Fifteen
Jerry
A s Eshim had promised, all we did for the rest of the weekend was eat, chat, and fuck.
We did try to go on a hike on Sunday, but an hour in, Eshim ended up fucking my mouth against a tree. Of all the ways I'd imagined having his dick in my mouth for the first time, up against a tree hadn't been one.
The sheer desperation and need we'd felt in that moment—because I could tell Eshim felt it just as much as me—had been unlike anything I'd ever experienced before, and I couldn't have even waited for the few seconds it would've taken Eshim to get us back to the cabin.
Eshim had held me against the tree with his arms between the tree and me so the rough bark wouldn't hurt me, and I hadn't noticed until later. Even in a moment like that, where we'd both been out of our minds with need, he'd managed to look after me.
We'd spent quite some time talking too. I'd told him a little about my experience growing up as a foster kid, and he'd confessed he remembered nothing of his human life, like most demons. He'd had a fairly good life as a demon, especially after he didn't have to torture dark souls anymore, and I was glad for that. While some demons had gotten summoned by someone in the human world at some point in their 'retirement,' Eshim had managed to avoid it.
I'd never felt about someone the way I did about Eshim, and while part of that was surely because of our mate bond, I knew it was mostly because of how wonderful Eshim was. He was sweet, kind, and seemed to understand me better than I did myself sometimes.
Ever since I was a kid, I'd struggled to bond with people. Kat and Archer were the exception, and after Kat and I separated, I didn't think I'd ever find someone I could be vulnerable with.
It was so fucking easy with Eshim. He never pushed me, never demanded more from me than I felt comfortable giving, which only made it easier to want to give him everything.
Lost in thought, I walked into work on Monday morning, and for once, I wasn't thinking about my never-ending to-do list. Instead, I was looking forward to seeing Eshim again, even though I'd just seen him last night.
I'd almost asked him to stay, but then decided against it so I could have a moment to myself to absorb everything. It'd been the right thing to do, because I felt much more relaxed now.
In the elevator, I held the door when I saw someone heading for it, and smiled at the woman who stepped inside. I was pretty sure her name was Hannah, and she was a new addition to one of our marketing teams.
She gave me a tight smile as she got in and pressed the number for her floor. Then she stayed on the other side of the elevator, as far from me as the space allowed. Had I been rude to her at some point? I didn't usually talk to the employees unless it was in regards to a project, so I was sure I'd never had a conversation with her.
When the elevator stopped on her floor, she rushed out, and I made a mental note to ask Archer about her later. If something had happened to make her uncomfortable in the office, we needed to rectify it.
On my floor, I stepped out of the elevator and almost ran into Martin, who gave me a curt, "Morning, Sir," before ducking into the elevator.
Shaking my head, I made my way to my office, smiling when I spotted Eshim already at his desk.
He grinned when he saw me and stood up, my usual coffee and cookies in his hands. He followed me into my office, placed my treats on the desk, then turned to me as I pulled off my coat, taking it from me and hanging it up as I unbuttoned my jacket.
"Did you sleep well?"
"Yep. I missed cuddling with you, though," I admitted, and his smile softened.
"Me too. Which is strange since we only did it for two nights."
"Right? Two nights and suddenly it felt like I'd always slept in your arms."
Eshim smiled, then stepped closer until there was no space between us. Cupping my hips, he leaned in and kissed me. Even though we were at work, I couldn't stop myself from kissing back.
Eshim didn't deepen the kiss. Instead, he brushed his lips against mine one more time before stepping away.
"Okay, your agenda for today. You're meeting with three different design teams about the Hanover's projects, and Martin's team has some new mockups for you to approve for the conference thing, and you have lunch with Kat and Archer. They asked me to join," Eshim gave me a wide-eyed look, and I chuckled.
"Of course they did. If Lux or Fressia worked here, they'd be invited to. They might drop by anyway."
"Oh. That's okay, then. I thought they might be planning to give me the rake talk."
"The what?" I asked as I took a sip of the coffee, the hot liquid warming me up from the inside.
"You know, that thing where a person's friends or family member give their new partner 'the talk' and warn them not to hurt their person," Eshim explained earnestly, and I chuckled. Fuck, how could a centuries-old demon be so clueless and cute?
"You mean the shovel talk," I said with a nod, and he tilted his head.
"What's the difference? Aren't they both gardening tools?"
I took a bite of the cookie to hide my smile, but I couldn't completely erase the amusement from my voice. "Yes, but shovels are used to dig and fill up holes. So the implication is they'll bury you if you hurt their friend."
Eshim blinked, visibly surprised, then nodded. "Oh, that makes sense. I wondered what the gardening tool connection was."
Hmm, did that mean all his mistakes were because he didn't know the context? That would make sense, especially since some phrases evolved so much over the years it was hard to figure out their origins sometimes.
"Thanks, for clearing that up. I can never get them right."
"That's okay. I find it adorable. You can always ask me for clarification, though, and I'll look it up online if I don't know myself."
Eshim leaned over my chair and pressed a kiss on my cheek. "Thank you. Now you better get to work. I don't want my presence to be a distraction, or Kat will fire me."
"I wouldn't let her."
"It was part of the deal, remember?" he admonished, and I sighed.
We'd talked things over with Kat and Archer since Eshim wanted to keep his job, and we'd decided Kat would be responsible for his performance reviews, bonuses, and everything else. It would free me up from any professional control over Eshim, and make sure everyone in the office knew everything was aboveboard.
"Yeah, yeah. That reminds me—we have a meeting with HR today to get everything in writing, right?"
"Yep, at 04:30. Now work."
"Yes, sir," I teased, and Eshim shot me a smirk before leaving with my now-empty cup of coffee and the cookie dish.
Time to get to work and stop thinking about my hot demon boyfriend. Should be easy with him right there on the other side of the glass. Not.
Eshim
Something was off. I kept hearing whispered conversations from the floor below, but it was too far to hear clearly even for me. After hearing Jerry's name multiple times, though, I decided to investigate. The floor below us housed the design teams, so it wasn't unusual for them to be talking about Jerry, but his name had never come up quite so many times in a single conversation before, or I'd have noticed.
Sticking my head into Jerry's office, I told him I'd be back in five, then took the elevator downstairs.
As soon as I stepped out, I felt like all the eyes were on me. Since I couldn't exactly go up to someone and ask them why they were talking about my man, I made my way to the break room, as if we didn't have one on our floor.
I grabbed a cup and started pouring myself some coffee, keeping an ear out for any hint of the conversation that had suddenly shut down at my arrival.
"You should talk to him," a man whispered.
"You do it. It'll be easier for you."
"Just because I'm gay doesn't mean I'm good at conversations like that. I'm still a man."
I snorted at that, then listened as they argued about who would talk to me. I had half a mind to stick my head out and pick one myself, but I wasn't supposed to be able to hear them from so far away. Before I could decide what to do, a woman declared, "I'll do it!"
A few moments later, a brown-haired, hazel-eyed woman stuck her head into the breakroom, smiling when she spotted me.
"Hey. Eshim, right?"
I smiled. "Yep, that's me. Sorry, I don't know your name."
"I'm Tanya. Tanya Brown."
"Nice to meet you, Tanya Brown."
She smiled as she grabbed a cup and filled it, then turned to me. "Are you okay?"
Brows furrowing, I tilted my head at her. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"
"Well, we heard what Mr. Cohen did, and we just wanted to check in. If you want to lodge a complaint with HR, I'd be happy to accompany you."
I blinked at her, and even the implication that Jerry had done something untoward made me angry.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
Her eyes widened, but she pushed on, as if she thought I was being defensive. I was defensive. Defensive of my sweet mate who'd never done anything for them to think badly of him, who'd been so fucking worried about being with me specifically because of this.
"Mr. Cohen. We heard he was being inappropriate with you at the party. And that he's pressuring you into being with him."
"And where did you hear this?"
Tanya blinked, then bit her lower lip, reluctant.
"Tell me. I want to know who's so concerned about me, especially since you guys have known Mr. Cohen for years while I'm a newbie. Who convinced you Jerry was being inappropriate?"
She frowned, as if she hadn't thought about it before. "Uh, it was Martin. He's the one who saw you at the party."
"Of course he was. Well, let me clear up the confusion. Jerry and I are dating because I asked him out. He has no control over me because Kat is responsible for my paychecks and everything it entails. We also have a meeting with HR today so everything will be aboveboard. You can tell the others that, and ask them if Jerry has ever been anything but professional with them in all their time working here."
I was seething, but I tried to keep my anger in check because she wasn't the one to blame. Sure, I was annoyed they'd all believed Martin so easily, but with the way the human world was, I could understand that.
What I didn't understand was why Martin would stir shit up like that. No, scratch that. I understood completely. He'd tried to make Jerry out to be a bad guy when I first got here too.
I'd never asked Jerry, but I wondered if Martin had tried to proposition him and gotten shot down. I knew the only reason Jerry had said yes to me was because he knew I didn't depend on this job, that I had no interest in getting a raise or a promotion. I only wanted this job so I could take care of Jerry, but that wasn't the case with everyone else, especially Martin. He was ambitious, and I was sure he thought he could get ahead by getting into Jerry's bed. He didn't seem like a guy used to being rejected, and he was clearly lashing out.
No one was allowed to make my Jerry out to be a bad guy. Jerry was one of the kindest, sweetest humans I'd met. Sure, he was a little guarded and didn't let people in easily, but I understood that. I couldn't imagine how rough his childhood had been, never having a proper home or family. It was bound to leave its scars.
Despite that, Jerry had managed to build a life for himself, and a successful business with the most important people in his life, and I'd be damned if I let one puny human ruin his stellar reputation.
Martin was going to regret every lie he'd spoken about my mate. I was going to make sure of it.