Grabbing creamer out of the fridge, Eve poured a liberal splash into her mug. “I understand that part. Is he under some sort of vow of celibacy?” She liked the thought of that.

Reed laughed. “That’s rich.”

Scowling, she returned the creamer to its spot in the fridge door and shut it with more force than necessary.

“Sweetheart, your name may be Eve, but in this lusty tale, you play the apple. ‘Look, but don’t touch.’” Reed took at hearty bite of the Red Delicious in his hand.

“That’s sick. Who tortures people like that?”

“Free will,” he said, chewing with obvious relish. “You always get a choice, but sometimes it’s obvious which choice you’re supposed to make. If you decide to do your own thing, you pay the consequences.” Reed licked his lips. “If Alec had made the right choice, you’d be married now with two kids. Happy as a clam.”

Eve stared into her coffee and wondered what that life would have been like.

“So what’s the mark for?” she asked finally.

Studying Reed over the rim of her mug, Eve noted that his hair was much shorter than Alec’s, his lips thinner, the air about him more intense. Unlike Alec’s grungy attire, Reed’s garments were perfectly tailored. Today he sported fitted gray slacks and a black dress shirt, worn open at the collar and rolled up at the sleeves.

“Well, the mark has several uses. It originally put you in line for a hearing. The court docket is full and it’s important to get penciled in as soon as possible.”

“A hearing?”

“Everyone gets a hearing, babe.” His smile affected her; there was no getting around it. Fact was, it wasn’t just his similarities to Alec that were attractive. “Alec’s contribution to the mark waived the hearing and acts as somewhat of a plea bargain. Instead of arguing your case, you get to earn your indulgences in the field.”

“Why doesn’t that sound as if he did me a favor?”

Reed shrugged. “Depends on how you look at it. It was the only way to guarantee that he would be with you all the time. If you’d gone to trial, you would have been assigned to whichever position was next in the queue that you were best qualified for. Not all positions require mentors and not all positions are in the field.” His gaze narrowed as he considered her. “This way, he’s certain to be with you.”

“And what am I supposed to do in the field?”

“Hunt demons, feral fey, rogue interdimensional beings, warlocks, and various other nasties. You’re going to have to work for absolution just as Alec has been doing for centuries.”

“Centuries?” She was in lust with a man who was centuries old? Eve set her coffee down before she dropped it again. “He’s immortal?”

“Almost. Marks heal quickly, so it takes a lot to kill one. There’s no time limit on how long you have to prove your worth, and the whole ‘sevenfold vengeance’ protection has a way of scaring off most hazards to your health.”

“Sevenfold vengeance?”

“It’s mentioned in the book of Genesis. ‘And the Lord said unto him, therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the Lord set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.’ You’ve got the mark. You get the protection.”

“How bad is that? The sevenfold stuff.”

“Whatever the demon does to the Mark, they get the same in return. Seven times over.”

Eve’s brows rose. “That could be bad, I take it.”

“Usually so. As I said, it works as a deterrent most of the time. Only the most evil, wretched, and insane creatures don’t care.”

“Lovely.”

He stood and rounded the kitchen island. There was no mistaking the change in his focus.

She lifted her chin. He caged her in with the counter at her back. “In addition to learning how to kill and dealing with a fear of all things evil, you’ve got Alec to manage, and your feelings about what happened to you because of his lust.” He held up the half-eaten apple between them. “Then there are the apples.”

She arched a brow, hoping to hide how her body responded to his nearness. Her senses remembered him—his smell, the power and heat of his large frame, the near brutality of his passion. The orgasms he’d wrung from her body.

“The apples?” she asked softly, focusing on his lips as they curved into a feral smile.

Reed ran the bitten side of the apple from the hollow of her throat down to her cleavage. Shivering, Eve reached behind her and gripped the edge of the counter. He lowered his head slowly, watching her, giving her time to pull away. His tongue touched her skin and slid up the trail he’d made in a long, slow glide. His teeth nipped at her chin, then he moved to take her mouth. She turned her head away.

His warm chuckle filled the electrically charged air between them. Then he changed tactics, sliding his hand into her robe and cupping her breast. As his fingers found her nipple and pinched roughly, his tongue slid along the shell of her ear. “Apples, baby. Temptations. The exercising of your free will.”

Reed’s hips pressed against hers, his knees bending so that the hard ridge of his cock notched into the softness of her sex. He thrust gently, nudging her. She gasped, but kept her hands on the counter. Her body was so tightly strung the slightest provocation had her ready to tear of her clothes. Anytime. Anywhere.

“I wondered,” he breathed, his lips to her ear, “what you had that twisted Cain up in knots.” His other hand cupped her ass and urged her to rock into him as he tugged and rolled her nipple, sending shockwaves down to the aching flesh between her legs. “Now I know.”

“Back off.”

His tongue thrust into her ear and her knees buckled. “Hottest, tightest fuck I’ve ever had. Your slick pussy sucking on my cock. And those sounds you make . . . those little whimpers . . .” He growled. “I want to take you right now. Hard and deep. Pound my dick into you and watch you come until you can’t take any more.” His hand on her ass slid lower, lifting her leg to anchor it onto his hip. His thrusts grew bolder, more fervent, his chest rising and falling with his harsh breathing. “You’re a predator now, Eve. And predators like to fuck.”

“Back off!” Eve’s hands went to his shoulders and pushed. He flew across the room and landed in a heap on her living room rug.

“Oh my god,” she breathed. The damn mark seared her skin anew and made her dizzy.

Reed threw his head back and laughed, rising to his feet with an easy grace. “See? You’re beginning to catch on already.”

He reached down and adjusted himself, drawing her attention to the obvious wet spot on his pants where she’d been rubbing against him. “Watch out for the apples, babe.”

With a rakish wink, he disappeared—vanished—just as Alec had, and a moment later Alec was back. Still naked, but minus the blood, his handsome face marred by a fierce scowl.

Eve picked up the apple and threw it at him.

CHAPTER 7

Alec caught the apple and crushed it into a juicy pulp with his fist.

He was a successful hunter because of his patience. Unlike most Marks, his goal wasn’t quantity but quality. Infernals were like all parasitic organisms. They learned, adapted, mutated. As they survived repeated attempts on their lives, they grew stronger and more formidable.

When Alec was summoned to make a kill, he was prepared to wait for days, weeks, months, or even years to strike. Long, protracted battles were wearisome and drew too much attention. He preferred a quick assassination, and he bided his time until that opportunity presented itself.

That was why he was frustrated by his inability to be patient with Abel. His brother was like fingernails on a chalkboard. Alec couldn’t ignore him or forgive him. The grudge he carried was too deeply ingrained.

With a quick stride, he moved to the kitchen and opened the trash compactor. He unclenched his fist, releasing the destroyed apple to thud to the bottom of the lined basket. Sticky juice coated his fingers and he watched, detached, as it dripped. Drop after drop.

Eve made a small noise and he glanced at her. She stood nearby, flushed and bright eyed. Aroused.

Alec growled low in his throat. “Stay away from him.”

Her chin lifted. She looked prepared to argue, then she turned around and lifted to her tiptoes, pulling open a cupboard and reaching for a bottle of Baileys Irish Cream.

“If you’re looking for a buzz,” he bit out, “you won’t get one there.”

She paused midmovement.

“Your body doesn’t process alcohol—or any mind-altering substance—the same way it used to.”

Her hand fell as a fist into the counter. She faced him, her sloe eyes narrowing with flaring anger. “Are you saying I can’t get high?”

“You can orgasm from here to eternity,” he said roughly. “That high enough for you?”

“Fuck.”

“I’m happy to oblige.”

“Oh, shut up!” she snapped. “This is entirely your fault.”

“Is that all you’ve got?” he taunted, his blood hot and his temper high. He’d been punished for killing his brother again, which left Alec spoiling for a fight. Or a hard, raw screw. Since the latter was what had gotten Eve in trouble in the first place, he would be better off settling for the former. “Your life just blew up in your face and ‘shut up’ is the best you can do?”

Her fists clenched, and he felt a surge of satisfaction. If she was pissed off at him, she wouldn’t be thinking about Abel.

“I don’t know,” she retorted. “I’m feeling like a superhero. I might be able to kick your naked ass. Maybe we’d both feel better if I did.”

Alec laughed and moved to the sink to wash his hands. “You can say that after watching me kill a man? You’ve got balls, angel. Thank God, ’cause you’ll need ’em.”

“Don’t make light of this, Alec.”