Three
Xin
Once again, I stood at Gabriel's door, still just as clueless about the mate business as I had been when I first saw him and realized he was my mate.
I'd thought about asking one of my demon friends for advice but then nixed the idea.
Telling one of them was like telling all of them, and while most of my friends had one or two demons they were closer to than the rest, I didn't. While I cared about them dearly, I'd always preferred Hella's company—the big black demonhound who'd lived in the demon world with us and now split her time between all our human residences—over the others.
I had no idea how to take the next step in making Gabriel mine, but I knew helping him with his mission was part of it.
I knocked on the door, and barking preceded the soft footsteps, making me smile. I could tell the barks were excited, and the fact that Gabriel's dog clearly liked me had to be a point in my favor, right?
The door opened, and Gabriel waved me inside, closing it behind us with a soft click.
Gray hurried up to me, his large paws landing on my chest as he tried to lick my face.
He was quite big, a little bigger than Hella, and I wondered what she would think of him.
I scratched behind his ear, and he licked my hand, then pulled away from me.
I watched as he walked across the room and climbed onto the couch and curled up into a ball, apparently tired from the excitement.
"Sorry about that," Gabriel mumbled, and I waved him off, unsure what he was apologizing for. "Renée should be here soon."
I nodded, and for a moment, we just stood there awkwardly as I tried to find something to say. I really wanted to connect with him, but I wasn't good with people, especially human people. It was why I'd rarely left home except for my regular patrols since I got here from the demon realm.
Even when I'd lived in New York before moving to this city to replace my friend Eshim so he could move to the same city as his mate, I hadn't gone out much.
The human world was beautiful, but also too big and hectic.
It was overwhelming, to be honest. I'd gone out more since Gabriel contacted me, even if it was just to his apartment and back.
"I did some research," I said finally, realizing the only common thing we had right now was his mission, so I should focus on that.
"Yeah? Find anything interesting?"
"Depends on what you think counts as interesting," I said, and his lips curved in a barely there smile.
I'd noticed he rarely expressed himself, his face always a blank mask behind which he hid whatever he was feeling.
It made me want to break his mask, to make him feel things strongly enough that he couldn't help showing it on his face.
"Anything that might prove helpful to us?"
"Definitely. I'm still compiling all the data, but so far I've got access to his call data, his emails and socials, and his GPS data from his phone and car.
I can effectively track his movements and schedule for any period of time.
" I imagined Gabriel already had access to some of that data since he worked as an executive assistant for him, the job his brother had once held.
That part worried me. If anything went wrong, if the plan to prove Patrick's crimes failed in any way, Gabriel would automatically become suspect number one.
I wouldn't let that happen.
"That's impressive," Gabriel said, his deep voice warm and appreciative. I didn't need to see it on his face to know he admired my skills.
My hacking was a mix of magic and actual coding, something only I could do—as far as I knew—and I was glad Gabriel had approached me for his mission.
"I have a question," I said, thinking about my 'interview.'
Gabriel stared at me for a moment, then dipped his head in the slightest nod. He was clearly wary of whatever I was about to ask. Did he think I wanted to know more about his brother? Well, I did, but now wasn't the time to ask about that.
"The man you made me steal from and donate to charity? How did you know I'd succeeded?"
Gabriel relaxed, and he almost smiled again as he said, "Patrick had a meeting with Edward, so I got to watch his reaction when he received the text about his gracious donation."
"Ah," I murmured, wishing I could've been there.
I'd never wondered before how the people I stole from felt, but now I did.
The people I stole from already had more money than they'd ever need, and yet they insisted on hoarding more.
It was why I enjoyed stealing from them and giving the money to the people who actually needed it.
If I could get away with it, I would steal from the richest humans to make the human world a better place, but there was only so much I could do without getting noticed, and something like that would draw a lot of attention, something the Otherworlders—my bosses, for want of a better term—wouldn't allow.
Our phones buzzed simultaneously, and we shared a glance before checking them. It was a text from Renée, apologizing that she couldn't be there because of a family emergency, and could we reschedule?
"Is tomorrow night okay?" Gabriel asked, his dark brown eyes gleaming in the phone's light.
"Yeah," I answered, and he tapped out a reply, making my phone buzz. "I suppose I'll see you tomorrow, then."
I took a step back toward the door, wishing I had an excuse to stay. As if to help me out, my stomach growled, and Gabriel's gaze dropped to my belly, lingering for a moment before he met my eyes.
"Would you like to stay for dinner? I could use the company."
Well, that was what I'd wanted, wasn't it?
Gabriel
Why had I done that? What could be gained from having dinner with Xin?
They were just a pawn in my game, and I should be treating them as such. I should not be inviting them to have dinner with me, especially when I knew without a doubt I wouldn't have made the same offer if Renée had been here too.
What was it about Xin that made me act so unlike myself?
"I'd like that," they said, and I nodded like a damn bobblehead. Then I remembered I didn't have any food in the apartment because I hadn't had time to go grocery shopping. "Is takeout okay?"
"Of course," they said, giving me a smile that brightened their whole face. If I didn't know better, I'd say they glowed from the inside, but that would be ridiculous. This whole thing was absolutely ridiculous.
I ordered some Chinese food as Xin drifted across the room—really, they walked in a way that looked like they were walking on air—and joined Gray on the couch, who immediately clambered half onto their lap.
Xin grinned as they scratched beneath his chin, then turned to me. "How old is he?"
"About nine years. Kevin adopted him from a rescue when he was a few months old."
Greyhounds lived for ten to fifteen years, a fact I'd rather not think about.
While I wasn't the dog's biggest fan—clearly, Xin was competing for that title—Kevin had loved him.
Every time I held him or petted him, I could imagine my brother doing the same so very clearly.
I was scared of the day I would lose him, my last real connection to my brother.
Xin cooed as they ran their fingers through Gray's fur, and I shook my head as I sat down in the armchair kitty-corner from the couch. Gray glanced back at me, then at Xin, conflicted about who he wanted to be petted by. Too lazy to move, he slumped harder against Xin, making them laugh.
When the food arrived, I dished it all up, then nudged Gray off the couch as I set everything on the coffee table as Xin kept Gray from trying to climb back up.
As I finished up, Gray finally got the message and retreated to his dog bed, which was almost as big as a single bed and sat near the glass windows so he could watch the birds during the daytime.
We didn't talk much as we ate, but it was nice. I couldn't remember the last time I'd shared a meal with someone who wasn't a work colleague or my dog.
Xin ate their meal with relish, and I ate more than I usually did, as if just their presence improved my appetite. Having some company every now and then wasn't bad.
Ever since I lost my brother, I'd struggled to maintain any kind of friendships or relationships.
For most of my life, my brother had been my everything.
Our parents had died when I was just nine, but Kevin had been eighteen, and he'd taken custody of me so I wouldn't end up in the system.
He'd worked three jobs to support us so I could stay in school, so I wouldn't have to give up my violin lessons, and he'd never once made me feel like a burden.
He'd been my best friend, my brother, and my parent all rolled into one.
And then, just after I turned eighteen, he'd been arrested for stealing from his company.
I'd visited him in jail as much as I could, and together, we'd figured out that the only one who could've done everything my brother had been convicted for was his boss.
We didn't have any proof of course, not that it would've mattered.
Patrick had been rich even back then, and I was sure he'd paid some people to make the conviction smoother.
I'd been nineteen when my brother started getting sick, and in six months, he was gone. Cancer was like that, especially when detected too late. If he hadn't been in jail, he could've gone to the doctor sooner. If we'd caught it in time, he could've gotten treatment. He could still be alive.
Patrick Lewis hadn't just sent an innocent man to jail. He was responsible for his death. He'd killed my brother, and that was why I'd spent every moment since then working hard to get here, to be in a position to finally make him pay.
At one point, I'd entertained the idea of simply killing him, of removing him from this world. But that wouldn't prove my brother's innocence. Even though he was gone, I wanted the world to know he'd been framed. Kevin was a good man, and I wanted everyone to know that.
"Gabriel? Are you okay?"
I dropped the chopsticks, startled. I'd forgotten I wasn't alone. How had I forgotten? I never let my guard down around people. Ever.
Carefully, I gripped my chopsticks again, ignoring the slight shake in my hand, then glanced at Xin. They were watching me with furrowed brows, their slanted eyes searching my face as if they might see my thoughts printed on my skin.
"I'm fine. Just lost in thought."
I flinched as Xin reached across the cartons of food, and they slowed their movement as they patted the back of my free hand before pulling away. "We'll get him."
Warmth filled my chest, and I was surprised by my own reaction to their simple words. Why did they mean so much to me, coming from them? They seemed to radiate sincerity, and I wondered why they sounded so determined. This was just another job to them, wasn't it?
I finished the rest of my meal quickly, confused by them and my own thoughts. Asking them to stay had been a bad idea. I couldn't afford any distractions, not when I was so close to my objective.
Xin insisted on helping me with the dishes, and when our fingers brushed as they handed me the rinsed plates, I forced myself not to react, not to notice how warm their fingers were. They were like a furnace, and I could feel the heat coming off them as we stood side by side in front of the sink.
To stop myself from focusing on them, I started talking.
I told them more about Patrick and Kevin than I had in our meetings earlier, things I hadn't intended to share with them or Renée but couldn't help myself from saying out loud.
They listened intently without offering empty platitudes or words of sympathy that always felt more like pity.
When I stopped speaking, they merely met my gaze, theirs as calm and determined as ever, and repeated the promise they'd made earlier: "We'll get him."
Nodding, I took the next dish from them, and it slipped from my fingers. Reacting faster than what should've been humanly possible, they grabbed the dish before it could fall, the first two fingers of their hand clasping mine over the plate. Why was their skin so damn hot?
Glancing up, I found their eyes on me, and I swallowed hard, then jerked my hand away as I took an unsteady step back. They held the plate out to me, and I almost ripped it out of their grip, then quickly wiped it down.
If they said anything, I didn't hear it over the thundering of my heart, and as soon as the dishes were done, I herded them out the door after they'd kissed Gray goodnight, much to his delight.
Closing the door after them, I leaned my back against it and released a deep sigh, my heart still racing a little faster than usual.
No distractions, I reminded myself. No. Distractions.