Beckett grumbles under his breath, but I can’t make out what he’s saying as I nod at Remington. The gentle man reaches out, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he smiles and strokes my feathers lightly.
A shudder runs through me, and I realize too late what a bad idea this was. Wings are… well. Like I said before, they show my emotions, and they’re a lot more sensitive than the rest of me.
Remington tightens his hold on my feathers a little, and heat shoots through me. The desire to take a step closer to him and press my body against his overtakes me like a storm, and I have to politely clear my throat and force myself to focus on Phoenix.
“You were saying?” I drawl.
“Holy fuck,” Phoenix repeats, his voice a startled croak. “You’re really an angel. Well, fuck me.”
“If that was a serious offer,” Beckett notes, “then you’ve truly gotten lazy. Even your attempts to pick up a woman are half-assed.”
The man on the couch tilts his head back, glaring indolently down his nose at his brother. “We both know if it was a serious offer, she’d be on my lap already. But thanks for reminding me yet again why I never invite you over.”
“It’s not my fault I’m the only one around here with true ambition.”
“There are other ways to have ambition, you know. You don’t just have to shove a stick up your ass and wear a suit.”
“Look,” I say, realizing we’re getting off-track again. They’re distracted by needling each other, and I’m distracted by unbidden images of crawling onto Phoenix’s lap. “This portal to Downstairs is going to affect all of us. Beckett and Remington have agreed to help me close it permanently so that you guys don’t have to deal with the corrupted. Would you be able to help us too?”
Phoenix freezes. His gaze slowly transfers from his brother to me, his brows pulling together slightly.
Then he bursts out laughing.
Chapter Twelve
Trinity
“Are you serious?” Sloth glances at his brothers. “She’s serious. Ha!” He looks back at me. “Oh, sweetie, sweetie, sweetie.”
My feathers ruffle as a jolt of anger flashes through me. “Do not call me sweetie.”
“Look, sugar pie, if you wanted someone who would actually get up off his ass and do something, you came to the wrong guy.” Phoenix shakes his head. “I am not your man for that. You want someone to eat pizza and binge the latest Netflix show with? I’m game. You want someone to take a nap with? Hey, I’m your best cuddle buddy. You want a guy to be a good toy and get underneath you so you can ride his cock? Baby, I am ready to go. But get up? Leave my house? Fight? Do you even know what the definition of sloth is?” He chuckles like this is the funniest thing he’s ever heard. “Help you? Yeah, sure, I’d love to, really, but my schedule’s booked solid. I couldn’t possibly squeeze you in.”
My jaw is hanging open, and I’m torn between shock and fury as I stare at the man who grins right back at me.
“I—I—”
“I really wish you wouldn’t use inappropriate language with her,” Remington sighs.
“She’s an angel; she’s not an idiot. I’m sure she’s heard people talk about sex before.”
“I—”
Gah. Come on, mouth. Work!
Before I can get my brain-mouth connection to move past that single word, Phoenix points at me. “You’re an angel. Go get the forces from Above to deal with this. Okay? This is between the two of you—good and evil. We do not side with either. We’re neutral.”
“This isn’t picking sides,” Beckett snaps.
“This is about taking care of something that will harm us if we let it continue,” Remington explains, about a billion times more patient than his brother. “It’s not about siding with Above, and once it’s done, we can go right back to our lives and not worry about it anymore. But if we let this thing fester? If we let it re-open? Who knows what’ll happen.”
Phoenix sighs, letting his head fall back against the plush couch cushion. “What did the others say?”
“We haven’t approached the others yet.” Beckett slides his hands into his pockets. “You’re the third.”
That sends Phoenix off into gales of laughter again. “You came to me third? Oh, man, I thought I was gonna be the last one. But no, you went to me third? Holy shit, did you two sustain brain damage since the last time I saw you?”
“I’m not sure I like your attitude,” I bite out, because I really am getting impatient here. This guy’s starting to get under my skin, and not in a good way. Not even in a way that feels good but probably isn’t, like Remington does. He’s just oozing this… blatant disregard for the rest of us, and I can feel it in waves.
Maybe he uses that power to convince other people to be lazy, but it’s not working on me. I’m just annoyed.
“That’s adorable.” Sloth grins at me. “Beckett’s always annoyed by me too. You two must get along.”
“We don’t,” Beckett says.
I’m unexpectedly hurt by how offended he sounds by the very notion. Is the idea of getting along with me really that awful? I know I’m an angel, so it’s not like I’m supposed to be best friends with a sin, but still…
“I’m shocked you three think I would do anything to help. Really, I am.” Phoenix puts his hand over his heart dramatically, like he’s about to swear an oath.
“Well, just out of the goodness of your heart… no. I didn’t think so.” Beckett has his let’s make a deal voice on again, and something about that makes me wary. “But with an angel offering to owe you a favor? I think that sweetens things up a bit, doesn’t it?”
I whip my head around to gape at him. What? No! I only agreed to do a favor for Remington. I can’t go around offering favors to every single one of the seven sins! Especially not when I’m supposed to be helping them redeem themselves.
If they’re helping me because they hope to get something juicy in return, then that defeats the whole purpose of doing this for the sake of good, doesn’t it? It changes their motives from selfless to selfish.
Beckett looks challengingly back at me as I glare at him, as if I’m a board member at his company who’s acting out of line, and he’s putting me in my place. I can’t help but wonder if this is his revenge for my spying on him and roping him into this whole thing.
Gah! I’m so frustrated I want to bang my head against the wall.
I retract my wings back so they’re no longer out. I don’t need these three men figuring out what my emotions and thoughts are because I couldn’t keep my wings under control.
“Well, I did agree to that with Remington,” I admit, because it’s true—and I suspect if I don’t disclose this piece of information, Beckett will.
Phoenix’s eyes gleam as he turns his attention to me.
Oh, great. I’m starting to recognize that gleam in the eyes of the brothers, that moment where they smell an opportunity for more of the power that feeds them.
“Oh? Is that on the table? An angel owing me a favor… Yeah, I gotta say, that’s a new one. Hadn’t thought of that. I figured you guys would be too high and mighty for that kind of shit.”