31. Nox

31

Nox

I swore Micah was walking slower just to taunt me. My eyes didn't leave his arse as he led me silently up the stairs. The plump muscles flexed as he climbed. I bit my lip and moaned internally. I was going to spread him wide open and feast on his hole until he was begging me to fuck him.

"You know, I can tell what you're thinking." The laughter in Micah's voice was barely concealed.

"Better walk faster then," I said, grabbing a handful of his rear and massaging it roughly. "Because if you don't, I'll rip these trousers off and fuck you here."

Micah eyed me hotly over his shoulder as he paused. "That could be fun."

"Please don't." Benji's voice floated down from over the banister. "New house rule: no sex in public spaces."

"Yeah, I'm not agreeing to that," one of the twins hollered back.

"Me either." That was the other twin.

Benji cursed. "Heathens, the lot of you. "

We waited until Benji's footsteps faded away before bursting into laughter.

"Okay, so not the stairs," I said, swiping away a tear. "Bedroom?"

"Even better. Shower."

I cupped his groin from behind, using it to pull him back against me. "My, my. What a filthy angel you are."

"Actually, I think the point of a shower is to get clean, not dirty."

I caught his earlobe between my teeth, tugging lightly. "Then you're definitely not doing it right, little angel."

Micah pushed back against my erection for a split second, then he grabbed my hand and moved.

And I mean, moved. He had us up those stairs, along a corridor and behind two locked doors before I had time to blink. "It's a good thing I'm a supe, because if I were human, I'd definitely be vomiting right now."

The bathroom was exactly the level of opulence I'd been expecting from the outside of the mansion. There was a giant sunken bath filled with jets. Could Micah and I both fit in there? I made a mental note to find out at the earliest opportunity.

"So dramatic." Micah leaned into the giant shower to turn it on. Water sprayed from several nozzles and steam began to fill the space almost immediately.

I crowded behind him. "You like me dramatic."

Micah's head fell back on my shoulder. "I like you in all the ways."

"That's good, because I fully intend on fucking with you as often as possible." Stroking down his chest, I stopped an inch above his waistband. "And fucking you, of course."

"Good." Micah turned so we were chest to chest. "You know, I think we should burn these clothes. They're filthy from being on the cell floor for so long."

"Your wish is my command."

Summoning my power, I sent flames dancing over our bodies. They didn't touch our skin, merely turning the material into a pile of ash before disappearing into thin air. I stepped back so I could admire Micah in his full glory. Our coupling in the jungle had been too rushed for me to fully appreciate him.

He might have been an angel, but everything about him seemed designed to tempt me. "You're glorious."

Without his shirt on, I could see that Micah's flush started on his chest. "You're not too bad yourself."

"Get in the shower," I growled. "I can't go another second without my mouth on you."

Micah's reminder about the time we'd spent lying on the ground had me glad he'd brought us here first. We could get clean while I thoroughly dirtied him up.

It was the best of both worlds.

My mate got under the spray, his shoulders visibly relaxing as the hot water sluiced over him. Droplets trickled down his back, highlighting his scars.

The scars Emilio had given him.

I exhaled slowly, replaying the memory of Emilio's death and the torture I'd subjected him to first. He'd been begging me to execute him hours before I'd finally shown him mercy and ended it.

Micah is safe, I reminded myself, joining him under the spray. He won't ever be hurt that way again.

We'd come close to it today, but things had turned around. By some miracle, we'd walked away. Together.

Grabbing the shower gel from the caddy, I squirted some onto my hands. I didn't want any barriers between us right now.

Micah was quiet while I washed him from top to toe. I didn't rush through it, slowly lathering the soap over every solid inch of him. When I got to his back, I washed each scar individually, reminding myself that they were just memories. That Micah was mine to protect and treasure now.

I'd thought my purpose was to die protecting him. Instead, it was this. To love him. Support him. Remind him every day that it didn't matter what happened with everyone else, he'd always have me. I was his constant in an unpredictable chaotic world. Through the bond, Micah's lust was mixed with contentment. Like me, he was just basking in this moment.

Once he was clean, Micah washed me in the same way. Our touches weren't sexual or exploratory. It was more of a reminder that we were here.

We were together.

We'd survived.

When we were both clean, Micah kissed me. It started slow and gentle, mirroring the reassuring touches we'd exchanged.

Then his half-hard cock brushed against mine, and everything shifted.

Micah's hands went into my hair, tugging sharply as I backed him up against the shower wall. All the desperation and hopelessness of the past few days poured out via our kisses.

"I need to taste you," I said, pulling away from Micah with a gasp. "Turn around."

Micah reached down and wrapped his long fingers around my shaft. "Hang on, you haven't come since the jungle."

I batted his hand away, practically snarling. "Like I give a shit about that. Turn around, Micah. I wanna taste what's mine."

He whimpered as the last of his layers fell away. This was what he needed with me—to not be in charge. To be able to fully relax, knowing I'd take care of him.

When he was facing the wall, I roughly grabbed his hips, yanking him back to where I wanted him. My hand pushed on the top of his back until he got the hint and braced himself against the slippery tiles.

I eyed him for a second, my tongue darting out over my lips as I took in how he was positioned for me. "Magnificent. Magnificent and mine."

"Yours," Micah panted, his lust rising at the mere thought of what was to come. "Always."

I sank to my knees, using both hands to part his cheeks. I groaned at the tightly furled skin begging for me to play with it. The first time I'd seen it, I'd been pissed off at how pretty it was. It had been a reminder of how out of my league Micah was.

Now the sight made my chest puff out. Every inch of Micah was perfect, and I was honoured to worship him.

Holding him open, I buried my face between his cheeks. Both mine and Micah's groans echoed off the tiles as I sucked and licked at his hole. When it softened enough to let me, I pointed my tongue and used it to fuck him as deeply as I could.

Micah's body was trembling as wave after wave of ecstasy passed through him. It was feeding into my own desire, my cock leaking all over the floor of the shower.

I stayed on my knees until my little angel started to beg.

"Please, Nox. Fuck me. I need you. Need to feel you filling me up. Fuck me, baby. Please. "

The filthy litany coming from his holy mouth had my balls drawing up. I tugged at them harshly to keep my orgasm at bay.

I'd told Micah back in the cell that the next time I came, it'd be either inside his hole or his mouth. When we'd stepped into the shower, I'd figured I'd get him off this way before maybe seeing if he fancied letting me fuck that pretty mouth of his.

But that wasn't going to be enough. I needed to be in him. To be as connected to him as physically possible.

I got to my feet, pressing a line of kisses up his spine as I did so. "Lube?"

Micah's hand smacked out impatiently, knocking both the shampoo and conditioner flying before his fingers closed around it. "Here, hurry."

Any other time, I might've chuckled at his impatience. But not now. Not when I felt his deep, clawing need for me.

Slicking up my cock and fingers, I worked him quickly up to two fingers.

"That's enough." Micah's voice was guttural. "No more. I want to be able to feel you."

If he were human, I'd have insisted that two fingers was very much not enough, but thankfully Micah wasn't. Besides, I trusted him. If he said he was ready, he was ready.

Sinking inside him this time felt different. We'd had sex with the mating bond before, but that had been with the threat of imminent death hanging over us. There'd been no time for slow. No time for gentle.

Now though, there was nothing except for us.

We both groaned in unison as I bottomed out, his hole practically strangling my cock. I leaned my chin on his shoulder, taking his earlobe between my teeth. I tugged on it until Micah cried out, his body jerking in response.

"You're so tight," I moaned, rocking my hips back and forth. "I don't know how I'm going to go any faster and last."

"Then don't," Micah said. "Fuck me like you love me."

That I could do. I slowly pumped my hips, drawing out almost to the tip before easing myself back in. My arms were locked around Micah, exploring his chest, his torso, his cock. I pressed open-mouthed kisses along his neck and shoulders, not satisfied unless I had my mouth on him.

Micah seemed to appreciate my efforts. One of his strong arms encircled my neck, keeping me in place. His hips undulated in time with mine, pushing back as he sought to take me deeper.

I had no idea how long we fucked like that, our slick bodies pressed together as we silently worshipped each other. The high we sought was in reach, but neither of us was rushing to grab it. Instead we let the pace build gradually. A gentle increase until our moans were loud enough for the whole house to hear.

Soon though, the pleasure was too close to avoid any longer. Our skin was slapping together as I drove into him harder, my eyes rolling back in my head as I desperately tried to hold back my orgasm.

Fortunately, Micah was right there with me.

"Touch me, Nox. Make me come."

He didn't need to ask me twice. I wrapped my hand around his shaft, jerking him in time with my thrusts. Shifting on my feet, I repositioned myself to make sure I was hitting his prostate.

The effect was instantaneous. Micah's orgasm crashed through the bond, his hole constricting around my cock .

"Micah…" My whole body was on fire. "Fuck, Micah !"

He reached behind me again, cupping the back of my neck. "I've got you, baby."

I collapsed against him, letting him take my weight. "Thank fuck for that. I think that orgasm swapped my knees out for jelly."

Micah laughed. "I'm just glad we paid to have the extra-large boiler put in."

I eased myself out of him, unable to wipe the sappy grin from my face. "Yeah, a sudden icy shower might've put a damper on things."

Micah turned, his hands resting on my chest, fingers idly twiddling the barbells through my nipples. "Hmm…somehow I think a horde of avenging angels could have burst in and we still wouldn't have stopped."

I nipped at his jaw. "Why would we when I have the most powerful avenging angel in here to keep me safe?"

Predictably, Micah flushed. "I'm not that powerful."

I recalled how easily he'd knocked everyone from their feet. He hadn't even used a fraction of the power he'd been holding, either—I'd felt it in the bond. If they'd continued, that was when he would've unleashed himself fully.

What they'd experienced was a miniscule percentage of what Micah was capable of. And that had my cock valiantly trying to rally.

"Mm-hmm. It's okay, little angel. I'm not expecting you to be that angel around me. You know I'll keep you safe."

Micah snorted, turning away to grab a towel, but he couldn't hide his feelings. Not from me. I knew just how thrilled he was about my unnecessary protectiveness. Micah wanted to be taken care of as much as the next person, and I was fucking ecstatic that I was the one who'd been given that honour. Micah didn't need me in his corner, but he wanted me there. It reminded him he wasn't alone. That I loved him.

That I'd chosen him.

He wrapped a fluffy towel around my shoulders, briskly drying me. I smiled at his attention. For all that Micah wanted to be looked after, he couldn't turn off his natural caregiving instincts. So I stood silently, letting him dry me. Once he was done, I took the towel and repeated the action on him.

His eyes were shining as I finished, his throat bobbing. "Thank you."

I kissed the end of his nose. "You've thanked me for some stupid stuff in the past, but thanking me for loving you? That has to be the most ridiculous one yet."

His eye-roll was a thing of beauty. "You better get used to it, because I don't think I'll ever stop thanking you for it."

Right there and then, I made it my mission to love Micah so much that expecting it became instinctual for him. I'd show him what it was to be loved every damned day, until he no longer remembered anything different.

I couldn't fucking wait.

A fter a few days in bed with Micah, we both knew we had to return to the real world. The other Seraphim had been true to their word, stepping up to take some of the weight off his shoulders, but I could feel how he was itching to get back to it. I think it helped him to know I'd be there at the end of the day, or even during the day if he needed me .

As for me? Well, by the time I finally turned my phone back on, I had a barrage of messages and voicemails from my housemates. While it was usual for each of us to disappear for days, sometimes weeks at a time, they knew I had something going on with Micah. My sudden silence had been enough to raise concerns.

Once Micah was done with his meetings and paperwork for the day, he decided to accompany me to the house. Not that it'd be my house for much longer. After almost no discussion, I'd agreed to move in with Micah at the compound.

It was hilarious how nervous he'd been about asking me. It hadn't even occurred to me that we would be living apart now that we were bonded. I couldn't imagine us spending a single night apart, let alone living in different houses.

It made sense for me to be the one to move in with Micah. He needed to be at the compound for his unit and, more often than not, to stop Theo and Nate killing each other. In the few days I'd spent there, I'd marvelled at how their brotherly affection could morph into murderous fury with the flick of a switch.

Moving into the compound was the logical next step, but as I let myself into the townhouse that evening, I felt a twinge of sadness. These demons had been my friends, my only family, for millennia. While I'd only be a few streets away, I'd never lived apart from them. Not permanently, anyway.

"You can visit them often," Micah said, cupping the back of my neck as he read my emotions. "And they can come and see you. We'll lift the wards so they can stop by whenever. "

I swallowed around the lump in my throat, kissing Micah's temple. "Thank you, little angel."

There was a crash from the kitchen before Quill appeared in the doorway, his hair in a nest and mismatched holey socks on his feet. "Oh, hey, you're back! We were starting to worry."

I eyed the overflowing cereal bowl in his hands. "Yep, I'm the one we need to worry about."

Quill's expression darkened. "Don't you start. I've had enough of this from the others this week."

"We're right to be concerned," Jeremiah drawled as he descended the staircase, greeting Micah with a nod. When he got close enough to scent us, he paused, his eyes widening. "Wait, are you bonded?"

I nodded, unable to stop my grin. "Why don't you gather the others? We've got quite the story to tell you."

B y the time I was done, I'd been punched by Jeremiah, burned by Darius, and kicked by Dahlia. Quill had just munched on his cereal, as though he didn't have the energy to do more than glare at me. Turned out they were more than a little pissed to hear that I'd gone through all of this without calling them.

"I just don't get it." Dahlia was pacing, her jewellery clacking together as she vibrated with fury. "After everything we've been through together, why the fuck wouldn't you call us to back you up?"

Micah, although not loving the fact that they were violent towards me, privately agreed with them. He also had zero issues throwing me under the bus. "He didn't think you'd be willing to put yourselves at risk."

Darius shot another flame at me, but this time, it bounced off the shield Micah had put up.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? We've always had each other's back. You should've told us, plain and simple," Darius said.

"It's not that," I said weakly. Well, it wasn't just that. "I didn't want any of you put at risk. We've all been through enough shit over the millennia. I figured it was time I dealt with some alone."

"That's bollocks," Jeremiah growled. "We're a family. It's what we do."

My throat thickened, and I had to stare down at my hands while I collected myself. "Thank you."

Dahlia stopped pacing as everyone fell silent. I glanced up to find them all gaping at me, even Quill, milk dripping from the spoon he held in mid-air.

"What?"

"You said thank you," Jeremiah murmured in shock. "You've never said thank you before."

I shifted in my seat as Micah laughed, cupping the back of my neck teasingly. "I must be rubbing off on you."

"Ooh, if you're going to rub off on each other, can I watch?"

Both Micah and I turned deadly glares on Jeremiah. "Fuck off and find your own mate," I said.

Jeremiah visibly shuddered. "No thanks, that's a hard pass from me. I'll stick to meaningless hookups. Less chance of heartbreak that way."

Micah and I exchanged a secret grin. Famous last words.

After promising the demons I would definitely call them next time I found myself in the shit, Micah and I packed up my meagre possessions. None of my friends cared that I was moving out. It wasn't like I was going far. Only two streets away.

Besides, I'd see them next week for Ez's birthday party. The property was impossible to find unless one of the Seraphim lifted the wards for you once or, as we'd discovered with me, if one of the unit happened to be your fated mate. We'd arranged for them to come early so that Micah could lift the wards, and then they'd be free to visit as often as they liked.

Well, most of them. I suspected Quill would refuse to leave the house. Again. I had no idea what we were going to do about that, but hopefully it wouldn't be long before a solution presented itself.

"Are you sad to be leaving them?"

We were in Micah's bedroom, loading my clothes into the drawers he'd cleared out for me. "No, not really. It's just…it's a change. You know?"

Micah smiled in understanding. "I totally get that. But you're really going to be happy here? With me?"

"Come here, little angel." I pulled him into my arms and held him tight. "Feel me in the bond. Feel how much I want to be here."

"I do feel it," he said, his voice muffled by my shoulder. "But I kind of need to hear it too."

Putting my fingers under his chin, I lifted his face until he was looking at me. "I love you, little angel. I've chosen you, and what's more, I will always choose you."

Micah melted, his smile as bright as the goodness within. "I love you too, Nox."

We kissed, and I realised I didn't resent all the time I'd spent in Hell, longing for Micah without knowing it. I'd do it all over again if it meant we ended up right here, in each other's arms, where we were meant to be.