Touch of the Demon (5 page)

Legion had seen
the conception, but only partially interpreted the results.

“Celeste,” he
began, but she pressed one finger across his lips, silencing
him.

“It was my
child you needed all along, wasn’t it? Not my grandchild at
all.”

Thrown off
balance by the turn of events, Rafe glared at the Earth Mother. She
shrugged, as if their concern was unwarranted.

“I needed both
this time around,” she said. “Thirteen generations from you, my
Celeste, the descendant of your grown daughter and descendant of
the son in your womb will come into their own. Together they will
defeat the encroaching darkness.”

“
This
time around?” Rafe said, clenching his fists against the
overpowering urge to wring the misbegotten creature’s neck. Not
that it would harm her. She was as powerful in her own way as the
immortals of the cosmos.

The Earth
Mother sighed. “It’s happened before, in the past. And it’s
happened again, in the future. It depends on your point of view. I
just decided this time I’d give fate a little helping hand.” She
looked over at Celeste and her face softened. “I knew you would be
unable to resist a taste of the forbidden, if only for one fleeting
moment. And the only hope of ensnaring the complete focus of a dark
angel is to tempt him with a child of the stars. Forgive me,
Celeste, for not telling you of your heritage before.”

“Ensnaring?”
Rafe could barely articulate the word, his rage was so great. To
think that he had been so easily tricked by this base Earth Goddess
appalled him.

And Celeste,
this shining creature who had somehow meshed with him at a
primeval, molecular level, was born of the gods of heaven and this
goddess of the Earth—two immortal races he despised most.

“Of course.”
The Earth Mother shot him a sly smile. “There was only need for the
one joining to ensure my plan could be set in motion. By then,
Celeste’s daughter had already conceived. And so had Celeste. The
game, on my terms, had been set in motion.”

“So everything
between us—you planned it all?” Celeste said, moving from his side
and facing her cursed goddess.

“Not
everything.” She touched the shining head of Celeste. “Love was
neither necessary nor expected. But it seems even I can
occasionally be surprised by events.”

“Here’s another
surprise.” Rafe wound his arm around Celeste’s waist and his
fingers curved over her belly. Instinctively, his hold on her
tightened. “Legion won’t sit back and take this. They’ll send
another assassin into the brink, but this time their target will be
Celeste.” And he had no intention of letting that happen. He’d
fight both the angels and the gods to keep his woman safe.

The Goddess
smiled. It looked suspiciously smug. “The next move in the game
occurs when you are sent to eliminate Celeste’s daughter.” She
raised one eyebrow. “The same moment in your time when
Celeste’s—
and
your
—descendants join to defeat the
cursed gods of the heavens.” And then she laughed. “You see how
perfectly I have planned it this time around? The dark angels
orchestrated their own gods’ downfall. The only drawback is that
you must remain in this timeline until then.”

Rafe was
speechless. Remain in this squalid time? For
how
many
centuries?

“You lied to
me.” Celeste sounded calm, but he could feel the tension vibrating
through her body, as if she held on to tranquility by the most
slender of threads. “You told me the demons were warmongers. Yet
the war is between Earth and heaven.”

The Goddess
waved a dismissive hand. “It’s of no consequence. The outcome, now,
is certain. This time, my Celeste, our Earth will emerge
triumphant.”

Celeste drew in
a great breath and threaded her fingers through his as if seeking
his additional strength to stand up to her Goddess.

He wrapped both
arms around her. Whatever she needed, he would give.

“You forget.
I’m of both the Earth and heaven.”

For the first
time, the manipulative bitch looked unsure. Rafe brushed his lips
across Celeste’s shining hair, and the purity of her essence washed
through him, calming his rage. If he had to remain in this
primitive timeline, it would be no great hardship. Not with Celeste
by his side.

“Your place is
here.” The Goddess’s voice was sharp as if she suddenly realized
Celeste’s mixed heritage posed unforeseen division. “Your loyalty
is with me.”

“No.” Celeste
turned in his arms and cradled his jaw between her hands. Her eyes
glowed pure gold. “My loyalty is with Rafe.”

He barely heard
the shocked hiss from the Goddess as the last remnant of fury
twisting through his soul shredded out of existence.

Celeste had
chosen him above her Earth Mother.

He rolled his
shoulders, flexed his muscles, and his wings undulated, finally
emerging into the physical plane. Celeste’s lips parted, her eyes
widened, as his feathers spanned the width of the room, brushing
the grubby walls.

“You can’t go
with
that
,” the Goddess spat and, although he wasn’t looking
at her, he could feel the venom in her glare sizzling through his
skin.

“Will you leave
with me?” For the first time, he asked Celeste the question and
gave her the choice. Taking her against her will was no longer an
option.

If she
declined, he would remain with her. He’d learn to tolerate living
within such close proximity of humanity.

She finally
tore her fascinated gaze from his wings and looked at him. “Yes.”
Her voice was firm and clear, and his heart thundered against his
ribs at the knowledge of everything she was giving up for him.
“I’ll go with you, Rafe. Whether you take me to the stars or
forward into your time. I want to be by your side.”

His triumphant
laugh drowned out the infuriated shriek of the Goddess and his
wings enveloped Celeste in a sensual embrace.

The present and
the future no longer belonged to the Earth Goddess, the celestial
gods, or even to Legion.

The future was
theirs to conceive.

The End

About the
Author

Christina
Phillips is an ex-pat Brit who now lives in Western Australia with
her husband and three children. She is owned by three cats who
graciously allow her the occasional spare moment to write hot
paranormal romance.

Check out
Christina’s other books on her website:
http://www.christinaphillips.com

Christina also
writes paranormal romance for Penguin/Berkley Heat as Christina
Ashcroft
http://www.christinaashcroft.com