Holidays Are Hell Esther Egg Hunt Read Online Free Page A

dropped back down. “They should be punishing me . I’m the one who ran away.”
    “Let me see that. You need to be more careful, Esther.” Luc moved over and made her lower her head, carefully prodding the spot where she’d cracked it into the concrete. She grimaced under his careful touch even while her body heated in recognition of his nearness. His warm, delicious scent enfolded her, and lust coiled low in her belly.
    “It’s okay.” Embarrassed by her reaction to him, Esther tried to pull away.
    Luc focused his intense gaze on Esther for a moment before settling back against the concrete. His arm rested against hers, and she could feel the heat all the way to her toes. “They’re punishing me because they know I’m running with you.”
    It took a minute for his words to sink in. When they did, Esther blinked. “What?”
    He shrugged. “If they didn’t know it for sure, they will once those demons report in.”
    “But why?”
    “You don’t deserve to be treated the way they were treating you.”
    “Why do they treat me that way, Luc? Did I do something wrong?”
    “Only dying on Good Friday. It’s a very precious day for the celestial set. Mostly only heaven-bound souls die on Good Friday. You’re the first sinner in decades to die on that day. The assembly decided to make an example of you.”
    She frowned. “That doesn’t even make sense.”
    He flashed her a guilty look.
    “What?”
    “I think they’re doing it to punish me. They can’t forgive me for being a fallen angel. So they gave me an assignment they knew would chafe. And they were right. I hated bringing you back to Hell last year, knowing what they had in mind for you. I had no intention of doing it again.”
    Esther’s eyes widened. “Wow. I didn’t know. I guess that explains why they’re being so harsh. I mean, it’s not like I’m a mass murderer or something. All I did was cheat the one time, and it was for a good reason.” The words reminded her of her mother, who hopefully would live a much longer life thanks to Esther’s sin. They would never have been able to afford her mother’s kidney transplant if Esther hadn’t cheated the system. She knew she’d do it all over again for the same result.
    “Insider trading?”
    She sighed. “Yeah. I knew when I did it that I’d probably pay the price, one way or another.” She laughed. “I have to admit I thought I’d pay it before I died, though.” Esther shook her head and yawned.
    Luc patted his lap. “Here, you’re exhausted. Lay your head down and get some rest. I’ll wake you up when we get close to our destination.”
    Esther frowned. “I really shouldn’t. I’m afraid to go to sleep for fear I’ll wake up dead again.”
    Luc’s expression softened. “I won’t let that happen, Esther. Do you trust me?”
    She was nodding before she even thought about it, and she realized with a shock that she did trust him.
    “Then lie down and rest. I promise I’ll wake you up if things get squiggy.”
    She scooted sideways and lay down, placing her head on his lap. She didn’t even notice the hardness of the concrete beneath her hip or the stench of vehicle exhaust that had been a constant since they’d hit the highway. All she noticed was the heat from his skin and his delectable scent, which encompassed her entire world in that moment. Esther’s pussy tightened under a wave of pure lust, and she was pretty sure she wouldn’t be able to sleep. But soon the drone of the truck’s tires over the highway and the delicious heat of the man cradling her head lulled her into sleep.

Chapter Four
     
    Luc closed his eyes and tried to sleep. But his arm was killing him. The flaming of his tat had been intermittent at first, small warnings that he’d gone off plan and needed to reel his supplicant in and return to Hell. But once he’d fought and defeated the demons, the assembly had gone into full-on attack mode.
    Luc could picture Worm standing there continually amping