SOUL MATES (Angels and Demons Book 3) Read Online Free Page A

man reaching for a life preserver, but failing to get a strong handhold. And then it was gone, like a puff of wind. Just gone.
    When Dylan opened her eyes, Stiles was there, his hands on her face, her arms; his lovely gray eyes staring into hers.
    “You okay?”
    She moved into him, a coldness lingering inside of her that she knew his touch would soothe. He welcomed her, his arms moving around her and drawing her into a tight embrace. He felt so familiar—and he should, after all these years—the smell of him surrounding her and washing away the lingering stink of the broken soul. She pressed her face to his chest and took a deep breath, taking more than just comfort from her dear friend.
    Dylan liked to think she was a strong woman. She had to be to play the role God had created for her. But, in moments like this, it was precious to her to know she could be weak and Stiles would prop her up.
    He held her tightly, dropping a few kisses on the top of her head.
    “I tried to warn you. I saw it and I knew what it wanted…”
    “It’s okay,” she said, pulling back slightly so that she could see his face. “It was determined to possess me, but it couldn’t. There was something blocking it.”
    “What?”
    She shook her head. “I don’t know. Maybe it’s my nature. Or maybe it was because I felt sorry for it. For him.”
    “You knew who it was.”
    Dylan reached up and stroked the side of Stiles’ face. “You did what you had to do.”
    The stone wall that Stiles often wore on his face to hide the fact that he was a man who wore his heart on his sleeve crumbled. He bent his head, pressing his forehead to hers for a long moment. Dylan could feel his memories playing out in his mind. She even caught a few snippets here and there even though he fought to keep them from her. She knew the story of Jack James—it was something they’d discussed before. And she knew it hurt him to remember how he had betrayed Jack by turning him over to the Redcoats all those years ago. But if he hadn’t, Dylan wouldn’t be here.
    Jack James—that demon that had just tried to possess Dylan so that he could use the object inside the box to control the humans—was Dylan’s father.
    It was so odd, having the knowledge. She’d grown content with the idea that she would never really understand her genetics and how she had come to be here. But now…she didn’t know how she felt knowing that the man who provided the genetic material that allowed her to exist was now her enemy.
    Stiles drew her back into his arms and held her cradled against his chest for a long few minutes. She felt him offer her strength; she felt him supporting her with more than just friendship. That was one of the perks of being friends with an angel—his healing powers were infusing themselves in her, looking for damage lingering from Jack’s soul and easing the power of her emotions to take away the darkness that also continued to linger. She didn’t need his help to feel better…but she didn’t mind it.
    There was a certain amount of pleasure that came from being so close to another living being. She felt like she hadn’t been this close to anyone in a long time.
    But then he pulled away, dropping a kiss on her forehead as he did.
    “We should take that thing and go back before something else happens.”
    Dylan nodded, reluctantly agreeing. “We should call everyone together. I have a feeling this thing’s going to impact us all.”
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

Chapter 4
     
    They gathered in Rachel’s house. Raphael and several of his legion of angels, the gargoyles including Demetria, Wilhelm, and Dylan’s sister—sort of sister…they were raised together in Genero—Donna, and Rachel.
    Dylan was curled up on a couch as she held the box between her hands, as if it was a normal thing for someone to be holding such a precious artifact in the middle of a human’s living room. Stiles watched her. He wanted to ask her to put it down or do