Chapter Five
Landon
I had another night without sleep, and this time it wasn’t because I had to wrap my head around there being supernatural creatures and that I was fated to one.
Though maybe I wished it was.
Instead, my lack of slumber was because, for a brief moment in the bar—when Dashiel had asked, “What do you feel when I’m around”—I had the strongest feeling that if I asked him to go away, he would have… and I would’ve regretted my choice.
Then, when he’d joked about coffee, a brief urge to press my lips to his in gratitude for making me feel comfortable and happy had pushed at me.
I groaned and dragged both hands over my face. “Nope,” I muttered into the darkness of my bedroom. “Absolutely not.” I was also ignoring the fact that as soon as I got home from the bar, I’d gone for another shower and jerked off because my dick wouldn’t go soft.
I was aroused and confused and frustrated all at the same time,
Because that was insane.
Completely insane.
I stared up at the ceiling while my brain replayed every second from last night with the kind of determination usually reserved for psychological torture.
Dashiel and how he chuckled softly.
How pleased he looked when I laughed.
How he said he wanted to burn down a building because a woman touched my arm.
That one should’ve concerned me more than it did.
Instead, I’d liked it.
Liked how possessive he’d seemed, which confused me in so many more ways.
My stupid brain also kept circling back to the way he’d looked at me when he said he couldn’t imagine his life without me in it.
God. I rolled over and shoved my face into the pillow. “I’m losing my damn mind.”
I’d almost kissed him.
For one tiny moment, as I sat there beside him while he made me feel strangely safe and seen and comfortable despite everything, I’d wanted to know what his lips felt like.
And that was a whole issue I didn’t know how to unpack.
I’d never looked at another man and thought about kissing him.
Never wondered what it would feel like.
Never wanted to touch a guy just because he smiled at me.
Yet somehow, Dashiel had walked into my life and flipped my brain sideways in under a week.
That couldn’t be normal.
Then again, neither was Fate apparently.
I let out a long breath and glanced toward the clock beside my bed. It was five thirty in the morning.
Fantastic.
At this point, I may as well get up. Throwing the blankets back, I dragged myself out of bed and headed for the shower.
The hot water helped a little. At least it gave me something else to focus on besides the fact that an elf apparently liked me enough to commit arson.
Honestly, the more I thought about it, the more ridiculous that sounded.
I huffed out a laugh under the spray. “Great, I’m laughing now,” I muttered to myself. “That’s probably a bad sign.”
I finished showering and got dressed before making my way into the kitchen.
The house was quiet.
Monkey had only stayed that first night and went back to the compound the next day. Though he dropped by briefly a couple of days ago to check on me, and that was on top of the daily texts I received to make sure I wasn’t on the verge of a breakdown.
Which was fair, but still a little rude. My son should know I wouldn’t break that easily.
At least, I didn’t think I would.
I started the coffee machine and leaned against the counter while it brewed.
And, like an idiot, I smiled at the thought of Dashiel and how he tried putting up with the taste for my sake. But my mind didn’t stop there. I remembered the way he’d looked sitting beside me in the bar, entirely composed while casually admitting he was over two hundred years old.
And his confusion over Batman.
And the way he’d sounded genuinely relieved when I agreed to talk to him.
My smile faded slowly as I stared at the kitchen floor.
“This is bad.”
Except… it didn’t feel bad.
Confusing? Absolutely.
Terrifying? A little.
But not bad.
That was the issue.
I poured myself a coffee and took a sip just as warmth bloomed faintly beneath the tattoo hidden under my sleeve.
I froze.
Dashiel was close.
A strange mix of anticipation and nerves twisted through my stomach before I could stop it.
“Nope,” I whispered immediately. “I’m not going to acknowledge that.”
A knock came at the door, and my heart stumbled. Which was ridiculous because I already knew who it was.
Still, I set my coffee down carefully before heading toward the front door.
Dashiel stood on the porch, looking entirely too good for this early in the morning.
His dark hair fell around his face, hiding the pointed ears I wanted to properly see and touch.
He wore black again today, his clothes fitted enough that I noticed broad shoulders and a lean build I was trying very hard not to think about.
I shouldn’t be.
Why was I?
I finally met his eyes.
And there it was, that focused and warm look he gave me, like I genuinely mattered to him.
“Good morning, Landon,” he greeted softly.
I swallowed once before clearing my throat. “Morning.”
For a second, neither of us spoke.
Then Dashiel inclined his head slightly. “I hope I have not arrived too early.”
“Question: Do you know when I wake up?”
A faint smile touched his mouth, yet he scoffed after. Like he was both happy I asked as well as annoyed that I would think it. “I do not monitor your sleeping habits.”
“That almost sounded like you were offended,” I teased.
“I am mildly offended.”
That startled a laugh out of me before I could stop it. Dashiel’s expression softened immediately.
God.
My stomach fluttered. This was dangerous.
I shifted awkwardly against the doorway. “So… what are you doing here?”
“If you would allow it,” he said carefully, “I wish to walk with you to work.”
The offer settled strangely warm in my chest. This felt sweet and normal and definitely like something people did when they… liked each other.
I ignored that thought immediately.
“You don’t have anything else to do?” I asked.
“I do.”
I blinked. “Then why are you here?”
His expression gentled further somehow. “Because I wished to see you.”
And there went my ability to think properly again. I looked away briefly, rubbing the back of my neck. “Right,” I muttered. “Okay. Uh… yeah. You can walk with me.”
Relief flickered briefly across his face before it vanished beneath composure again. “It would please me.”
I grabbed my bag and locked the door behind me before we started walking, and I realized I didn’t get to finish my coffee or grab my jacket.
The morning air was cool enough to wake me up. Though I still felt half dazed from the lack of sleep and too many thoughts involving a certain elf.
For the first few minutes, we walked in silence. But I eventually glanced sideways at him and asked, “So, do elves usually stalk people they’re interested in, or am I special?”
His lips pulled at the corner. “I would not classify my actions as stalking.”
“Really?”
He nodded once. “I only wish to ensure your safety.”
“That’s somehow worse.”
A soft laugh escaped him. The sound did unfortunate things to my stomach.
“You are adjusting remarkably well,” he observed.
I snorted softly. “Dashiel, I’ve spent days thinking I was losing my mind.”
“And now?”
I considered the question. The honest answer slipped out before I could stop it. “Now. I think I’m getting used to you.”
Dashiel went very still beside me.
As I stopped, I immediately regretted having functioning vocal cords. “Not like that,” I said quickly. “I don’t think,” I added on, more as a mutter to myself, then winced, hoping he hadn’t heard it. I didn’t want to encourage him in case this didn’t work out between us.
Huh, at least I’m not completely against it now.
Maybe getting to know him was helping.
Maybe we could be friends without the bond… but then I wouldn’t be allowed to remember him.
My stomach churned and chest ached.
It surprised me when his lips twitched slightly. “How unfortunate. I was hoping you would have sung to me about love.”
I stared at him. Then barked out a sudden laugh, relaxing again. “You’re funnier than I expected.”
“I have been told I possess excellent timing.”
“I’m starting to think people lied to you.”
When he gave me another quiet laugh, the warmth spreading through my chest at being the cause of it felt embarrassingly good.
We reached my office building far too quickly, and I slowed near the entrance, oddly reluctant to end the conversation.
Dashiel stopped beside me, hands clasped behind his back. “I hope your workday proceeds well,” he said softly.
That ridiculously formal way he spoke shouldn’t have affected me as much as it did.
“Yeah,” I replied. “You too. With… whatever elves do during the day.”
His eyes brightened slightly. “At present? Mostly think about you.”
My brain stopped functioning—completely and entirely—when he said things like that so casually. Like the words couldn’t knock years off my lifespan.
I stared at him while he watched me patiently. Then before I could overthink it, I blurted, “Do you want to have dinner with me tonight?”
Dashiel gave me nothing but silence as he blinked once, and for the first time since meeting him, I saw his composure crack entirely.
His eyes widened slightly as warmth flooded the tattoo so intensely, my wrist practically burned beneath my sleeve.
Was that a good or bad sign?
“I mean…” I cleared my throat quickly. “At my house. Nothing weird. I just thought maybe we could talk more.” I shrugged.
His expression softened into something so openly happy, it stole the breath from my lungs. “It would be my honor,” he said quietly.
And God help me, but that made me smile too. “Right,” I muttered awkwardly. “Okay. Good.”
Neither of us moved for a second until I pointed toward the building behind me. “I should probably go before I get fired.”
“That would be a fortunate outcome.”
Confused, I told him, “What do you mean?”
A flicker of amusement crossed his face. “Just that if you did get fired, I would then have more of your time.”
I shook my head, still smiling despite myself, and turned toward the building entrance. I could feel the warmth of his gaze follow me the entire way inside.
And I liked it.
That realization haunted me for the rest of the morning because, once again, I couldn’t focus. Every time I tried balancing reports or reviewing spreadsheets, my brain wandered right back to Dashiel standing outside my work, looking absurdly pleased because I had invited him to dinner.
Oh hell. Dinner.
I had invited an elf to dinner.
A two-hundred-year-old elf who wanted to burn down bars when women flirted with me.
Normal people did not have these problems.
I stared blankly at my computer screen while my coworker Janice rambled beside me about weekend plans that I barely heard.
“Landon?”
“Hm?”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” I lied.
She eyed me suspiciously before eventually wandering off again. The second she disappeared, I rubbed a hand over my face.
“This is ridiculous.” Except the smile threatening to escape ruined the complaint entirely.
I liked talking to him.
That was the truth.
Liked how calm he was around me.
Liked the strange gentleness beneath all that intensity.
Liked that he listened when I spoke, as if every word mattered.
And maybe, just maybe, I liked that he looked at me like I was worth something.
My chest tightened unexpectedly at the thought.
Before I could unpack that mess, an inconsistency in one of the financial reports caught my attention.
I frowned and leaned closer toward the screen. “That’s odd.”
The numbers didn’t line up. It wasn’t a massive discrepancy. Small enough, in fact, that most people probably wouldn’t notice.
However, I did.
A transfer had been altered between departments, and the adjustment made no logical sense.
Someone named Lance Hawthorne signed off on it, but I didn’t recall anyone employed here with that name.
Unless they were on another floor. But people in those departments dealt with different types of clients. This floor was for the big companies.
When I checked another file, my frown deepened. “Okay….”
Maybe it was just an accounting mistake.
Except whoever altered the figures knew what they were doing. The subtle inconsistencies were buried carefully.
I printed the report and headed toward my boss’s office. After I knocked on the open door, Martin looked up from the sheets in front of him. “Everything all right, Landon?”
“I think so,” I replied, stepping inside. “I just noticed something strange in the quarterly adjustments for these files.”
I handed him the paperwork. His expression remained relaxed for exactly two seconds before tightening almost imperceptibly.
Interesting.
He recovered quickly and said smoothly, “I don’t know how this got sent to you. But that’s already been handled.”
I blinked. “Handled how?”
He set the paper down. “It was a minor internal issue. One of the rookies messed up.”
“Shouldn’t the figures still match now?”
His smile tightened slightly. “Forget about it.”
Every instinct I possessed sharpened instantly because that was not the response an accountant gave another accountant.
“Are you sure I should?” I asked carefully.
“Yes.” The finality in his tone was unmistakable.
I held his gaze for a second longer before nodding once. “Right. Okay.”
But as I left the office, unease settled heavily in my stomach. Something about the interaction felt wrong. But was there enough information for accusations?
Not yet.
Still, I quietly saved copies of the reports once I returned to my desk.
The rest of the day passed in a blur after that. Half my attention stayed on the accounting discrepancies and the other half remained entirely occupied by the fact that I’d invited Dashiel over tonight.
Every time I thought about it, nerves twisted through me.
Though they weren’t bad nerves. It wasn’t like I wanted to throw up or shit myself.
So… was it more like anticipation?
And if it was excitement about seeing him and spending more time with him, that could be a problem I needed to figure out on another day.
By the time work finally ended, I was exhausted. The lack of sleep was catching up to me.
And still, I was embarrassingly eager to get outside. To see if Dashiel was there or if he was going to meet me at the house. I packed my bag slowly before heading toward the exit.
The moment I stepped onto the street, warmth flooded the tattoo beneath my sleeve.
I looked up automatically, and there he was.
Dashiel stood across the sidewalk, waiting and watching me with that same impossible intensity that should’ve sent me running.
Instead, my stomach fluttered again.
And as Dashiel’s face softened the second our eyes met, I realized I was already smiling before I could stop myself.