No woman had ever treated him with such irreverent affection. Only his warrior. “Teasing an archangel can be a dangerous game.”
“Not for me,” Elena said smugly, leaning her head against his shoulder. “Not when that archangel is the ridiculously beautiful Archangel of New York.”
“Ridiculously beautiful?”
“Those eyes, that hair, those bones.” She shook her head. “I mean, it’s so not fair to every other man on the planet.”
“And why are you thinking about other men?”
Laughing, she lifted their linked hands to her mouth, pressing a kiss to his knuckles. “I just realized how tough it must be to be a man dating in New York when all the women are crazy about you.”
“Most women are terrified of me.” Only Elena saw the man before the pitiless Archangel of New York.
“Hmm. Good point.” Her wing moved under his. “Remember when I was terrified of you?”
“You were never terrified of me.”
“Hah! Are you kidding? I was scared out of my skin—but I still thought you were hot. I’m obviously a little deranged.”
Raphael didn’t laugh. “I’m glad you got over the terror,” he said quietly. “The idea of eternity without you is my personal vision of hell.”
“Raphael.” Eyes silver in the night, Elena touched her fingers to his jaw. “This is my heaven. You are my heaven.”
And she was his. “Hunt, Elena,” he said. “Unearth secrets. But stay safe.”
“I’m not the one who’s going to be stuck in a room with the most dangerous beings on the planet,” she said with a scowl before adding, “I promise to be careful.” She gripped his hair in a fist. “Now you promise me the same.”
“Done.”
Their kiss was a merciless, passionate seal on the promise.
* * *
The next morning, Raphael separated from Elena at dawn—it was customary for the Luminata to begin their day with the rising sun, and the Cadre had decided to adhere to that routine to get this over with as quickly as possible.
“The faster we get it done, the faster we can all get back to our territories,” Raphael said to his hunter as he dressed at first light, his leathers worn from use and a symbol to his fellow archangels that he wasn’t here to play games. “But fast for immortals is still slow, Elena.” You will have time enough to search for the truth.
She responded mind-to-mind, the two of them in the living area, where they’d shifted their bed the previous night. Unlike the bedroom, which backed onto a wall shared by the suite on the other side, this room had hallways on two sides, the wall to the bathing chamber on the left, and the bedroom wall on the right. It left no way for anyone to spy on them without standing openly in a hallway.
Don’t let the Cadre drive you nuts.
I will attempt to hold on to my sanity, though it may be a close thing.
They headed out together.
Elena and Aodhan walked with him to the Atrium, their pace a stroll, as if they were accompanying him to breakfast because they were at loose ends. In truth, the two were continuing to take note of as many corridors and doorways as they could. Aodhan was also attempting to spot any hidden passages.
Is it weird that I’m excited even though I’m frustrated, too?
Raphael smiled. You are a hunter, Elena. And you have a scent.
God, but you “get” me, Archangel. Rising on tiptoe as they reached the Atrium, from where Raphael would be going into an inner debating chamber barred to all but the Cadre, his consort kissed him on the mouth, one of her hands curved around the side of his neck.
Branding me, Guild Hunter? Raphael said even as he closed his wings around them.
She bit his lower lip before she broke contact, her eyes shining silver. I just wanted a taste of you.
He claimed a taste of his own to take him through the day. Afterward, as he folded back his wings, he glimpsed something over her shoulder. Tasha is about to enter the Atrium. Perhaps you two will end up friends after being shut up in Lumia for the duration of the meeting.
Elena bared her teeth at him. I think you’re going too far with this sense of humor thing.
Raphael laughed and it was at that moment that his mother stepped into the Atrium, having swept down the hallway with Tasha at her side.
* * *
A hauntingly clear voice invaded Elena’s mind, the howl of age so heavy that she would’ve staggered had Raphael still not had his hands on her. You make my son laugh, Consort. Purest love in that haunting, ancient voice, a shimmer of tears that spoke of incandescent joy. Never stop doing this.
Elena?
Swallowing to wet a dry throat as her body threatened to begin shaking uncontrollably, Elena looked into eyes of a blue of such undiluted clarity, their beauty was almost too painful to bear. Your mother was speaking to me.
She has done so before. Raphael tightened his grip on her. You weren’t this affected.
I think she was shielding her voice or something. Her heart raced so hard she felt it in her mouth. This is so pure it’s like heaven and hell at once.
Sparks of wildfire arced through Raphael’s Legion mark, his jaw a hard line. Go sit down somewhere for a few minutes after you leave me. Trust me on this, Elena. My mother’s true voice is potent even for fellow archangels. The impact builds, like a song building to a crescendo. Do not be on your feet when it hits.
Got it. I can stand now. Her legs were a little jellylike, but they’d hold.
Raphael took his time releasing her, making it look like they were simply indulging in a little PDA. “Mother,” he said aloud afterward, turning to greet Caliane. “May I escort you inside?”