He thought about the way Malik had said it’s complicated every time Indy had asked. This was about as complicated as it could get. He couldn’t imagine owing demons. They scared the crap out of him.
But then he thought about Malik standing at the grill, turning a steak with intense focus. Malik crouching in front of the armchair in the bedroom, giving Indy time to pull away before he touched him. The quiet sincerity in his voice when he’d said, “I’d like it if you were there” and meaning it.
Indy glanced at his mate.
Malik was staring at the floor again.
His mate was ashamed.
Indy understood shame. He’d worn his own version of it for years, apologizing for taking up space, of allowing his dad to “handle it” because it had been easier. Indy knew what it felt like to tell the truth and unable to look at the person whose opinion mattered most.
The confession didn’t make him look at Malik any differently. If anything, it made him feel even more connected to his mate.
Grayson spoke first, voice low. “How long have they been after you?”
“A few weeks,” Malik admitted. “They caught up to me today, right before I ended up at Indy’s shop.”
“Then you came here,” Reese stated, his hand absently rubbing Sonny’s side. Indy imagined Malik rubbing his. His mate was tense, still standing in the middle of the room like he was waiting to be stoned. Indy was dying to go to him, but held back, unsure if Malik would welcome his touch while this vulnerable.
“The dogs needed help.” Malik’s jaw tightened. “I should’ve said something sooner. I know that.”
Indy thought about the two creepy figures in the rain, the watcher in the trees, whatever it had been. Thought about his flower shop, which smelled like earth and petals and was the only thing he’d built entirely on his own.
Now, two demons knew its address.
He thought about how Malik still hadn’t looked at him.
“So the ten grand…” Indy piped up.
Every head in the room turned toward him. Malik’s chin lifted, but his gaze landed somewhere around Indy’s collarbone rather than his face.
“Is that the whole number?” Indy forced out the question, refusing to show just how much he hated being the center of attention. “Or is ten thousand the number you’re comfortable saying out loud?”
A beat.
“That’s the number,” Malik said.
“Okay.” Indy nodded. “And the demons collecting it… Are they the kind you can pay off or the kind where the money stopped being the point somewhere along the way?”
Malik finally met his gaze.
It was brief, a second at most, but it landed directly, no skipping stones this time, just eye contact that had weight behind it. Something in Malik’s expression shifted, something that looked almost like relief before the shuttered look came back down over it.
“I have no idea,” he replied.
“At least you didn’t tell me it’s complicated,” Indy said. “I’ll take it.”
Outside the window, the oak trees were invisible in the dark, though the occasional sound of wind moving through branches could be heard.
Indy wanted time to himself. This was a lot to think about. Everything felt as if it had gone so fast. Not only had he found his mate, but also discovered the cheetah was dealing with demons.
Actual demons, not just the metaphorical kind. Ten grand. A gambling problem. Getting chased in the rain.
But most of all, Indy had a mate who wouldn’t keep eye contact with him.
It would’ve been easy to walk out of the room like the others had, but Malik stood by the unlit fireplace, looking like a man waiting for a sentence to be handed down to him.
Indy wasn’t sure what to say, but he couldn’t leave his mate standing there feeling all alone.
