Chapter 10 Dex
DEX
The universe hated Dex, so of course, he had work Monday morning. He’d usually have the day off, but one of the team was out sick. Ollie suggested Dex call in sick, too, but Dex couldn’t do it. Wallowing wouldn’t help.
The morning rush would do him good. No need to feel sick over kissing the Devil when there was coffee to brew.
“Office Daddy is back,” Justine whispered as Dex frothed milk.
He rolled his eyes. “Shush. What if he hears you call him that?”
“He won’t. He’s at the back of the line.” Justine handed a customer their muffin with a have a nice day before turning back to Dex. “I swear, he’s going to ask you out. Today’s the day.”
Luckily, Justine had to serve the next person, who seemed to be ordering coffee for their entire office, allowing Dex to finish making this latte in peace.
He shook out his wrist before moving on to the next order. Everything ached as if his bad night’s sleep had beaten him up.
He looked from the machine to the growing line of customers. ‘Office Daddy’—who was actually named Holt—wouldn’t ask Dex out. He was hot, older, worked in insurance, and always wore a stylish suit and glasses, hence the nickname Justine had given him.
Holt had been a regular at Seaside Coffee for months. He was admittedly flirty, but Dex didn’t get the impression it was more than that. Besides, he couldn’t have been feeling it any less today if he tried.
The line progressed steadily, and Dex turned his full attention to the stream of orders, losing himself in the familiarity of it all.
“Dex.” Holt smiled as he moved away from the register to wait for his coffee. “Don’t often see you on a Monday.”
Dex smiled reflexively. “Right? It’s throwing me off.”
Holt’s gaze dragged over Dex in a way that usually felt good. “I’ll take it as a good sign. My week must be looking up.”
The familiar ego boost didn’t hit. Dex laughed awkwardly and turned toward the coffee grinder.
Not feeling it was right. Holt’s comments had never put him off-balance before.
Maybe Holt sensed Dex’s discomfort because he didn’t say anything else until thanking him for his coffee before leaving.
As Dex kept pace with the incoming orders, he imagined Holt making a move, asking for his number, or saying he wanted to take Dex to dinner.
Not a hint of excitement stirred.
Why was that? Holt was Dex’s type, and a hookup would be hot, no doubt about it, but Dex had no desire to go on a date with the man. Suddenly, he wasn’t any more open to the idea of a relationship than he’d been before.
Hadn’t Dex decided he was ready to get back out there? Why did the temptation of more seem to be exclusive to one objectively terrible man?
It must be too soon to try again. Once Dex recovered from the shock of who Luc was—never mind the shock of magic existing—he’d be all for dates with hot older guys with arms that looked like they could bench-press him…or other things. If Dex figured out how to ask.
On his break, Dex collapsed onto a worn couch in the staff area with a coffee. He checked his phone, surprised to find he’d been added to a new group chat by Onyx of all people. Or should he say of all demons?
Dex hardly remembered talking to Onyx yesterday, other than exchanging numbers at Ollie’s insistence. Everything after seeing Luc with horns and wings was a blur.
He opened the chat.
Your Favorite Group Chat:
Dex Colt has been added.
Onyx:
Welcome, Dex. You’re now part of the cool crowd.
Harper:
Dex is here? Isn’t this a mates chat?
Onyx:
It’s your favorite group chat. See the name change? Besides, you don’t see Nico here, do you?
Harper:
No, but he’s your mate.
Anyway. Welcome, Dex!
Ollie:
Yay! This is so much better. Now Dex can join our food tour.
Onyx:
Good idea. Who wants to go out tonight?
Harper:
Me!
Ollie:
I’m down.
Here they were, talking about mates again. The three of them seemed like good friends. When had that happened? Dex had no idea Ollie had become close with Onyx.
He replied.
Dex:
Hey. Thanks for adding me. I’m free tonight.
Onyx:
That’s what I like to hear. Do you have any food allergies I should know about?
Dex:
No. All good.
Harper:
Are we going somewhere fancy?
Onyx:
That could be arranged.
Harper:
Yes, please. I have a new outfit.
Onyx:
Perfect! Harper and I are dressing up. Take note and act accordingly.
Ollie:
I’m not dressing up. You’ll be lucky if I do laundry and have a fresh shirt.
Dex chewed his nails as the messages streamed in, feeling like he was intruding. Going out for fancy dinners wasn’t his usual thing. Ollie’s either, as far as he knew. Maybe it wouldn’t be that fancy. It’s not like Ollie or Harper were in the same income bracket as Onyx.
Dex:
Are Ash and Dante coming to dinner?
Onyx:
Eww. No.
Harper:
Hey…
Onyx:
Sorry! Habit.
While I love not hating Ash so much, this is an *us* thing.
What did that mean? Harper had said something about the chat being a mate thing, but now that Dex was here, it couldn’t be. Whatever. It didn’t matter.
Harper:
You mean a short people thing? Oh, no. Wait. I’m here. *devil emoji*
Onyx:
I’m starting to see why you’re Ash’s mate.
Harper:
Sorry. Was that mean?
I can’t help it. You get so prickly, and literally no one cares how tall you are.
Onyx:
Mean? You think I can’t take a little teasing? Brace yourself for my retort.
Dex never would have guessed that being in a group chat with someone who ran a renowned gallery would be so…
normal. He could almost forget what a big deal going to dinner with Onyx was.
Everyone in the Shearwater Landing art world had heard of him and Gallery Four, and anyone Dex went to school with would kill for this opportunity.
Harper:
…
I’m waiting.
Guess you’ve got nothing.
Onyx:
You’re a bit of a brat.
I like it.
Ollie:
He is not. Harper is pure sweetness.
Harper:
*devil emoji*
Onyx:
I think we scared Dex away.
@Harper you know there are other emojis right?
Dex:
I’m still here.
Harper:
*devil emoji*
Dex:
Gotta get back to work. See you tonight.
Dex arrived at the restaurant right on time in a button-up shirt he couldn’t remember the last time he’d worn. He was lucky it fit.
He’d walked to the Arts District, hoping to clear his head, and had only gotten sweaty for his trouble. The restaurant was intimidating, to say the least. Everything screamed expensive, from the brushed silver door handle to the upholstered chairs and elegant light fixtures.
Dex smoothed his shirt and gave the hostess Onyx’s name. She smiled and led him through the mood-lit room and up a set of stairs to a rooftop patio, where an honest-to-god harpist sat in the corner, plucking at her instrument.
Dex hurried to close his gaping mouth. Good thing he was selling his condo if he was buying dinner here.
The hostess showed him toward a round table overlooking a garden where Onyx was seated alone, focused on the music. Dex shouldn’t have bothered dressing up. He looked like he’d come for a job interview, and Onyx looked like he’d walked out of a magazine.
The demon’s blue hair was perfect, his posture reminiscent of Luc’s easy grace. He wore a sheer white blouse and a silver choker, looking every bit the influential gallery owner.
Dex’s stomach flipped. He should have met Ollie and Harper at their place and ridden with them so he wouldn’t have been caught alone with Onyx.
“Here we are,” the hostess announced.
Onyx’s attention snapped toward them. “Thank you, Claire.”
She nodded and left.
“Um. Hi.” Dex pulled out a chair. “Thanks so much for inviting me.”
Onyx waved off his thanks with a careless hand. “My pleasure. Ollie tells me you’re a bit of a foodie.”
“Yeah?” Dex sat, trying to ignore the twist settling in his gut. He didn’t know that much about food.
“Me too.” Onyx leaned in conspiratorially. “This place has one of the best tasting menus in the city.”
“Great.” Dex glanced at the menu. There were no prices. Fuck.
Should he ask Onyx about the cost? He took the glass of water closest to him and sipped, wetting his rapidly drying throat.
Onyx had apparently already ordered a bottle of red wine, which sat on the table next to three glasses. The demon lifted the bottle. “Do you like pinot noir? Claire went ahead and opened it so it could breathe.”
Dex shifted in his seat, folding his hands on the table, then on his lap. “Sure, thanks.”
Onyx deftly poured what seemed like a tiny amount of wine into Dex’s admittedly massive wineglass. “We need to go wine tasting to nail down the others’ preferences. Harper had never even heard of pinot noir or pinot grigio, bless him.”
Dex laughed shakily as Onyx set the wine aside. “Don’t you want any?”
Onyx wrinkled his nose. “I don’t drink human beverages. Wait…” He leaned in once more, his voice dropping to a whisper. “Has anyone told you about the blood drinking?”
Dex swallowed. “No.” Blood drinking? He would not panic. Not in front of Onyx. He would remain still and calm.
“Don’t fret. No one is asking you for a sip. We demons require blood to maintain our immortality in this realm, but we source it all ethically these days.”
Dex had a large gulp of wine, choking slightly. “Immortality?”
What. The. Actual. Fuck.
Onyx’s brows rose. “Ollie didn’t tell you?”
“No. He told me about magic and the afterlife,” Dex whispered, glancing around to make sure no one was listening.
Yeah, he’d had trouble processing everything yesterday, but no way he’d missed something this major.
Ash and Dante hadn’t mentioned how much time had passed when explaining Luc’s story, and Dex hadn’t wondered, even though falling to Earth made him think of the Bible and things that would have happened a long time ago.
Fuck, maybe he had missed some important cues.
Was Onyx saying he, Dante, and Ash were immortal? Was Luc? Dammit, his name was Lucifer. Dex had to stop thinking of him as Luc.
And stop thinking about him, period.