Page 57 of Lust

“I told you that.” Yesterday looked affronted.

“Yes, but you didn’t tell me how big that trouble was.” She picked up the discarded gels from the catwalk. Her day would be totally complete if she managed to slip and throw her human body off the catwalk. Because humans couldn’t crash into walls and shake it off as if it had barely even hurt. “People see hell princes in their dreams all the time, right?”

“Who said that?” Yesterday slunk behind his light again. “I didn’t say that.”

For the sake of her sanity, she came clean. “Shade has been in my dreams. Also, it seems like Wrath could see me in those same dreams.”

“You dreamed walked with Shade and Wrath?” Yesterday sprung out from behind his newest hiding place. “You never told me that.”

“I’m telling you now.”

“Are you sure it was Wrath you saw?” Yesterday followed her down the catwalk.

Verification couldn’t hurt. She had no way of knowing it was Wrath she’d seen beating the crap out of Shade, but all the other information that was being thrown at her would make it a logical assumption. “Big guy, brown hair, pale blue eyes, muscular. Oh, and red in his wings.”

Yesterday grumbled behind her. “Sounds like him.”

“He doesn’t look like a nice guy.” Eddie was tired and hungry, and she wanted the yell-a-thon onstage to end. Leaning over the catwalk, she called down to Peter, “Rehearsal is over, Peter. I need to shut up for the night.” And pray that she had no more midnight visitors. She might not have met Wrath, but from what she’d seen, she’d really rather not.

As she waited for the theatre to empty, she ordered pizza to be delivered. With Yesterday hanging about, she ordered more than her usual. While she waited, she cleaned up the auditorium, and checked the greenroom. It had been repaired, and there was no sign anything untoward had happened in there. The tired old couches looked better than they had in years.

At least Uriel and Shade were good for that much.

Pizza boxes in hand, she dragged her tired ass upstairs. Noises from her bathroom dragged her that way. She prayed it was the plumbing.

Clearly, her prayer did bugger all, because Shade was stepping out the shower as she peered around the door. He snatched up a towel and rubbed it over his hair. “Hey.”

“What are you doing here?” She was way past polite at this stage. Because she was human and hangry, and that happened to humans.

Shade blinked at her. “Having a shower.”

Eddie breathed deep to keep her patience with him. “I meant, why are you still in the theatre.”

“I have to stay here.” Shade looked genuinely confused. “Sophia and I explained it to you. I can’t go back to hell until I regain my full strength.” He hung the towel around his neck, leaving much skin real estate uncovered if she were so inclined, which she was not. “If I’m not at full strength, Wrath will end me.”

“I never agreed to you using my personal space.” She refused to let her gaze wander south of his face. “In fact, I was quite clear on my feelings about you staying.”

He grimaced. “There’s nowhere else I can stay, Eddie, and I can’t go back to hell yet, because the consequences made the decision for both of us.”

That would be the end of life as they knew it category of consequences. Whatever. “Don’t leave water all over my bathroom floor.” And then because she had a feeling she would need to explain politeness to him. “And hang up your towel when you’re done.”

Shade cocked his head and grabbed the dangling ends of his towel. His smile was pure sex.

And wasted on her. Eddie wasn’t going to get all flustered by that incredible body and perfect cock. She’d seen all that before anyway. Before her gaze made a liar out of her, she stomped off to her kitchen. And he needn’t think she was sharing her pizza with him. She was going to eat the whole thing, all by herself. She opened a bottle of wine and poured herself a glass.

Shade wandered into the kitchen in a virulent purple pair of satin harem pants that had been used in the Christmas pantomime. He should have looked ridiculous. Instead, he looked like a sexy Aladdin. She had the insane urge to stroke his bare, cut chest and slide her hand into—“You said you wouldn’t do that lust thing anymore.” She grabbed a slice of pizza and jammed it between her lips.

“I’m not.” Shade leaned his shoulder against the doorjamb and jerked his head at the pizza. “You gonna share that?”

“Nope.” She took another huge bite.

Chuckling, Shade strolled into the kitchen and grabbed himself a glass. He poured wine and took a sip. Shutting his eyes, he groaned. “Humans do have some redeeming qualities.”

“Yes, we do.” Eddie glared at him to drive her point home.

“Eddie, Eddie, Eddie.” He shook his head. “You’re not human.”

“Just because I survived some stupid bite?” Eddie shoved her hand at him. It didn’t look as swollen as it had this morning. Come to think on it, it hadn’t been hurting as much today. Maybe she’d gotten used to the pain.

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