Shocked by the sudden movement of Alpha Rhye as someone shot and accidentally or deliberately untied the rope that bound her to the tree. Not to mention the six-foot-plus man that had just landed on top of her, Lily struggled to clear the fog from her mind. What the hell just happened? One minute she was laughing the next, her ears were ringing? She knew enough to realize that someone had shot the tree. And that Rhye had quite likely saved her from a nasty injury. What she didn’t know was why. It couldn’t have been the gay demon after her. Lily thought as if some unknown distant knowledge that wasn't hers, made her aware of something she didn't have any idea of. "What the heck." She grumbled. The few times the gay demon had tried to use a gun, he hadn’t been able to hit the broadside of a barn. Besides, if he’d come gunning for her, he would have brought a rocket launcher. The son of a bitch knew he had one chance, and one chance only, to kill her before she ripped out his throat

Lily rested against the concrete front of a nearby thrift store, too exhausted to be upset over Rhye's inexplicable absence, or even about being passed off as a used automobile. She would get rid of her bothersome bodyguards once she got the chance to gather her might. Until then... She'd been through worse. Worse in a spectacular way. Her heavy eyelashes drooped as she rested against the wall, trusting her acute sense of scent to alert her of any impending danger. Another five minutes went by, then another five. Stephen, who plainly had the attention span of an ant, couldn't take the silence any longer. "Um- you don't mind me asking, yeah? …you’re Lily’s sister," he murmured. "The resemblance is remarkable, but why do you smell like rotten meat? I don't mean anything but you don't know what deodorant is? You could buy some, you know." "Lily's eyes widened and she smelt her armpits… "Did I really smell that bad? I can't seem to smell myself." "Just kidding… you smell like a dead r

The cavern that burrowed through the cliff was not enormous. The central basin was the length of a human living room, and low enough that Rhye was in endless threat of banging his head. Walls with jamming hands in fissures for handholds, to avoid slipping on a patch of wet rock.On the plus side, the foyer was thin enough to deter more than one assailant from infiltrating at a time, and there was an elegant chamber in the back that had a shallow cascade of water that emptied into a chamber down to the seaside below.A man-made scraping against the wall covered the left side while a fist of stone poked everywhere that might stab someone in the back as someone was stupid enough to lean against a wall while bumping their head on a low ceiling.However, the small semi-private chamber has a small bed, a center table, a couch, and a small kitchen. With lanterns on each corner.It was not the fact that it was easily defendable, or that there was a ready stock of fresh water, nonetheless, th

“Scared, witch?” Rhye implored. “Um-” “You can get up close and emotional with anything you want, little one,” he muttered, his lips teasing at her skin. The nerve! “How dare you. Damn you!” Yanking free of his grip, Lily seethed into the dark inside of the shop, heading toward the back racks that held the luxurious designer jeans and T-shirts. What was wrong with her? Rhye was nothing more than a giant, over-smug, obnoxiously elegant pain in her ass. So why did she keep letting him get under her skin? Because she was a fool. Gritting her teeth, Lily compelled herself to resist his enormous form leaning against the doorjamb watching her every move with that too sharp watch. Hell, this was her first, and probably only, chance to certainly enjoy what most women took for granted. She’d be damned if the warden from Hades was going to wreck the moment. Flicking the hangers around the circular stand, Lily occasionally paused to pull out whatever happened to catch her eye. Any of the

Abruptly lifting his head, he met her stunned gaze. "Are you seriously out of your mind?" Lily glared at Rhye. "Nope!" "Then why the hell do you keep doing that?" she muttered, her cheeks flushed with a heat she couldn’t hide. Rhye growled deep in his throat. "If I knew, I would no doubt be falling on the nearest stake." The sweet devil's eyes flashed. The nerve, she thought to herself. "That can be arranged, alpha I can do-" "Kids, kids! There you are." Stomping from the cave, Stephen regarded them with a jaundiced frown, his silly wings twitching in aggravation. "I thought you’d abandoned me. Again." Rhye swallowed a snarl, resisting the urge to toss the little demon into the river below. His body might howl at the interruption, but the pea-sized part of his brain that was still functioning realized that he was allowing himself to be perilously distracted by his strange fascination with Lily. Christ, he was going to get them both killed. "Demon… Stephen, I need your help," h