Court of Sunder (Age of Angels #2) - Milana Jacks Page 0,43

silence, mainly because I kept my mouth full of pizza and ale. I stared at the last slice.

“Go ahead,” he said.

“You go ahead,” I said. “I think I ate the whole thing.” I leaned back in my chair and wiped my mouth with a red cloth napkin. A wing brushed my arm again, and I turned to see the angel next to me watching me. I scooted away, but with nowhere to go, I ended up pressing my chest against the table.

Raphael asked for another pizza, medium this time, while I focused on the angel next to me and the signs I must’ve misinterpreted. Angels disliked having their wings touched or patted without their approval, and if they brushed a wing against someone, it was considered flirtation. Was he flirting with me with Raphael around? Nah, he must have no place to fit his wingspan, and brushing my arm was purely accidental. Or so I chose to believe.

At his table, his peers chatted, while he kept glancing at me. I tried moving away from him again, but made it only an inch away. The angel chuckled and brushed my arm with his wing once more. Okay, birdy, this isn’t accidental. I picked up my machete and faced him to find his hand paused midway to his mouth, his body unmoving, only his eyes darting from his friends to Raphael. The male stayed in the position until drool dripped from his mouth and his table fell silent.

The angel’s jaw closed as his fingers opened and dropped the pizza. His head slammed into the table. Once. Twice. Three times. He straightened back up, blood dripping from his broken nose. Raphael picked up his ale and sipped.

The angel shook his head and rolled his shoulders. His peers laughed, and he lifted his glass to Raphael, who smiled back like the monster fish we’d encountered on our way to the Court of Sunder. My lord fought for my honor as I would for his.

Raphael kept eating and offered me some more, but I was stuffed, content to pat my belly, a movement Raphael noticed.

“Perhaps the way to a mortal’s heart is via a full belly,” he said.

“Definitely.”

He leaned in. “Then I better ensure I fill it with something living and breathing. Perhaps with something that has wings, and you could protect it by staying in the Court and away from harm? Hm?”

Oh my God. His direct way of flirting rattled me, so I joked, “Is it a duck, my lord?”

The men snorted, holding back laughter

Raphael gave me his best bored look.

“Tony,” he said. “More ale.”

I quirked an eyebrow.

Tony came out with four frozen mugs, two in each hand. He slammed them on the table. “For the ducks, my lady.”

I clicked Raphael’s glass, daring him to drop the finesse and drink like a soldier. He picked up the mug, and we drank, pouring the ale down our throats. He finished first, and his soldiers hooted.

I leaned in to meet him across the table. “I shall have you know, my lord, I have defined my mission.”

“Is that so?” His plush mouth drew my gaze as I imagined the wicked things it could do. “There’s nothing I fear more than a soldier on a mission. Tell me about yours.”

“Reconciliation. Forgiveness. Good fortune and peace for the two Courts. For the realm.”

Raphael leaned back, his soldiers growing quiet, no longer pretending they weren’t listening. They turned their heads toward him.

“In time,” he said, loud and clear, “I’m sure we will have it.”

“What kind of time are we talking about here?” I asked.

“A century. A millennium.”

“I don’t have that kind of time.”

Chapter 16

Nevaeh’s reminder of her mortality sat like lead over my soul. Her body, still mortal, unlike Julia’s, puzzled me. Was I not to have an immortal soul’s mate? It seemed unfair, even if possible. “You can have youth.”

“Nah, I’m good.”

“You are my companion for life, and I will have a long life. Therefore, you shall accompany me.”

She reared back. “You mean you would force the undead life on me?”

“If I have to. Absolutely.”

An angel flew swiftly toward us. I stood and looked up to see Galo furiously batting his wings, followed by… I focused. Orion, one of my scouts.

“What is it?” Nevaeh asked.

“News.” The angels landed, and Orion bent to catch his breath. I lent him some air so he could speak, while Galo glanced at Nevaeh. I caught his eye and glared, a silent warning not to comment on my spending time with this mortal. She