9. Evangeline

Iwalked into my apartment and slammed the door shut behind me. I barely resisted the urge to open it again, just to slam it harder. Those fucking hounds tricked me! They agreed to take things slow and then tossed me at the feral hound to force me into the mate bond, if he was feral, to begin with. Maybe it was all a ruse. A tiny voice in the back of my mind reminded me that it had been my idea to see Jett. That was irrelevant to my anger. The bottom line was that Jett marked me against my will. I now had a stupid mate bond inside of me that I couldn’t do anything about.

What’s worse, now that I had one, I was painfully aware of the two that were still missing.

Worse than that, my fucking body was buzzing with sexual need. I was so fucking horny, and the thought of that hound sinking his teeth into my flesh was almost enough to push me over the edge. There was something seriously wrong with me.

I contemplated returning to their apartment and giving in to the whole relationship. I only fought it because my bratty nature refused to be told what to do, even if it was something I wanted. I took a step toward the door and then stopped myself. No! I would not reward bad behavior.

There was a knock on my door, and my heart skipped a beat. Thank fuck, they had decided not to listen to me and followed me home. I ran to the door and swung it wide open. The words I had on the tip of my tongue dissolved. I should have checked the peephole.

“Evie!” Gale greeted me as he pushed his way inside my apartment.

I didn’t need the power to read someone’s aura to feel the weird energy swirling around Gale. “Gale, what do you want?”

“What do I want?” he laughed as he stomped through my apartment. “No guests? Did dinner with those mangy mutts not go well?”

“How did you know about that?” I asked with my hands on my hips.

“I told you I would be watching, Evie. I told you,” he said, wagging his finger at me. “Imagine my fucking shock when I see you leave the house with two hellhounds. Have you lost all standards? Cause I’ll be honest if you don’t have any standards left, there really isn’t a reason for you to deny me, is there?”

“What I do or who I do it with isn’t your concern, is it?” Uneasiness grew inside of me, and I walked to the door and opened it. I needed to get Gale out of here, now. “I’d like you to leave.”

He stalked toward me. “I bet you would,” he replied ominously. “This isn’t over,”

I felt myself start to relax, thankful that he was leaving without a fight, until he froze on his way past me, and his already angry face twisted into one made for nightmares.

“What the fuck did you do, Evangeline?” he growled. He grabbed my arm painfully, bringing my shoulder closer to his face. “You let them fucking mark you?” He roared. “How could you do this to me?”

To him? Oh, jumping fucking cotton balls, this man was insane.

I wasn’t expecting the fist to the face, and my head bounced off the wall from the force of his hit. He ripped the door out of my grasp and slammed it shut before picking me up and throwing me into the living room.

“If you can sully yourself by letting those hellhounds put their mark on you, then you’re fair game as far as I’m concerned. A whore has more self-respect than you do.” He stormed over, grabbed my hair, and lifted me to my feet. “I’ve wanted this for a very long time, and now I’m finally going to take what should have been mine long ago.”

Over my dead fucking body. Recovered from the stun of Gale’s initial attack, I brought my knee up to make contact with his sickeningly hard dick as hard as I could. He dropped me as he yelled in pain and doubled over, giving me enough time to put distance between us. Maybe I should have run for the balcony and tried to disappear into the night or tried to get out the door, but I chose to stand my ground. I wouldn’t run from this fight. If he wanted a piece of me, I’d make sure he regretted the piece he got.

I summoned my sword as he straightened. The room pulsed with his anger as he summoned his. His was still flaming, and I knew this could be a fight to the death. Gale rushed toward me, and I braced myself, lifting my sword to block his as he swung it over his head toward me. His wings exploded from his back and pumped, pushing more of his weight down on me.

I summoned my wings to counteract his, but I could feel him gaining the upper hand. I could have taken him easily if this had been before my fall, but I wasn’t so sure now. He had access to an endless power source, and I didn’t.

“If you stop fucking fighting me, I promise to make it good for you too, Evie,” he promised.

“Is that your idea of a seduction? No fucking means no, Gale. You’re an embarrassment to all angels.”

“You’re one to fucking talk,” he growled. “Look at you. A pathetic version of the angel you once were. You’re nothing. You mean nothing. I’ll probably be exalted when I’m through with you.”

My foot slipped as he added more power to his attack, and I knew I only had seconds before he overpowered me. I would have to think quickly to get myself out of this mess. Before I could act, shadows surrounded us, and the smell of brimstone and the sound of snarling beasts filled the room as Gale was thrown away from me.

Somehow, my hellhounds knew I was in trouble, and even though I told them to leave me alone, they came.

Jett appeared behind me and caught me as I stumbled forward, pulling me into his safe embrace. “I’ve got you, Eva,” he assured me. I watched as Kase and Rylan, in their hellhound forms, stalked toward Gale, who was picking himself off the floor.

“Isn’t this fucking cute,” he sneered. “You’re no fucking match for me, mongrels.”

He couldn’t have been more wrong, and after a brief struggle, they had him unarmed and pinned to the ground. I rushed forward just as Rylan placed his jaws around Gale’s neck.

“Wait!” I said, dropping to my knees by Gale’s head. I looked into Rylan’s dark eyes. “You can’t kill him. If you do, it would be a declaration of war between Heaven and Hell. I don’t think Lucifer would appreciate that.” Rylan’s hound snarled at me, so I stroked his head between the eyes. “I know, I want him dead, too, but you can’t kill him. He isn’t worth the trouble.”

“She’s right, Ry,” Kase said, returning to his human form. “Lucifer would have our asses if we killed an angel. Even if said angel hurt our mate. There are rules here, and we’re about to cross a big one.” Rylan huffed again but released Gale’s neck and shifted as he backed away.

“He doesn’t deserve to breathe,” Rylan growled.

“No, he doesn’t, but that justice isn’t for us to hand down at this junction,” I replied.

Gale looked relieved and terrified to move. His terror-filled eyes met mine. “Thank you, Evie,” he rasped.

Anger spiked within me, and before he could react, I summoned my sword and ran it through his stomach until the tip pierced my floor. Gale shouted in pain as I leaned closer to him. “Understand something, fucker. I didn’t do this for you. I did it for them. Because it’s their heads that Heaven would demand in payment for your death, and as much as I’d love to watch them rip you limb from limb, you aren’t worth losing my mates over.” Gale’s eyes widened at my claim, and while he was doing his best to remain submissive, I could see the rage simmering below the surface. This wasn’t over for him. Not when he had that much anger over it. “If you come near me again, I will kill you on sight. Do you understand?”

“I understand,” he hissed.

“Good.” I stood and removed my blade from his body. “Get the fuck out of my house.”

Gale shimmered away immediately. I wasn’t worried about his wounds; the little cocksucker would heal.

I turned to my hellhound mates, unsure of what to say. They saved me from having to speak by surrounding me and wrapping me up in a giant bear hug.

“You have no idea how terrified we were when Jett felt you were in trouble,” Rylan said into my hair.

I met Jett’s shadowed eyes. “I felt your pain and fear,” he admitted. His eyes fell closed, and he rested his forehead against mine.

“I’m glad we got here in time, angel. Want to tell us what happened and who the dead angel flying is?”

“He was a friend,” I replied, stepping from their embrace. My face throbbed from where he had hit me, and while I knew it would be healed soon, it still hurt like a bitch. I went to the kitchen to get an ice pack, but Kase was there when I reached for the freezer door.

“Go sit. I’ll get it,” he ordered softly.

Deciding I didn’t have the energy or interest to argue with him, I pivoted to the couch to see Rylan and Jett adorably fluffing the couch cushions for me. Once I was comfortable in the center of the couch, they sat on either side of me.

“Was a friend?” Rylan prompted.

“Well, I think it’s safe to say he isn’t one any longer,” I joked. “He had always had a crush on me, but I had never seen him that way. He persisted, but I never gave in to his attempts to take our relationship to the next level.”

Kase came over with an ice pack wrapped in a dishcloth. He sat on the coffee table in front of me and gently placed it against my face. He knocked my hand away when I reached up to hold it in place. “I’ve got it, angel. You keep talking.”

“He was there shortly after I fell. I was so relieved to see him. He brought me my blade, went to my house to pack a bag, and brought me my cash.” I took a breath and leaned into the ice pack. Jett started to rub my back, and I moaned at how good it felt to have his hands on me. “Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for him to show his true colors. He propositioned me like he was doing me a favor. When I turned him down and told him to leave, he said he’d be watching. I don’t think I believed him until he showed up at my door tonight.” I continued to tell them about Gale and what happened tonight, my story fueling their anger.

“You should have let me kill him,” Rylan growled, pushing off the couch to pace the living room angrily.

“I stand by what I said earlier. It would have started a war. Gale isn’t worth it,” I replied.

“You realize what he would have done to you if we hadn’t gotten here when we did, right?” Rylan asked.

“Believe me, I’m aware,” I replied with a tired sigh.

Rylan stopped pacing and turned to look at me, and his entire demeanor softened. “Well, the important thing is that we were here, and you’re safe. Come on, baby, let’s get you to bed.” He didn’t give me the chance to argue as he stepped forward, scooped me into his arms bridal style, and carried me to bed.

“I can walk,” I complained as Jett rushed forward and pulled down my blankets.

“I know,” Rylan replied, setting me down in the middle of my bed. “You can fly, too. I’ve seen it.”

His flippant response was so out of character that it made me double down on my brattiness. “This doesn’t change anything. I’m still pissed at you all and want to be left alone.”

“We know,” he replied as he pulled the covers over me and tucked them around my body.

The three men climbed into bed with me above the covers, settling around me in a way that I wouldn’t have thought would be comfortable. I could get used to this. Their presence and body heat instantly relaxed me. “I want you gone by morning,” I said softly as my eyes fluttered sleepily.

“As you wish, angel. Go to sleep,” Rylan said softly.

“Don’t tell me what to do,” I mumbled.

The last thing I heard before sleep claimed me was their amused chuckles and Rylan getting the last word.

“Such a brat,” he whispered.

When I woke up the next day, my bed was empty, and so was my apartment.

“Good,” I said out loud as I went to the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee. “They did exactly what I told them to.” I ignored the disappointment that I felt from waking up without them. “You can’t have it both ways, Evangeline Faithe,” I scolded myself. I reached for the carafe and found it already filled with coffee. Dammit! They set my coffee maker to auto-brew before they left. Being considerate and shit like that wasn’t helping me resist them.

Begrudgingly, I searched for my phone to thank them. And where did I find it? Thoughtfully plugged in on my nightstand and fully charged. I don’t think the damn thing has been fully charged since I got it. When I unlocked the screen, I found Kase’s text message in the group chat, which they had likely composed together.

Enjoy your morning coffee. We know you need space and don’t want to see us right now. We will respect your wishes, but please check in to let us know you’re safe. We will worry about you if you don’t. Take all the time you need, but try not to take too long. We miss you already.

I read the text a few times as I considered what to reply. As much as I wanted to reply that I do what I want, I understood them wanting me to check in. If I were being honest, complete radio silence would have driven me mad. Reeling in my brat this time, I started to type.

Thanks for the coffee and for charging my phone. Also, thanks for saving my ass with Gale last night. If I didn’t properly convey my gratitude last night, I apologize. Have a good day.

Almost immediately, I got a response from Rylan.

It’s an ass worth saving. Stay safe. Let us know if you need anything.

I snickered at his response as I contemplated what to do with my day. I didn’t see any black cards anywhere, so I didn’t have a job to do. Remembering Darcene, I pulled up my banking app to check my balance. FFF hadn’t said anything about how to confirm a hit or how to get paid, but they were very clear about knowing everything. My bank account loaded, and I grinned at the balance. Excellent. Perhaps after the last few days I’m due for some retail therapy.