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Dante shrugged. “I told him the truth already. It felt wrong to lie like that. You never lie to me, so I thought it was better to be honest.”

Ollie bobbed his head in agreement. “I overhear a lot about what’s happening at my mom’s work. She talks a lot. Not so much about my dad’s, but he’ll bring something up if Mom asks. Since Dante said he needed stuff to protect you, I told him I’d help.”

My mouth fell open. “Protect me?”

“Duh. Dad said he’d hurt you if I didn’t get any information.” His expression darkened and his voice got quiet. “You’re the only one who’s nice to me. I don’t want them to hurt you.”

Dante and I had been living together for a few months now. I didn’t think he liked me. Tolerated me, sure, because it was better than being at his dad’s, but not enough to give a shit if I got hurt. It warmed my middle that he cared, and I was proud of him for making the choice I never even considered. I ruffled his hair, smirking when he grimaced and shoved my hand away.

“Well, you’re smarter than me then. I’m not sure how long I’m going to have to grovel to make it up to Declan.”

“Years. It’ll be grueling,” Declan commented airily as he joined us in the living room. He was shirtless, his hair still wet from his shower, a towel around his neck. My mouth went dry as my gaze trailed over him. When I got back to his face, he raised an eyebrow with a smirk.

“Subtle. Are you two spending the night? I don’t mind, but you need a shower first. You’re covered in dirt.”

Glancing down, I huffed out a laugh. He wasn’t wrong. The only clean part of me was my hands since I washed them to make dinner. Staying clean wasn’t exactly on my mind when he attacked me tonight.

Ollie flicked his gaze between me and his brother, his eyes narrowing suspiciously. “Are you two dating?”

I didn’t know how to answer that. Declan said we were in this together, and we fooled around together, but that didn’t mean we were dating. It was the first time I wanted to, but I didn’t think it was safe. And nine-year-old boys aren’t exactly steel traps for information.

“Why are you so obsessed with my dating life lately? You better not be dating and fishing for information. You’re too damn young,” Declan interrupted.

Ollie flushed dark red, successfully diverted from the question. Dante still looked suspicious, but at least he knew to keep that to himself. He knew the consequences if he didn’t.

While Declan bickered with his brother to distract him, I tipped my head towards the door to signal our departure to Dante. “We’ll see you two later. It’s a school night and I’m pretty sure Dante hasn’t done his homework.”

Dante made a face, which meant I was on the nose about that one, and when Declan shot a narrow-eyed look at Ollie, his grimace said he wasn’t done either. It was a smart thing to get the boys home. But I still didn’t want to leave. I could feel the wards, Vivi didn’t half ass them, but it worried me all the same to leave them here unguarded.

Like he could sense my anxiety, Declan smiled softly. “We’re good here. I’ll call if something else happens and I won’t bring random packages into the house without you checking them first.”

Dante snorted, and I rolled my eyes. “I appreciate that. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

And he would. Until we could figure out how to get free of my uncle’s control, I’d watch over him and Ollie every damn day. Maybe even after that. This was still new, and I didn’t want to get my hopes up that I could keep him, but I wanted to enjoy it while I had it.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

AZIEL

The following week was quiet.Almost too quiet. I expected more issues after that lesser demon was sent to the shop. But there were no more packages, no more soldiers casing Declan’s shop, nothing. My hackles were up and when I asked Athena if I should be worried, she gave a non-committal answer. Which meant she couldn’t tell me. She didn’t want to change the outcome of whatever was coming.

Dante and I had a new routine after that weekend. He and Ollie hung out together after school at the park, Ollie supplying as much information as he had already. With his parents on vacation, it wasn’t much, but Ollie also had a lot of friends and he could ask about their parents’ jobs without anyone questioning him. Him helping Dante meant Dante could watch over him while Ollie got him information, to keep him safe. When I was done with what minor jobs were sent to me by my cousins, I met them at the park, usually around the same time that Declan showed up. He walked Ollie home with one of my friends shadowing him, while Dante and I went back to my apartment. From there, we teleported to Declan’s apartment and spent the rest of the evening together.

We were prepping to leave to meet them when I noticed something new in Dante’s backpack. I frowned, pulling out the little stuffed bear.

“What’s this?”

Dante hadn’t been paying attention, too busy looking for the homework he ‘lost’ somehow. When he looked over his shoulder, his skin turned a deep burgundy as he blushed all the way to his hairline.

“N-Nothing!”

I raised an eyebrow, holding it above his head when he tried to snatch it from me. “It doesn’t really seem like your thing. Did someone give it to you?”

He hopped, trying to grab the toy, a little growl in his throat. When he got too embarrassed, he sat on the edge of his bed and whimpered. Chuckling, I handed it back to him as I sat beside him. He was quiet for a few minutes before coming clean.

“A girl in my grade gave it to me. She said she wants to be friends…”

“And did you give her something back?” It was common among demon children to exchange trinkets to begin friendships. Dante sighed heavily.