Chapter 15 Evan’s Half-Naked
Evan's Half-Naked
Great, Detective Dumbfuck has to show up and ruin it all, Malachi thought uncharitably.
He rolled his eyes in exasperation as he stretched the shirt a bit before pulling it over his head.
Snugging it down over his chest and arms, he nearly moaned in satisfaction at the way it hugged his body without strangling him.
Now he refocused on Chuck and Jaxon’s discussion.
“I mean, I guess I just wasn’t expecting to see you here with a half-naked guy in the parking lot,” Jaxon declared hotly, raking his gaze over Malachi in what was assuredly meant to be intimidating.
Instead, it merely came across as possessive, and Malachi suddenly realized Jaxon now saw him as competition for Chuck.
“Not half-naked, more like quarter-naked,” Malachi interjected with a friendly smile full of innoncence he certainly didn’t have. “Just exchanging my shirt since Chuck here was kind enough to buy me a new one.”
Staring at him through narrowed eyes, Jaxon snorted in disdain as he raked his gaze disparagingly over his perceived rival. “I guess I missed it, but who are you, and why is Chuck buying you a shirt?”
“I’m Malachi—” he started, but Chuck cut him off.
“Malachi’s former owner!” she blurted. “This is Evan. He saw the story about Malachi on the news and realized it was his missing dog. He reached out to talk about it. Turns out, Malachi went missing while he was visiting the area, and he’s been looking for him since.
But anyway, he agreed that Malachi is happy with me and thought it was cool that he’s a K-9 now, so we started talking and anyway…
” she trailed off. The flurry of lies she had told was dwindling down as she ran out of ideas.
Grinning at her adorable attempt at lying, Malachi held out his hand, trying not to stare at her wildly flickering aura.
“Nice to meet you. Like Chuck said, I’m Evan.
And I was overwhelmed by how amazing she is and how happy Malachi is with her.
He’s the happiest I’ve ever seen him. I can tell he really enjoys the work and adores Chuck.
It was so fascinating, I couldn’t help but want to know more about this incredible woman who captured Malachi’s heart.
” He ignored Chuck’s startled expression as she tried to figure out what he meant by that.
“Anyway, we went out to eat, and Miss Butterfingers here dumped pasta sauce all over my shirt. So, she kindly offered to get me a new one. Since the airline lost my luggage, I took her up on it.” He continued to grin at Jaxon as the other man stared at them with an open mouth, leaving Malachi’s hand up in between them. Ignored.
“You went on a date? With a stranger?” Jaxon exclaimed, staring at Chuck as if she’d grown three heads.
“Not a date!” Chuck snapped indignantly, her eyes narrowed dangerously. “Even if I did, that’s the point of a date, to get to know the other person.”
Chuckling uneasily, Malachi held up his hands.
“Look, buddy, I didn’t know she had a boyfriend, okay?
I wasn’t trying to move in on your territory.
I just wanted to make sure Malachi was alright.
He’s a great dog. Very loyal. I’m glad she’s looking after him.
It wasn’t a date, just a friendly meal. And I’m under no delusions that Officer Charles here couldn’t swiftly kick my ass if I stepped out of line. She’s an amazing person. You’re lucky!”
Not missing the look of horror on Chuck’s face and the shock on Jaxon’s, Malachi tilted his head. “I’m sorry, did I misread this?” He gestured between the two of them.
“We aren’t dating!” Chuck hissed.
“Just friends!” Jaxon added quickly, although he glanced at Chuck with sadness pinching his eyes.
“Oh, well, in that case, my further apologies,” Malachi offered sheepishly.
He turned to Chuck and eyed her speculatively.
“But I’m glad to hear that.” He gave her a soft smile, just the slightest curve of his lips, that she returned without seeming to think about it.
It was an instant response, letting him know it was genuine.
Jaxon cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable as he shifted on his feet. “Well, good to see you, Chuck. Glad everything’s okay. See you tomorrow?” At her distracted nod, he huffed and turned to Malachi. “Nice to meet you, Eric.” He held out his hand with a slight smirk.
“Evan,” Malachi corrected and took Jaxon’s hand.
He squeezed harder than necessary, adding some of his demon strength to the grip.
As Jaxon winced, Malachi leaned forward and whispered in low warning, “But you knew that… didn’t you, Jaxon?
” Straightening, he gave a mild smile. “Nice to meet you, too. I hope we can all get together again soon. I would love to meet more people who are important to Chuck.” He glanced over at her and was pleased to find she was still smiling at him as if he were the only one there.
Backing away, nodding like a sycophant, Jaxon tried to discreetly shake out his hand without letting on it had hurt. “Yeah, absolutely.” Turning, he hurried off to his own vehicle.
Malachi bit the inside of his cheek to keep from bursting into laughter. He heard a soft chuckle and turned to face Chuck again.
“Malachi, thanks.”
He arched an eyebrow and popped his hands on his hips, adopting a devilish smirk. “Oh, I’m back to being Malachi now, am I?” He shook his head. “Evan? Really? Of all the names in the world, you come up with Evan?”
“I couldn’t well call you Malachi and expect Jax to believe you just happen to have the same name as my K-9 partner!” Chuck exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air. “I mean, fuck, Mal, I did the best I could on the spot like that.”
Without thinking, Malachi snatched her by the waist and yanked her against his body.
She let out a soft oof as she slammed into him, her fingers landing on his chest. “Chuck,” he moaned in a strained voice, “do you know what that bad word coming from your sweet lips does to me?” At her choked gasp, he realized what he’d done and said.
Letting her go like she’d scalded him, he backed away with eyes wide and lips parted slightly.
He knew his normally tan face must be pale as he felt the blood drain from it.
Her aura was flickering wildly in her confusion.
“I… I’m sorry. Forget I said that. I shouldn’t have crossed that line.
” He jammed his hands in his pockets and hurried away to the passenger side of the car, waiting for her to unlock it.
After a moment, the locks disengaging chirped, and he shuddered out a shaky breath. He cursed himself for a fool, letting his desire slip through. Quickly, he climbed into the passenger seat, clicking his seatbelt and gluing his eyes to the horizon through the windshield.
After a moment, the driver’s door opened, and Chuck slipped into her seat.
She sat for a minute, not saying anything, then buckled her seatbelt and started the car.
Clearing her throat, she put it in drive, then spoke casually, as if the episode in the parking lot had never happened.
“So, I figure we should go pick up Reena, grab some lunch, then head back to the house. We need to figure out how we’re going to explain Malachi’s disappearance. ”
He glanced at her, noting the small content smile curving her lips, and smiled back gratefully at her willingness to move past his fuck up. “Thanks,” he mumbled.
At Glenda’s house, Malachi stayed in the car.
He didn’t want to face the knowing glances of the witch and needed a moment without Chuck’s presence and glowing aura to reset himself.
Groaning, he scrubbed his hands over his face in frustration, then pinched the bridge of his nose.
“What the hell, Malachi? Don’t fuck this up! ”
“That’s right, Malachi, don’t fuck this up.” A low chuckle on a waft of decaying flowery scent washed over him, chilling him to his bones.
“Hey, Hyacinth, how’s it going, boss man?” Malachi asked lightly.
Snorting, Hyacinth leaned forward from the back seat and rested his filthy, dirt-encrusted claws on Malachi’s shoulder.
“I’m just checking in on you. I was hoping to see some progress by now,” the lumpy demon hissed.
“I have progress,” Malachi insisted. “I made her think she helped me, she wants me to live with her, and we slept in the same bed last night. She almost kissed me earlier, and I made her jealous by flirting with another woman. It won’t be long.
She’ll melt in my hands before you know it, and that angel grace will be pitch black!
” The lecherous sneer that accompanied these words was false, but he was adept at showing what he wanted people to see. He radiated confidence and conceit.
Huffing a breath scented with an earthy swampish undertone, Hyacinth nodded slowly.
“Well, that’s good news. See that it stays that way.
” He chuckled. “Of course, as much of a coup as this would be, I almost want to see you fail so I can drop your pain-in-the-ass self down to the pit.” His laugh grew more malignant and shiver-inducing.
“I’ll be going. Get that angel corrupted soon, Malachi.
” With a squelching sound, Hyacinth sank back down into Hell, laughing low under his breath.
Moments later, Chuck appeared at the door and plunked a slightly pudgier Reena into the backseat.
Getting into the driver’s seat, she grumbled under her breath about not needing enemies with friends like Glenda.
She leaned forward and waved toward the door at the witch, muttering about overfeeding Reena and needing to mind her own damn business.
Malachi simply sat quietly until they reached a red light. He glanced at Chuck, who glanced at him, and they both burst into laughter as Reena snored in her treat-induced stupor.
When Chuck was finally able to get herself under control, just as the light turned green, she smiled in genuine amusement at Malachi. “I have a feeling Reena is going to have a stomach-ache. Can you still talk to her?”
“Yeah, I can send her my thoughts still. The same way I can send them to you,” he answered, slouching slightly in the seat. He felt much more at ease, as if their earlier tension were behind them.
Chuck sniffed then and glanced over again. “Hey, do you smell… flowers?”