“Oh, for fuck’s sake. The damn animal is worse than you, and that’s saying something.”
Salem’s arm wraps around my shoulder as I double over, enjoying that the prince has spent much of this night being poked and prodded without recourse. Oriel wasnotwrong about how much I’d enjoy this trip, and I’m grateful as hell that they made me come here. Not only did I get to see Jasper humiliated over and over, but we’ve gotten solid clues to follow up on.
A loud roar echoes through the house, shaking it as my eyes fly wide open. “What the actualfuckwas that?”
Arces grins, his eyes full of anticipation. “That, new demon, is the Wastes telling me it’s time to go find my dinner. Rook probably came home after seeing it and I was too busy gossiping with you to notice. You should all take leave—it’s not good for demons of your age to be here after dark.”
I look at Jasper, then Slash, and they both seem perturbed, so the Keeper is telling the truth. “Okay. We’ll take off. I, um… I’ll try to get back out here before Solstice or Yule, okay?”
Arces stands, towering over me as he grins. “You do that. Make them bring you to visit.”
“I will!” The others stand, too, scooping up Dottie and ushering me to the door as the bird caws again.
I guarantee I’m not coming here alone just yet, buddy, so be ready for the crowd.
Secrets
Xerxes
KK was quiet as we headed back, and I don’t blame her. That was alotof information, even for me, and I’ve been in this caliphate most of my life. I get why Jasper kept us in the dark—in his own mega controlling way, but he was trying to protect us. If Slash and Zav can understand that, I think the rest of us can let go of our frustrations as well. Those two are the closest to him and have been for a very long time, yet he still did what he deemed necessary to save their lives if he was found out.
Jasper Eversore has a beating heart deep inside of him, but he hides it under layers of trauma and snark that scares most demons away.
Of course, that doesn’t excuse his shitastic behavior at times. He’s been shoving Kat out the door from the second she walked through it and it wasn’t because he was being noble. It was because of his father’s absolute fucking inability to care about anyone but himself and his accumulated power. That attitude being mercilessly drilled into Jas through a mostly stick and occasional crumb of carrot reward system has him completely fucked in the head. He suspects everyone will hurt him and rarely changes his mind once it’s made up. The six of us were lucky to fight through that barricade over the centuries, much less mere months.
As we approachCanto IV, I make a small noise to get everyone’s attention. When things getthisintrospective, it’s usually my job to bring them all out of their heads. “I suggest we change and gather in Salem’s room as normal.We can eat a decent meal, regroup, and discuss this mess without outside company so that tomorrow, we emerge united once more.”
KK looks at me for a second, her expression unreadable, then nods. “Alright. Dottie, Salem, and I will host if everyone promisesnotto be jackasses.”
That’s meant for the prince, who only huffs in response.
I smile gently, appreciating what that concession had to have cost her. She’s probably reeling from all the shit she learned and really needs safety and privacy. But as is her pattern since she arrived, Kat is adapting to the needs of the group as best she can while still honoring her own boundaries. Her flexibility alone should have proven to someone up there that she wasn’t human, but perhaps the isolation she forced on herself kept anyone of consequence from noticing her. Either way, I’m grateful once more that she found her way to our group.
“I’ve got stuff that won’t take long to heat, but it’s not fancy. This will be self-serve, basic fare because we’re all too tired to do more,” Salem warns. “Don’t bitch about it, or I’ll toss you out on your asses.”
Slash frowns as he holds the door open to the dorm, allowing Kat to enter. “Your efforts are always appreciated, Salem, especially now that the little demon is helping.”
Kat snorts as she enters with the big shark shifter hot on her heels. Salem and Oriel follow closely, hovering behind them. I squint at the two typically quieter demons, realizing that they’ve been glued to her since our trip above. I wonder if they have been initiated into my small club; that would explain why they’ve been much racier and clingier than normal.
It could simply be that they admitted their attraction, but I don’t believe KK would continue hiding her secret if that happened, so it’s both or neither.
“You’re thinking awfully hard,” Annie whispers to me as we follow Jasper and Zav inside. “What’s going on in that gorgeous head?”
I lean into him as he wraps an arm around me. “So many things, my love. It’s hard to nail them all down, in fact.”
Anton hums softly as the group files into the elevator. His solid presence at my side is comforting, and when I look around, I note Zav is doing similar to Jasper, while the other three are tightly ringed around Kat. I wonder if that will expand to include everyone else eventually, and what will happen when the prickly leader of our group is forced to admit his attraction to the small woman who is evolving our caliphate without trying.
“Food will be ready in about ten minutes,” Salem announces. “Or the beginning of it will. I’ll change quickly so KK can take his time, and once he’s ready, he can help put the rest of the shit in to cook. Don’t fucking dawdle about getting your knobs waxed.”
His vulgarity makes Kat flush, but no one seems to notice it as she ducks her head. I bet her imagination is running wild, and she doesn’t even know the right way to imagine such a thing. It’s kind of adorable, and I look at my mate with a knowing grin. He arches a brow, following my gaze to the red-faced newbie, then chuckles softly.
“Salem, behave,” Annie says firmly. “We get your drift. You’re going to make KitKat turn into a fucking tomato, man.”
The panda demon looks down, his expression devilish as he bumps her shoulder. “Don’t worry, Annie. KK is used to my dirty mouth; he can take it.”
That gets a snort from Oriel, and though it didn’t seem possible, Kat turns even redder as the crow winks at her.
Oh, there’s definitely something rotten in Denmark, and I’m going to find out what as soon as possible.
