Free Lucifer's Daughter by Eve Langlais Page B

crookedly, with a mischievous twinkle in his eye.
    “I told you, we"re safe here,” I said, backing up a bit and licking lips that suddenly went dry.

    “Says you,” said Auric stubbornly, crowding close to me again. “What if you"re wrong, and something gets through? The time it takes for me to get to you could be deadly. Nope, I sleep where you sleep.”
    I wanted to stamp my foot in frustration. “We are not sharing a bed. I told you before, I am not giving up my virginity „til I find true love.”
    “Who said anything about sex?” he said, widening his eyes in innocence. “I just said I needed to be in the same room as you.”
    “I–.Um.” I shut up. Stupid man. He"d flustered me again. Hey, didn"t he want to have sex with me? “Wait a second. You don"t find me attractive?”
    “Muriel, Muriel, Muriel,” he said, chiding me before tilting my chin up. He kissed me lightly.
    Just one brief, butterfly touch before he moved away. “I want you. But I"ll respect your wishes. I won"t have intercourse with you. Unless you ask me to,” he said teasingly, before stepping back out of reach.
    Smart man, because my fist had already begun to swing. He grabbed my clenched hand with a chuckle, and pulled me up against his hard body. My body flushed with heat, especially when I remembered some of the fantasies I"d masturbated to the night before. I now knew first-hand my imagination hadn"t done justice to what it would feel to be pressed up against the length of his solid body. The erotic pleasure that engulfed me at this simple touch frightened me–but even more, it excited me.
    His arm curled around my waist and lifted me up so our lips were even. “You know,” he whispered, his warm breath making me shiver with desire. “There are things we could do that would still leave you a virgin.”
    Surely the moan I heard wasn"t me. My mind and body were intrigued at his words. True, he had a point; but the thing I feared was in the heat of the moment, I"d forgo my vow and indulge in pleasure for the sake of lust. And would that be so bad? wondered my horny inner voice.
    I would have loved to retort, both to him and myself, but my nose suddenly twitched with a familiar smell as something pounded at my door.
    “Demon,” I said unnecessarily, for Auric had already let go of me and turned, placing his body in front of mine as a shield. A second later, he unsheathed his sword--not the one I"d felt pressing against my lower belly, unfortunately.
    I found his protectiveness cute, but he seemed to have missed one key point. “Um, Auric, he"s not in the apartment.”
    Auric growled in reply. Seriously. I walked around his bristling body and went to the door.
    Flinging it open, I was very careful to stand back from the threshold.

    I heard a familiar chuckle, and a demon I unfortunately knew stepped into view in front of my doorway. “Hello, Satana.” Eerie black eyes flicked to look over my shoulder, and the demon"s next words weren"t so jovial. “I see you"ve found yourself a protector.”
    Auric"s strong presence at my back gave me extra confidence and cockiness. “What do you want, Azazel? Did my father send you?” I asked Satan"s lieutenant, and my former suitor.
    Actually, suitor depended on how you looked at it. Azazel wanted me; I had just never wanted him. Something he still had a problem grasping, hence my caution where he was concerned.
    “Lucifer is on his last legs. A new power is coming, and it will sweep your father from his throne, and a new order will prevail in Hell.”
    “Traitor,” I hissed. Knowing my father"s trusted lieutenant had betrayed him made me see red, and I fought an urge to step through that door and punish him. However, Azazel was a high level demon, thus a thread of sanity and self-preservation held me back. But being smart didn"t mean I wasn"t still pissed. “You"ll pay for your change in loyalty,” I promised. Perhaps it was my glowing eyes, or the nasty smile that curled my lip;