
I try to look properly crestfallen, and it must work because Beckett softens a little as he walks over to check on the risotto. “Look, a half dozen demons just appeared in New York City. I know Heaven doesn’t usually give a shit about what happens on Earth, but still—if you handle this mess, that’ll get the attention of your superiors, right? So in a way, this is good news for you.”
“I don’t think something that could kill a bunch of humans should ever be called good news,” I say primly, although I can kind of see his point.
Any ease that seemed to be developing between me and Beckett vanishes. He shakes his head, anger passing over his expression. “Fucking angels.”
I shut up after that, not wanting to push him any further. He hasn’t kicked me out, and he’s agreed to help me. Heck, he’s even feeding me. So it would be unwise to poke at him when I don’t have to.
He finishes cooking, and we sit down in the large dining room to eat. The risotto is… okay, I admit it, it’s delicious. It’s possibly the best meal I’ve ever eaten, and I try not to compliment him, but my wings unfurl and are twitching happily, so I’m pretty sure Beckett knows even though I don’t say anything.
“Something like this is bigger than just you or I can handle,” he explains as we eat. “I’ll have to call in some of my brothers, see if they can help us. They’re a handful, but they’re the only ones I trust.”
I swallow a bite and chew my lower lip. “Well, actually… I was thinking I should try to call in some other angels.”
“I’m not dealing with angels,” he says shortly. “If they’re in, I’m out.”
My jaw drops open. The bluntness of his tone makes it clear he’s not bluffing or posturing. This is a hard line for him. “But… you’re dealing with me.”
“You’re different,” Beckett replies, and my mouth snaps shut. I’m not sure I want to know what he thinks is different about me.
I’m not sure I’d consider it a compliment if I did.
“Anyway,” he goes on. “I’ll get the word out. They’ll join us shortly.” He starts clearing our plates, and I follow him back into the kitchen. “Where have you been staying?”
“Um… sleeping on your couch?”
“You could’ve just crawled into bed with me,” Beckett drawls, rinsing the dishes and sticking them in the dishwasher. I can feel my face heat up, and I stoically ignore his comment. “I have a guest bedroom, you know. Several of them.”
“I worried I’d miss you leaving for work if I stayed in one of those. Or that you’d notice the sheets all rumpled.”
“Clever angel.” I know his words should feel like a compliment, but it really doesn’t. They do make my blush deepen though.
“Thanks,” I mutter.
He leans against the counter, folding his arms over his chest. He changed into a new suit while I was in the shower, and he looks annoyingly good in it. “Well, since the couch is covered in your blood, feel free to stay in any of my guest bedrooms while we wait for my brothers to show their faces.”
“They’ll really come?” I ask. After being thrown so off-balance by Beckett, I’m not sure I’m prepared to meet more of the sins so soon, but I suppose it was inevitable.
He waggles his head, as if he’s considering my question. “Maybe. Or we’ll track them down. I know we’ll have to track down Sloth, at least. It’s in the name—he won’t do a thing himself if he can get others to do it for him.” The handsome sin gives me a sharp smile. “Make yourself at home regardless, angel. And if it gets too cold and lonely in the guest bedroom, you know where to find me.”
My stomach flips over like an undercooked pancake, my body clenching involuntarily.
Great.
Taking that as my cue to make a hasty exit before I embarrass myself further, I wrap the robe tighter around myself and head off toward the guest bedroom farthest from the master suite. I should probably be glad that Beckett’s so overt in his innuendos; it reminds me to be on my guard around him.
And I need to stay alert and sharp, because pretty soon it won’t be just one sin I’m dealing with.
But maybe this will all work out. Closing a portal to Hell will have to go a long way toward redeeming the sins in the eyes of Anderson and the board. Beckett’s openly admitted to doing it for selfish reasons, but still—he agreed to help. He’s going out of his way, inconveniencing himself and getting his brothers involved, all to keep corrupted from swarming Earth. That’s a good sign.