Halo Of Horns

TWENTY-SEVEN

She was warm. Her skin was soft beneath his fingers. He relished the feeling of her body beside him, his soul calmed and his demons at bay.

He felt in control.

"If my brothers knew of this..." Azazel admitted in a soft whisper. He tightened his grip around her, pushing her closer into him, "Envy. Lust. Pride. Wrath." His teeth grazed the top of her ear, his lips caressing her skin, "And all I want to be is sloth... with you."

Irina giggled, "What are you talking about?"

He tucked a strand of her white hair behind her ear, "Nothing, just thinking out loud. My brothers would not be happy if they knew."

Irina shifted, turning her body to face his. Her naked chest was on display for him to marvel at before she slid back beneath the comfort of the sheets, "They don't need to know."

Azazel smiled, "No... they don't need to know, but they will. They will smell the change in you. I can already taste it."

Irina's face dropped in sudden despair, "What do you mean? You mean... they will know about us... that I'm not-"

"They will know you had sex. Perhaps they will smell me on you, but nothing we couldn't explain away. But yes... they will know and eventually I'll need to tell Lucifer." He said it like the very fact was the most simple concept in the world. Perhaps for him, it was. It was easy and prideful to announce such a bond but for her, it was embarrassing and demeaning.

Irina bowed her head, taking his hand in hers and playing with his large fingers. Fingers that toyed and played with her only an hour before, "What will you tell him?"

Azazel sighed, "The truth. This has never happened before, you have to understand that." He lifted her chin up so she looked at him, "There may be hope that we never knew about. He needs to know. They all deserve to know."

"I don't want them to know," Irina whispered, tugging a hand through her loose hair.

Azazel wrapped his arms around her, bringing her flush against his chest, her soft body molding to his, "They will know whether we tell them or not and I'm not sneaking around to fuck you every night. Do you understand?"

He could feel her heartbeat as it thundered in her chest, "You said there would be... other consequences. Is this what you meant when you told me to think about completing the bond?"

"This was going to happen either way. Irina... they deserve to know." He tightened his grip, begging her silently not to pull away. His knot had long since come down and they had been apart for awhile but his body didn't feel the same.

"It's none of their business." Irina was afraid. This would change everything. Her life as she knew it would be gone and while that wasn't much of a loss, the uncertainty of what was next made it difficult for her to want the change.

But sometimes change comes without a choice.

She had already made her choice and the ball was rolling downhill. She just had to wait to see where it landed.

Azazel kissed her temple, "This is a choice you have to trust me on. They will find out, it's better we tell them before then."

Irina buried herself closer to him, "I can't imagine how." She mumbled, "But I also can't imagine not... feeling the way I feel. I can't imagine going back to the way things were."

"I don't want things to go back to the way they were." He agreed.

"Then I guess it doesn't matter who knows and what they think." She concluded, her head still spinning with the fear of uncertainty but her heart yearning for its opportunity, "I choose you."