Free A Demon's Desire (Demon Brothers' Trilogy Book 2) by Marie Mason Page B

Julie.”
    Julie snorted. “Really? Who made you king?”
    “King of my own castle, babe.”
    She pushed at his chest, resisting the urge to slide her hands up and down the hard muscled plane of his chest. “I’m not your queen.”
    Rafe stilled beneath her hands, drawing back. A stab of sharp pain traveled through Julie’s heart when she realized he’d gotten the message at last. They were not a couple. They were not husband and wife. They were… they were simply two lovers who had happened to make a child together. Single parenting did not carry the stigma it once head. Heck, she didn’t even know if it had ever carried the stigma in the supernatural world that it had in the human realm.
    “Julie, that’s not—”
    She blinked, for a second she couldn’t believe what had happened. She lifted a shaky hand just to make sure that… Nope. He was gone. Rafe had disappeared before her very eyes. Not even a puff of smoke, she thought hysterically, right before she opened her mouth and screamed.
     
    Remington dragged the interfering angel away from his brother and his woman. His brother probably needed the privacy. If Julie had been his and she’d been about to run away, he’d have her against the wall in two seconds flat, making sure she knew exactly where she belonged. In his arms.
    Looking at the wild-haired woman he was pulling behind him, he thought maybe there was a better punishment—a spanking over his knee.
    Jerking open the first door he found, he stormed inside. It was one of several reading rooms that abound in heaven. He could remember coming in here as a child, curling up in his mother’s lap as she’d read him stories about love and happiness.
    Huh. Fairy tales. Those had all been fairy tales.
    “Get out,” he ordered in a harsh voice. Immediately, everyone rose and quickly exited the room. Some gave Clementine a sympathetic look, others shook their heads in disappointment. He had a feeling it wasn’t the first time they’d seen Clementine on the receiving end a male’s anger.
    His inner demon rose at the thought of some other man getting angry at Clementine. She was—
    He quickly broke off that train of thought, whirling around on the woman, anger boiling inside him. “Just what the hell did you think you were doing?”
    Clementine simply stared at him with those big, brown eyes of hers. He wanted to shake the woman. In fact, that was exactly what he was going to do. Taking a step forward, he grabbed her shoulders, encircled her round flesh with his fingers. Fingers that itched to stroke up and down—
    Damn it to hell. He bit back that curse but just barely. He’d learned early in life one really shouldn’t say that word up here. “Well, I’m waiting.”
    Since he didn’t have her in a very tight grip, always careful how he touched her for fear of bruising her white, delicate flesh, she shrugged easily out of his hold. “And you can wait until hell freezes over before I answer to you, Remington Conroy.” She tossed the words over her shoulder as she walked toward the big window on the far side of the room.
    “Clementine—” He started after her, his anger and lust mixing together for one volatile mixture. Before he could, well do whatever he was going to do, a woman’s scream echoed down the hallway.
    Clementine turned around, her eyes wide as they both froze. A scream was not something you heard in heaven. Ever. They both ran to the door, Clementine holding up the skirt of her long white gown.
    Half-way down the hall they saw Julie running toward them. “Remington. He’s gone. Rafe is gone.”
    Remington caught Julie as she launched herself into his arms. He caught her easily and noted from the corner of his eye the almost sad expression that passed across Clementine’s face. He filed that information away for further thought. “Julie, calm down, sweetheart.”
    He brushed her hair away from her face, his heart clenching at the sight of her tears. His brothers, damn it, his