Jillian loved all the seasons in Colorado, but fall was her favorite. At least, it was her favorite until winter, which was her favorite until spring. Which was her favorite until summer. Which was her favorite until fall.
She just really loved Colorado.
Which was why the decision she’d just made was so painful.
“What do you think Reseph is going to say about this?”
Jillian put down the pitchfork she’d been using to spread straw around the barn and glanced over at her best friend, Stacey. “I think he’ll be thrilled.”
Stacey leveled a get serious look at Jillian. “The guy is a nudist who likes his privacy. Two things that don’t go together, but, well...it’s Reseph. Do you honestly think he’s going to want to move to a big city?”
“Yes,” Jillian said, a little defensively. One of the goats let out what she swore was a dubious bleat.
“Okay.” Stacey shrugged. “You know him better than I do.”
Every one of Stacey’s words dripped with doubt, irritating Jillian more than it should have. Maybe because she herself was experiencing a niggle of doubt.
Before Jillian met Reseph, the fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse, his need for isolation and privacy had been so encompassing that he’d lived in a mountain cave. And yet, he wasn’t shy or antisocial. If anything, he loved activity and parties...but in his downtime, he wanted to be completely shut off from the outside world, which was why her remote little hobby farm in the Rockies was so appealing to him.
“Come on.” Jillian shoved open the barn door and stepped into the sunny but cool and windy fall day. “I made a big pot of French onion soup and some homemade bread for lunch.”
Stacey perked up. “Yum. I’m starving. And I think it’s sweet how you cook meals even when Reseph’s gone, just in case he comes home.”
With a sigh that didn’t come close to conveying how much she missed Reseph, Jillian slid the barn door closed. He’d been gone for a couple of weeks, drawn by a plague in China that had killed hundreds.
“The plague seems to be winding down. He could be home any day now.” She hoped so, anyway. Reseph wouldn’t want to miss the first snow of the season or Cara and Ares’s baby shower on Saturday.
A chilly wind tore through the trees as if to warn her that the first snow was coming soon. Stacey stuffed her hands in her coat pockets as they started down the path toward the house.
“One of the downfalls of being married to the Horseman known as Pestilence, I guess,” Stacey said.
Jillian shuddered at the mention of Reseph’s evil name. She’d been on the receiving end of Pestilence’s cruelty when Reseph’s Seal had broken, unleashing his inner demon and nearly starting the Apocalypse. If not for his siblings, Thanatos, Ares, and Limos, and their efforts to keep their own Seals from breaking, the world would be a very different place right now.
“I guess,” Jillian agreed.
“It still seems so bizarre that my best friend is married to one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.” Stacey shook her head in awe. “And you have a werewolf servant.”
Once again, Jillian shuddered. He was a slave, not a servant. A servant had a choice. Tracker didn’t. He’d been sold into slavery as an infant, and she’d been bonded to him without her knowledge or consent. That it had been an act of kindness that had ultimately benefitted them both didn’t make the reality of the situation any less shitty.
“Speaking of Tracker…” Lowering her voice, Stacey glanced around the yard. “Where is he?”
Jillian cast her friend a curious look. Stacey had never asked about Tracker before. “Why?”
“Just wondering.”
“Because...”
Stacey’s pale cheeks were already pink from the cold, but now they turned ripe-apple red. “No reason.”
So full of shit. “Uh-huh.”
Stacey snorted. “What? Don’t look at me like that. He’s spoken like three words to me in the last two years.” She cast a wistful gaze at the cabin. “But damn, he looks good without a shirt.”
On that, Stacey was not wrong. Tracker usually worked around the house in nothing but boots and jeans, his big, sinewy body on full display. Of course, she could say the same about Reseph, except he was usually as naked from the waist down as he was from the waist up.
Jillian didn’t complain. At all. Although it was a little embarrassing when UPS dropped off packages.
“Oh, damn.” Stacey stopped on the path, patting her pockets as if missing something. “I left my sunglasses in the barn. I’ll grab them and meet you in the house.”
Jillian hadn’t taken more than a dozen steps when light flashed inside the circular stone landing site ahead. Any one of the Horsemen could use it, but she held her breath, hoping it would be Reseph who would emerge from the gate.
A curtain of shimmering light parted and Reseph stepped out, his long platinum hair spilling over armor that gleamed in the sun, his cool blue eyes focused like lasers on Jillian.
She didn’t even have a chance to speak before he was on her, taking her to the ground in a smooth tackle that would have hurt had he not twisted at the last second to take the brunt of the impact.
“I missed you,” he growled against her mouth.
Arching into him, her heart thumping with joy, she wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’ve missed you too.”
“I didn’t,” Stacey called out in a teasing voice as she headed toward her truck. “Jillian, we’ll do lunch another time. See you later!”
Reseph didn’t even look up from nuzzling her neck. “Bedroom,” he rasped. “Now.”
Jillian couldn’t think of anything she’d love more.
* * * *
Reseph lay on the bed, his legs tangled in the sheets, his fingers tangled with Jillian’s. The sex had been crazy intense, and he wouldn’t be surprised to see gouges in the hardwood floor from the scooting of the bed across it.
“You okay?” he rasped, exhaustion and post-coital bliss making his voice rough.
“Mm-hmm.” Jillian’s eyes were closed, her kiss-ravaged mouth tipped up in a smile, her dark hair spilled across the blue flannel pillow case.
Must be November. Jillian always switched the sheets from satin to flannel on Halloween night. He used to think it was weird, but he’d learned to appreciate the cozy warmth when he climbed into bed with her on chilly nights.
He pressed a kiss against her forehead and inhaled the delicate scent of the pumpkin spice shampoo she brought out of storage every year with the sheets. “Sorry about the insanity.”
“I know,” she murmured. “It’s all right. I understand how you’re affected by certain events.”
She was so perfect. She accepted him flaws and all. And being the product of the union between a sex demon and an angel bred for battle was definitely a flaw. Well, that and the minor thing about terrorizing and nearly killing her a while back.
Bringing her hand to his, he kissed her knuckles. Before this day was over, he was going to kiss every inch of her. Maybe more than once.
“I’m going to shower. And then I’m going to eat whatever smells so good in the kitchen.” He pressed another lingering kiss into the soft skin of her hand. “And then I’m going to eat you.”
He hopped out of bed and got into the shower, eager to wash away the events of the last two weeks. The plague had been of natural origin, not caused by demons or man or, thankfully, himself as Pestilence, which somehow made a difference in how crazy it made him and how long it took him to recover. After a few meals, a few rounds of sex, and a few hours of sleep, he’d be back to normal and would be rid of the death-hangover that was, even now, pounding like a four-armed troll against the inside his skull.
Moaning at the luxury of being clean, Reseph stood under the spray until the hot water ran out. He needed to remember to get a bigger hot water tank before winter set in, one that would complement the steam shower he was going to talk Jillian into. The cabin was already his favorite place in the world, but with a few tweaks, it would be absolute paradise.
Stomach growling, he swiped a towel over himself in a half-assed dry job and threw on a pair of shorts. Jillian insisted on pants, pajamas, or a robe at the table. Humans were funny that way.
He found her in the kitchen, her lush body wrapped in the fuzzy cream robe he’d bought her for Christmas as part of a spa package. She’d set out two steaming bowls of soup, a loaf of homemade bread, and a bottle of beer for him, a sparkling water for her.
“I’ve missed your cooking,” he said as he plopped down in his usual spot.
“If I’d known you’d be home today I’d have made something more substantial. I know you don’t eat when you’re called away like that.”
His stomach growled again, right on cue. He hadn’t eaten in two weeks, and now that he could smell food instead of sickness and death, his body was waking up with a vengeance.
He didn’t even bother with a spoon. The first bowl of soup went down like a mug of ale. After following that with half the loaf of bread, he managed to eat the second and third bowls of soup with a spoon. By the time he’d ladled up his fourth serving, his stomach had quit growling and he didn’t feel as much like a winter-starved bear coming out of hibernation.
“Did anything interesting happen while I was gone?”
“Nope.” Jillian shook her head. “And before you ask, yes, your brothers and Limos came to check on me every day, even though I have Tracker just next door.”
Reseph was more grateful for Tracker than he could even say. The werewolf was completely dedicated to Jillian, and not because of the slave bond. He truly loved her, probably because she was the only master he’d ever had who treated him not as a slave, but as family. She didn’t require anything from him and in fact, she was constantly trying to get him to relax and do things for himself, but the only time he took for his own needs was during the three nights of the werewolf moon.
“There was a full moon while I was gone,” Reseph pointed out. “He couldn’t protect you while he’s out running with his pack or chained in his basement.”
“Reseph,” she sighed as she reached for her mug of hot cocoa, “it was fine. Stacey was here a lot too.”
Stacey? That was a floofing laugh. “Stacey would faint at the sight of a tiny little spiny hellrat. How the hell can she help if you’re attacked by demons?”
Jillian huffed in mock annoyance. Probably mock annoyance. Reseph and Stacey had gotten off to an awkward start, and they’d never gotten past it. Reseph had never even tried. He liked their friendly rivalry and was glad Jillian had a close friend who knew the truth about the underworld. At Reaver’s request, Stacey was one of the few humans whose memories hadn’t been altered by angels to explain the Apocalyptic events in ways that didn’t involve demons. Most humans now believed the millions who died when his Seal broke, setting off the beginnings of the Apocalypse, had actually succumbed to disease and localized war.
Apparently, there were plans to start revealing the truth to humans over a gradual period of time, but Reseph really didn’t care. He liked his life out here in the middle of nowhere, where he didn’t get bombarded with news and human drama all the time.
Life was so good. He wouldn’t change a single thing.
“I’m not going to get attacked by demons,” Jillian said, with a roll of her bright green eyes. “We have so many layers of protection here. If the wards don’t stop them, I’ve got Tracker as well as a direct line to three other Horsemen and an angel or two.” She put down her spoon and inhaled before saying softly, “But if you’re worried about me being out here when you’re gone, I have a solution.”
His heart gave an excited kick against his ribs. “Are you finally going to go stay with my sister or one of my brothers?” He’d been trying to get her to do that for years.
“No.” She took another deep breath, and this time when his heart kicked, it was with sudden dread. “Don’t freak out, okay?”
Man, that was a surefire way to make him freak out, but somehow he managed to keep himself level. “What is it?”
Jillian, his beautiful, perfect mate, smiled...and ruined his day.
“I want to move.”
* * * *
Jillian held her breath as she waited for Reseph’s reaction. At first, he seemed to take it well. He simply watched as her cat, Doodle, jumped into her lap and stuck his little brown head into her bowl.
Then, as Doodle flicked his paw in dismissal at the soup, Reseph gripped the edge of the table as if trying to steady it. Or as if trying to steady himself.
“You want to do what?”
Maybe she should have waited to dump this on him until after he’d recovered from the plague, but she’d never been good at keeping things from him and besides, she was excited about this. She just had to get him on board.
“I know this is sudden, but I’ve been thinking about it for months.” She stroked Doodle’s soft fur, eliciting a contented purr from him. “I want to move to a city. Berlin or Paris or Amsterdam. Maybe Sydney. Or Stockholm.”
Reseph’s handsome face was uncharacteristically expressionless. Usually every emotion he felt played out in his clear blue eyes and in the set of his made-for-sin mouth. Which meant he was intentionally controlling his feelings, and that was never good.
“No.”
She blinked. “No? We can’t even discuss it?”
“There’s nothing to discuss.” Shoving to his feet, he grabbed his bowl. “Cities are stupid and full of people.”
“Oh, well, there’s a legit argument,” she muttered. “Cities are stupid.”
He took his bowl over to the sink and turned on the water. “I just don’t know why you’d want to make such a drastic move. What brought this on?”
Jillian twisted around in her seat so she could talk to him, but his back was to her as he rinsed his bowl with brisk, jerky movements. “A lot of things, really. Part of it is that I’m tired of being a hermit.”
“We can travel more.” He swung around to her, his abs and arms glistening from water spray. On his forearm, the tattoo-like glyph of his war stallion, Conquest, stomped its feet in agitation, sensing his master’s mood. “If you wanted to spend more time in a city, you should have told me. Let’s get dressed and go. Anywhere you want. We can be there in thirty seconds.”
“It’s not the same, Reseph.” She placed Doodle on the floor and stood. “I love traveling with you, but I just...I want a change. We can sell this place and—”
“Sell it?” Reseph croaked. “You want to get rid of your family home? The house you grew up in?”
There were things she’d miss about the house, but it had been her parents’ dream home, not hers. “I have plenty of memories and pictures. It’s no big deal.”
“No big deal?” He made an angry, sweeping gesture with his arm. “You’ve got thirty years of history here. You don’t just throw that away.”
“I’m not throwing anything away.” She moved toward him, but he scooted past her to grab another beer from the fridge. “Everything that’s important will move with us.”
“What about the animals? What about Sammy? Conquest loves him.”
“I’ve already made arrangements with Stacey. We’ll take Doodle, and she’ll take the rest of the animals. We can visit anytime we want.”
He shook his head. “No.”
“Reseph—”
“No!” He slammed his beer down on the counter without opening it. “We’re not moving, and that’s final.”
“Nothing is final,” she snapped. “And I don’t appreciate your attitude.”
“Selling things is final,” he shot back. “And you don’t just throw away things because they’re no longer convenient.”
“No longer convenient? What are you talking about? This is about making a positive change. I’m immortal now. I can take some risks. Do things I might have been afraid to do before.” She made a pleading gesture with her hands. “Let’s do this, Reseph. Let’s take a new adventure together.”
“Or you’ll take one by yourself?”
Taken aback, she stared, unable to fathom his words. “By myself? No, of course not. Where is this coming from?”
Cursing, Reseph shook his head. “I need a minute. Just...give me a minute.”
With that, he stormed out of the kitchen and then out of the house.
* * * *
Reseph couldn’t believe how rattled he was by Jillian’s bombshell announcement. How could she want to move? How could she want to abandon her old life?
And making it worse, Limos was siding with Jillian.
“Reseph, I know you’re upset, but is it really that big of a deal?” From the deck of her Hawaiian beach house, Limos kept a watchful eye on her mate, Arik, as he strolled along the sand with their daughter. Keilani, her mother’s daughter in every way, was keeping Arik busy as she ran from place to place gathering seashells.
“Jillian grew up there,” he said. “It was her parents’ place. It was where she went to stay safe after...” After Pestilence and his minions attacked her. “How can she just give it up like it was nothing?”
Limos turned to him, the salty ocean breeze whipping her black hair around her face. “I don’t think this is about Jillian at all,” she said as she tied her hair back with the lime and yellow scrunchie thing she’d worn around her wrist.
“Then what the hell would it be about?”
“Duh,” Limos huffed. “It’s about you and your past.”
“You think I’m still hung up on my childhood?”
“Reseph, you’ve always had abandonment issues—”
Oh, criminy, not that shit again. If he so much as mentioned that he hated milk, Limos would claim it was related to his birth mother leaving him before he’d been able to breastfeed or his adoptive mother leaving him before he was done breastfeeding.
He really did hate milk and both his mothers, though. Still didn’t prove anything.
“You know what was great about the past?” He watched Keilani do a face plant in the sand and then bound back to her feet with a delighted squeal. His niece had a great sense of humor already. “No one used terms like ‘abandonment issues’ or ‘narcissist.’ Or ‘psychopath.’” He shrugged. “Just saying.”
“I’m serious.” Limos pointed an accusatory finger at him. “Almost everything is disposable to you. But you glom hard onto things that represent stability. Don’t look at me like that. You know I’m right.” She waved at Keilani and then turned back to Reseph. “You found a home at Jillian’s mountain retreat, so you’re glomming. You’re just glomming the wrong thing.”
“Huh?”
“Argh.” Limos cuffed him on the shoulder. “Home isn’t a cabin or wooded property, dumbass. Home is wherever Jillian goes. Glom her.”
As much as he hated to admit it, his sister was right. But still, the thought of leaving the place where he’d lived his happiest years gave him heartburn.
Maybe they could compromise. He’d flipped out before they could even talk about it. Because he was a dumbass, like Limos said. They could still move to whatever city Jillian wanted to move to but keep the Colorado property for vacations. Or if he needed to escape people.
That might work. The very idea certainly helped ease the burn in his chest. “Thanks for talking me down, sis. You’re like a living, breathing Alka-Seltzer.”
“Aw, aren’t you sweet in your own weird way.”
“Yeah, well, now I have to show Jillian how sweet I am. I totally freaked out. I was such a jerk.”
Limos cocked a black eyebrow. “Don’t tell me it was your first fight?”
“Nah,” he said. “I’m always doing stupid shit. But this was our worst fight. And it was all my fault.” He glanced down the beach at Arik. “When he floofs up, what does he do to get off the couch?”
She grinned, and something told him she liked it when Arik had to make it up to her for something. No doubt she enjoyed making his life hell.
“He changes diapers and gets up with Keilani at night, but I guess since you don’t have a kid, that won’t work.” She tapped her chin thoughtfully. “What’s something she always does for you?” She held up her hand as Reseph opened his mouth. “And I’m not talking about anything sexual.’
He snapped his mouth closed and thought about it. “She does everything inside the house, and I do all the outside stuff.”
“Then you need to do some inside stuff. Do the laundry for her. Clean the house. Cook dinner. And tell her you’re sorry.” Li wiggled her fingers, making her flashy rings sparkle in the sunlight. “And expensive jewelry never hurts.”
Okay, he could do all of that. Easy. He knew where the vacuum cleaner was, and he was pretty sure he could find the laundry soap. Dinner...that might be a little challenging.
“Do you have any good recipes? Easy recipes?”
“I have people who cook for me,” Limos said. “But you should check out a show called Angel in the Kitchen. Harvester said you can look up recipes that will work for whatever purpose you want. Supposedly, they’re infused with angel magic or some crap.”
Reseph was willing to try anything at this point. And if he had to enlist the help of an angel to win over his own angel, he was all for it.
He eyed Limos. “Do you think you can help me out with something? I’m going to need to get Jillian out of the house for a few hours.”
As expected, she was game.
Operation Apology was underway.
* * * *
Reseph decided he wasn’t cut out for domestic chores. He was much better at wielding a sword than a vacuum cleaner. And no matter how many times he mopped, the hardwood floors remained streaky. Worse, Doodle watched him like he was an idiot, all judgey and shit from his perch on the window sill.
Reseph couldn’t even manage to do laundry right. He’d had to rinse a load twice to get rid of excess soap, and another load was completely ruined thanks to a little too much bleach.
He’d basically created more work with his dumbassery.
Surprisingly, cooking turned out to be his most successful attempt at showing Jillian how much she meant to him. In fact, the kitchen smelled heavenly and not like anything was burning or poisonous.
Cool.
He popped dessert into the oven and checked his watch. Jillian should be home any second. Limos had promised to gate her to the cabin as soon as they were done buying the Thanksgiving decorations Limos had insisted she’d needed Jillian’s help with to pick out,, and she’d texted moments ago to say they were getting ready to head back.
Any second now...
The front door creaked open and slammed closed. Jillian was still pissed.
His pulse picked up, slinging adrenaline through his veins as if he were entering battle instead of preparing to negotiate an end to it.
Jillian appeared in the doorway to the kitchen. She was wearing one of his favorite outfits: worn jeans and a gauzy black blouse that emphasized her perfect breasts and long, slender neck, both of which he’d lavished with kisses hundreds of times. She’d taken off her shoes, her feet now encased in fluffy black slippers with skull and crossbones beads he’d given her for her birthday.
“Are you...are you actually cooking?”
“I’m attempting it, anyway.”
“Why?”
Reseph had spent his entire life being a charming playboy, a lovable scamp that females loved. If there was ever a time to turn on his charm, it was now.
He grinned and shot her a wink as he checked on the Chicken Biscuit Pot Pie. “Because you deserve it.” At her smile, he claimed victory. “Besides, I figured that if you could do it, I could too.”
The smile fell off her face. “You what? You mean, if it’s so easy that I can do it, surely you must be able to?”
“No! Of course not.” Oh, shit, he’d taken his victory lap too soon. “That came out wrong. I meant that because you do it, I should too. I want to do my part. I want to do more.”
“Is that why you think I want to move?” She drifted toward him, smelling of cinnamon and coffee. Limos must have stalled her at a coffee shop, knowing they were Jillian’s weakness. “Because you don’t do enough around here?”
He’d never really thought about that. “Well...now I’m wondering...”
She laughed, but it sounded a little bitter. “You do plenty around here, Reseph. You’re always outside making improvements on the barn or the house. You do more with the animals than I do, and you look for any reason to go grocery shopping.”
It was true. He loved grocery shopping. For most of his life, grocery stores hadn’t existed. Now he found them to be wondrous places filled with a zillion kinds of ice cream and every spice imaginable. Sometimes when he got the urge to wander, he’d visit grocery stores in other countries just to see what kind of neat stuff they sold.
You could tell a lot about a country’s people by what they bought in grocery stores.
The kitchen timer went off. Jillian’s slippered feet whispered on the floor as she followed him to the oven.
“What are you making?”
“What am I attempting to make?” He mentally crossed his fingers in hopes that everything turned out. “I’m doing a pie themed dinner I found on the Angel in the Kitchen website. Chicken Biscuit Pot Pie and Cherry Hand Pies.”
“Smells amazing.”
He pulled the pot pie out of the oven and left the cherry pies to continue baking. “I hope it tastes like it smells. And like it looks.”
Jillian came up behind him and peered at the bubbling dish. “I’m so hungry. I tried to get Limos to go to dinner, but she said she was busy.”
“She had orders to bring you here,” he said, a little sheepishly... exaggerated a bit to keep up the charm offensive. Ares had always said it was his best battle tactic, and he needed to use every weapon in his arsenal to make it up to Jillian.
Jillian’s eyes shot wide as it dawned on her that she had been tricked. “She knew you were cooking?”
“I went to see her earlier,” he admitted. “I needed to talk to her about our fight.”
“That’s funny,” she murmured. “Because I talked to her about it too.”
Well, that couldn’t be good. “What did she say?”
“That you’re a jackass.” She gave him a pointed look, but her mouth was quirked in a small smile. “On that, we agree.”
There was widespread agreement for that opinion. “I’m sorry, Jilly.” He reset the timer for the cherry pies. “I overreacted. I was caught off guard and I panicked. But that was no excuse for treating you the way I did.”
“It was my fault too.” She sank down in a chair at the table. “I shouldn’t have dumped it on you like that. I made a decision and didn’t consult you about it first.” Looking down at her freshly painted blue nails—Limos must have taken her for a manicure as well—she shook her head. “I think maybe I resent how much you’re gone, and how much responsibility it leaves me with. I know it’s not fair. You can’t help it when you have to go. But I always feel like I’ve kind of been stranded.”
He’d never really thought about what it was like for her when he was gone. He’d always been concerned about her safety, but her state of mind? Hadn’t even occurred to him.
He was a selfish jerk sometimes, wasn’t he?
Determined to make it up to her, he poured her a glass of wine and sat down across from her. “So what do we do now?”
“I think I might have a compromise.”
They often operated on the same wavelength, probably because their minds had been linked together in order to preserve his sanity and keep Pestilence at bay. The wavelength had its drawbacks, but really, it kept them in sync a lot, and he suspected that now was one of those times.
“Let me guess,” he said. “We move but keep this property for vacations and getaways?”
She nodded. “I can’t believe I didn’t think of it sooner.”
It was definitely better than selling the place, but he also had another idea. “What about the other way around? We’ll buy a place in any city in the world. You name it. It’ll be our vacation spot.”
Reaching for his hand, she gave a tiny shake of the head. “I’m ready for a change, Reseph. A big one. Buying a vacation home isn’t a change.”
Change was bad. The very idea, even with a compromise, made his gut churn. There was a reason he’d lived in a cave for centuries. He hung on to what he knew.
“Why do you want a change? Are you bored?”
“Trust me,” she said wryly, “no one can be bored around you.” Her fingernails clicked on her wine glass as she idly tapped the stem. “It’s not that. It’s just...I spread my wings a long time ago when I moved away. Being back here makes me feel like a teenager, like I’m trapped. I know we can go anywhere we want in a matter of seconds, but when you’re gone for weeks at a time, I’m stuck here.”
“You can call my sister or brothers. They’ll take you anywhere you want.” Even as his words faded, he knew the argument was old and lame and clearly, if it was what Jillian wanted, she’d have been calling his siblings all the time.
“I hate that, Reseph. I have to rely on them to get me home when I’m done with whatever I’m doing. It inconveniences them, and it makes me feel like I’m on a leash. But if we’re living in a city I can walk to the closest café for a pastry. Or I can take a jog in a park. Or I can drive or take public transportation to any number of places. It’s lonely here. And now that I’m taking flying lessons, I’d like to live near an airport. I want to fly charter flights for DART. I want to do something to contribute to the fight for our planet, you know?”
He couldn’t manufacture a single argument for any of that, so he conceded defeat. After all, Jillian had sacrificed a lot for him, and maybe it was time for him to do the same. He loved this cabin, but he loved her more.
So instead of throwing a Keilani-sized tantrum, he pulled up his big boy pants—pants he was wearing in the kitchen for Jillian’s sake—and announced that dinner was ready.
* * * *
Jillian was starving, but as Reseph dished up the pot pie, her stomach rebelled. She hated fighting with him, and although he’d apologized and they were in the midst of talking things out, there was still a lot of tension in the air, wafting around the kitchen along with the mouthwatering aromas of savory chicken and sweet cherries.
She dragged her fork through the veggie-laden pie. “Reseph, why did you get so upset when I said I wanted to move?”
Silence stretched as he considered his answer. “Limos thinks it’s because I have abandonment issues. She’s probably right. But I think it’s more than that.” He glanced down at his bowl, a soft pink blush rising up in his cheeks. He wasn’t one to talk about his feelings—at least not openly. He joked a lot, but he didn’t ever lay his emotions completely bare. “I think I was afraid that you wanting something new meant you wanted everything new.”
“What, like a new husband?” At his barely discernible nod, her heart broke. He was so new to unconditional love that even after their years together he still expected to lose everything. “Listen to me, Reseph. Do you trust me?”
He looked up in surprise. “More than anyone in my life.”
“Then trust me when I say that the only way you’ll lose me is if you turn into Pestilence again.” She paused and narrowed her eyes at him. “Or if you cheat on me.”
She wasn’t sure which would be worse. Pestilence was terrifying, his bloodlust and penchant for cruelty beyond comprehension. But the thought of Reseph with another female—human or otherwise—hurt her in places Pestilence could never reach.
“That will never happen,” he growled, and the sudden, possessive intensity in his expression was as much a promise as his words. She recognized the smoky, predatory gleam in his eyes and knew he was no longer interested in food. He wanted to take his promises to the bedroom and claim her in the most primitive way he knew how.
Her skin heated at the thought, and she was tempted to take his hand and drag him there right now.
But they had to clear the air first.
She loaded her fork with pot pie. This conversation was going to end in the bedroom no matter what, so she’d better eat now or it could be hours before she managed to get back into the kitchen. “Do you want me to trust you when you say that?”
His voice still rumbled with erotic intent. “Of course.”
“Then return the favor and never doubt my love for you. Also, thank you for wearing clothes while you were cooking. “She paused with the fork at her lips. “You did wear clothes, right?”
“I might be immortal,” he said with an amused snort, “but there are parts of my body that don’t respond well to heat.”
Smiling, she took a bite and moaned in food bliss. “This is so good.”
“Guaranteed by the Angel in the Kitchen chick to wrap you in comfort like a blanket made from the hide of a bone devil.”
Jillian didn’t know what a bone devil was, but she got the gist. “Well, it worked. Now I can’t wait for dessert.”
He waggled his blond brows. “I can’t either.”
It was no surprise that the individual cherry pies were merely the first dessert course. He served the second course in bed. And as they lay snuggled in the sheets recovering, Reseph served up another surprise: brochures from every city she’d mentioned.
Together they were going to forge a new path and share new dreams.
But they would always have Colorado.
* * * *
Reseph and Jillian’s book, , was one of my favorite books to write. Reseph had been an evil villain for four books, starting with (book 5 of the Demonica series). He was absolutely unredeemable for the first three books of the Lords of Deliverance series, which meant that I had a challenge on my hands. If you want to see how I handled that challenge, check out the entire Lords of Deliverance series, starting with !