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“Sweetie, I didn’t mean it that way. I know
how hard it’s going to be for the both of you. Trucker has suffered
more than any one person should. I can’t stand the thought of him
hurting anymore.”

“I don’t want to hurt him.”

“I know, darling. I would give up my life for
that boy and in some ways I have. I stayed to protect him.” She
shrugged her shoulder. “But how do you protect the prince of the
Brotherhood.”

“What’s the Brotherhood?”

“It’s an elite band of demons. How can I
explain it to you? There are different levels of demons, like the
different levels of angels. Trucker and his father are the
archangels of their world.” Catherine patted her hand with her warm
touch. “I know what you’re thinking. I wanted to leave too, but I
looked at my beautiful baby boy and knew I could never leave him.
Everything I have or will do in this life is for him. He’s worth it
too, and I’ve never regretted my decision.”

“Trucker’s an arch demon?” Julie shook her
head vehemently “Has he met . . . you know?” She couldn’t even
finish her thought.

“Sweetie, I don’t think so, but he hates what
he is so much that I never question him. He tells me some things,
but he keeps so much locked up in that mind of his.”

Julie started to speak again, but Catherine
raised her hand to let her know she wasn’t finished. “I gave my
baby something some around here consider a curse, but I know it is
the greatest gift I could give him. A soul. He does have great evil
raging in him, but he also has the sweetest soul. I prayed every
day of his life that God would send an angel to save my baby and
his soul.” She took Julie’s hand, Catherine’s face shined. “You’re
that angel, and yes, he does love you. He thinks he has no heart,
but I know he does. I heard it once. It’s just frozen over by all
that rage, but you’re the one to melt it. Please don’t leave him.
He’d lose his soul if he was to lose you.” She held on tightly to
Julie’s hand. “I know it’ll be hard, but I’m always here for
you.”

Julie spotted a figure in Trucker’s bedroom
window. She couldn’t quite make it out. It had a larger frame than
Trucker’s. She thought back to his distorted face and cringed.

“I’ll go get him. Just wait out here, he’ll
be down shortly,” Catherine warned her.

“Is he with Sea?” Julie really wanted to ask
what he was.

“No, he’ll be down shortly, I promise.”

Julie started looking over at their enticing
English garden. She noticed that there were no birds flying about,
no butterflies fluttering, no bees bouncing from flower to flower.
Trucker’s life was full of artificial beauty, but not the true
beauty that life holds. Julie prayed that she could finally bring
some of that beauty in his life.

Julie had already sat out on the patio for
over an hour. Her mind shot to the figure in the window. A sudden
dread came over her, what if she was too late to save him? What if
his other side already had too great a hold? She couldn’t believe
that, she had seen his good side and knew how warm it was. Hearing
footsteps come up behind her, she jerked.

“Hey there, little lady.”

She saw a smile that was a comforting sight
coming from her healer. Julie didn’t quite understand why she had
an instant bond with him, but Jake made her feel content and
comfortable in the crazy world she was thrust into.

“Hey, Jake, right?”

“That’s me. Jake Lee Mansfield.”

He placed his hand on her shoulder and gave
it a slight squeeze.

“My best friend Tiffany is a Mansfield. Do
you know her?”

“I’ve known a lot of people. Can we
talk?”

“Yeah, I’d like that. By the way, thanks for
everything.” She leaned her head over onto his arm. He not only
cured her wrist but also her nerves.

“It was my pleasure, sweetie.” He walked over
and sat down on the edge of the patio. Julie went over and settled
down beside him.

“Are you a demon, Jake?” Julie started
kicking her feet that hung off the edge of the patio.

“Nah, I’m neither good nor bad, just ole’
Jake.” He gave her a soft punch on the leg.

“Were you not horrified earlier?” Julie asked
as she started biting her nails.

“Of Truck, you’ve got to be kidding me.” He
chuckled and threw his hand up dismissing the idea. “Truck and me
go back a long way. I know he scared you, but sweetheart, he was
just scared of losing you. You’re a very special girl and he needs
you. He wasn’t going to hurt you. He just couldn’t think straight.”
Jake squeezed her knee. “You’re the first thing he has ever had to
fight for, it’s hard on him.”

“Why me?”

“Because you were made for him.” He jumped
off the side of the deck. She reached to touch a stray hair that
was falling across his forehead. His sandy blond hair was feathery
soft as she pushed it back in place. No, Jake wasn’t extremely
beautiful, but he had a charm about him that was indisputable.

“Jake, am I going to hell now?” Julie looked
him square in the face. She needed to know the answer.

Jake was astounded. “Little lady, you’re not
going to hell. Trucker has nothing to do with your soul and nobody
has a purer soul than you.”

“Thank you.” She tipped her head to the side
and truly smiled from the depths of her heart for the first time
since all that mess came out. Jake pinched her cheek and smiled
back.

“Just holler if you ever need me and not just
for my amazing healing abilities. I’m here if you just need to
talk. This is a hard world to be in . . . Julie, the safest place
you can be is with Truck. You know too much now. Even if those
crazy mind sweepers clean your mind, it’s still there just buried
deep. The council will never let you live. Trucker will always
protect you. You’re his now.” Jake gave her a quick kiss on the tip
of her nose.

“How do I call you?” Julie asked as he
vanished into thin air.

“Just whisper my name.” Julie heard in the
wind as it whipped around her face.

Julie unable to move, thought about Jake’s
warning, Catherine’s plea, and if Trucker would always protect her.
All of it was too much for her. She was determined not to cry.
Why not cry? I find out the man I have given my heart to doesn’t
even have a heart. His family and he belong to an elite band of
demons. He shattered my wrist by a mere touch. Yes, I have every
right to cry.
She didn’t even care to wipe the tears away as
they rolled down her face. She just hugged herself as she gave into
the misery of the day.

She wasn’t sure how long she sat there and
cried, but all of a sudden Trucker was there. He looked tired,
haggard, his hair unkempt, he wasn’t right. She glanced at his eyes
and the sinister look in them appeared sharp and vivid. She tried
to remain sane and appear that all was normal. He set down beside
her. With a clumsy swipe of her hand, she wiped the tears from her
face.

“Baby, don’t cry.” He placed his arm around
her. “I’m the same guy. The only thing that has changed is now you
know.”

She squeezed his knee more to feel his skin
than to comfort him. His skin blazed

.

“I have every right to cry. The world as I
knew it is gone and I’m left with.” Putting her head on his
shoulder, she let out a sigh. “I don’t know what I’m left
with.”

“You’re left with me.” He winked at her and
her heart melted for the umpteenth time. The tears still flowed
freely, but she felt the corners of her lips turn up.

“That’s enough.”

A big angelic smile shot across Trucker’s
face making him look every bit an angel.

“Are you still staying tonight?” He sounded
skeptical.

“Yeah,” she answered. The one thing she was
sure of was she wanted to be with him.

“Why?” he asked.

“I need to be with you, to prove to you I
want to be with you.” She knew what she had to do; she just didn’t
know if she was ready. “I need to learn about your world. I’m ready
now.”

He looked at Julie surprised, unsure, “Are
you sure? It’s not an easy world to live in,” he warned.

“As long as I have you, I’m ready for
anything. Thanks to Jake, I know where I belong now.” She jumped
down and snuggled up between his legs. “I belong to you.”

He laughed. “Jake talked to you? I should’ve
known. Did he kiss you too?”

She didn’t know how to answer him. She knew
he had jealously issues, but he was also laughing. “Yeah, just a
quick peck,” she answered, tapping Trucker’s nose.

“That’s how Jake eases your nerves. Jake is
full of tricks.”

“I think you have a few tricks up your sleeve
too.”

“Yeah, I do. Angel.” He pushed her hair off
her face and pulled her bottom lip out of the death grip her teeth
had on it. “I’ll tell you everything no holds bar, but only as the
occasion arises, deal?”

His eyes sparkled. Julie was seeing the happy
side of Trucker.
He likes me in his world. Surely, I’m doing the
right thing. Please God, forgive me and lead me on the right path.
Please don’t let me be too late. I know he was just, well God, save
us both.

“You were . . . in your room?” she asked
twisting her mouth, and leaning her body against his to feel his
cooling skin and smell his aroma.

“Yeah, my love, I was in my demonic form,” he
answered.

“Why?”

“Emotions affect me differently than humans.
I can’t take much. It’s been a very hard day on me too.” He looked
away and clicked his tongue in shame.

She reached over to pull his face down to
hers. “It’s okay, it’s who you are. Can I ever see you like
that?”

“No,” he said. “It’s too dangerous.” He took
a deep breath and stared intently into her eyes. “Julie,” he spoke
directly but soft. “Anytime it gets too much, stop me. Deal?”

“Yeah.” She started toying with the buttons
on his shirt. He gazed at the button she was fiddling with as he
traced shapes with his fingers on her back. “Can I see your
wings?”

“Yeah,” Trucker replied. All of the sudden
she was covered in black downy feathers as he wrapped his wings
around her. Each unbelievable soft feather tickled across her body
as she smiled up at Trucker’s face. She loved to see how his eyes
lit-up with his laughter.

He held her like that for the longest time,
letting their nerves ease. Unaware of everything around her except
the softest of his wings, Julie started nibbling on her lip again.
Trucker flicked his thumb over her chin reminding her to stop.

“Why does that bother you?” she asked.

He groaned. “My dad always bites his lip when
he hurts me or anyone for that matter.” He sighed. “I couldn’t take
you hurting me . . . you’re the only person who could truly hurt
me.”

Her heart bled for him. He had suffered so
much in his short life. She slid her hand down the front of his
shirt wishing she could take his pain away and make him whole.
Wiggling her finger between the buttons on his shirt, she stroked
one button with the pad of her thumb.

“That’s my favorite? The one I can’t get
enough of.”

“Favorite what?” she asked, stroking his
face.

“My favorite one of your tics . . . When you
get nervous, your little habits of either biting your nails,
sucking on that lip, and now playing with the buttons on my shirt.”
He slid his thumb over her lip, before grasping her hand.

“Is that why you always wear button-up
shirts?”

“That’s certainly one of them. I like it when
you get comfort from me,” he answered as his wings receded.

“Always.” She put her head back on his chest.
He crushed her to his body, and buried his nose in her hair.

Chapter 12

Since the first day she met Trucker
Castleman, he could make her obey his commands with just a look.
Julie found it impossible to ignore that part of her that wanted to
give him anything he craved. Curled in his arms, she realized that
giving him his desire was what made her heart sing. But her mind
consistently reminded her, that she needed to guard that heart.

He went to kiss her but stopped just short of
her mouth. His eyes never left hers, not even for a second. “Would
you take a walk with me?” he breathed against her skin, but still
never made contact.

Julie cut her eyes over at the vast woodlot
behind his house and was horrified of being alone with him in the
confines of the woods. She also knew if she was ever going to save
him, she had to be alone with him. “Yeah,” she answered. “Do you
need to change shirts?”

“The holes are no biggie. I’ll change later.”
He jumped down and gently held her against him. She felt every one
of his hard muscle pressed to her, his steamy hot breath on her
face. “I lied to you,” he whispered, sucking her earlobe between
his teeth and tugging on it. “I can’t let you go. I’ll never let
you go.”

Her heart went into spasms. She should have
been scared. A demon was holding her and taking ownership. She
should have been but she wasn’t. The thought of never feeling his
fingers crawling up her spine as he nibbled on her collarbone was
worse than any fate she could think of. She pulled him toward the
woods.

They walked hand and hand through the trees.
Both aware they could handle anything.

“My family is a member of a band of demons
called the Brotherhood of the Oni.” He turned over a leather
bracelet that he always wore and showed her the ornate crest on it.
“That’s their symbol. It’s an honor and privilege in my society to
be a member. My dad is their leader.” He scrutinized her face. She
was so numb; her face appeared dumbfounded. Her eyes widened as a
fleeting thought came over her.

“My bracelet?”

“Claims you as mine.” He raised her hand and
kissed her wrist. “None of my kind can touch you as long as you
wear this talisman.” He turned the bracelet over and pointed to the
clasp. It was shaped like a crown with a tiny diamond on each of
the six arches. “That’s my symbol. My kind can see this a mile
away. There is none of us that is brave enough to mess with my
girl.” He placed his hand around her wrist completely covering the
bracelet. “I have to protect you. As long as you wear this none of
us can hurt you, even me. Please, Angel, always wear it. It would
destroy me if something was to happen to you.”