Sam pushed down his—what the hell? Was it really jealousy eating its way through his stomach?—and offered Seline his hand. “Let me help you.” Kissing her wasn’t exactly a hardship.

“You bastard!”

He blinked.

“You come in here, acting like a jerk, ready to attack Cole. And, yeah, I saw your eyes, so I know what you were planning. You bust in here, do your Hulk routine, and then you actually think I’m going to jump into your arms!”

That would have been the best scenario for him, yes.

“Just so you know.” She belted the robe around her middle even tighter. “I don’t need your help. Whatever your brother did, it was temporary. No permanent damage, so don’t feel like you have to sacrifice that hot bod of yours for me again.”

It hadn’t exactly been a sacrifice. Sam stared at her and decided to be honest. She deserved that. “He showed you hell.”

Her lips parted. “Uh, come again?”

“You saw fire, right? I’m betting flames of nearly every color, and they were bright and hungry and it seemed like they were feeding on your flesh.” Been there, done that, and he’d never forget the trip. “It’s a trick some angels can manage. It’s an illusion, nothing more, but let’s just say it’s a tool that’s real effective at getting some folks to repent.”

She rolled her shoulders. “It sure felt real. I could even taste the ash.”

Because Az was so powerful. With a lesser angel or Fallen, the illusion wouldn’t have been as consuming.

Sam stepped toward her.

She stiffened. “I said I didn’t need any power. I’m fine now.”

But he knew she was lying. He could see the faintest lines of strain around her eyes and mouth. “Maybe this isn’t about you. Maybe it’s about me.”

She blinked and stared up at him. The confusion was plain to see on her face.

He eliminated the last bit of distance between them. His hand rose slowly, and his fingers traced down her cheek. She didn’t flinch away from him, but Seline held herself perfectly still as he stroked her.

“I want you.” Blunt. But that was just the way he was.

“You had me,” she told him. Those sexy, dark eyes of hers narrowed. “Then you walked out, and left me hanging.”

Rather literally. He managed not to wince, but he figured he could give her some more truths as payment for his crime. “I don’t trust many people in this world.” Maybe two. Possibly three.

“Neither do I,” she shot right back, and he knew she’d given him truth, too.

Her skin was like silk beneath his fingers. “Perhaps it’s time we both tried a little harder.”

Her husky laughter took him by surprise. “You actually want me to trust you? After you left me?”

“I was trying to protect you.” Another truth, one she might not believe. He frowned, then said quietly, “When it comes to trust, do you have a choice? Rogziel knows that you’re involved with me. I hate to break it to you, but your name has just been blasted across the news. The cops found Alex’s body, and a witness ID’d you as being at the scene of the crime.” A witness he was sure worked with Rogziel.

They were making it known to the world that she was to be hunted.

“You already have others on your trail,” he told her. “Stay with me, trust me, and I’ll get you through this.”

Her gaze held his. “And when it’s over? You’ll let me just walk away?”

“If that’s what you want.” A nice blend of lie and truth.

Her breath expelled in a soft rush. “But you have to stop acting like a jealous jerk, got me? I’m gonna be around other men.”

Right. Succubus. That’s what she—

“But I won’t have sex with anyone . . . but you.”

She nearly had him lunging at her then. Her confession had his already eager c**k swelling even more for her. Did the woman realize how sexy she was?

Her fingers trailed down his chest.

Probably.

“The thing is,” she confessed as her fingertips skated across his ni**les, “I don’t want anyone else.”

He had on too many clothes. And that robe she wore—his—had to go.

But before he could push the robe out of the way, Seline stepped back. Her hands rose, and she slipped off the robe. It dropped to the floor with a soft rustle. She stood before him, completely naked. Skin pale and perfect. Nipples tight and pink. Sex . . . waiting.

“I don’t want soft kisses and sweet words,” she told him as she straightened her shoulders. “I don’t want promises or lies. I just want you. And I want you now.”