“Did Az try the whip on you yet?” he asked, his ruby irises gleaming with sensual delight as his tongue flicked, making me jolt. “Do you think he’d use it… here?” He licked me sharply again, making pleasure spike through my core.

  “Cole,” I hissed, reaching down to fist my fingers through his hair, except I caught a horn and I grabbed on tight, intent on preventing him from pleasuring me more.

  Because not that long ago he was in one of his comas… something that terrified me.

  I couldn’t lose more of my mates.

  “You need to be rest—” My sentence cut off when he shoved his tongue inside, fucking me in a way only a demon could.

  It felt so wrong… so different…

  And yet he knew the exact spot to hit and he used his strength, making me unfurl on an orgasm in an instant that had me screaming.

  It was a good thing that the Dean had decided on giving Cole the unoccupied tower that nestled between Lux, the place where incubi and succubi fed—so there were plenty of sensual screams in the night—and the Blood Towers, the place where the Dark Mages harvested willing sacrifice. So, just in case my screams came out sounding like pleasure or pain—and sometimes with Cole, they were a mixture of both—then I was pretty covered.

  Still, it would have been a task for Hendrik to properly soundproof Cole’s tower. I didn’t dare ask any of the other Dark Mages to perform the spell.

  I had some semblance of pride.

  Although, by the time Cole was finished with me, I wasn’t sure if any level of soundproofing was going to matter.

  Using his tail, he held one leg down when I tried to close my thighs again, and he spread me with his fingers, careful not to catch me with his dangerous claws.

  Catching my breath, I watched him as danger glinted in his gaze.

  Then he rammed deeper, gulping me down and drawing a long cry out of me as pleasure bloomed through my core.

  His tongue was stronger than I ever could have imagined, not that I had a lot of experience with intimacy when it came to a pure-blooded demon in his natural form.

  Kaito was a low-level demon as well, but he had a mortal’s body, so sex with him wasn’t quite as… dangerous.

  Cole, however, was seventh circle level of sensual torment. He could change various parts of his body just like he could his tail, forming a thick shape that curled in just the right places, driving me to bliss in a fraction of an instant.

  He thrusted harder, pressing his chin against my throbbing flesh as he drank in my wetness. My breath caught when his fangs came dangerously close to sensitive flesh.

  He knew I liked the excitement of his fangs and claws so close to me, making me feel vulnerable.

  It was a test of trust, one that he needed to pass for me to finally accept my demon side that called to him and find the balance required to fulfill my destiny.

  A destiny where all my mates survived, where the realms didn’t fall into utter chaos.

  Where Calamity didn’t get to win.

  Cold and I had built trust between each other in this way, me allowing him to prove that he wasn’t going to hurt me, and in return he gave me pleasure.

  And, oh, the pleasure this demon could provide blew my mind.

  Another orgasmic wave ransacked my body, leaving me limp as he ruthlessly stroked me, making me somehow want more.

  So much more.

  Giving up, I yanked on his horn. “I want your dick, Cole. Now.”

  “Mmm,” he hummed approvingly, retracting his tongue and leaving me empty, but I knew I was about to enjoy something much larger when he came over me and rested his elbows on either side of my head, pinning me beneath him. “I’m glad you’re using your words, little angel.”

  Staring up at him with an unblinking challenge, I fisted him, making him snarl. “I’m using my hands, too. That’s how you like it, right?”

  Grabbing my wrist, he hauled it over my head and pinned me down, forcing me to flare my wings flat so I didn’t crush any of the sensitive wings on the fallen angel side. “I like it rough, which is why I haven’t fucked you yet, little angel. You’re not ready.”

  It was true, he hadn’t fucked me yet, not really.

  He’d used his tongue, his tail, and his fingers with his claws retracted.

  But not the part of him that I really wanted, even if it did look big enough to split me in two.

  His dick was the largest of my mates. Hard against my abdomen, his silky flesh was blocked by the thin barrier of my skirt he’d pulled up over my hips.

  With his free hand tore the fabric away, tossing what remained of it off the bed.

  “I get to decide when I’m ready,” I countered, allowing him to keep me pinned as I spread my legs, encouraging him to go where I wanted him.

  He obliged by pressing his heated flesh against mine, but he didn’t enter me, which only frustrated me more. I snarled in response, earning a grin from my sadistic mate.

  “Do you still want me to rest?” he asked, that wicked gleam in his bright ruby irises tempting me to fall into sin with him and never look back.

  “No rest,” I commanded, my need overwhelming my thoughts and demanding that I take what I needed.

  And if my theory was right, this was what Cole needed, too.

  He’d been falling unconscious these past few months for a reason. Losing his wings and the majority of his demonic powers affected him more than he realized.

  And it affected me, too.

  Because my back ached where Kaito had attached the donor wing, black corruption burning across my shoulder that I hid with a spell.

  My body was rejecting Cole’s wing.

  The possible reasons of why that might be terrified me.

  Perhaps I still hadn’t forgiven him.

  Perhaps I wasn’t worthy of becoming a true demon of Hell.

  Or maybe… I’d chosen the wrong mate.

  I prayed to all the gods that fully bonding with him would prove my doubts wrong.

  “Fuck me,” I commanded him, arching my hips into him, inviting his ruthless form of passion as my wetness ran down my thighs, my need for him off the charts. “Fuck me or gods help me, Cole, I’ll let Az and Sam jam their swords into you.”

  I realized the different meanings my threat could take when Cole’s eyes glittered with mischief. “Hmm, I think you need to come up with better threats, little angel.” He ran his tongue over my neck, then softly bit, pricking me with his sharp fangs in a way that had my pulse singing. “Regardless, I can’t wait anymore either, my mate.” He slowly entered me, making my eyes go wide when the fullness of his girth hinted at the true danger of loving a demon. “Hold your breath, or you’re going to scream.”

  And then he slammed home, shattering my world with a glorious mixture of pleasure and pain.

  Chapter 2

  Big.

  Way… too big.

  Cole didn’t stop to ask if I was okay, or if I needed a break.

  No, this was why he had waited. The moment he gave into his desire for me, he was lost to the lust-filled frenzy that gripped us both.

  He fucked me hard and deep. Securing my wrists above my head, he didn’t allow me to move as he drove me to the edge of madness.

  I curled my fingers and dug my nails into my skin as he pounded into me, his tail slithering underneath us and entering my ass, making stars of pleasure blink behind my eyes.

  Crying out his name, I screamed when a powerful orgasm hit, but he didn’t stop.

  He wasn’t even close to finished with me.

  Another form of pleasure wound around me as I lost myself to the demon’s passion. Our bond had been strengthening over time, but now it secured itself with powerful strands that wrapped around me with ruthless possession.

  Our bond was different than my other Virtues. Perhaps that was because he was so ancient, or because he was such a different form of supernatural than any of my other mates.

  He was a true immortal.

  He had been with Lucifer during the very creation of Hell and he’d spent an eternity tormenting souls and feeding on their endless rage.

  Until I came along, that is, and showed him how to feel.

  He was still Cole, still a demon of rage, and at the end of the day, he couldn’t be anything else.

  But now I had opened his world to everything he’d been missing all this time, and his unique mixture of passion and pain ran tandem with the concept of rage, burning hot and engulfing us with fire that had the bed sizzling and the silken sheets curling into dust. My blouse was supposed to be fireproof, but my clothes never seemed to withstand the power of Hellfire no matter how strongly they were spelled.

  We’d burn the entire tower down if it wasn’t made of stone native to Hell, enforced by one of the few spells that the Dark Mages had performed before Cole’s permanent residence had taken place. A necessary precaution, because when Cole let go, Hellfire was what was released.

  As a Princess of Hell, I thrived under his heat and blossomed like a flower underneath his onslaught.

  I couldn’t reach him with my pinned hands, but I could use my wings.

  Taking my demon wing that had once belonged to him, I scored a line down his shoulder, making him hiss as black blood trailed down his bicep.

  We were both demons and I needed to draw blood to bond with him.

  He was mine… and I was his.

  Snapping my wing again, I cut a line across the perfect arch of his cheek, leaving blood to drizzle down his mouth and chin.

  He bared his fangs to me and leaned in, giving me a violent kiss. His blood ran like fire over my tongue and slid down my throat, then pain came next.

  My body wanted to reject him, but I wouldn’t allow it.

  Biting him, I knew I was spurring him into further violence, but that’s what I needed from my demon right now.

  He growled and thrust into me harder, making me cry out as his impossible girth stretched me to my limits.

  Then he bit, leaving my own blackened blood to mix with his. He laved his tongue over mine, tasting my essence.

  “Ambrosia,” he said, the guttural admission more of a curse than a praise.

  I knew what he wanted.

  He wanted a demon’s floral taste, a Death Lotus that I was supposed to be able to create if I was a true demon queen.

  Kaito had told me of the lore, but if I hadn’t known about Ambrosia I might not have believed it. My mother was royalty, but that was by appointment and not by blood.

  I, on the other hand, had been born through the power of a Blood Stone, the very essence that burned in the heart of the pits of Hell.

  Demonspawn were created that way, but I was the first royal to exist in known history because of my unique conception and my status as a Champion of Calamity.

  However, my body still rejected Cole’s blood, his heat burning inside me like poison, and his wing left stinging blades streaking through my bloodstream as my power struggled to accept the strange appendage.

  I had hoped bonding with Cole would fix this, but as pain raked through me, I feared I was making it even worse.

  Lucidity entered Cole’s eyes when darkness fluttered at the edges of my vision.

  “Lilith?” he asked, immediately pulling out of me and making me gasp with need.

  Because I didn’t want this to stop.

  I didn’t want to give up.

  But I didn’t seem to have much of a choice when the darkness closed in and pushed me into a cold, empty sleep where none of my mates could find me.

  Chapter 3

  When I finally woke, it wasn’t to the concerned gaze of the demon I expected.

  Kaito straightened and pushed the hair out of his eyes, leaving a streak of blue flame to trail over his strands as he examined me. If it wasn’t for the horns on his head, he would have almost looked angelic bathed in fire.

  “How are you feeling?” he asked, his eyes the same ruby tone as Cole’s, except his held a silver ring around the edges that marked him as distinctly other.

  Shifting, I groaned when pain raked through me. Some of it was a good pain that nestled between my legs after a night with one of my larger mates, reminding me of nights with Orion.

  Thinking of him left a pang of grief through my heart.

  Failing to bond with Cole meant I might never see Orion or my other mates again.

  What was wrong with me?

  Why couldn’t I do anything right?

  “I’m going to take that as a ‘not good’ response,” Kaito said, gingerly helping me sit up as he brought a glass to my lips.

  Realizing that I was extremely parched, I grabbed the cool glass with both hands and gulped down the sweet liquid.

  Water, I decided, but with an extra kick.

  After finishing it, I relaxed against the headboard and fanned out my wings, careful this time not to snag anything. “That was delicious. Did that have extra electrolytes or something?” I wouldn’t put it past Kaito to give me a sugary drink to boost my energy after a rough fuck.

  “Holy Water,” he corrected, making my eyes go wide.

  Kaito had used Holy Water on himself before. Mixing it with pure evil had helped him commune with his Kami, otherwise known as his demon’s spirit, and ultimately it had given him the balance he needed to be my Virtue.

  Perhaps it made sense that Holy Water would help me right now, but knowing that a heavenly form of sustenance stabilized me after trying to bond with Cole meant only one thing.

  I was still unbalanced, leaving me in a position where attempting to bond with my more powerful immortal mates, such as Cole or my angels, couldn’t be done without risking all our lives.

  Damn it all.

  Other girls don’t have these sorts of problems when they just wanted a little intimacy… why does my life have to be so damn complicated?

  “Where’s Cole?” I asked, dreading the answer.

  After literally passing out when he tried to fuck me, I imagined he didn’t take the rejection very well.

  “Gone,” Kaito confirmed, sending my gut twisting with the answer I already knew.

  Sighing, I drew the bedsheets up to my chest.

  I was naked, just as Cole had left me, and my skin burned with reminiscent need and the pain of our failed bond.

  Kaito was still my Virtue, and the hunger in his gaze was difficult to ignore, but he placed my well-being above his own desires, perhaps to his own detriment.

  “When’s the last time you slept?” I asked him. Even though he had a propensity to always look refreshed and alert, I knew not to be fooled by his appearance.

  He shrugged. “Won’t lie. It’s probably been a few days.” He drummed his fingers over my exposed knee, a subtle show of our closeness. “I can’t sleep when…”

  “When everyone we care about suffers,” I finished for him.

  He nodded and pressed his lips into a thin line.

  Giving my mentor a warm smile, I stroked his chin. The blue flames that curled through his hair didn’t harm me. He had taken on more of a demonic appearance after digesting pure evil, the Kami inside of him finding a balance with the mortal form he wore.

  The tattoo running up his cheek had always been there, a mark that betrayed what he was to those who knew the signs of a beast. It drew my eye to the streak of silver in his otherwise dark hairline, a mark that I now realized was from his Kami that had been trying to come out of him.

  He hadn’t let his Kami win. Instead, he’d found a balance with his darker half.

  Running my thumb over the marks, I toyed with the blue flames that burned against my touch.

  Why couldn’t I do the same? Why couldn’t I come to terms with the extremes in my soul?

  Kaito swept his hand over mine and leaned into my touch, then pressed a kiss to my palm. “I know you were hoping your attempt to bond Cole would work, but—”

  “Please don’t tell me I told you so,” I cut in, not wanting to have it rubbed in my face.

  Kaito was always pragmatic and patient, two qualities that I definitely lacked.

  But it had been three months. We couldn’t just sit around on our asses while Lucifer built an army of supernaturals that would overwhelm us all. Then what?

  He would kill my mates.

  Or worse, use them against me and make me his pet.

  The very thought made a growl rumble in my throat.

  Kaito knew the train of my thought because we were bonded, so he didn’t take the growl personally. Instead he huffed a short laugh. “I understand your frustration, Koneko-chan, but we haven’t been just sitting around. The twins have been teaching you how to balance your power, how to use your heavenly gifts without overwhelming your demonic side. Meanwhile I’ve been searching for the location of the Death Lotus that might help you safely bond with Cole and last night… I think I found it.”

  I covered my mouth with my hand, then lowered it. “Seriously? Why didn’t you say something?”

  He leaned across the nightstand and knocked twice on the wood, releasing a secret drawer that I hadn’t known was there. He pulled out a leathery book and pushed it into my lap. “Because I didn’t realize what I had found… but Cole paid me a visit the other day. I’d just been finishing up one of my maps from a vision.” He sighed. “He must have recognized the area.”

  I stared at the book and when I opened up the cover, I realized what Kaito had given me.

  The perfect penmanship of a demon’s elegant script inked across the page.

  Cole’s handwriting.

  Snapping my gaze up to Kaito, I slammed the book shut. “Cole is going to kill you.”

  My mentor grinned, showing wicked teeth. “Perhaps, but at least he’ll have the help he needs when I follow him.”

  Cursing, I flared my wings. “You can’t just go reading someone’s private things, Kaito.” I had no idea that Cole had actually gone through with journaling his thoughts. It was one of Kaito’s ideas for treatment after studying human psychotherapy.

  A necessary study Kaito had added to his list.

  Because all of us were a little bit insane.

 

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