Viper (Fallen Angel #2)(63)

Halo turned, pushed the door open, and stormed outside, a clear dismissal, but I followed after him. I must’ve been possessed or some shit, because I was not about to let him get away from me. I needed to touch him, talk to him, and somehow make him understand that every fucked-up thing I’d said to him tonight was for the best. I’d done this for him.

Halo stopped a couple of feet away from me, and as he stood there with his back to me, looking out at the city lights, the message was clear: go away. That wasn’t going to happen, though, and as I came up behind him, his shoulders tensed.

The words were on the tip of my tongue, the ones I never said to anyone, ever: I’m sorry. Two words, only seven letters, and yet they were the hardest to say in the entire English language.

Halo still had his back to me, though, so I moved up beside him, but even though I didn’t touch him, he jerked away as though I had. Before he could move again, I grasped at his arm and spun him so that his back was against the concrete. I needed his attention, not for him to try to disappear, so I pushed my hips against his, locking him in place.

That move was one the angel would’ve liked had the past few hours never happened. But since I’d gone and fucked us to hell, Halo now strained against my hold, his chest rising and falling rapidly, like he couldn’t get enough air with me this close. He wouldn’t look at me. Almost nose to nose, and his eyes were everywhere except where I wanted them.

I held his chin and waited until he looked at me. At first he refused, but I told myself to be patient, and it wasn’t long before those pale green eyes finally settled on mine. When they did, I opened my mouth to say those two words, those seven letters, but before they could come out, Halo pulled an arm free and clapped his hand over my lips.

Stunned, I could only stare at him as he shook his head, unwilling to hear me out, to listen to my apology. I’d said more than he wanted to hear tonight, and if I thought I’d felt like the biggest fucking asshole on the planet before, it was nothing like the feeling that seared me then. Because while Halo’s eyes held all of the fury I’d expected to be directed my way, there was a more dominant emotion swirling in the fire: pain.

I inhaled through my nose sharply and dropped my hold on his chin. The look he aimed my way cut deep. God… I’d hurt him. I knew I’d pissed him off, but I’d done a hell of a lot more than that, and as I stared into the depths of all that emotion, I almost wished I’d never gotten a glimpse.

Halo held my gaze, baring it all for me. His palm continued to cover my mouth, his hold firm, but I could feel his fingers shaking slightly. From anger and disappointment? From the tension radiating through his body? From something else?

Shit, the last thing I’d wanted was to get feelings tied up between us, but there was no denying that whatever this was, it wasn’t just a casual fuck, and I wasn’t sure it ever had been. But that didn’t matter—it still didn’t mean anything more could happen. That was just the way it had to be, and maybe I should’ve cut this off sooner, but it was better to let the angel go now than make things even more complicated.

Like he could tell the way my thoughts had gone, Halo pushed me away suddenly, using the strength of his hand against my mouth and using the other one to shove at my chest. I wasn’t letting him go so easily, though, and batted his hand away, grabbing for his hips. I curled my fingers around his belt loops and pulled him back toward me, but he gripped hard on my biceps, holding me at arm’s length.

I didn’t want to be at arm’s length. I wanted him to be in my arms, which was the goddamn problem. Because more than anything in that moment, I wanted to kiss those angry lips until he opened up for me. I wanted to tangle my fingers in his hair and tug his head back so I could run my tongue down his neck to the hollow at the base of his throat. And then I wanted his body under mine, arching up against me as we connected in the deepest way I knew how.

But I didn’t just want those things. I needed them. I needed him.

He still had a firm grip on my arms, but that didn’t matter, because I unhooked my fingers from his belt loops and brought my hands up between us, holding his face between my palms as I dove in for the kiss I craved. The move took Halo by surprise, because he froze, and the thought crossed my mind that I might’ve gone too far, that he might well punch me, but fuck it. It’d be worth it, and I deserved worse.

When he finally realized what was happening, Halo ripped his mouth away from mine, his breathing coming hard as he looked at me with a mixture of confusion and outrage.

But he didn’t throw a punch. He didn’t walk away. So I reached for him again, entwining my fingers in his hair as I crashed my lips back on his, but he was ready for me this time, and he pushed me away before I got a good taste of him.

Halo took a couple of steps back and then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, sending me a clear message that I didn’t buy for a second. Why? Because the arousal in his jeans told me different.

I prowled forward as he backed up again, but because he kept his eyes on mine, he didn’t notice the wall behind him until his ass bumped up against it.

He could’ve moved. He could’ve told me to stay the fuck away. He could’ve thrown that punch I was still waiting for. Instead, he watched me walk toward him, and when he was close enough for me to touch, Halo surprised me by grabbing two handfuls of my shirt, balling his fists in the material. He didn’t push me away, but he didn’t pull me forward either. I could sense his hesitation, the war being waged in his mind, so I did the only thing I could do. I forced his hand by licking my lower lip, and when his eyes dropped to the movement, something in him snapped.