Fallen: Celeste (9 page)

Celeste didn't even glance at him. She shoveled the food in.

"How long since you've eaten, angel?" William leaned
against the counter and watched her.

"I don't remember," she muttered.

"Hey, some guy named Adam called while you were in the shower
and by the way he sounded, I think he'll be showing
up just about now."

CHAPTER NINE

A pounding sounded on the door. William motioned for Celeste to
stay seated. He sauntered to the door and opened it just as Adam was raising
his fist to pound again.

Reaching out, William grabbed Adam's arm and jerked him in the
room. "Don't you have any respect for the other people in this building?
They could probably feel you knocking through their doors."

Adam yanked his arm out of William's grip and looked around. He
saw the dark-haired man point to the kitchen. Stalking over, he found his anger
growing. It exploded when he found Celeste calmly eating breakfast wearing a
see-through nightie and a just gotten out of bed look.

"Damn, Celeste. You fuck me unconscious, then run home to
fuck some other guy." He could feel his hands trembling.

Celeste didn't react to him. She kept on eating. William chuckled.

"I'm not just 'some guy.' I happen to be very important to
her."

Celeste glared at him.
You aren't making this better by acting
like that
.

William quirked an eyebrow at her.
Angel, he certainly acts
like he owns you
.

Adam whirled around to face William. "Who the hell are you
really?"

"My name is William Bradford. I am one of Celeste's oldest
friends." William bowed slightly.

Adam ran a hand through his hair. "Hell, you're one of them,
aren't you?"

"One of them?"

"A fallen angel."

William shrugged. "I really no longer think of myself as
anything."

"You're not a fallen angel?"

"Yes, I am, but I am also an Enforcer." William rubbed
his hand over the mark on his chest. "To be honest, though, I try not to
involve myself in any of the petty squabbles going on between our
brethren."

"Then why are you here?" He moved to stand beside
Celeste. He placed a hand on her shoulder, a silent signal to William that he
claimed her.

Celeste didn't move to shrug off the hand. It wasn't worth the
energy to fight him over this. She could feel her power drain from her. William
pushed Adam out of the way in time to catch Celeste as she toppled over.

Lifting her in his arms, he told Adam, "Stay there. I'll be
back and explain some things to you." William headed off down the hall to
Celeste's room.

Adam wanted to follow, but understood that he didn't have the
right to do that. He didn't really have any rights at all when it came to
Celeste. He prowled around Celeste's living room while he waited.

"All right, Adam." William joined him. "Do you want
to hit me now or talk like civilized people about this whole thing?"

"There's nothing to talk about. Celeste doesn't owe me any
explanation. What she does when she isn't with me is none of my business."

"Now you say something like that. Why didn't you say it while
she was awake and could hear you? Not that it matters. Even if you had every
right to yell and stomp about, you shouldn't do it. Not with Celeste. Don't
cling to her or she'll run." William waved Adam to the couch. "Sit
down. Get me up to speed about Tomas. We need to catch him soon or we'll be in
big trouble."

"If you don't consider yourself a fallen or an Enforcer, why
the hell are you even here?" Adam demanded.

William sighed. "A mutual friend suggested that Celeste might
need some help. Since she is my only friend in this God-forsaken world, I
decided to heed his warning and come for a visit. Just in time, too."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"She's running herself to exhaustion. She's dealing with you
and trying to get a lead on Tomas at the same time. I have never understood
this attachment she has to mortals."

"You don't have any human friends?"

"I only use mortals for one thing and it isn't friendship. So
tell me, what do you know about Tomas so far?"

"He picks the women up at the hockey games."

"Hmmm ... there's a game tonight. I wonder if he'll kill
again. How far apart has he been killing?"

"Every three or four days from what we can find out. It
doesn't help that the Wings have been playing at home a lot."

William didn't answer. He stared out the window, thinking about
something. "Even if you two fucked like bunnies all day, Celeste isn't
going to be up to full strength by tonight. I guess I'll be the one out
gathering clues."

"Full strength?" Adam was puzzled. They had mind-blowing
sex last night. Why didn't she gather power then?

"Why do you think she collapsed a few minutes ago? She ran
out."

"But last night..."

"Her mind must have been on something other than gathering power.
And that's why she needs me here. You're distracting her. Why don't you go home
for a while? She'll be up in a couple hours. Then come and get her. Take her
out for a relaxing afternoon. Try and keep her mind off of Tomas. I'll be out
looking around."

Adam started to head for the door. Stopping, he turned around to
ask something. Then he shook his head and turned back towards the door.
Standing, William had a smile on his face.

"Go ahead and ask. But are you sure you want to hear the
answer?"

Facing the door, Adam took a deep breath. He wasn't sure he could
bring himself to ask.

"No, we haven't. And we never will." William's voice was
filled with understanding. "Celeste is my dearest friend and the only one
I'll ever trust. I won't destroy that connection by turning it into a physical
one."

Adam nodded in thanks and left.

William sighed. He checked on Celeste once more. She was sleeping
soundly. Leaving a note on the kitchen table, he left to go in search of a
fallen angel.

* * * *

Two hours later, Celeste had just finished lunch when another
knock sounded on her door. This time there wasn't any anger in the sound. She
opened it to find Adam leaning casually on the doorjamb. He looked good enough
to eat, she thought. In tight faded blue jeans and a white t-shirt, he seemed
more rested. She had to fight the urge to pull him inside and run her hands all
over his naked body. She grinned at him.

Adam knew what she was thinking. She could see the lust burning in
his eyes. He shook his head. Disappointment ran through her.

"Grab a jacket. I'm kidnapping you."

"Really? And where are you taking me?"

"You'll just have to wait and see." He smirked at her.
Helping her with her jacket, he let his hands caress her shoulders.

"It's a surprise, huh?" She shut the door behind her.
Following him to his truck, she mentally wiped the drool off her chin. The man
had an ass she would love to lick chocolate off of. She backed off from those
thoughts. She had the feeling Adam was trying to help her relax and having
lustful thoughts wasn't going to help lower her heart rate.

His hand brushed her breast as he helped her into the truck. It
took all her will power not to grab his hand and cup it around her breast. She
was disgusted with herself. She couldn't even go five minutes without thinking
some kind of sexual thought about this man. She was going to have to do better.

The silence in the truck was thick as they headed down the street.
Finally, Celeste laughed. "We don't seem to be able to talk to each other
unless we're arguing or fucking, huh?"

He chuckled. "I'm sure we could if we tried. We've just never
had the chance, I guess."

"Did you ever finish high school?" Celeste asked,
turning in her seat to look at him.

He shook his head. "You're looking at a self-made man. Of
course, in a street gang, you really don't need a degree to get where you want
to go."

"But you do need to be intelligent and cunning," Celeste
stated.

"Just like any animal living in the jungle."

"I give you credit. You didn't start out with much, but
somehow you managed to gain a lot."

"By stealing, cheating and lying. Yeah, that makes me a model
citizen. Isn't that against your angelic code?"

Celeste gave him a slight smile. "Maybe if I was still an
angel I'd have a problem with it. But I've lived in the world for a long time.
The survival instinct is strong in you. You do whatever you have to do to make
it day by day."

"Don't throw stones in a glass house."

"I'm not going to judge you, that's for sure. Considering
what I'm being punished for, your crimes are pretty petty."

Adam laughed. "I don't think the police would agree with
you."

"True. Some of them have no room to criticize you either. The
only one you will ever have to answer to in the end is Him."

"Why don't you call Him God?"

"Getting tossed from Heaven puts a damper on things. Since I
can no longer stand in His presence, I can't even say His name. It hurts my
head and my heart."

"I wouldn't know what it's like to be banished like that. I
mean I'm sure it's like being banished from a parent's presence. But since
neither of my parents cared for me, I've always known that feeling." Adam
shrugged. He pulled into the parking garage.

Celeste looked around. "The zoo? You're taking me to the zoo.
I've never been here before."

"You've been in Detroit for ten years and have never been to
the zoo. Amazing." Adam took her hand and dragged her to the entrance.

"I donated money for the new polar bear exhibit, doesn't that
count for something?" She laughed.

"No, you have to actually see the bears. It's a great
exhibit, but first we have to go and see the penguins."

"Why?"

"Whenever I come here, I stop by the penguin house first. I
love penguins."

Celeste blinked, trying to reconcile the image of the tough gang
boss with the image of a boyish-looking man who loved penguins. Shaking her
head, she laughed. It didn't matter.

Just enjoy the day, she told herself as they walked towards the
exhibits.

* * * *

Celeste dropped on her couch. She was exhausted. Adam had run her
all over the zoo, checking out all the animals. They had laughed, kissed and
played all afternoon. It was late when they got back to her apartment. Adam was
in the kitchen putting the take-out Chinese they got on plates. It was just the
kind of afternoon she needed to restore her energy. Now was the time to build
her power.

Adam put the plate on the coffee table in front of her. He smiled
at the contented look on her face. He knew what the night would bring. He just
hoped he had enough energy to last long enough for her.

The food was forgotten as Celeste led Adam into her bedroom. She
smiled up at him. Somehow, they had managed to keep their hands off of each
other at the zoo. But it was time to make some magic.

He pushed her onto the bed, pressing his body tightly against
hers. She moaned. What she wouldn't give to have his body next to hers all the
time. With a thought, she stripped their clothes away.

He laughed hoarsely. "I could get used to that."

She smirked. Arching her neck, she bared her throat. He slowly
started nibbling down it. Her hands wandered over his body. He gasped as she
lightly caressed his balls.

Her breath caught when his hot mouth closed around one of her
nipples. Fisting her hands in his hair, she offered her breast for him to feast
on. Soon, she was grinding her hips into his. He moved to the other breast. She
slid one of her hands down to his cock and stroked. He groaned.

Pushing away from her, he flipped her over. He pulled her to her
hands and knees. He licked her from the back of her neck to the crack in her
ass. One quick swipe and then several slow ones like he was savoring an ice
cream cone.

She almost cried out when his rough fingers found her clit. They
rubbed. They stroked. They twisted and tugged. Each move was designed to build
the fire higher. She begged him to take her. Adam laughed.

"Soon enough. Be patient, love."

He thrust two fingers deep inside her. She screamed as he scraped
the hot spot guaranteed to make her come. He began working her hard, reaming
her cunt with two, then three fingers. Just before she came, he pulled his
fingers out and slammed his cock into her. Shafting her fiercely, he bit the
tender spot where her shoulder and neck connected. His hands reached around and
grasped her breasts roughly.

"Come for me, angel." His voice released the fire
burning in her. She incinerated, bursting into flames as her body exploded
around his cock. Two deep strokes and he joined her in the big bang. It felt
like the force of their climax was creating the universe again. Even in the
midst of her orgasm, Celeste remembered to gather the power to her, storing it
away for future use.