Curse of the Fallen by Eve Archer
Chapter Seven
Ella
“Dominick is not the devil,” I said to myself, sitting up in bed. Maybe hearing the words out loud would finally help me convince myself that what I’d imagined had been just that—a fantastical imagination that had no connection to reality.
I choked back a small laugh. Not that reality was any more believable. If I believed that my boyfriend was a fallen angel, it wasn’t too far of a leap to think he was the ultimately corrupted fallen angel.
“Nope,” I said, louder than I’d intended, my sharp word echoing off the tile floor and beige-stone walls. I stood and squared my shoulders as if I was battling my own fears head on. There was no way I’d fallen for a demonic angel. Dominick might be the leader of an underworld organization, and he may have been responsible for destroying the lives of both my ex-boss and my ex-boyfriend, but he wasn’t evil. I thought back to the way he’d thrown his mafia rival from his palazzo, the man flying through the air and crashing into another building. My stomach roiled at the memory of his face contorted in rage. Or was he?
The room was still dark, the quiet of the night making my heavy breaths echo off the tile and seem deafening. My heart raced as I swung my legs over the side of the bed, the coolness of the floors a welcome jolt. Despite my disturbing dream, my desire to escape from Anthony and Jaya hadn’t wavered, nor had my desire to return to Dominick.
As bizarre as it was to be abducted by a relative stranger, so far, I hadn’t been treated badly. After having breakfast with Anthony earlier in the day, he’d left to do some business, and I’d spent the day lounging around the pool. The staff had brought a continuous parade of food and drink, smiling at me, but not responding to my questions. I assumed they either didn’t speak English or had been instructed not to give me any information, or both.
Regardless, now that Jaya had gone, I didn’t feel like I was in danger, which was a strange thing to think, considering I’d been kidnapped and was being kept from leaving by several burly and equally non-communicative guards. My original plan to win over the staff so they’d help me escape had been a complete bomb. Either they didn’t understand that I was a captive, or they were paid handsomely enough that they didn’t care. I guessed it was the latter.
I hadn’t given up on finding a way to escape, though. Since Anthony was so determined to make sure I felt like a guest and not a prisoner, he’d allowed me free rein of the villa. If I tried to walk toward the front doors or the stone wall surrounding the property, I’d be quickly blocked by a pair of silent yet menacing guards, but aside from that, I appeared to be able to move freely. My bedroom door wasn’t locked during the day, nor were my windows, although I had no intention of jumping three stories to the ground below them. Even if I did escape from the villa, we appeared to be on the outskirts of the city, and I had no clue where I would run, or to whom I could turn for help. I doubted I would get very far with no money and no command of the language.
I padded on bare feet to the door. I didn’t expect it to be open at night, but I was pleasantly surprised when it glided open after I gave it a firm tug. Maybe Anthony had been convinced by my innocent act earlier in the day or maybe his guards had gotten sloppy. Either way, I wasn’t going to question my good fortune—or miss a chance to search for a way to send a message to Dom.
I slipped silently into the hall, tiptoeing down the wide corridor dappled with moonlight from the minaret-shaped window at the end. My breathing had steadied somewhat, but it sounded loud to my ears as I crept toward the stairs. The windows were open, allowing the breeze to flutter inside and carry the delicate scent of flowers, no doubt from the blooming bushes that flowered in abundance along the stone walls.
Before I reached the top stair, a noise at the bottom made me freeze. A footstep tapped on the hard floor below. I cursed to myself, leaning one hand on the wall as my foot hovered over the top step, waiting for the sound to recede.
If it was a guard, he must be making his rounds on the first floor. I held my breath, hoping he would walk away. Instead, the heavy steps started to come up the stairs—straight toward me. Backing up, I darted a glance toward my room down the hall. Too far away for me to reach before the guard would be able to see me.
I did not want to be caught wandering around alone at night. That would pretty much guarantee getting me locked into my room again, if not tied to my bed. I clenched my teeth at that thought, opening the nearest door and letting out a relieved breath that it glided on silent hinges. I pulled it shut behind me, leaning on the door from inside as I listened to the footsteps pass by.
Pressing my forehead to the wooden door, I allowed my shoulders to sag. As soon as the guard went back downstairs, I could slip out and resume searching for a way out.
“I have to admit,” the deep voice said from behind me. “I’m surprised to see you here.”
I yelped before I could stop myself, spinning around and clamping a hand over my mouth after I heard how loud I’d been. As in my bedroom, the only illumination came from the moonlight glowing through the openings cut into the stone walls, but I could make out the shape of Anthony Solano as he sat up in bed.
So much for my brilliant plan to explore the villa and plot my escape. I’d escaped right into the bedroom of my captor.
As he stood—revealing that he wore nothing but silky black pajama bottoms—I groped behind me for the doorhandle. I might be busted for sneaking around, but that didn’t mean I had to stay here. “Sorry. I must have been sleepwalking.”
His low chuckle sent an icy shiver of fear down my spine. “I don’t think so. I think you were trying to escape.”
I glanced behind me in a desperate attempt to find the door handle I couldn’t seem to locate by feel. “No, that’s not—”
“There should be a penalty for betraying my trust.”
When I turned around, Anthony was standing right in front of me, his eyes no longer kind and harmless. His hand grabbed mine just as it finally closed over the handle, and he jerked it behind my back.
I let out a sound of surprise at the forcefulness of his movements and the shock of his body pressing against mine. He wasn’t as tall or broad as Dominick, but he was by no means small. Since he was at least six feet tall, that put me at eye level with his bare chest, the defined muscles making it clear he could easily overpower me.
“I wasn’t—” I started to say.
Anthony pressed a finger to my lips to silence me. “No more lies.” He dragged the finger down my chin and then the length of my neck, pausing at the hollow of my throat. “Now were you trying to escape or were you coming to visit me?”
My gut reaction was to deny the ridiculous idea that I’d be visiting him in the middle of the night, but the flash in his eyes made me hesitate. I evened my breath, trying to channel my inner seductress, if I even had one. “What do you think?”
He laughed again, and this time the sound was an amused rumble. “I think I like you more than I should.”
If he wanted to keep Dominick from ripping his arms off, he shouldn’t like me at all, but I wasn’t about to say that. I needed to keep him thinking I was harmless and susceptible to his charms—even while I was plotting my escape.
“Jaya told me that I shouldn’t treat you so nicely,” he murmured, his finger making a lazy sweep across the base of my neck and dipping below the neckline of my nightgown. “She keeps telling me that you’re our leverage.”
I held my breath, my body tensing as his finger crept lower, and I fought to instinct to bring my knee up and bury it in his balls. He was pressed up so close to me it was impossible not to feel how turned on he was already. My heart hammered in my chest, as I swallowed hard.
“But you can be more than leverage, can’t you?” he whispered. “We can also have a little fun. Fun that no one but us ever has to know about.”
I jerked back at this. “What?”
Anthony pulled me away from the door, holding my hands behind my back as he propelled me toward the bed. “Come on, Ella. There’s no harm in us having a little fun—and Jaya and Dominick don’t ever need to find out.”
I struggled in his grasp, tearing my hand from his moments before he pushed me back onto his bed. “Who are you more afraid will find out—Dominick or Jaya?”
He loomed over me, twisting his neck so that it cracked menacingly.
“Probably me.”
The sound of the she-demon’s voice made my already racing heart lurch in my chest. Anthony spun around while I scooted across the bed until I reached the ornate carved headboard that glittered with embedded jewels.
“What are you doing here?” Anthony growled, standing at the foot of the bed with his legs wide and his hands fisted by his side. “When did you get back?”
Jaya took languid steps from the door, her pale, shimmery robe fluttering around her bare legs, until she was facing off in front of him, tossing her long black hair behind her. She cut her eyes to me, and they flashed crimson. “Does that really matter? I heard her cry out, and I came to see if you needed assistance in restraining the prisoner.”
“If I needed help, I would have called for you.”
Jaya shrugged. “I doubt it, since you thought I was gone.” She flicked another gaze at me. “You seem to continually underestimate this one.”
“She came into my bedroom,” Anthony said, the pride unmistakable in his voice. “Maybe you underestimate me.”
She raked her gaze unrepentantly down his naked chest, cocking one arched eyebrow. “Maybe I do.”
With a lightning-fast move, she closed the space between them and pushed him down onto the bench that ran along the foot of the bed.
Anthony fell back, his arms bracing him and keeping him upright even as Jaya lowered herself between his knees. “What the fuck?”
“Exactly,” Jaya purred. “As you said, I would hate to be guilty of underestimating your talents.”
I didn’t have a clear view of much except Anthony’s back, but it didn’t take a genius to know what the demon was doing as the shadow of her head began bobbing up and down. I stilled on the bed as Anthony gasped and then let out a reluctant groan.
Ho-ly shit. Jaya was sucking his cock right in front of me. I guessed I shouldn’t be too shocked since she was a demon who seemed to have no boundaries, but this still fell very far out of the realm of normalcy for me.
I didn’t blame him. What man could resist a beautiful woman dropping to her knees? Much less if the woman was a seductive demon? I didn’t know if demons possessed special powers in that department but from the sounds Anthony was making, I felt secure in saying that Jaya’s skills were impressive.
For a moment, I wondered if either of them remembered that I was in the room. I was pretty sure Anthony had lost all his power to think, as his head lolled back, and his eyes rolled up in his head.
As quietly as possible, I shifted my legs closer to the edge of the king-sized bed so I could slide off and make my way to the door. If I was careful, I’d be able to sneak out before they were done.
“Not so fast.”
Jaya’s voice made me stop, and I swiveled my head in its direction. Even though Anthony was still propped on his arms with his head hanging back, Jaya was straightening. She pinned me with blazing eyes as she untied her robe and let it slide off her shoulders and puddle onto the floor. I tried not to stare, but the demon had an amazing body—high, full breasts that seemed to defy gravity and a narrow waist over flared hips and long legs.
“I can’t let you miss the main event,” she said with a wicked smile as she straddled Anthony, bracing her feet on the bench on either side of him and lowering herself onto his hard cock.
My mouth went dry as Jaya began moving herself up and down, one hand gripping his shoulder for balance, even though I doubted she needed it. There was something decidedly inhuman about the way she fucked him, her motions impossibly fast and smooth. But it was the way her gaze locked onto mine that sent ice sliding down my spine. My face burned even as my skin prickled with cold chills.
She wanted me to watch. This wasn’t about Anthony. This was about me.
Anthony moaned as Jaya writhed on top of him, finally lifting his head and staring at her. “You fuck like a goddess.”
Jaya let out a throaty laugh. “Close enough.”
As Anthony grasped her hips and roared as he came, I leapt off the bed and ran for the door, not looking back even as Jaya’s triumphant laughter followed me all the way back to my room.
