Page 49 of Seraph's Tears
Warmth filled my chest. “If you want,” I said shyly.
“I always want you.” His wings fluttered through the air as we lowered. His bare feet hit the cool stone floor, and he reluctantly set me down.
I went to the door—I was still his housekeeper after all—and flung it open, expecting to see the smiling, warm face of Gabriel’s former third in command.
Instead someone else stood in the threshold—tall, somber faced, bare chested, with a hawk-like nose and jawline that could cut glass. His eyes flared at the sight of me, then an aloof, cool look entered them. His wings, from what I could tell, were a charcoal smudge against the bright winter clouds behind him. The hilt of a sword peeked over his shoulder, strapped to his back between his wings.
“Hello,” I said cautiously.
Castiel appeared in the doorway, elbowing the other seraph out of the way. “Eve! Good to see you!”
I backed away, gesturing for them to enter.
“This is Azrael.” Castiel pointed with his thumb to the sober, frigid seraph. Castiel seemed the most human seraph I’d met, and Azrael was certainly the most foreign.
“A pleasure to meet you, Azrael,” I stammered.
“Castiel! And Azrael?” No one could mistake the delight in Gabriel’s voice. “Two of you together? The skies have blessed me today.”
I scurried back into the shadows as the three large, tall males greeted each other warmly and with claps on the back, firm handshakes, and even wings that fanned enough to touch one another with feather tips.
“He popped up,” Castiel said with his regular good humor, “so I dragged him here.”
“What rock have you been hiding under lately?” Gabriel asked Azrael.
Azrael stared for a moment, shrugged, then turned to look around the Great Hall. “It looks better,” he said finally.
Gabriel’s chest puffed. “I have a housekeeper now.” He beckoned me forward. “Eve, come here. I want to introduce you to Azrael.”
Curious, I slipped forward until I stood in front of Gabriel.
Gabriel put a hand on my shoulder, warm and comforting.
Castiel’s eyes sharpened, and he glanced between that hand and my face.
I froze. Oh, shite. What would he think? Would he convince Gabriel this was a bad idea? Would he warn me off? Castiel seemed to like humans, but that was different than having a woman swive his captain.
Longing struck me like a wave, nearly pulling me under. Surprised, I could scarcely breathe as I weathered the onslaught of desire to stay, to be Gabriel’s housekeeper forever, to pretend the outside world and Zor didn’t exist.
Maybe I can find a way to make Zor go away. I could tell him everything, and then he could make Zorababel go away and never bother me again. Gabriel wouldn’t toss me out. I knew that now.
Unaware of my minor revelation, Gabriel continued to speak. “Eve, this is Azrael, who was our navigator. He can look at a map once and have it memorized for a century. He’s excellent with tracking through the air and even on the ground, too,” Gabriel boasted.
My heart ached to hear the happiness in his voice. He deserved this after everything he’d been through.
Azrael glanced at me, then nodded. His dark, dark wings tightened against the back of his body and a muscle in his jaw ticked. I had the feeling he disliked me. Or, rather, didn’t care enough to find out if he would dislike me.
I bobbed a curtsy. “Let me get food for you all.”
Castiel’s eyes brightened and he looked back at Gabriel. “She’s got you eating human food?”
I felt Gabriel’s shrug. Then, to my disbelief, his face as he leaned down and nuzzled my hair. “Eve has been encouraging me to try many new things.”
Castiel’s lips twisted, as if holding back a laugh, and I blushed. The innuendo was obvious.
Azrael merely blinked.
“Gabriel, why don’t you show them the long gallery?” I suggested, turning to look up at him.
