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“Hellions,” Priest said, and Jeremiah could all but see the grin on his face. “They’re fucking great. They’re so weird.”
Unable to help a small laugh, Jeremiah shook his head. “Yeah, they are.”
“How’s lover boy?” Priest asked, and Jeremiah growled, loud enough for Priest to hear him but soft enough he didn’t scare the shit out of any passersby.
“How about you shut the fuck up?”
“Touchy,” Priest said. “I’d think you were part Incubus with how intense you are.”
Jeremiah closed his eyes and took a calming breath. “This isn’t up for discussion right now.”
“He’s not going to die, you know,” Priest said. His words felt like a stab wound, forcing Jeremiah to think about the one scenario he couldn’t live with. “You don’t have to be afraid to love him even if he’s—”
“That’s not the issue,” he snapped, and Priest just laughed. “It isn’t. He’s a crown prince, and I’m a goddamn hellbeast. He already deals with enough, thanks to his father. When this whole thing calms down and the reality of what it would truly mean to be with me hits him, he’s going to end it. And the worst part is he’ll probably be kind and gentle about it.”
Priest sighed. “Knight’s right—your pessimism is seriously such a bummer. The first one of us to find a fated mate, and you’re acting like it’s a prison sentence.”
Jeremiah fought the urge to bare his teeth. “He’s not…” He stopped, realizing those words tasted like the most bitter lie. Remi was more than just a lover. He was so much more than a good time, or a quick fuck, or even a longer fling. He had burrowed deep into Jeremiah’s soul, and the only way to get him out would be to flay himself open. But even if it were true… it would only make everything worse. “I can’t do this right now.”
“Alright,” Priest told him, sounding kinder than he had a minute ago. “I don’t blame you for freaking out. If I got to have a fated mate…” He let out a loud, vocal shiver. “I think I might lose my mind.”
Jeremiah wanted to tell him that he wouldn’t, thinking about the soft-spoken bookstore owner Priest liked to watch from the café across the street. If anyone deserved the soul-deep bond of a fated mate, it was the men on their team. But he didn’t say anything. Priest would only try to turn that around on him, and Jeremiah was far too fragile to get his hopes up.
“When is your first outing?” he asked instead.
“Uhh… I’m taking the twins on an excursion tomorrow afternoon. They’re getting restless since their little vacation with the Dragons, so I thought I’d take them to the beach.”
Jeremiah felt his hackles rise, though it was more the trauma of their last trip than any real danger. “I hope you’ll have more than just palace guards with you.”
“A half dozen palace guards and three from the Bravo Team,” Priest said. “And we’re going to a different area this time. Knight put together a map of spots he thinks are the safest.”
Jeremiah trusted Knight with his life, but he didn’t trust whoever it was that had access to the family. He hated not being in two places at once. The whole thing felt entirely outside of his control, and it made him want to put his fist through a wall.
“You’re growling again. You’re gonna scare the fragile humans,” Priest teased.
Jeremiah pressed his hand against his throat and cleared it until the urge passed. “Keep me informed of everything.”
“You know I will. Be safe and have fun. Enjoy using your dick the way it was meant to be used!”
Jeremiah hung up before he said anything he regretted. Leaning back, he finished his coffee, then crushed the cup in his hand. It was a pathetic show of strength, but it made him feel a little better as he closed his eyes and turned his face up toward the tree cover. Bits of light filtered through the leaves, and he let out a soft breath.
He wondered what life might have been like if he’d been someone else. Who would he be with a family who loved him instead of having parents who abandoned him? Would he have gone to college? Met someone, gotten married, popped out a litter of pups?
The thought was strange and foreign, and it hurt when he realized he’d have never met his little family. The idea of living without his team felt like someone threatening to rip his heart out.
“Is this seat taken?”
Jeremiah’s eyes flew open, and he caught a growl in his chest before letting it out. His hackles rose as he felt the power radiating off the man in waves, and his claws extended, so he curled his fingers into fists. “Who are you?”
“Ozias,” the man said. He stepped fully into the shade, and Jeremiah could see him better. He was tall, broad, and aesthetically gorgeous, though he wasn’t really Jeremiah’s type. He had the sort of college-professor look with slacks and a button-up, and he was carrying a laptop bag over his shoulder.
He was smiling kindly, and he looked completely human apart from his eyes. Jeremiah couldn’t put his finger on it, but he’d definitely seen that indigo before.
“You’re not human,” he said.
“Nephilim,” Ozias offered, his smile going wider.
Jeremiah bristled. Also a pariah among his kind. A half-angel, half-human abomination, only instead of making him weaker, the human side enhanced his powers enough that his kind were considered threats to the Heavenly Hosts.
