Holy Socks And Dirtier Demons Read Online Free PDF Page A

until
    morning?”
    “Rough night?” I booted the couch again. “Your boyfriend tried to
    rearrange my face, and you had a rough night?”
    She sat up, brushing a lock of hair from her face. “I see you
    survived.”
    That was it.
    I lunged for her, wanting to wrap my hands around her skinny neck
    and squeeze until her eyeballs popped out of her deceitful head.
    She twisted away seconds before I made contact, leaving me groping
    at thin air as I tumbled head first against the cushions. The sofa struck the
    wall with a bang, and knocked a large chunk of plaster from the ceiling.
    “There goes your security deposit.” The angel pointed to the falling
    debris.
    Could this night get any worse? It was a stupid question to ask,
    because no sooner had it formed in my mind, then Lilith unsheathed a
    wicked looking dagger from her garter belt. My eyes dropped to the creamy
    23

    skin of her thigh, roaming over the pale, toned flesh like a man dying of
    thirst.
    “You should work on controlling your baser impulses,” the angel
    stated. “Lust is a sin.”
    “So is duct taping a certain entity to a chair and shaving his head,” I
    threatened, never taking my eyes from the girl with the knife. “What are you
    doing here?” I asked her, as my last threads of energy and anger waned.
    She held the knife in front of her, seeming leery of my sudden
    change in demeanor. “I wanted to see where J.C. disappeared from.” She
    paused, giving me a small smile. “I also wanted to apologize and make sure
    you were all right.”
    My rage surfaced again. She’d left me to die and now wanted to play
    nice? And how the fuck did she know where I lived? “Don’t fucking lie to
    me. You set me up, and now you’re here to finish the job your lover
    couldn’t.”
    She flinched. “No. Look, I’m sorry about tonight. I thought that if
    Samuel saw me with another man he’d let go of the idea of us.”
    Oh, he let go all right, about the same time my third bullet had
    burrowed through his chest. “So you used me.”
    “So I used you. I’m sorry.” She gave me a slow once over. “It all
    worked out though. You don’t look any worse for wear.”
    “Yeah. I’m feeling just great.” I took a breath, weighing how much I
    needed her help. I couldn’t find the kid on my own. Damn. “No harm, no
    foul.” She would pay, one way or another, but for right now, I’d hold my
    tongue.
    “Really?” She tilted her head. “I had you pegged for being stubborn.”
    “Naw, I’m a pushover.” What I really was, was tired. Bone achingly
    so.
    “So can I stay?”
    “Yeah.” I yawned, glancing at her filled to the brim duffel bag. “But
    you’ll have to toss a coin for the couch.” I grinned, gesturing between her
    and the angel, pretty sure who would come out the victor.
    The angel started to argue, but I closed my bedroom door in his face,
    and fell onto the bed. What was the harm in letting her spend one night?
    ~ * ~
    “Morning.” Her cheery voice rang inside my head like a bad
    seventies laugh track.
    I looked around the kitchen and grunted. Yeah, it was morning. The
    bright glare of the sun peeking in my grimy windows gave it away.
    “Nice pj’s.” She glanced at me and smiled.
    I blinked and followed her eyes downward, nothing but skin. I
    shrugged, not caring one way or the other. It was too damn early for
    modesty, and my head was stuffy from the night before.
    “Coffee?” I sniffed the air, searching for the scent of roasting beans.
    24

    She stood, pulled a mug from a pile of dirty dishes in the sink, and
    poured me a cup.
    “Thanks.” Taking the cup from her hands, I noted the odd symbols
    and shapes tattooed into her skin, a combination of Arabic and Sumerian
    script. Exotic and beautiful, much like Lilith herself.
    I took a sip of the dark brew, and spit it out in a spray of hot liquid.
    “What the hell is this?”
    She shrugged. “Black tea.”
    “Tea?” I closed my eyes, remembering why I’d divorced my