Chapter 23
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Thanks to Alistair’s intervention, the rest of the afternoon was better than Elijah had expected.
Even the loyalty interviews were manageable.
They were more like the first, where the employees needed reassurance but didn’t actively fight him while he used his magic.
He had a mild headache when he was through, but he could deal with that.
And Alistair had a pain potion ready for him when the interviews were through.
They let Isaac and Maverick know they would be checking out Elijah’s house before heading back to their place.
He needed to go back to get Helios and his things, so he figured he’d get at least one more night with his friends before he had to go back to being alone.
He was trying to figure out a way to ask Alistair to come visit him without sounding too needy when they pulled into the driveway of his home.
There was only one truck parked on the street in front that had the logo of the contractor company on it, and the contractor himself stood by the front door, his arms crossed over his chest and a glare already fixed on his face before they even exited the vehicle.
“Maybe I should wait here…” Elijah murmured, shrinking under the orc’s glare.
With a sigh, Alistair turned off the engine and faced Elijah, in no hurry to go meet the man waiting for them.
“This is your home, Eli. He doesn’t get to dictate if you’re here or not.
Besides, I’ve never been here. I might miss damage you wouldn’t.
You need to be able to check on everything they did.
Don’t worry. I’m here with you. I’ll watch your back. ”
It did make him feel better having Alistair with him. He gave his boyfriend a shaky nod, allowing him to nudge him out of the safety of the car. Alistair laced their fingers together when he came around the car, presenting a united front as they met the orc on the porch.
“About damn time,” Carl snapped. “I don’t need to be standin’ here watching you two make eyes at each other–”
With a dark expression that made Elijah shiver, Alistair asked, “What time is it?”
The orc’s eyebrows snapped together. “What?”
“What time is it?” Alistair asked again, his voice deceptively calm.
Carl looked down at his phone, then back at Alistair. “5:23. Why?”
“We said we’d meet you at 5:30. We arrived early. Be grateful we were on time and keep the rest of your opinions to yourself.”
Elijah’s stomach fluttered watching the way Alistair stood his ground against the orc who stood at least a head taller than him with thick muscles and large tusks that were probably used to hurt people at one point in the past. Alistair didn’t even flinch.
He held himself with military bearing, eyes sharp and unyielding.
Carl backed down even faster than he had on the phone, like he could tell Alistair was a threat and didn’t want a fight.
“Are you ready to see what we’ve done?” Carl gritted out with forced politeness.
They followed the orc inside, stopping first in the dining room so Carl could show them the ceiling.
The reason he had hired a contractor with a plumber on staff instead of just a plumber was because he needed the ceiling fixed as well.
The gaping hole was gone, with a large gray patched area in its place.
A little paint and it would be back to normal.
“What was the damage?” Alistair asked.
“About three square feet was rotted and couldn’t be salvaged,” Carl explained grumpily. “We had to cut a little extra around it to make sure the new stuff would be stable, but we patched it. It costs extra for us to paint it, too.”
“That’s not necessary,” Elijah interjected, wincing a little when unease and anger flashed across the orc’s face. He didn't even want Elijah speaking to him.
Alistair’s hand squeezed his, reassuring him while moving the conversation along. “Is it stable to walk on? He said the floor fell through as well.”
Offended, Carl lifted his chin. “Of course, it’s stable. I checked it myself. My guys don’t do shoddy work. Don’t go implyin’ otherwise.”
“Prove it.”
Carl’s light green skin deepened to a forest green in his cheeks as his temper rose.
Elijah felt the threat in the air, and he knew there wasn’t much stopping the orc from flying into a rage.
If he didn’t get Alistair to stop, there would be a fight on their hands, and Alistair had no access to his magic.
He might come off as powerful and unyielding, but with those blockers, he was basically human.
It would be Elijah’s job to stop Alistair from getting hurt.
“Listen here, I was nice enough to let him be here, but I don’t gotta–”
“He has every right to be here. It’s his home. And with the way you spoke to him on the phone, I don’t trust that you did the job well. You think because he’s a telepath, you can treat him like shit and get away with it?”
“I don’t half-ass jobs just because of the client’s race!” Carl bellowed.
This. This was what always bothered him about his brother assisting him. Instead of de-escalating the situation, Alistair was only provoking the man. He was making it worse.
“Both of you, please stop,” he said quietly.
Too quietly. They didn’t hear him. They were getting closer to each other, movements sharp as they pointed fingers and gestured to the air around them.
Elijah could feel Carl’s rage building, as well as Alistair’s fierce protective instincts flare.
They were going to attack each other while Elijah could only stand by and watch.
It was when Carl reached for Alistair that Elijah couldn’t take it anymore. He released the hold on his magic, hitting them both full force with enough telepathic energy to make them flinch. Even Alistair, who said he couldn’t feel magic with the blockers, took notice.
“I said that’s enough. We came here today to check the progress on the house, not to cast allegations or pick fights.
So if you’d please be so kind as to show us what was done so we could all go on with our day, I’d appreciate it,” he ground out, his cheeks burning with frustration and embarrassment.
He had never lost his temper before. It was embarrassing that he did it in front of the first boyfriend he’d ever managed to have.
Carl looked distinctly uncomfortable after feeling the force of Elijah’s power.
Elijah thought Alistair would react much the same way, since he used his magic on the mage without permission and potentially risked triggering him.
He suddenly felt awful about his actions and opened his mouth to apologize, but Alistair interrupted him before he could speak.
“You’re right. I’m sorry, Eli.”
Surprised, Elijah looked up to find that Alistair’s expression didn’t hold an ounce of accusation or anger. He looked… proud.
Clearing his throat awkwardly, Carl apologized as well. “I ain’t meant to get so bent outta shape. I’ll show you the bathroom. There was also a leak in the laundry room. We fixed that, too.”
The orc led them through the house, pointing out the little patches where they cut holes so they could stick a camera in the walls to check the pipes and the bigger patches where damage was found and needed to be fixed.
The bathroom floor was redone and retiled to look like it had before, something he’d paid extra for since he knew better than to think he could pull off something like that on his own.
And Carl jumped up and down on the floor to prove it was structurally sound as well, which satisfied Alistair’s protective instincts.
When all was said and done, Elijah felt everything was as it should be and paid the man what he’d quoted initially.
He was glad there weren’t any extra charges, which had happened to him in the past when the contractor felt they could get away with it.
Carl might not like him, but he was an honest man at least.
“I appreciate your help and thoroughness. I know better now than to ignore water stains on the ceiling.”
Carl huffed, the smallest of smirks pulling at his lips. “Don’t ignore ‘em on the walls neither and things won’t get this bad.”
“I’ll be more mindful in the future, I promise,” Elijah said as they walked the orc out of the house. If he were a normal person, he might offer the man a handshake in thanks, but he knew better than to–
Carl stuck out one enormous hand, his face tense like he was trying to hide his discomfort. “Appreciate you callin’ me in. Not everyone likes to work with orcs.”
Stunned, Elijah took his hand, his jaw almost hitting the ground at the gentle shake he received. “I-I understand completely.”
He was still standing there gaping as the truck pulled away, disappearing from sight around the tall, thick hedges that blocked his yard from the neighbors.
“I’m proud of you,” Alistair said behind him.
Elijah spun around, eyes wide. “What? Why? Because I thought I acted really unprofessionally. I’m so sorry I lost my temper and used my magic, I never wanted to do anything like that to you, I just–”
Stepping close so they were toe to toe, Alistair cupped Elijah’s cheeks, stopping his ramblings with a sweet kiss. Elijah’s hands wrapped around Alistair’s wrists, needing an anchor so he didn’t float away. Everything was just so shocking, and his head spun because of it.
“Relax,” Alistair murmured, resting his forehead against Elijah’s. “I’m not upset. You didn’t dig anywhere you weren’t invited, and you didn’t cause injury. It was less than a smack on the wrist to put us in our place for the way we were acting. I trust you, Eli.”
Elijah’s heart swelled, and he nearly blurted out his feelings like word vomit.
He barely kept them at bay, instead smashing his lips against Alistair’s to keep himself from saying something he shouldn’t.
They had only known each other for a short amount of time.
It was too soon for words of love, even though Elijah could admit to himself that the feelings were definitely developing quickly.
There was just something about Alistair that made him want to fall head over heels.
“Want to show me more of the house?” Alistair asked between kisses.
Elijah whined. He didn’t want to stop what they were doing. He dug his fingers into Alistair’s hair, pressing himself as close as he could get so there wasn’t an inch between them.
Alistair’s chuckle breathed across Elijah’s lips, those callous roughened hands running down his back to his ass and squeezing suggestively. “Show me your bedroom, Eli. I think you deserve a reward for standing up for yourself.”