Zach blinked at me and then nodded slowly. “Yeah, I guess so.”
“You will always be in control of the pace, Zach. You don’t have to apologize or justify why or when you want to stop.” I kissed his chest and then stretched up to kiss his mouth again for good measure.
Zach beamed at me, all golden from the morning sun and flushed from making out. “You’re so good, Deyva. How’d you survive in Hell so long when you’re just…”
Zach trailed off as some of the warm, cozy feeling he’d been giving off withered in my chest. I didn’t want Zach to know how I’d survived. Kais was right, he was still so set on good and evil. I’d moved from one category into the other in his mind, and what Zach failed to realize was that I was capable of both, and I’d been heavily sided with evil for a long time. If I was good now, it had more to do with him and Stavros than my own inclinations, probably.
“Deyva,” Zach said softly.
I offered him a bright smile for reassurance, even if it felt brittle. “Oh, you’ve seen me fight. I’m scrappy.”
Zach just frowned. I kissed his chin and then his lips, before sitting up and patting at his arms as they tightened around my waist, echoing the pinch in my chest.
“I didn’t mean anything,” he started.
“Hey, I’m okay. I’m just going to go grab a shower before Az wakes up and uses all the hot water in the tank,” I said.
Zach’s eyes flicked back and forth over my face, his smile feeble. Cool, now I felt guilty for crashing his good mood too. “Wanna help me make holy water today?”
I frowned, thinking of the way the hellions had been armored in the fight against the holy water. I wasn’t sure I wanted to risk the chance of the holy water not being strong enough because I’d helped make it.
“I’m not sure I’m the girl for that job, but I’ll definitely join you,” I said, grabbing another quick kiss before jumping out of the bed.
“I’ll make us coffee then,” Zach said softly as I hurried from the room.
He was right to stop us. I was getting too tangled up in these men, pretending that the inevitable wasn’t coming. That Kimaris wouldn’t find a way to get his claws in me again. And when he did, it was going to hurt so much more to lose my priests. I needed to be thinking less about how to get in Zach’s pants, and more about how to keep him out of Kimaris’ clutches when the time came.
22
Hail Mary
Deyva
“Now there’s a guy,” I lifted my chin, “who can help juice up your holy water.”
Azariah lounged on the front steps of the church, talking to an elderly couple. Next to me, Zach looked at the ground and laughed lightly to himself.
I poked Zach’s side as we made our way across the grassy lawn. “Has the angel been giving you shit? Because if he has, I will happily pluck his wings bald.”
“No, it’s fine.” Zach’s hand bumped into mine, the brush of affection not quite hand-holding, but just enough for me to taste his amusement. “It’s a good idea. We’ll add it to his job description.”
We walked up the steps just in time to catch the tail-end of the conversation between Az and the elderly couple, the man who was now frowning.
“Oh, I don’t know…”
“Now the first time can be nerve-wracking, but once you get started, you’ll wonder why you never did it before!” Azariah sounded like he was trying to make a sales pitch.
“I don’t think it’s for us.” The woman’s eyes flicked away nervously.
“Martha, I wouldn’t be suggesting a threesome to strengthen your marriage if the success rate wasn’t overwhelmingly successful.”
I couldn’t hide my snicker, while Zach coughed awkwardly. “Good morning, Azariah. Mr. and Mrs. Nelson.”
“Ah, good morning!” The angel spun to face us, feathers whooshing softly from the movement, while the elderly couple took the opportunity to shuffle away. “How is Bethel’s new opposites-attract power couple?”
“We’re fine, thank you,” Zach answered smoothly, standing taller. “Did I hear right that you’re trying to get in bed with the Nelsons?”
“Not me!” Azariah gasped dramatically and slapped a hand to his chest. “Lovely couple, but they aren’t my type. No, I just felt their need to rekindle some passion through their prayers and offered some suggestions.”
“A threesome?” I repeated what he said, another giggle bursting through.