Demon Angel

tighter. "It's only the power of this that excites me."
    He slid in a third finger, stretching, pushing. "Whose power?"
    "Mine." But she could not stop herself from pressing down, to take him deeper again. "You think that if I show any human tendencies, undeniable human response, it will"—he twisted his hand gently, and she had to grit her teeth to keep the moan inside—"mean that I am good. But humans are as capable of evil—ah, fuck—"
    He pulled his hand away, fell to his knees. Yanked her pants down with him, pulled them all the way off. Cheap wood shredded beneath her talons as he turned her again.
    He draped her thigh over his shoulder. "Go on," he said, his voice thick with arousal. Perspiration glistened over his cheekbones, his eyes were like glittering blue stones, but he was grinning. "Persuade me that you are in control. That you have power."
    She forced herself to speak evenly. To ignore how near his mouth was to her. To pretend that as he rubbed his chin against her inner thigh, it didn't send shivers over her skin. "Demonic influence does not account for the evil done by humans—most of it is of their free will. Proving that a portion of my humanity still exists will not mean I am good. That you think it does gives me the advantage, the power in this."
    His brows drew together. "You think I want you to be a paragon of innocence, like the countess?" A laugh rumbled from him, and he shook his head. "That is one thing I did not miss, for I don't believe I ever saw it in you. Nor did I ever want it."
    "What do you want, then?" She told herself she asked so that she could deny it, to exercise that power over him. Not because his answer had shaken her, and she needed to center herself, to find something to hold to.
    His lips parted, and he took a deep breath that rocked her against him, reminded her how exposed she was, wet and slick. Her legs quivered as his exhalation skimmed over her sex.
    Despite that terrible vulnerability, she was dismayed when he slipped her thigh from his shoulder and stood. She tilted her head back, watched the play of emotions on his features, suddenly uncertain that she wanted an answer.
    Softly, with his fingertips, he touched her chin, her lips, traced the arch of her brows. "I want you brimming with humanity, with feeling, so that Lucifer will choose to punish you for it by returning you to Earth to fulfill your bargain. I want to stop missing you. I want to wake up without nightmares and know that you are alive. You may not be good, Lilith, but you are the best thing in my life, and when you were not in it…" His throat worked, his gaze lowered before meeting hers again. "Does not matter if this bargain destroys me, for I did it well enough when I killed you."
    There was too much in his intense blue stare to process, too much emanating from his psychic scent—except that he spoke the truth, and that it resonated within a hollow, unbearable place within her.
    "You would manipulate me in this way?" Cerberus's balls, but she sounded so weak. Looked weak. Ripping the cuffs apart, she lowered her hands to his shoulders, clenched on the muscle there—not enough to hurt, but enough to remind him of her strength. And still, her voice shook. "It's the worst kind of manipulation, one without lies. You play your role well, Hugh. A fine demon you make."
    "Aye. You call me martyr and ascribe altruistic motives to me, but I confess I think only of myself. It's an honest manipulation, but it is a selfish one, made entirely from what I want." The corners of his mouth lifted. "Sixteen years ago, you would have been pleased."
    "Sixteen years ago you said you became me, and I got a sword through the heart," she shot back, grateful for an excuse to think of anything but how his "selfish" declaration had affected her. "I've learned since then it's best not to be around those who resemble me in any way."
    His gaze softened. "There are none such as you, Lilith."
    "Because Lucifer has killed them all." Her hands trembled, and she took them from his shoulders lest they betray her. "You must see-that you risk too much with this plan. I can't bear another Punishment."
    "He has only taken your ability to shift into various human forms with it, to change your clothing. Is it so terrible not to have that power?"
    "No," she said slowly. "But that is not what I speak of."
    He stiffened, then lowered his forehead to hers. "All the more reason to make certain you return."
    She closed her eyes, sagged