Page 72 of Reapers Don’t Ride

I grabbed my pillow and threw it at him. It hit his face before he caught it with the hand that wasn’t holding his water. That one simple throw made my whole body tremble. Who knew pillows were so heavy? Also, ouch.

He blinked at me as he clutched the pillow in his powerful hands. “Is it not soft enough for you?”

“No. I’m alive. Live girls need extreme softness while they’re recovering.” I glowered at him.

He blinked at me and then at the pillow, clearly considering. “I’ll get you another pillow.”

“I’ll throw that one at you too.”

He looked up at me, tilting his head to the side. “You already know that it’ll also be too hard?”

“No, that one will be too soft. Be honest with me. Are you distant because you preferred me as a vampire? It’s fine if you are. But I’m not going to become a vampire again. I don’t think it would work, and frankly, I’m not going to choose that however much you like having your blood drained by an exciting evil villainess.”

He blinked again, eyes tumultuous darkness. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about. You think that I would ask you to become a vampire so I could suck your blood?” He looked at me like I was certifiably insane.

I was getting there. I grasped the blankets and tried not to feel as delicate and small as I was. I hated being delicate, but it beat being dead. “Why are you acting like a stiff waiter in a ridiculously fancy restaurant?”

He blinked at me. “I’m just like this.”

“No, you aren’t.”

His brows twitched, showing some emotion that he immediately stilled. He took a deep, even breath. “Very well, as we are being very honest, I will say that the daughter of Ever Storm deserves an angel who can give her pure-blooded children.”

I squinted at him while my stupidly vulnerable heart panged miserably. Also my toes. Why did my toes hurt? “You are saying that I’m not dynamic enough to interest you and your streak of goblin? Fine.”

He sat on the edge of the bed, peering at me like I was definitely crazy. I’d had a lot of people look at me like that, usually when I was covered in blood and acting insane. Because I was.

He spoke softly, his eyes still roiling with inner turmoil that didn’t show on anything else. “Miss Storm, you are no longer undead. You have a true life ahead of you.”

I nodded. “I know. Life is so precious. But I didn’t expect my toes to hurt.”

He looked down at my feet where they were tucked under a pale blue blanket. “Your toes hurt? Do you need more pain killers? They said that you’d be all right without them, that it would be better for your recovery to not be so drugged, but if your toes hurt…”

I shook my head and then winced. “Everything hurts, but it’s nothing compared to drinking demon blood. It’s not worth mentioning other than it’s weird. Sorry. I’m not complaining. And thank you for being so sensitive to my feelings. Between my toes and my feelings, I might burst into tears at any moment. And I am hungry. Soup. I used to like soup. And a plastic bowl so that if I drop it, it doesn’t shatter all over the floor.”

He stood, nodded and then disappeared, leaving me alone in the room with my aching heart and my pounding head. I closed my eyes, squeezing them shut so I wouldn’t cry. I’d told him that I wasn’t going to turn for him. I’d meant it, but at the same time, the way my chest ached at the thought of not having Gavriel, never seeing him again, maybe it would kill me.

I took a deep breath and opened my eyes. I needed to focus on the present, on the positive. I was in a nice room, very large, with a window that looked out on an ocean. Where did they have hospitals by the ocean? Angel City, of course. Where else would angels have hospitals? And now I was an angel. No, my father was an angel, Ever Storm. Maybe I’d find another nice angel even more beautiful than Gavriel. I’m sure he’d be incredibly understanding about the century I spent drinking demon blood when I wasn’t killing for Tralcon. And selling my soul for a man. Was anyone more stupid? No. I’d love Gavriel forever. That’s the way I was built, but that streak of goblin wasn’t steadfast. At least he was honest about his feelings instead of feeling obligated to stay with me.

I rubbed my aching chest and then just sat there, listening to my heart beat. It ached for Gavriel so painfully.

The door burst open and Lorien and Richard came in, looking pleased with themselves. I scowled at Richard.

“You! I still need to kill you for what you did. That’s not singeing him!”

He grinned at me. “You’re going to kill me? Really? Let me know when you’re doing it so I can hold still. I’ll probably have to hold the weapon for you, too.”

Because I was so delicate. I narrowed my eyes at him. “I know how to kill an angel. Blunt force is rarely required.” And because he didn’t consider me a threat, it would be that much easier.

Lorien elbowed him. “She’s still scary.” He burst out laughing and landed on the edge of my bed, bouncing me. “For a kitten. Scary, scary kitten. Meow.”

Richard jostled him and then sat down beside him so they could both stare at me like I was dissectible.

“Seriously though,” Richard said, like I wasn’t serious about killing him, “When is the big day? Have you made plans about the wedding? I want to be the best man, because obviously, I’m the best man, but I’d also love to officiate. It’s so official. My dad has offered to officiate, and Ever Storm is of course going to give you away. Do you think he’ll summon lightning and singe Gavriel? I bet he does! It’s going to be epic!”

I pushed him hard enough to knock him into Lorien so they got tangled up and fell off the bed with two satisfying thuds.

Richard came up right away, frowning at me. “You’d seriously hold that against me? It was essential, so this idiot didn’t realize that you were there to rescue him from the demon. He hates being rescued. Gavriel’s wedding is important to me. All right. I’ll make it up to you. Tell me what you want, and I’ll get it. A weapon? A book? What?”