“With me,” Az said immediately.
Alice wanted to crawl under the table and never come out. She didn’t want her parents thinking she couldn’t survive by herself. She was twenty-five now and should be independent.
“Dad, it’s not what you think. I had nowhere to go after I broke up with Jason,” Alice said.
Her dad raised his eyebrow. She should’ve spoken to Az about this before they came here.
“I did warn you about moving in with that boy,” her dad replied.
She gripped Az’s thigh under the table.
“Mike, leave her alone,” her mum interjected. “Alice, dear, pass the green beans please.”
Thankful for her mum’s interruption, she did as she was asked, not meeting her parent’s eyes.
“How did you the two of you meet?” her mum continued.
“Alice sat next to me on a park bench. I offered to take her for a drink when she told me about Jason, so she could have someone to talk to,” Az said.
“And how did she come to live with you?” her dad asked.
Her mum gave him a sharp look.
“I offered her my spare room for the night, which then turned into weeks. Not that I objected to her staying.”
Alice tried not to roll her eyes. He’d forced her to stay with him, but her parents didn’t need to know that. She wasn’t complaining about it. Az had kept her out of harm’s way.
“I see and when did this turn into a relationship between the two of you?”
She wanted to put a hand over her dad’s mouth. It was all very well him being concerned for her welfare, but he could’ve asked her privately.
“It was a few weeks, Dad. He didn’t do anything untoward. Can you stop giving us the third degree now, please?” Alice said.
Her dad grinned at her.
“As you wish, sweetie.”
They lapsed into a silence, each concentrating on their meals, which Alice could only be glad of. She didn’t want any further talk about their relationship.
When the conversation resumed, it was on more neutral ground. Her mum asked Az what he did. He gave her a vague answer about working in finance. Her dad wanted to know if he was into football and what team he supported. Alice grinned when he admitted to having no interest in team sports. Az was an angel. He didn’t engage in many human pursuits.
After lunch, her mum ushered them out of the house and ordered Alice to take Azrael on a tour of the farm. Alice led him to the cow sheds first, showing him the milking barn and the paddocks where the cows grazed. They wandered through her mum’s vegetable garden before Alice took him across some of the fields. There was a wooded area to their right. Az looked over at her, his expression mischievous.
“Didn’t you have some ideas about the trees?” he asked.
“Azrael, can you get your mind out of the gutter for one afternoon?”
“When it comes to you? No.”
He picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder. She squealed in protest.
“Put me down.”
He strode towards the trees and into the woods.
“Az, please. This isn’t funny. My parents will be expecting us back.”
“Don’t you want me?”
She was silent. He knew very well she wanted him, but now wasn’t the time. He pressed her up against a tree, her legs wrapped around his waist. His intense expression made her pulse spike. His green eyes blazing with need.
“Az…”
“Tell me you don’t want me to fuck you and we’ll go back.”
He ground into her. She whimpered in response. He leant towards her.
“What will it be… hard, fast and furious or do you want to be left wanting?”
You know the answer to that.
He smiled before claiming her mouth. He bit down on her lip, causing her to cry out.
“Mmm, that’s right, Alice.”
“Az…” she whimpered.
“Do you want me to continue?”
His hands were under her t-shirt, trailing along her sides.
I need you like I need air. I can’t say no to you. You know that.
He buried his face in her neck, lips trailing along her skin. She gripped his shoulders. Her body was flaming. He knew all the right buttons to push.
“I’m not going to be gentle, sweet Alice. I’m going to give you exactly what you crave. I want to hear you scream for me.”
She trembled, needing him to make good on his promises. He ground into her again. Their clothes needed to go. Right now. She couldn’t take it any longer.
“Az, please. I want you to fuck me.”
He growled in her ear. The sound reverberated across her skin.
“Well, am I interrupting something?” came a voice from behind them.
Az stiffened. She looked behind Az, finding his brother leaning up against a tree nearby. His wings were folded neatly behind his back. A smirk on his perfect face. She remembered him from when the Darkness had taken over her.
Lucifer. He is beautiful, but not in the same way as Az.
“What are you doing here?” Az asked, his voice tight.
“I merely want to speak to you. Since you almost never leave your sanctuary, now seemed like the most appropriate time,” Lucifer replied. “It seems the two of you are… busy.”
Az pulled away, settling Alice back down on the ground. He tucked her under his arm, turning towards his brother. Alice stared at the other angel. Or should she call him the Devil? Either way, she was wary.
“Talk.”
“You know, I’m relatively sure this is not what Father intended when He made her the vessel.”
“I do not recall asking your opinion.”
Alice wrapped an arm around Az’s waist.
“Are you not going to introduce me?”
“She knows who you are.”
Lucifer looked Alice over, dark eyes glinting in the sunlight.
“Excuse my brother, he clearly has no manners. Lucifer: Morningstar, Devil and Archangel at your service.”
He bowed deeply.
“Alice,” she replied.
“Lucifer, now is not the time for pleasantries. What do you want?” Az said.
Lucifer rolled his eyes, taking a step towards them.
“Don’t worry, Azrael, I have no intention of hurting your human. I value my own life far too much. No, I wish to work with you to stop the Darkness.”
Alice looked from Lucifer to Az. Her angel was staring at his brother with a frown.
“Why have you suddenly changed your tune?”
“The Darkness threatens Hell as well as Earth.”
“And yet I still see no reason for you to help me.”
Lucifer’s face hardened.
“The Gates of Hell are sealed. No new souls are arriving.”
Az’s expression darkened.
“Do you think it’s the same for Heaven?”
Lucifer shrugged. This did not bode well.
“I imagine so. It means that Earth is saturated with spirits. This is only the beginning. The beginning of the end.”
What does this mean? Are we running out of time?
He nodded slowly rather than responding to her question. All of her previous pent up desire vanished. She was going to lose the angel she loved. The Darkness told them the next time it came, it would be the last. Tears pricked at her eyes. She blinked them back. She would not cry in front of Lucifer.
“You wish to work with us?” Az asked.
“I wish to prevent the Darkness consuming everything.”
Az was silent for a long moment. His fingers flexed on her arm. She wondered what he made of his brother’s sudden change of heart. To her, it felt like he only changed his mind because his life in Hell was disrupted. Self-preservation rather than a genuine need to save the world.
Wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest.
There was an odd wisp of darkness curling around his wings for a moment. When she blinked, it vanished. She frowned. There was no doubt in her mind. She’d most definitely seen that. A sticky feeling coated her skin. The Darkness. It was here yet it wasn’t ready to take her just yet. She shivered. Az looked down at her for a moment. She shook her head. He didn’t need to be worried about her right now.
“Fine. I assume you will bring your army of followers.”
Lucifer nodded.
“Then be ready when I call.”
His brother smiled thinly. Alice decided she didn’t like the angel in front of her. Lucifer made her uncomfortable.
“Soon, Azrael. It will be soon.”
He took a few steps backwards before he took off into the skies, leaving Alice and Az alone. She turned into him, wrapping her other arm around his back. He uttered a low growl of frustration.
“I don’t trust him,” she whispered.
“Good. You shouldn’t.”
“It won’t be long. I can feel it.”
Az wrapped his other arm around her, kissing the top of her head.
“What do you need?”
“Why would I need anything?”
“The end of the world is looming and you need nothing?”
She was silent. She had all she needed in front of her. That was the thing. Az had become her sole focus. Her angel.
“Help me forget about it then.”
She felt a rumble of approval in his chest. He backed her up against the tree again, his fingers running down her sides.
“Mmm, are you sure we do not need to return to your parents?”
She looked up at him, eyes narrowed.
“Don’t make me regret giving into you. In fact, just shut up and kiss me before I change my mind.”
Tugging him down, their lips met. Explosions went off in her head.
Every. Single. Damn. Time.
There wasn’t anything left to say anyway. They both knew what was going to happen when the Darkness took her. If these were to be some of the last moments they shared, she wanted them to be passionate. A reminder that they belonged to each other in some inexplicable way.
I want you now. No teasing.
He uttered a low growl before the next moment they were both undressed. Picking her up, she wrapped her legs around him. He pressed her against the tree as he entered her. The bark dug into her back.
“I warned you. I’m not going to be gentle,” he whispered.
She could feel him everywhere. He glowed with light. His full angelic nature coming to the forefront. His wings flared out from his back and a soft halo appeared above his head.
Beautiful. So fucking beautiful.
The pace he set was relentless. Her back ached, but the pain only intensified her pleasure. She wanted the rough sting of his brutal pounding and the tree bark digging into her skin. She wanted to feel it all as a reminder she was still alive. She held on for dear life, her fingers digging into his shoulders. It was everything she needed and yet almost not enough.
“Harder,” she whispered. “I need more.”
He backed them away from the tree. Setting her down, he pressed her onto all fours in the dirt before kneeling behind her. He pressed into her again, gripping her hips in an iron hold.
“More, Alice? Are you sure you can take more?” he asked.
“I want to feel alive. Only you can give that to me. Az… You’re everything. My everything.”
The sounds of their brutal love making rang through the forest. She cried out, fingers digging into the dirt. The pain, the pleasure overtook everything. Sweat beaded on her back.
“Is this what you want?” he grunted, clearly as affected as she was.
She looked back at him, eyes shining with unshed tears. He was still in his full angelic form. Wings flared out, a halo of light above his head. Her heart broke into a thousand tiny pieces. Her love for him consumed every inch of her being. If there was ever a time to admit the truth of it, it was now.
Yes, this is all I want. Just you and me together. My beautiful angel. I crave you in ways I never imagined possible. Forever, Az. I wish we had forever.
He released her hips, pulling her up so her back was flush with his chest. His breath fanned across her ear. His hands splayed out over her stomach, anchoring her to him.
“My sweet Alice, you will have me forever. Even when the Darkness comes. I will always be yours. We are bound. He knows that. He cannot keep us from each other.”
Tears spilled over. She couldn’t hold them back. A part of her wanted to believe him. How could she? The Darkness would take her form and destroy her in the process. The only God she knew was cruel and unjust. He’d cast out her angel from his home and forced him into a life he never wanted. He’d made her a vessel for his wrath. How could anyone call him a just and fair God after that?
She turned enough so she could kiss Az. Feeling the softness of his mouth against hers threatened to undo her all over again.
I want so much to tell you the words stuck inside me, but I can’t.
“I know what you feel. I told you I feel it too. We don’t need to say those words. It is enough that we feel this way about each other.”
Flipping her around again, he pressed her down into the ground. They clutched each other, so close to the edge. Her legs wrapped around his back. His lips against her collarbone, kissing up towards her neck.
“I am yours,” he whispered. “You are mine.”
“Forever.”
Meeting each other in an explosive climax, Alice screamed his name, shattering the peaceful silence of the woods. And the two of them lay spent together for a long time as the shadows grew longer. The afternoon light fading.
Neither of them cared much about returning to the real world.
Not when the real world was about to come to an end.