Dark Light, 4
As a Nephilim, Madelyne is one step below immortal. But after ninety-three years of captivity at the hands of the depraved Archangel, Uriah, she has learned to flinch at every change around her. So she panics when she literally walks into a demon outside her favorite café, and again when he seeks her out a few days later.
Sinclair is a demon with more secrets than most, including a power thought lost to his breed. But one look into the wide, beautiful blue eyes of the Nephilim woman outside the café and his entire life is in disarray. Her eyes haunt him, even before he learns the depth of their true sight, and he can’t help but seek her out again. This time on purpose, this time with an offer of allegiance—working together to destroy their mutual enemies.
Their partnership is still fragile when they learn Madelyne is being actively pursued by the most powerful demons in Hell. The betrayal that follows forces them to change their circumstances in ways neither are used to, and Madelyne and Sinclair find themselves living together … and immediately dancing with a dangerous temptation to take their partnership beyond the professional. But intimacy requires trust, and vulnerability.
What sort of relationship can even exist between a Nephilim and a demon?
Excerpt:
“Going somewhere, bitch?” the demon from the club asked as he moved in behind her.
The other demon reached out and latched onto her arm. “How ‘bout you just come with us instead?” Not a real request, of course.
Madelyne tried jerking her arm free, but he held on tighter. Then she felt a hand twist in her hair, tangling, grabbing hold. She fought to keep her tears at bay. “Please,” she said, hating herself for it. “Please don’t…”
The demon facing her sneered wide.
The demon behind her leaned close and breathed on her ear. “Oh, I think we’re past that.”
“That’s a shame.” Sinclair’s voice cut through the tension, startling everyone.
Relief washed over Madelyne like a cool breeze on a hot summer day. Her heart rate spiked, and as the grip on her hair went slack, she turned her head in the direction where his voice had come from. The direction both of her attackers were already staring.
Sinclair stepped calmly from the very alley she’d called him, arms at his sides. But there was a danger in his dark green eyes that had been absent every time she’d seen him before. A presence of power and promise of pain he seemed to only then be choosing to emanate. And though she could see it, there was no doubt in Madelyne’s mind that unspoken threat wasn’t meant for her.
“Fuck off,” the demon facing her said, with a little less confidence. “This one’s ours.”
“No,” Sinclair said, continuing forward. “You’re going to step away from her. You’re going to forget you ever laid eyes on her or me. If you do all of that, peacefully, I’ll let you live.”
The demon behind her drew a breath and she felt her hair slide entirely from his grasp. “Shit,” he said under his breath. “You’re—”
Sinclair lifted one hand and pressed his index finger over his lips in a universal gesture for quiet. “Shh. I’d rather you not speak my name.”
Both demons took an oddly synchronized step away from her, radiating uncertainty and fear.
Madelyne took full advantage of her freedom, pushing her body toward Sinclair—the demon who’d come to rescue her.
As if her movement stirred some resistance in him, the second demon stretched an arm out but failed to properly take hold of her. “Dammit, we don’t take orders from you! That little bitch is our prey!”
Sinclair looped an arm around her waist and drew her up against his side, taking the bulk of her weight with seemingly no effort. He swept his gaze over her briefly, in a manner entirely different than the previous demon, before turning his glare back to her assailants. “You think you can take her from me?”
Madelyne curled her fingers in the back of his shirt as both offending demons drew up short. The angrier of the two, the second one, spat on the street.
Sinclair huffed out a quiet breath, as if bitterly amused. “As I thought.”
