“But you are. Did Roman not tell you or were you just too self-absorbed to know your job description?”
“How do you know about Roman?”
“I know more than you think.”
“Look, Devon, we can keep going back and forth all night about demons and your weird sex demon, but I don’t have time for this. I don’t know what little deal you and Lilith have going on, but it isn’t going to work. I’m here on orders from Lucifer and the last time I checked he was the lord of Hell, much more powerful than your dream demon. So why don’t we cut this little meeting short and pretend we never saw each other.”
“We can cut it short tonight, but you best believe we will be meeting again, Holland.” He winked, showing himself out the door.
“Tell Lilith to back off; there’s a new bitch in town!” I yelled after him. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.” I slammed my glass down on the counter and headed back to the apartment.
“Roman, we have a problem.” I slammed the door closed behind me.
He jumped off the couch, sensing the panic in my voice.
“What’s wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“Someone has caught wind that we were sent from Hell, and Lilith is to blame.”
“That’s impossible. Lucifer banished her a long time ago. She would be stupid to come anywhere close to us.”
“Well, he didn’t banish her far enough and she knows why we are here and so awesomely pulled Devon into it.”
“The guy you met up with tonight?”
I nodded. “He said she promised him power if he kills me because she thinks I’m a demon.”
“You are a demon.”
“No, I’m not.”
“I’m pretty sure you are. Lucifer only sends his demons to do dark work for him.”
My jaw felt like it dropped. “What do you mean I’m a demon? Now there’s no way I’m going to get into Heaven. I did not sign up for this.”
“I hate to burst your bubble, but I don’t think you’re doing anything to win your way back into Heaven. You’re doing the same shit you were doing that sent you to Hell in the first place, and you’re sleeping with a demon, doing things that are far from godly. Do you think the big guy upstairs just looks past that and sends his harem of angels to come get you?”
I glared at him showing my dissatisfaction. It also didn’t help that he had dropped the bomb that I was now a demon.
“So, what are we going to do about Lilith?”
“I suppose keep a low profile for now until we can figure out why Lilith reared her ugly head. Or...we can always just go home.”
“No way, I am not going back there unless Lucifer himself drags me back to Hell.”
He shook his head in disapproval. “Well, I’m your watcher, so if you stay, I have to as well. Just remember, I think this is a very bad idea, Holland.” He kissed my forehead before walking out to the balcony that overlooked the hills and the sparkling lights of the city.
I followed him outside to where he was leaning against the wide railing and looking out at the city that seemed so far away from us in the dark. I wrapped my arms around his waist and rested my face against his toned back. He put one of his hands on mine, gripping it tightly against his stomach.
“Are you mad at me for wanting to stay here?”
He shook his head. “No, I’m not mad, but Lucifer said once things go awry that’s our cue to hit the road. Lilith is a very good reason to do just that. You’re being stubborn and thinking you’re somehow going to finagle your way into Heaven or stay here forever sleeping with men just so that you can stay. I’m not built to be here, I am only here to watch over you to make sure you stay out of trouble, but with Lilith coming to a man from your past and promising him power to kill you, that means trouble is coming. It’s only a matter of time.”
“Is there really a way to kill a demon like Devon said?”
“Yes, there is, but only if they are on earth. We are on earth, Holland. The odds are not in our favor right now.”
“Why would she want to kill me? I don’t even know that crazy bitch.”
He turned around to face me, letting out a deep breath. “Lilith was working hand in hand with Lucifer as he stated, but she was also my lover for a short time. When she was banished, I didn’t go with her like a lover should. I chose Lucifer over her and she is out for revenge.”
“Then shouldn't she want to kill you and not me?”
“She must know that I am not only invested in this because I’m your watcher; I have developed deep feelings for you too.”
My stomach fluttered with hundreds of butterflies after he said that.
He placed his hand under my chin and leaned down to kiss me for what felt like an eternity. “I’m in love with you, Holland. I would follow you to the ends of the earth if it meant I would be with you forever. I wouldn’t do that for Lilith and that is why she would want to kill you.”
I laced my fingers in his, pulling him away from the railing and pushing him down on one of the plush chairs that was on the patio. I straddled his lap, kissing his neck and unbuttoning his pants as he lifted the short, black strappy dress I was wearing for my evening of seduction gone wrong and pulled me down on top of him. I gripped his crisp white T-shirt, holding it tight as he moved his strong hands up my waist so he could grip my hips that I moved back and forth on him, feeling him get more excited with every movement and fill every inch of me. We were out in the open for the world to see, but it didn’t stop us from feeling each other until we were finished and satisfied.
I leaned down to kiss him one more time before I stood up and adjusted my skirt, watching a smile form on his flushed face, revealing he had enjoyed every minute we had shared on the balcony.
He said he was in love with me and the truth was, I was in love with that demon too.
That night I dreamt I was on a black sand beach with dark ocean waves crashing against the shore. I was alone for the moment and relishing in the complete stillness that surrounded me. A bliss succumbed me knowing that no matter where I was, Roman was mine for eternity. We shared a love that no one could touch.
The silence abruptly ended as a storm started to roll in with loud claps of thunder and flashes of lightning streaking across the night sky, lighting it up in a beautiful shade of purple with each flash. Thick clouds smothered the stars that had speckled it. One more crash of thunder and a woman with long, scarlet red hair appeared in the distance. She seemed to be floating on the sand as she inched closer and closer to me. Her eyes were emerald green, and she was clothed in a flowing silk dress that matched the color of her eyes, covering her bare feet.
“Lilith...”
A sinister smile formed on her mouth as she ran her hand down my cheek. “Roman is and always will be mine; you will never have him. I will kill you before I ever let that happen.”
Rain was pouring down on us now. She pulled a black dagger from her rain drenched dress that stuck to every curve on her body and drove it deep into my chest as blood spilled over my fingers, pelting the black sand. Suddenly my body was pulled under the sand and I was trapped in a dark abyss with no exit or end to be found where no one could hear my screams.