Straight To Heaven. Michelle Scott

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      Mr. Clerk looked from Vickie to me and back again. There was a trace of panic in his eyes. I abruptly got out of my chair. “I’m sorry, Vickie, but I’ve got to go. Maybe you and your boys could stop by later in the week.”

      Vickie took the hint, but she obviously wasn’t happy about it. She reluctantly got up and hollered at her boys to get out of the pool. “Thanks for the swim, Lil. We’ll be back.”

      To my ears, that sounded like a threat.

      After Vickie left, Mr. Clerk sighed as if he’d narrowly missed being run over by a truck. I told the girls to be careful in the pool and led my otherworldly guest into the house so we could talk. The French doors were hardly closed behind us before he fixed me with a steely look and said, “Miss Spry is very disappointed in you.”

      Other than handing out my assignments, Mr. Clerk only visited for two reasons: to watch Real Housewives or to scold me. From the look on his face, it was clear that he wasn’t there to gossip about our favorite reality stars.

      The kitchen was dim and so overly air-conditioned that I pulled my sarong up around my bare shoulders. Mr. Clerk appreciatively eyed my bathing suit, a pale-blue two-piece that showed off a large amount of skin. Believe me, this wasn’t because of how I filled it out. No, he was more interested in the fact that it was Versace. The man loved designer labels as much as I did.

      He settled himself on a bar stool next to the counter. “Tell me everything that happened this morning.”

      I took a cold Perrier from the fridge and offered it to him. When he declined, I poured some into a glass for myself, adding ice and a lime wedge. If I’d kept alcohol in the house, which I didn’t because of Ariel’s tendency to sneak it, I would have thrown in some gin. I was pretty sure it was going to be that kind of day.

      “Well, I met the client, just like you said, and I tried to get him to mail his package.”

      “And?” It was clear from his expression that he already knew how the story turned out, but was going to make me tell him anyway. Sadistic bastard.

      “He wouldn’t mail it.” At Mr. Clerk’s frown, my heart began to race. “I swear, I tried as hard as I could! But he was so resistant! And then this guardian angel showed up.”

      His eyes widened. “An angel? Are you sure?” When I nodded, he said, “You must tell Helen about this. Immediately.”

      Although I was willingly doing the Devil’s dirty work, it didn’t mean that I wanted to visit my evil overlord. “Can’t you do it?”

      “No. A guardian angel is nothing to fool around with, and if there’s one lurking about, it’s best if Helen hears it from you. She can help you get past them.”

      “But William said they were easy to seduce,” I argued. “He said he’d done it before, and it was the easiest thing in the world.”

      The tips of Mr. Clerk’s ears reddened, and he shifted uncomfortably on the bar stool. “William certainly has a sense of humor.”

      “What do you think? Would seducing an angel be a good strategy?”

      “How would I know?” he asked, sounding insulted. “That’s for Helen to decide.”

      “Fine. But I’ll need someone to watch the girls while I’m gone.” I lifted my eyebrows suggestively.

      He hopped off the bar stool and held up his hands. “Oh, no. I simply refuse!”

      “Are you sure?” I asked. “William stopped by earlier. Maybe he’ll turn up again.”

      That got his attention. “You saw William today?” The question was asked very casually, but I knew better. Mr. Clerk had a major crush on William and was jealous of any time the two of us spent together. “Do you really think he’ll come by?” Already, Mr. Clerk had resettled himself on the bar stool and was pinching the knife-edged creases in his slacks.

      “Maybe.”

      “Fine. But be back in ten minutes.”

      If I hurried, I could be back in five.

      With its oriental carpet, potted palms and fringed lamps, Miss Spry’s study was elegant and cozy. I wasn’t fooled, though. These props were only put there to prevent anyone from seeing the real Hell that lay underneath.

      Miss Spry sat behind her desk, writing in a leather-bound ledger, but the moment I walked in, she put down her fountain pen. “Lilith! Such a pleasant surprise.” She used to growl every time I came through her office door, but now that I stopped defying her and obeyed her every whim, she acted like my best friend. It was less stressful to stand before a smiling woman rather than a hot-eyed demon, but the thought of making Miss Spry happy always made me unhappy.

      I’d thrown a pair of capris and a T-shirt over my bikini, but was still woefully under dressed compared to my demon overlord who wore a smart coral twinset and pencil skirt. Her heavy, red lipstick and dark eyebrow pencil reminded me of old-fashioned actresses. So did her permed hair which she wore swept away from her forehead, Joan Crawford style.

      “I know that I made a mistake today. I swear I tried to make that man mail that package.” I tugged nervously on my watch. “I wanted to tempt him. I really did.”

      “I know you did, dear.” Her voice was syrup laced with strychnine, and though she smiled, her eyes were flinty. “However, you did fail the assignment.”

      “But there was this guardian angel, see, and…”

      Her hands clenched into fists. “Did you say guardian angel?” When I nodded, she turned her face upward and shouted, “Cheater!” She hurried from behind her desk and took me by the arm. “Listen, Lilith. This client is very, very important. So important, in fact, that I can’t let him go untempted. Therefore, I will suspend all of your assignments until you’ve seduced him. Don’t let me down!”

      “I won’t,” I promised. “And I won’t let that holy pain in the ass ruin another assignment.”

      She beamed. “That’s music to my ears! The old Lilith would have never said such a thing.”

      That’s because the old Lilith hadn’t realized how powerful or cruel demons were, or what lengths they’d go to get what they wanted. The perks of being an obedient little succubus far outweighed the punishment for rebellion. If only the inner voice of my conscience would understand and let me off the hook.

      “If you have Mr. Clerk set up another appointment, I’ll get to work,” I told her.

      Her smile deepened. “I love your new enthusiasm. Keep this up, and you’ll be as good a seductress as any of your ancestors.”

      The inner voice turned into an inner squirm as my conscience objected. Shut up, I told it, and thought about my beautiful new house.

      “We can set up another appointment, but tempting the victim won’t be easy. Not only because of the guardian angel, but because once a human resists temptation, it becomes easier to do so a second time. Still, I’ll make Patrick set up another appointment.” She rang a little silver bell on her desk, and Mr. Clerk appeared.

      “You СКАЧАТЬ