Chapter Five
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WHEN TEX OPENED HIS eyes the next morning, he was surrounded by plants. He blinked, wondering if this was what would happen every time he and Nymon were together. He didn’t have a problem with it, but it was a lot.
Some of the plants on the nightstand had reached out and covered part of Tex’s shoulder, as if they were trying to keep him in bed. Since the plants were linked to Nymon’s magic, maybe they were.
Was this what their home would look like once they moved in together?
Tex couldn’t wait to find out. That meant that he and Nymon needed to plan, though.
They’d talked yesterday, and they wanted the same things, but it would be a lot of work to obtain them.
They needed to get Nymon out of the village, and Tex couldn’t ask him to leave with nothing.
It might not be a proper move depending on what would happen, but Nymon would need to pack a few bags at the very least. He also had to talk to his best friend.
Nymon hadn’t mentioned a family yesterday, and it made Tex curious.
Was Nymon going to talk to them? Did he have a family at all?
It was possible that he didn’t, which was sad, but he could have Tex’s.
It wouldn’t be the same thing, especially since Nymon would have to leave his best friend behind, but Tex would do anything in his power to help his mate feel as comfortable as possible after they left Starhaven.
It was hard to wrap his mind around the fact that this place was the only place that Nymon had ever known.
He’d never left the town. He’d never seen any part of the world.
He’d never experienced it. The only things he knew were through movies and books, but the world out there was so very different from all of that.
It made Tex want to show Nymon everything, and he would, but first, they needed to get him out of here, and Tex wasn’t sure how to do that.
He was going to need Gregory’s help.
Nymon was still sleeping, and Tex wanted him to continue doing so, so he slipped out of bed.
He stumbled on a plant that had stretched out on the floor, and to his surprise, the plant retreated.
It was kind of freaky, but maybe Tex would have to get used to it.
Something told him that with Nymon in his life, he’d have to deal with a lot of greenery.
He’d never been a plant person, mostly because he overwatered them to death.
He’d given up on trying to keep them alive.
He was pretty sure that Nymon would do it for him now.
Nymon turned in his sleep, reaching for Tex. Tex paused, waiting, but Nymon found the pillow Tex had been using and grabbed it, burying his face against it. The sight made Tex’s heart ache. He could feel Nymon’s deep satisfaction through their bond. Nymon was happy, even in his sleep.
Hopefully, Nymon had made the right decision when he’d decided he wanted to bond with Tex.
Tex never wanted him to regret it. It had been a surprise, though.
Tex had expected Nymon to have a lot more questions before he was ready to do something like that.
Maybe he would have them in the future. If he did, Tex would answer them.
It took Tex a moment to find the pouch with his phone.
When he did, he grabbed it and slipped out of the bedroom and into the bathroom, firmly closing the door behind himself.
There were plants in this room, too, and apparently, they’d reacted to what had happened last night as strongly as the ones in the bedroom.
They’d spread out everywhere, their leaves cascading down the windowsill and the sink.
There was a plant hanging in the shower, which was now full of leaves.
It was going to be fun to try to take a shower.
That wasn’t why Tex was here, though. He quickly used the toilet, then grabbed his phone and found Gregory’s number. He only had to wait for a few moments before his boss answered.
“Tell me you have good news,” Gregory said.
“I guess it depends on what that means for you.”
“The only bad news would be if you told me that your mate rejected you, which I hope he didn’t.”
Tex smiled. “He definitely didn’t.”
There was a moment of silence before Gregory laughed. “All right. I didn’t need to know that. We work together.”
“I’m really sorry, sir.” Tex was mortified. He hadn’t meant that the way Gregory had taken it.
But Gregory just laughed again. “It’s fine. I know you didn’t mean it like that. I take it that everything went well?”
“We’re bonded.”
“So quickly?”
“Nymon asked, and I couldn’t say no. I hope he won’t regret it, but I couldn’t deny him when he was so sure of what he wanted.”
“I understand. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing. It’s your mate bond, and if you thought this was the right thing to do, I’m sure it was. Now that this happened, though, we need to plan for the future. Getting him out of there isn’t going to be easy.”
“Which is why I need your help.”
Gregory hummed. “How willing is he to leave everything behind? Because the best thing you could do is just walk through the shield like you did when you got into Starhaven territory. Is that something he could do physically?”
“He mentioned that doing that would make him feel ill, but I’m pretty sure he could still cross over. I felt pretty bad when I came in, so I get it, but we know what to expect. It should be fine, especially if you have someone waiting for us on the other side.”
“I can definitely have someone there. Would you like me to reach out to some of your former trainees? I’d rather not send a council assassin, and while I could ask for an enforcer team, it’s probably better not to do that.”
“You can reach out to anyone you think can help. I just want to keep Nymon safe. It doesn’t matter to me how I do it.”
“Spoken like a true mate. All right. It shouldn’t take long to organize everything on my side. You’ll just need to let me know when you’re ready to leave.”
Tex leaned against the sink. “I was actually thinking about that.”
There was a pause before Gregory answered. “Something tells me I need to be worried.”
“I don’t know that you have to be, but I’m in Starhaven.
I know I already gave you some information about this network of demons, and it could be enough to help our people find out more, including who’s at the center of this, but again, I’m still here.
I could go into town and poke around again.
I might not find anything, but if you found any information using what I already gave you, it could help me pinpoint where to look. ”
Gregory didn’t answer right away. It could be because the people doing the research for him hadn’t found anything.
Tex hadn’t given them a lot to work with.
It could also be because they had found something, and he was thinking about whether or not he should let Tex stay.
It wasn’t like Tex wanted to put himself in danger, but he didn’t want to return to Starhaven.
He wasn’t sure he’d be able to once he left with Nymon.
“We did find something,” Gregory eventually said. “We have names and addresses, including one that should belong to the person who created this network.”
Tex blinked. “Addresses? In Starhaven?”
“Even I don’t know how my analyst found them, and I don’t want to know. She knows what she’s doing, though.”
“Clearly. What’s the address? What does she think I’m going to find there?”
“I don’t want to send you out there on your own.”
“There’s no need to protect me.”
“I enjoy working with you, and I don’t want to have to train someone else. You took care of a mistake no one had realized had been made. Liam could have gotten killed, but you made sure that didn’t happen.”
“I’m not the only one who can do the job, but I’m not planning on anything happening to me. I just bonded with my mate. I have plans for the future, and those plans aren’t going to happen if I get hurt.”
“All right,” Gregory said. “I’ll send everything to your phone. Be careful, though, and please, don’t involve your mate. I know he’s going to want to help because of the bond and because you’re his mate, but it would be too dangerous.”
“Trust me, I’m not letting him anywhere near this.”
“Be careful, Tex. You’re more important than this operation.”
Tex was pretty sure that wasn’t what most of the people he worked for would say, but Gregory had always been different, and Tex knew how lucky he was to work with him. Hopefully, he could continue doing so for years to come.
* * * *
NYMON WAS ALONE IN bed when he woke up, but he could hear Tex’s voice coming from the bathroom, so he didn’t panic. Instead, he flopped onto his back to stare up at the ceiling with a smile.
He was bonded. He had a mate, and they’d be together for the rest of their lives.
He had a mate. He still couldn’t believe it, but the fact that he was naked in bed was proof of that.
He looked around. The plants were still everywhere.
He had no idea how he’d done that, but they’d exploded all over his bedroom last night.
It was even worse now that he could see it in the daylight.
This was going to be a mess to clean up unless he could use his magic, and he wasn’t quite sure how to do that.
Could he simply ask the plants to retreat?
Or could he only create this kind of growth?
He didn’t want to hurt the plants, so he was wary of using his magic, but he couldn’t think of any other way to do it.
Maybe he could leave them be. He reached out and brushed her fingertips down the closest leaf. It moved a little under his touch, making him smile.
It didn’t matter that this was a mess. It was his mess.
His and Tex’s.