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And it took only a second more for Jeremiah to recognize his name. “You’re Remi’s ex.”
Ozias’s face fell a little, and Jeremiah felt a wave of possessiveness threaten to take over as the man sat. He sat his laptop bag down and crossed his legs, his ankle hooked over his knee. “He talked about me?”
“Briefly,” Jeremiah grunted.
Ozias laughed very softly. “I imagine he did. I saw you with him the other day when he got back to campus.”
“Is this where you attempt to threaten me, because I can assure you, that will not go well,” Jeremiah warned.
The Nephilim held up both hands in surrender. “Not at all. Remi and I aren’t on bad terms. I know I hurt him, but I didn’t exactly have a choice.”
Jeremiah raised a brow. “His parents?”
Ozias barked a laugh. “Gods, no. They don’t care who Remi dates as long as he’s happy. But Remi and I are not meant to be.”
Godsdamned right they weren’t meant to be. But he didn’t say that aloud. He rubbed a hand down his face, then looked over at the Nephilim. “What do you want?”
“To ask if he’s okay. Not emotionally,” Ozias hurried. “But I know something’s been going on. I do my best not to listen to student gossip around campus, but I hear things. Everyone was talking about the kidnapping attempt at the club, then he disappeared for weeks. Now you’re here, and I know who you are.”
“Do you?” Jeremiah asked.
“Trident Agency. You’re not just Alpha Team—you founded it.”
“And apparently, you’re good at doing homework,” Jeremiah said.
Ozias laughed again, the sound melodic and soothing, and gods, he hated it. He hated that this man put him at ease. He could see Ozias calming all of Remi’s anxieties and fears without even trying. A Nephilim was dangerous, but they were far less hated by humans. It was likely why he was allowed to be on campus.
So why didn’t they work?
“Because he wasn’t mine,” Ozias said.
Jeremiah blinked. Had he said that aloud?
“No,” Ozias answered again. “Normally I can put up a block, but Hellhounds are notoriously difficult to shield, and you’re kind of… projecting.”
Jeremiah flushed. Hard. “That’s fucking fantastic.”
Ozias shook his head, his grin going a little softer. “It’s nothing to be worried about. I just get bursts of active thoughts. I can’t see anything. But I had to answer your question because I can tell the two of you have already started a bond, and that’s the exact reason Remi and I would never work.”
“Because of me?”
“Because the two of us belong to other people.” Ozias glanced away, his gaze far-off and almost dazed. “I really liked him. He’s so… kind, even when he’s being a little shit. And he’s so hurt by all the fucked-up people who act like it’s their mission to tear him to pieces.”
Jeremiah nodded, uncurling his hands and swiping them over the sides of his jeans. He wanted to claw the throats out of anyone who ever made Remi feel small. “It’s obvious his parents tried, but…”
“There’s only so much anyone can do,” Ozias said. “And Remi was hurt because he’s spent his whole life afraid to believe he’s capable of having a fated mate. And he still thinks I used it as an excuse to dump him when I got bored of him. I didn’t know how to tell him that I cared about him but that I wasn’t capable of loving him the way he deserved to be loved. It seemed cruel.”
Ozias was telling the truth. It was brutal and cutting, and Remi would have been destroyed by it. “So you just left him.”
“I told him the truth as much as I could. I think he believes that I thought he just wasn’t good enough for me, and I hate that. But it’s easier to let him resent me. And it feels better knowing he found you.”
Jeremiah couldn’t bring himself to say that he had no faith that this would last. Even if he and Remi were somehow blessed enough to be fated mates… It didn’t change who and what he was. No matter how much they both wanted it, Jeremiah couldn’t sit on a damn throne next to him.
“Do you think you’ll be able to keep him safe?” Ozias asked after a beat.
Jeremiah blew out a puff of air. “I want to say yes. I’m trying my damnedest, but he’s not making it easy. He wants things to feel normal, but they’re not, and we’re coming up short on leads.”
“I could… give you some suggestions on where to look,” Ozias said carefully, eyes averted.
