Where There's Smoke (16 page)

“Exactly. But from what I heard, Beulah was desperate to get married because she cared for her ailing parents and hadn’t had time to date. After they passed, she didn’t want anyone calling her an old maid. She said she was going to marry the first man who asked her, and so she did. Only problem was, he was two weeks out of prison. A real ass. She didn’t know that. Her parents left her pretty well off. Had their own laundry and all. They had Beulah late in life and died when she was twenty-five.”

“Twenty-five is not old.”

“I agree, but apparently back then they were already putting her on the proverbial shelf for spinsters.”

“So what happened?”

“He bilked her out of every last cent she had, then ran off with a younger, prettier woman. Beulah started letting herself go after that. I heard she swore no man would ever take advantage of her again.”

Oh hell, that put a whole new spin on everything. Destiny absolutely did not want to feel sorry for the old hag, but for a moment she pictured another Beulah. A young woman desperate not to feel so alone.

“And she’s in love with Charles.” LeAnn set her cup on a coaster. “And he likes her, too, but I think Beulah’s afraid to take a chance.”

“If I was Charles, I think I would be the one more afraid.”

LeAnn chuckled. “Yeah, that’s what I kinda thought.”

“The coffee was good.” Destiny set her cup on a coaster and came to her feet. The room suddenly began to close in on her and she had to get away.

“Do you have to leave?” LeAnn stood. “I could fix us something to eat.”

Destiny was tempted, but the feeling quickly passed. LeAnn was a mortal and she couldn’t afford entanglements of any kind. “I have some things I need to do.”

“Well, here, I don’t want you to leave empty-handed.” She hurried to a chest sitting on the floor in one corner of the room. She knelt down and opened the lid, bringing something out. When she hurried back, she placed a doily in Destiny’s hand. “Here, I want you to have this.”

“Oh, I couldn’t.” She opened the soft white star shaped design. It was exquisite.

“I insist.” LeAnn smiled.

Destiny reached toward her, then pulled back at the last second. “Thanks,” she spoke gruffly and hurried out of the apartment. No one had ever given her anything except trouble and today she’d already gotten three gifts. Her eyes misted as she hurried to her apartment.

Just as she got to the door, Charles’s door opened and Beulah stepped out. Destiny tried to picture the other woman as someone who was desperate for love.

“What are you staring at?” she growled.

Okay, the picture just wasn’t going to form. “Not a damn thing.” She opened her door and stepped inside, closing it firmly behind her. “Old battle-axe,” she grumbled.

Chance vaguely heard voices, but they seemed to be coming from a long way off.

“Is he going to be okay?” Hunter asked, concern lacing his words. “He’s been out for a long time.”

“Of course he’s going to be all right,” Ryder told him, but he didn’t sound so sure.

“What happened?” Dillon grated out.

“We all know what happened,” Ryder said grimly.

“Yeah, we do.” Dillon sighed. “He’s too close to this assignment. She got to him. He had to know more, to see more.”

“He shouldn’t have watched her life play out. Fool! He knows how dangerous it can be. We’re only supposed to see pieces of their lives. All of it at once can kill us,” Hunter said.

Chance felt like crap as the world slowly began to emerge through the darkness of where he’d been. The droning voices didn’t help.

As always, Dillon, Ryder, and Hunter came to the rescue. They must have sensed he was in trouble. Chance wondered if they would leave if he didn’t open his eyes. No, he knew that wouldn’t happen. They were too much like mother hens.

“I’m okay,” he wearily told them as he opened his eyes. It took a few seconds for him to focus. When he could see clearly, he almost closed them again. He was in deep shit. All three looked at him as though they were about to permanently put him out of his misery.

He should’ve pretended to be out. At least then they were concerned for his well-being. Now they looked as though they wanted to kill him.

Ah hell, he knew he deserved whatever they gave him. He’d stayed too long in Destiny’s past. He might as well bring it right out in the open before they did. “I know I should’ve stopped the vision before I did.”

“Ya think!” Hunter said, losing his cool. He glared at Chance.

Hunter, in all his gruffness, was probably the caretaker in their ragtag group. He didn’t like it when one of them was in trouble, either. The guy really needed to take a class on anger management.

“I didn’t think Destiny’s life would be as bad as it was,” he admitted. “Yeah, I knew she had it rough, but I didn’t realize just how rough.” Even now he could feel the remnants of the beating those men had given her.

“Walk away,” Dillon told him in all seriousness. “Just walk away. If it was that bad, you’re probably not going to save her anyway.”

Walk away? The idea had never crossed Chance’s mind. He shook his head. “Can’t do it. I’ve got to at least try to save her soul.”

“Why?” Ryder asked. “What makes this one so special? You’ve dealt with past lives that were horrible and kept your emotions intact.”

Rather than answer right away, Chance started to get up. When he wobbled just a little, Hunter grudgingly stuck out his hand. Chance gratefully grasped it. Hunter hauled Chance to his feet with little effort, then pushed him into the nearest chair. Chance landed with an
oomph
. The guy had some serious strength.

“Chance, why this one? Why her?” Ryder asked, reminding Chance that he didn’t answer the question.

Chance shook his head. He didn’t know. He wasn’t sure. There was just something about her that wouldn’t let him give up.

“Destiny was never given a choice in life,” he finally began as he tried to explain. “Everything was shoved down her throat. Her mother left her to fend for herself, leaving her in a grocery store. It was as though she had a dark cloud over her from the very beginning.”

Once more the pain threatened to engulf him as Destiny’s fear came flooding back. He drew in a deep breath, then exhaled before continuing.

“Her mother threw her away like she was trash. A string of lousy foster homes followed.” He shook his head. “Even when she ran away, she ended up in a worse place.”

Chance’s words trailed off and the images flashed before his eyes again. He forced the pain to stay buried. No, he was in control. It was more like looking at quick pictures of what her life had been.

Dillon touched his arm, bringing Chance back to the present. “Stay with us, buddy.”

“Yeah, I’m still here.” Chance forced the images to the far recesses of his mind. “Everyone should be given a choice in life. If we choose the wrong path, well, it’s our fault and we have to find a way to undo what went wrong. Destiny never had a choice. I want to give her one.”

“You want her to choose between becoming a demon or being reborn,” Hunter said.

Chance nodded. “Yeah, I want her to have that choice.”

Ryder walked to the window and looked out. “Demons can be pretty persuasive,” he said without turning around.

“The bastards promise the wannabes whatever the demons think they want to hear,” Hunter ground out. “But they don’t tell them that until after they’ve been cast into the fires of Hell. Once they come out, the only thing they want is to reap death and destruction wherever they can.”

“But trying to convince the wannabes that the demons are lying isn’t always easy when they’re promising them temptations beyond their imagination.” Dillon frowned as he took a seat in the other chair, stretching his legs in front of him. “It won’t be easy to sway Destiny. The only thing you can offer her is reliving her life, without a guarantee that it will turn out any better.”

“I know, but I’m going to try.”

“Time is running out,” Hunter reminded him.

“I know that, too,” Chance said. “But I can’t give up.”

The room grew deathly quiet. The silence stretched.

“You can do it,” Ryder said, breaking the quiet as he turned from the window. Everyone looked at him; he shrugged. His grin bordered on wicked. “We’re nephilim. Our fathers were angels who mated with some of the most beautiful mortal women ever created by God. You still have a few days. Besides, we’ll have your back from here on out. Seduce the hell out of her—pun intended.”

The tension from a moment ago was broken as the others laughed.

Chance and Ryder shared a look between them. His friend knew he wouldn’t give up. Ryder had his back from there on out. They all did.

“If you want me to share some of my seduction skills with you,” Ryder began on a lighter note, only to be met with groans from the others. Ryder’s forehead wrinkled. “What? My mentors were some of the greatest lovers ever born. Don Juan himself bragged about my skill. The ladies fall at my feet. They love me.”

Dillon and Hunter started walking toward the door, moaning as they went.

“It’s getting too deep in here,” Hunter groused.

“Maybe we’d better put on some boots so we don’t step in all the bullshit.” Dillon snickered.

Ryder’s frown deepened. “Yeah, yeah, but you guys just wish you had one tenth of my finesse with the ladies.” He followed them to the door, but turned before leaving the room. “You coming? We can shoot some pool or something. Have a few beers, get your mind off—everything.”

Chance shook his head. “I’m tired. I think I’ll just go to bed.” When Ryder still looked unsure, Chance added, “I’ll be okay.”

“We’re here if you need us.”

“I know.”

Ryder closed the door behind him.

Chance closed his eyes, resting his head against the back of the chair. He hadn’t told them everything. God help him. Destiny had killed someone. It would be difficult to redeem her soul.

If the truth were told, Chance wasn’t sure he wouldn’t have done the very same thing. The bastard would’ve killed her eventually, then moved on to his next victim. He needed killing.

So yeah, Destiny was worth saving.

Except Chance had a fight on his hands. The demon schemed to steal Destiny’s soul from the moment her mother had walked out of the store. Why? What was it about Destiny that made the demon want her so much?

Chance shook his head. Not that the reason mattered. Right now she still belonged to the demon. Unless Chance could change her mind, and he only had a few days left.

It would help if he knew what demon had purchased her soul, but he’d only heard his voice. It sounded familiar, but he couldn’t be sure which demon struck the bargain. If it was a lesser one, stealing her back wouldn’t be so difficult. On the other hand, if the demon was a little more experienced, Chance might have a problem.

No, he wouldn’t think negative thoughts. He would save her. He had to. His sanity depended on it. Chance didn’t want to examine why this assignment was so important to him. Why Destiny was so important to him.

Ah, Destiny. Just the thought of her eased the stress that flowed through him. He knew he was in danger of losing more than he bargained for with her, but he couldn’t stop himself. She was like a potent drug running through his veins and he knew he had to have more of her.

He glanced at the clock. Almost midnight. Time slipped away and darkness moved across the land. Destiny would probably be asleep. Maybe even dreaming about him.

He gripped the sides of the chair as he pictured her, the covers kicked off, completely naked. Yeah, she probably didn’t wear anything to bed. His dick sprang to life and he groaned at the image that brought to mind.

He needed to stop thinking like that! She was driving him to the brink of madness. He pushed out of the chair and opened the double doors, then stepped out to the balcony. The blast of cold air that greeted him did nothing to cool his ardor. He didn’t think taking a cold shower would help either.

What would it hurt to watch her while she slept? The temptation couldn’t be nearly as bad as when she was awake. He only wanted to make sure she was all right. Destiny wouldn’t even know he was there.

He glanced around as guilt flooded through him. The others wouldn’t like him going to her so soon after visiting her past. He’d be careful, and he would only stay a few minutes. He only wanted to look at her. That wasn’t the same thing, and he felt stronger with each passing minute.

He promised himself he would only stay a little while.

Chance closed his eyes. When he opened them, he was standing at the end of her bed. A few seconds passed before his eyes adjusted, and when they did he felt a keen sense of disappointment. She wasn’t in bed…

The bathroom door suddenly opened and there she was, framed by the soft glow of light that was behind her.

And she was completely naked.

And he was in so much trouble.

Destiny smiled. Chance returned after all. And she was never as glad for her aversion to clothes as she was right now, at this very moment, as she stood completely, utterly naked in front of him.