Chapter Eight
Atlas
One week. It had only been one week and Atlas was going to lose his mind. Dating, or courting as Bel referred to it, was nice and all. Made Atlas feel cherished and important. But Atlas was ready to move to the next step. Couldn’t he at least get a damn kiss?
Rolling out of bed, Atlas’s feet hit the stone floor and it warmed under his bare feet.
Every night after Bel and Atlas worked in the office, Bel took Atlas to some new part of hell, a different restaurant, or someplace that Bel remembered from when he was younger.
Bel was showing Atlas his amazing world.
Telling Atlas stories that he claimed he hadn’t thought about in ages.
And there was always a new token or a special gift for Atlas waiting for him in the mornings.
They spent all their time together. And yet Bel still hadn’t made a move on him.
It was time that Atlas took matters into his own hands.
Bel was always commenting about how easygoing Atlas was. That Atlas’s acceptance of him, hell, and everything paranormal bewildered him. Well, Bel was about to see what happened when Atlas went after something he wanted.
And he wanted Bel.
He wanted his mate.
The mate bond that everyone talked about? That was totally a real thing.
Atlas needed to be close to Bel. Even working in the same room wasn’t enough. Using the magic that flowed so freely in the private plane, Atlas had taken Bel’s suggestion to start making changes to the house. The first change was making a desk big enough that they could share.
Striding toward the bathroom, Atlas mentally prepared for the day ahead.
He’d already worked hard getting Bel’s paperwork in order.
Apparently Bel’s work was vital to the running of the realm.
Bel’s team had to approve souls that could be moved to another punishment level.
His team gathered the details of crimes and punishment completed but only Bel could sign off the soul moving levels.
His mate refused to allow Atlas to read the crimes committed by the souls.
Atlas had pushed his mate, wanting to do everything that the old assistant had handled, but Bel was adamant that Atlas not see how much evil was really out in the world.
Like Atlas didn’t know that from personal experience.
Still it was sweet that Bel wanted to protect him. So instead, Atlas stamped the papers for the souls that Bel agreed could be moved, and rejected the ones that Bel told him. And sent emails to the team.
Bel’s team of demons was massive. He’d only met a handful that had come into the office during the last week and one thing was clear. These demons took their jobs very seriously.
They were also very happy to meet Atlas and for Bel to have found his mate. A mate that Bel was dragging his feet at claiming.
If Bel wasn’t going to claim him, then Atlas would do it.
He just wasn’t actually sure if that was something that he could do. No one had told him what the claiming consisted of. Sex yes. Adam had been only too happy to tell him about all the sex he and his mate had. What else? And who should be ask?
His phone was full of possible candidates.
Atlas had been welcomed with open arms and had plenty of friends to choose from.
Adam and Asmos were an immediate no. They already shared too much without Atlas asking.
Seb would probably send him a spreadsheet and Ari would share more research material.
One person came to mind. Gage. Gage might be the best to draw into this.
He was mischievous enough to help but would also keep the teasing down to a minimum.
Taking care of his morning business and showering, Atlas made up his mind.
If Bel wasn’t going to initiate, then Atlas would. Atlas was tired of waiting. He knew in his heart where and who he belonged to. If after a week he felt like this, how would two weeks, a month, a year feel?
It was also important to show Bel more of his true self.
Yes, Atlas was small and most took that as him being on the submissive side. That couldn’t be further from the truth. There were times when Atlas enjoyed submitting but they were few and far between.
Even as the smaller partner Atlas had no problem taking control. He loved being able to hold a big man down and give him what he really wanted.
Would Bel allow that?
There was only one way to find out. Atlas wasn’t too worried. If the fates that these demons loved to talk about really did match up mates perfectly, then Atlas’s mate would want, maybe crave, the same thing Atlas did.
By the time Atlas stepped into the shared office, he was sweating with nerves and anticipation. First things first. A kiss. Atlas was getting his damn kiss.
He came to an abrupt stop as Bel and three others turned at his entrance. Mammon he recognized, but with him was another demon and someone who appeared fully human.
“Uh, hi.” Atlas gave a small wave. New friends? Or had something happened? Hell sure was a hopping place with everything that they had to deal with. And Atlas only knew a small portion of what happened in the realm. He couldn’t imagine how busy Lucifer truly was.
“Atlas!” Bel hurried around the desk, rushing to his side.
“Is everything okay?” he asked. It had been a few days since Bel had been this flustered. The demon prince had just started to relax around Atlas and Atlas hated seeing him like this again.
“It will be fine,” Bel assured him.
Or Atlas took it that Bel was trying to be reassuring. Turning, Atlas wrapped his arm around Bel’s waist, making sure to avoid his wings. He gave a little smile when Bel’s tail wrapped around Atlas’s ankle. Connecting them. Tying them together. “Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?”
“Both?” Bel offered with a small smile.
“Get me some coffee and we’ll figure it out,” Atlas told his mate.
Bel nodded while walking them forward. “I don’t think you’ve met Tristan and Jason. They are the ones that went to investigate your family’s deaths.”
“Hello.” Atlas nodded at the two strangers. “Thank you for your help.”
The human, Jason, grinned. He was an attractive man in worn jeans, black boots, and a black leather jacket. His mate was more on the pretty side. Together they were nearly breathtaking. “We’re happy to assist. Wish we had better news.”
“But we will get this rogue pack,” Tristan’s promise ended with a growl. “And when I do.” He made a twisting motion with both his hands.
Jason patted his mate’s back. “I know, honey.”
The fire flared to life as two couches materialized in front of it.
“Shall we sit?” Bel offered.
Atlas kept Bel close to his side as they crossed the room.
He sat, pulling Bel down with him. Physical touch was one thing that Atlas noticed that Bel didn’t initiate but seemed to appreciate.
Holding hands, small touches across Bel’s shoulders, anytime that Atlas could, he tried to show Bel his feelings.
As Mammon, Jason, and Tristan settled across from them, Bel handed Atlas a full mug of coffee.
“Thanks,” Atlas whispered before taking a sip. As always the temperature was perfect. He drank half the cup before adjusting to lean a shoulder against Bel.
Bel’s arms went around his shoulders.
“Okay, so what did you find out?” Atlas asked.
Jason cleared his throat. “There were two packs in your town at the time you lived there. The first was a family pack living in one house on the edge of town that gave them access to enough land to shift.”
He stiffened. Atlas couldn’t help it. When he closed his eyes, he could still see that fucking house. “The ones that killed my family?”
“They didn’t,” Jason responded.
Atlas opened his mouth to argue but Jason held up a hand.
“I assure you that they didn’t,” Jason told him. “They knew that you were watching them. Had heard rumors about the human that had the gift of sight. Those were the words they used.”
“You spoke to them?” Atlas demanded.
“We tracked them down to a territory in New Mexico. After fleeing their home, they connected with a bigger pack who took them in,” Jason explained.
“You believe that they had nothing to do with my family’s murder?”
“We do.” Jason leaned back to cuddle against his mate’s chest. “Nice family. They’ve never hurt anyone.”
“How could you know that for sure?”
“I know,” Tristan told him. “I could see it in their auras.”
Atlas’s stomach rolled. He’d been wrong? The shifters hadn’t killed his family? “But then…who?”
“The other pack,” Jason answered. “The ones that forced the family pack out of town.”
Those men had been scary. They’d watched Atlas. Almost stalked him. “Why? We didn’t do anything to them. Why?” Saliva pooled at the back of his throat and Atlas had to swallow hard.
Bel removed the mug from his hand, sending it away before pulling Atlas onto his lap to wrap both arms around him. Atlas soaked up the comfort offered by his mate.
“We think they heard the rumors about you. The lynx shifters. The family pack that lived in town said it was common knowledge in the paranormal community in the area that you were different,” Jason said.
Atlas looked to Bel. “We never told anyone.”
“No one?” Bel asked quietly. “Didn’t you say that your parents had you tested?”
“Yes but—”
“Your grandmother contacted a witch in the area,” Jason said. “That’s what the pack told us.”
“She did?” Atlas was shocked. “Wait! She knew about witches too?”
Bel rubbed his back. “I think she knew more than you realize.”
“What about my mom?” Atlas asked. It was something he couldn’t figure out after learning that he was a quarter demon. “Wouldn’t she have been half demon?”
Bel shook his head. “She would have had demon blood. That doesn’t mean she wasn’t fully human in appearance or biologically.”
“I don’t understand,” Atlas admitted.
“Me either,” Jason said before meeting Atlas’s gaze. “I tend to leave the thinking to my twin. I’m more the action sibling.”
Atlas was going to like Jason. He nodded.
“Demon biology is complicated,” Bel offered.
Atlas snorted. “No kidding.”