Page 46 of Love At the Gates of Hell (The Seven Sinners Trilogy #1)

thirty-one

Benny

“Dirty ass Devil worshippers.”

Benny laughed as Gideon sputtered into his coffee, a bemused expression settling onto his features. But Olivia powered on, swinging her legs over the arm of the sofa, her bright pink sneakers falling to the floor as she kicked them off. She was on a roll now.

“It’s amateur shit,” she continued. “It’s basic . We’re going to spend our time worshipping a man ? Absolutely the fuck not. It’s all ‘dost thou want to live deliciously’ but no one tells you it’s only gonna happen if you bend your will to his every whim. Who has the time?”

“It is excruciatingly heteronormative,” Imani agreed.

“I bet you it’s that same group that still sells white sage at all the holiday markets,” Olivia said.

Cleo plucked a pin from between her lips to ask, “White sage?”

The dress code for the upcoming charity gala was black tie and with Benny going as a guest, she needed something far beyond the denim and T-shirts Cleo had grabbed for her at her apartment.

But the last time she’d been to an event that formal, it was her cousin’s wedding and she was a bridesmaid.

She still shuddered to think about all the ruffles.

Cleo was generous enough to bring over a few options from her pageant days.

Benny was currently all pinned up in a beautiful red silk gown that was a little too long in the leg and a little too generous in the bust. But it was the most simple of the offerings and made her feel a little bit like a Bond girl.

The look on Gideon’s face when she stepped out of the bedroom, the heat behind his eyes, it was enough for her to want to order the dress in a hundred colors.

“It’s a closed practice,” Imani explained as she rifled through Cleo’s sewing kit.

The bakery was closed on Mondays and she was intent on putting together protection poppets for the gala.

“And it’s sacred to the indigenous population.

But a lot of these capitalist hags will do anything to make a few dollars at their little tents on Cherry Street. ”

“We are amped up today, I see,” Benny said, lifting up one arm as Cleo pulled in the bust on one side. “I am liking the energy.”

“This is what happens when we find out you were fucking a demon,” Olivia said, flopping onto her back. “Am I allowed to ask questions in present company?”

Benny felt her skin flush as Gideon looped around the island with his hands raised.

“Ask all the questions you want,” he said. “I’ve got an errand to run.”

“You’ll be safe?” she asked as he drew closer.

“I’ll be safe,” he confirmed, his fingers ghosting her jaw as he kissed her.

It wasn’t two seconds after the door to the loft closed that Imani approached Olivia with a slow swagger, her hand curving at Olivia’s jaw with an exaggerated swing of her arm. Olivia lifted herself onto her elbows with a dramatic gasp and Imani planted a cute little kiss right on her mouth.

“You are children,” Benny said.

“And you are required to tell us everything,” Imani said.

“The dirty, nasty details,” Olivia added.

“As someone who has never once remotely considered Gideon in a sexual manner, I’m not entirely sure I can handle this,” Cleo laughed.

“Really?” Olivia asked. “I mean I’m a lesbian and even I get it a little bit. It’s those pretty eyes of his, you know? He looks at Benny like he’s starving. Why can’t a woman to look at me like she’s starving?”

Benny sucked in a breath as Cleo tugged at the waist of the dress, making another pin.

“No he doesn’t.”

“Yes, he does,” the red head said thoughtfully. “He has since y’all came back from Winnie’s. I bet Luke a hundred dollars you two were going to hook up before this was all over.”

“I’m so glad my love life has been such a passion project for you all.”

But Benny could hardly contain the smile that had bloomed across her face. It felt precious, this thing that had developed between them. Something she wanted to protect and cherish.

“Spill it, Benedetta,” Imani said. “The last guy couldn’t even make you come.”

“ And he was a demon,” Olivia chimed in. “Lest we’ve forgotten in the last few minutes.”

“Gideon does not have either of those afflictions,” Benny said. “He’s very… intentional about making sure I get there. Preferably more than once.”

“Oh, thank Hecate,” Imani said.

“I love being right,” Cleo mused.

She crouched down to start pinning the hem, the difference in their height giving her more than a few inches to mark.

Benny was going to have pull out her highest heels in an effort to cut back on the amount of length Cleo would have to trim.

She pressed her tongue to the inside of her cheek— she did have a gold pair of slingbacks she had a feeling Gideon would love.

“You’ve got a ridiculous look on your face,” Olivia laughed. “You smitten little freak.”

Smitten was just one word for it.

She only hoped they’d get a real chance.

They were just one day out from the charity gala and Benny would be lying if she said she wasn’t a little nervous about what was to come.

Each day that passed, each day that brought them closer and closer to the Blood Moon, Benny’s body seemed to hum in anticipation.

It was driving her a little bit mad, the fear and nerves and thrills mixing into something she could name.

It was coursing through her veins even now, as Gideon hovered behind her, his hands steady on her shoulders.

The boxing dummy swayed in front of them with her last round, little singe holes marking where each fist had landed a punch.

“That’s it, princess,” he said, voice warm on her ear. “You got every hit.”

She brushed her hair off of her face, her breath coming in staggered bursts.

“Now let’s focus less on the up close and personal,” he continued, dropping his hands from her shoulders.

He lifted the one hundred pound boxing dummy with ease, carrying it a few yards away from where Benny stood.

“Because if you can hit them before they even see you that would be great for me, personally.”

“Gid—”

“Benny, we have no idea what we’re going to be up against,” he said, adjusting the dummy until it was facing her once again. “My only goal is to keep you out of harm’s way as much as I can.”

She knew there was no use in arguing. Especially when she knew he was right. Benny may have power but she wasn’t a vampire. If she let one get too close—

Gideon jogged back to where she stood, his T-shirt clinging to his skin in the muggy evening air.

The sky was readying itself for an impending storm, the clouds thick and grey in the sky.

She watched as he lifted the hem of his shirt to wipe at the sweat across his brow, his abs constricting with the movement.

She pressed her tongue to the roof of her mouth as she drew her eyes away from him, focusing instead of the dummy in front of them.

“Just one hit, Ben,” he said. “That’s all it takes.”

She nodded, her hands drawing up in front of her, fingers splayed as she focused her magic on the dummy in front of her, picturing the blast of power in an effort to call it to the surface.

A flash of lightning illuminated the sky as Benny watched her skin start to glow from within.

She had done this before, at the warehouse with Christian, had sent a burst of magic in his direction with little thought beyond saving Gideon’s life. She could do that again.

A crack of thunder shook the sky.

The training dummy went up into flames.

“Oh, no,” she said, wincing.

Gideon’s shoulders shook, his hand rubbing at the nape of his neck as the rubber started to smoke and melt.

His laughter was low and easy and she couldn’t help but watch him and the way his eyes crinkled.

It had to be one of her favorite things about him, maybe one of her favorite things in the whole world.

But still, there was a full fire hazard happening on the roof.

“You’re absolutely fucking terrifying,” he said, awe in his voice.

Benny grimaced as the dummy’s face began to ooze.

She didn’t want to be held responsible for a building wide fire alarm.

“Wait, maybe I can—” Benny focused her magic again, informing it to reverse itself or put itself out, and with a little extra effort on her part, the flames dissipated and the ruined husk of the dummy remained. “Okay, there we go.”

“Well, he’s looked better,” Gideon mused.

Another flash of lightning slowly followed by an echoing thunder.

“Should we call it?” he asked, eyes glancing up toward the sky.

“I don’t know,” she said. “I still feel—”

“What?”

“I’m just anxious, maybe,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. “I have all this energy built up inside of me, like my body knows the ritual is coming. I’m beginning to have this fear that this was meant to happen. That maybe this is my fate.”

“No,” Gideon said, shaking his head. “No, that’s bullshit.”

The thunder came more quickly now.

“Is it? How do I know this isn’t going to end the same way it did for my mother?”

“Because you have me, Benny,” he said. “And I keep my promises.”

She started to unravel the wraps tied around her hands just for something to focus on that wasn’t the frustration and concern evident in Gideon’s face.

“I told you that you can’t make me a promise like that.”

He took over for her, hands deftly working the wraps off of her hands.

She loved the way his hands felt on her, how gentle they could be when she needed them to be, how rough when she wanted that too.

She didn’t want to think about the ritual anymore.

She didn’t want to think about the gala or the Blood Moon or the man who took her.

“Baby, just tell me what you need,” he said quietly.

She didn’t know.

More time, maybe. More of this.

Then, the answer was clear.

“You.”

Benny lifted herself onto her toes, her hands twisting in the fabric of his T-shirt for leverage as she pressed her mouth to his.

He only hesitated a moment before his body relaxed into hers, his hands smoothing across her waist. He knew what she was doing but he was going to let her and she wanted him all the more for it.

Benny dragged her hands across his chest toward his shoulders, fingers digging into the hard muscle.

He lifted her up around his waist, his hands cupping her ass as he led her toward one of the lounge chairs.

The sky felt as if it were about to open right up but neither of them seemed to care.

Gideon kept her in his lap as he sank down on the chair, his fingers brushing the hair that came loose from her braid off of her face.

Benny pulled back, eyes scanning his face, seeing the heat behind his gaze, the way his eyes darkened for her.

She cupped his jaw in her hand, her thumb pressing against his bottom lip.

His mouth was so lush and full. He nipped at her finger before sucking it into his mouth and her breath caught in her throat, her thighs tightening against his waist.

“I want more time,” she said softly, before kissing him again.

“Right now, princess, we have all the time in the world.”

“Then let’s go slow,” she breathed, her hips rocking against his.

“I’ll give you anything you want, Benny.”

And when he kissed her again, the heavens opened wide, rain soaking the earth.