On their next visit to the church, Azazeal immediately grabbed Daemon and Lucifer cornered Lucivar, while the ladies merely watched them pair off in curiosity.

Cassie and Azazeal's relationship had evened out to normal, but that was a problem for Cassie. She could let him ignore his fear and hope it would work itself out later but something in her was still angry with him for how he'd handled it. It was his pattern actually, she knew it well, everything's wonderful and then something would trigger his nasty side, usually fear. This time she wasn't going to let him slide by.

"Who would have thought they would become this interested to see each other and almost, dare I say it, friends," Cassie commented.

"Oh, don't jinx, it Cassie, just let it happen."

Jaenelle laughed, "You can't force a Warlord Prince to do much of anything, but if you make it their idea.…well!"

At this, they all laughed.

"But I do have something to ask you both. Do you remember Azazeal's whatever-you-what-to-call-it with the boys last time?" The girls nodded.

"Well, apparently we've got some trust issues and I don't know what to do about it."

"Trust issues? Over what?" Elizabeth said surprised.

"I don't know. We're both are like a well-oiled machine when it comes to our little missions and he loves it, you can see it in his eyes, you know the look Elizabeth. I thought that was what he needed."

"It is, dear, it must go deeper than that?"

"Well, he does have a lurking dark side that I haven't actively worried about in a while but could be a problem."

"And I don't think you should think of him that way," Jaenelle said, "As having a hidden dark side that you're wary of. Either you accept it and control it or it will always be a wall between you. Daemon is capable of destroying whole cities of people and wiping out all evidence of their existence. He's capable of seducing people to their own death. But he's a good man and my acceptance of his violent potential allows him to relax and be that man. If you try to hold it back it will only lash out unexpectedly."

"But Jaenelle, he used it against me when we first met. He seduced me and got me pregnant with Malachi. I can't help but see it as lying in wait for me."

"Oh, that's rubbish," Elizabeth interjected, "You're as bad as him, reverting to your old concerns. He adores you and he trails after you like a faithful hunting dog when you're not actively involved in some plot or other, just waiting for the next adventure. Everything he does is for you: the triumphs and the mistakes. He just needs more reassurance that you realize that."

"Oh, no he's never made a mistake, sometimes he's not successful but he's never done anything bad."

"Now that I don't believe, there are things they can't do but Azazeal does not fail at what he's good at. He's not trying his hardest."

"He wouldn't do that!"

"You realize, don't you, that they weren't solely created to do things that we consider good. They can create as well as destroy. They are above right and wrong to an extent because God supplied the moral playing field and could decide all the rules, like killing all the first-born sons in Egypt. That's why Lucifer's such a handful. He's got no conscious. Now Azazeal's different, but there are things he is capable of, and is probably willing to do for you, that might shock you. But he wouldn't do anything you wouldn't want, so he hides it from you."

"It sounds like he's afraid you won't understand him," Jaenelle commented.

"I love him," Cassie said and stared at Elizabeth for a moment, "But I think you're both right, there are certain things I wouldn't want to know."

"You're going to have to get over that."

"Gee, thanks!"

"I know it sounds harsh but it's the only way to really have him."

"It's what you have, isn't it? Lucifer told me about…angelic trust."

"Ah, now I see where all of this is coming from. You can't have that without being willing to accept whatever he reveals to you and whatever he does in the real world too. But if you do you'll also know that he would never purposely upset you, even though it may happen. And I think you'll find he's capable of more than you give him credit for."

Cassie smiled, "I have to admit, I've always tried to keep things so that he wouldn't have to do something that might make me angry and I've never wanted to mistakenly ask for something he can't do. It might offend him."

"You can't worry about that. Put him to the test, see what he can do."

"Okay, but how do I show him that I'm ready to let him loose and trust him."

"Well, if I know anything about men," Jaenelle said, "I'd say that just leaving him on his own for a bit will cause him to do something to get your attention."

"Alright, no direction from me," Cassie said, "I'll be to busy to have time for him and we'll see what happens."

A few months later when Daemon, Lucivar and their ladies visited again, Azazeal was on edge. You could see the devious glint in his eyes if you knew what you were looking for but unfortunately Daemon and Lucivar did not. Azazeal, in his state of discomfort, decided that now was about time to punish Daemon for flirting with Cassie. He developed his simple yet oh-so-amusing plan and then first thing he did was let Lucifer in on the plan. And the first thing Lucifer did, which is why Azazeal had told him, was make a wager.

"Lads, let's set up a small wager, shall we? To past the time. I'll bet that Daemon will be the first one to give in to the temptation to steal a kiss from one of the other ladies. I mean they're all gorgeous. Look at them. And one of these days, given the right opportunity…I'm tempted to change my bet and put the money on myself actually, can I do that? Oo, and what if I kiss all three, do I win three times?"

"You're kidding, aren't you?" Daemon said.

"I don't joke about women, my boy!"

"It's ridiculous," Lucivar said, but he couldn't help accepting a challenge, "But if it were possible, I'd have to say Azazeal and no, you can't bet on yourself."

"Oh, well, Daemon's my horse, then. Azazeal?" Lucifer asked.

"I think I'll go with Daemon too."

"Just because I'm three times as sexy as the rest of you," Daemon said rather good-naturedly, "That's fine, be jealous, but Lucifer's going to do it just to irritate us and then we can break his neck."

"Excellent!" Lucifer said, "Winner's get, oh I don't know, to kiss the loser's lady."

"You really don't think about anything serious do you?" Lucivar asked.

"I try not to, now mums the word boys, we don't want them to see it coming!"

"It's never going to happen," Daemon mumbled to himself.

Now over the course of the next few visits, Azazeal, as only he can, worked fiendishly on Daemon who found himself strangely attracted to Elizabeth. Not like he was to Jaenelle but he couldn't help looking at her and wanting to touch her. Azazeal had told Lucifer that he was going to have him fix on Cassie but he found that it would be much more amusing to himself to have him go after Elizabeth while having Lucifer believe the target was Cassie.

Eventually, of course, Daemon found himself alone for a short moment with the unsuspecting Elizabeth and before he knew it, as if a compulsion spell was pushing him, he wove a delicate seduction spell around her and found himself kissing her. It wasn't a long kiss or a particularly sensual one but beyond the game they were being used for, it did give them a little insight into each other.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Azazeal said when he caught them. Lucifer and Lucivar weren't far behind.

"Oh, what a surprise I guess I win," Lucifer gloated, "But then again I should have put a clause in there about killing you if you touch my woman! Oh, well, it's Jaenelle's turn now and I think I'll take my time."

"Don't you dare," Daemon crooned dangerously, ready to throw everything he had at Lucifer.

"What? A bet's a bet and you lost," Lucifer said cheerfully and Elizabeth shook off the seduction spell and began to wonder what was going on.

Daemon studied him and knew by Lucifer's rather mild reaction that something was up, "It was trick, you and he were in on it the whole time!"

"Were we?" Lucifer asked innocently.

"Yes, I think you were too," Lucivar said through gritted teeth and stepped next to his brother ready to fight.

"Are we going to fight now?" Lucifer asked in amusement.

"If you don't admit to cheating," Lucivar said.

"He'll never admit to cheating," Azazeal said helpfully, "So I guess it's war."

"Stop it," Jaenelle said, in that voice Daemon could not ignore, as the other women approached just before the boys started throwing punches which would no doubt have been bolstered by their power, "Snarly males, what's going on here."

The point of contention was explained and the women decided that the best thing for now was to separate them. Especially since you could feel the rage crackling between them like static electricity.

"I'm sorry," Cassie said to Jaenelle before she left.

"Don't worry about it. Normally, I'd be furious, but Azazeal compelled him and don't you see this is the opportunity that you were waiting for with him. Besides, Daemon will more than make up for it with his own guilt and I'll end up doing all of the reassuring anyway," Jaenelle finished with a smile.

"That was uncalled for," Lucifer said to Azazeal, but not without humor.

"What? You really believed I'd let anyone touch Cassie?"

"I didn't think it through that far, but at least I know it was you behind it all, you're a force to be reckoned with."

"He certainly is," Cassie said sliding up next to them and Lucifer regarded her with interest.

"You'll do fine," he said to her mysteriously, "But now I'm upset.

"Elizabeth will make you forget all about it I'm sure," Cassie said with a twinkle in her eye, "And now you'll know to be more on your guard."

"I'll just get into trouble if I'm too jealous," he complained, "But then again, I love trouble and that's a method I haven't tried yet!"

"How are the fussing lessons going with Lucivar?" Cassie asked, diverting him.

"They're not fussing lessons," he replied disdainfully, "I'm just gathering information so I can protect her better, that's all."

"Ah, I see."

"Well, I'll leave you to alone now since I can see that Cassie has something to say to you, Azazeal. I'd give you advise but you wouldn't listen anyway," and he walked off.

They went home and Elizabeth let him play with her and mark her body as his territory, which he did significantly more gently than when she was in a similar mood. His possessiveness was reverent, while hers was, by necessity, adamant.

"You did a quite a number on Daemon," Cassie said as she laid herself next to Azazeal's naked form on their bed.

"Did I?" he asked arrogantly, expecting her to lecture him and preparing his response.

"Mhmm," she said leaning on her elbow over him, "That's not the kind of manipulation I want from you."

He looked at her and he was caught between his carefully cultivated mask arrogance and agitation that what he'd done had not pleased her. He hadn't done it with any thought as to what she would think of it and was ready for a fight, but her simple pronouncement on his action effected him deeply. He thought back to those times when he had done what she had asked of him and that feeling of accomplishment that spread languidly through him, to his very fingertips, which brought a happiness that he had recently convinced himself to be afraid of. That's what he wanted, that happiness. Not this strange feeling of alienation from her and then he realized something else was missing too.

There she was regarding him thoughtfully, without a hint of the mistrust and wariness that he would have expected from her given his vengeful and manipulative action. There was just disappointment, a soft kind of sorrow, and a calm that had a profound effect on him.

He did not respond to her in words, he rarely did in this type of situation. It was a bizarre twist in his personality that when he really wanted to express himself he abandoned the artfulness of words.

Azazeal's expression changed and he lifted up to brush his lips softly against hers and then waited, undemanding, for her reply. As only an angel could manage, it was as heartfelt an apology as if he'd said the words and begged for forgiveness. He had communicated to her this way before and it always struck Cassie with its simplicity and effectiveness, but she didn't allow herself much time to ponder it as she took his mouth and felt all the resistance in him give way.