Page 8

8

DUKE’S IDENTITY

“Uh,” Nat said around his spinning thoughts.

Duke had the same kind of glowy eyes as Wanda.

“Fuck,” Duke hissed. “Is that fucker still alive?”

Nat looked down. “Maybe. I left town and didn’t look back.”

“Give me his name.”

Nat frowned. “Are you going to hunt him down?”

“We’ll see.”

“What if you get into trouble with—with the police?”

Duke clenched his jaw. “I’ll make sure I don’t.”

“He really is the wrong sort of crowd,” Nat blurted. “Kind of a criminal. I don’t want him to come after you for revenge.”

“Give me a name, Nat.”

Nat sighed. “Giblin. Giblin Turkeyson.”

Duke wrinkled his nose. “Did someone name him after turkey giblets?”

“Dunno.” Nat pushed away the sick feeling that thoughts of Giblin always gave him. Instead, he studied Duke.

Duke had pale golden eyes, nothing like Wanda’s blue ones. She hadn’t gotten her eyes from Nat, either—Nat’s were brown.

So Duke wasn’t the alpha that Nat had spent a drunken night with—Duke didn’t seem like that sort of person anyway.

It was still disappointing, though.

“What are you?” Nat asked. “I mean, what species.”

Duke blinked. “I don’t usually disclose that. Most people aren’t fans of demons.”

“Oh. That makes sense.”

Demons sometimes had a bad rep. Like the one Nat had slept with. But Duke seemed like a decent person, and one of Nat’s new friends, Liem, had a demon for a mate.

“You don’t look like a demon,” Nat said.

Duke huffed, his mouth twitching. “Glamour.”

What did he look like beneath the glamour? That was something Nat couldn’t ask—it wasn’t his place to. “Oh,” Nat said lamely. “Well, I don’t have anything against demons. You’ve been nothing but good to me.”

“Good to know.” Duke smiled. “Sometimes I’m not very nice.”

Nat shrugged. “I think the world is made up of shades of grey. Sometimes good people do bad things to bad people, and that’s okay.”

Duke looked at him thoughtfully. “Huh.”

Nat picked up his forgotten bagel and stuffed it into his mouth, so he wouldn’t blurt something he shouldn’t. Like how he knew about Duke killing kidnappers to rescue their victims.

Except he also had to deal with his new discovery: Wanda was a half-demon.

Nat knew nothing about raising demon children.

“How do you care for a demon baby?” he asked.

Duke pointed at his own chest, eyebrows raised.

Nat froze. Did Duke misunderstand? He did, didn’t he? He waved his hands to try and dig himself out of that hole. “I didn’t mean a baby from you! I meant a baby in general! Oh, gods. I’m not trying to hit on you!”

Duke smirked. “Why did you ask, then?”

Crap. “Um. I may or may not know someone who has one.”

Duke’s eyebrows went up.

“And they, uh, they may need help caring for their demon baby.”

“Where’s the demon parent?”

“Not around,” Nat said, trying not to meet Duke’s eyes.

“Huh.” Duke shifted from one foot to the other, taking a bite of his sandwich. “We’re fire-resistant from birth. Capable of overheating things when we’re about six or seven.”

Nat glanced at Wanda, thankful that she wasn’t in danger of setting the car on fire.

When he looked back, he found Duke watching him. He startled.

Duke’s eyebrows said he knew Nat was hiding something.

To distract them both, Nat crammed the rest of his bagel into his mouth. And he realized too late that it made his cheeks puff out like a chipmunk’s.

He chewed more quickly, then tried to slow down—because the entire point of stuffing his mouth was so he couldn’t answer any questions.

Duke snorted—he was onto Nat. He finished his sandwich and broke a cookie into two. “Want a piece?”

Nat made a strangled noise. He was still chewing his bagel.

Duke grinned and tucked the cookie half into Nat’s hand.

Another question popped into Nat’s mind.

He tried to swallow so he could ask it. By the time he could get his words out, Duke was unscrewing the lid of a juice bottle.

“You don’t mind that I’m fat?” Nat asked.

“Where did that come from?” Duke tipped the juice into his mouth.

“You said you want to have sex with me.”

Juice sprayed everywhere. Duke coughed for a long while, thumping his chest. “ What? ”

Nat gaped. “What?”

“Sex? With you?” Duke looked incredulous. “I’m your boss! When the hell did I say that?”

“In your job listing!”

Duke stared at him for a long moment. He blinked. Then he pinched the bridge of his nose, and cursed. “What the hell did Hubrie put on that job listing? Is that why he wanted the samples? It is, isn’t it?”

“What job did you think I signed on for?” Nat asked, bewildered.

“An assistant! To help me... unload. Fuck. That fucking fucker. He convinced me to hire you so I could ‘unload’. Holy fuck.” Duke grabbed a napkin and wiped the juice off his face.

“Um.” Nat felt as though everything was coming apart. “Does that mean you don’t need me anymore?”

“No, I still want you as my personal assistant,” Duke said hurriedly. “Hubrie was right about me giving him too many tasks from the company. But I didn’t intend for any part of your job to be... about sex.”

After receiving the news that he had been hired, Nat had spent several nights in bed jerking off, fantasizing about Duke.

He stared at Duke now, trying not to feel disappointed. “Oh. Okay.”

“We’ll—revise the hiring agreement.” Duke rubbed his face. “Fuck. I didn’t even look at the job scope; I trusted him to do this.”

“I mean... I’m fine with what I saw on the job listing. That’s why I’m here,” Nat said awkwardly. “Not that you have to do any of that. I’m just saying... I won’t think it’s some violation of ethics, because it’s what I agreed to in the first place.”

Duke sighed into his hand. “Okay. I... I’m sorry about all of that. Including Hubrie.”

“I didn’t think personal assistants were allowed to make hiring decisions.”

“No, he’s actually my butler, and not an assistant with the company. He’s not under any contract with HR.”

“ Oh. That makes so much more sense. Especially with the Hell Master thing.”

Duke groaned. It was a low, guttural sound that went straight through Nat’s body.

Surely that wasn’t a sound he made in bed.

Nat pushed those thoughts away, too.

“Let’s drop the subject. Are you almost done with lunch?” Duke looked at the remaining food. “If you are, we’ll head back soon. I’ll go in and ask Lector how much more time he needs to finish that outfit.”

Nat only relaxed when Duke had disappeared into the shop. As far as he knew, demons didn’t have an enhanced range of hearing, not like dragons, wolves, or shapeshifters.

He gave Wanda a belly rub. She babbled at him for cuddles; Nat stuffed Duke’s cookie into his mouth and scooped her into his arms.

“Gosh, hon. I hope I don’t get fired on my first day. That would really suck.”

She blew a spit bubble and smiled, looking so at ease that Nat felt himself relaxing, too.

Duke was back at the car a minute later. “He has an outfit ready for you.”

Nat frowned. “No one can sew that fast!”

“He probably invoked the Sentient Sewing Machine of Doom. I’m not going to ask. C’mon.”

Nat strapped Wanda into her portable car seat and dropped a kiss on her forehead. “Yeah, yeah, I’m not leaving you in the car. I need my emotional support baby.”

Duke coughed lightly. “She’s not an animal.”

“Of course not! She supports me emotionally by being herself. A baby.”

“Until she turns into a little terror,” Duke said dryly.

“She’s perfect,” Nat protested.

Duke rolled his eyes, but he was smiling as he hauled Wanda’s car seat along.

* * *

Nat struggled out of his clothes. The buttons were too tiny on his oversized shirt, and he couldn’t slide off his pants because they weren’t elastic.

With his missing fingers, this meant that he took a longer time to strip—time that was supposed to be Duke’s lunch hour.

He almost asked Duke for help.

But Duke hadn’t agreed to sex, or even just touching Nat, so Nat bit his tongue and wriggled until he’d gotten the clothes off.

When he looked over, he found Duke watching him, his eyes dark. Contemplative.

As though he might be reconsidering the no-sex thing.

Nat gulped and ducked his head.

“Here you go.” Lector handed over a folded shirt and pants. “These have been adjusted according to your measurements. I’ve switched out the plastic buttons for snaps.”

That sounded like a time-consuming process.

“How?” Nat couldn’t help asking. “Do you have a sentient sewing machine helping you?”

Lector gave a mysterious smile. “I have my ways.”

Over his shoulder, Duke mouthed, Sentient Sewing Machine of Doom.

Nat stifled a giggle. He stepped awkwardly into his pants; it was easier to work this set of zipper and button somehow; he wasn’t sure if Lector had done something special to them.

He gave a start of surprise when he realized just how snugly the pants fitted him.

When he pulled on the shirt, it hugged his body just right, making him look... different.

“I actually look good in this,” Nat said disbelievingly.

“Yes, you do,” Duke murmured, that same dark thing in his gaze. He stood up and prowled around the low platform, eyeing Nat up and down from every angle. The look on his face—that was appreciation.

Nat blushed. Duke’s hands twitched; he tucked them into his pockets, his gaze traveling down Nat’s chest to his belly, to his hips and legs.

Nat cast around for another subject before he grew hard. “Um, I think your lunch hour is almost over? You can... look again later if you want.”

Something flickered in Duke’s expression. “All right.”

He stepped back and let Lector fuss over Nat. Lector muttered and tugged on the clothes; Nat watched Duke.

His boss looked really pleased with himself. “Could you add a three-piece suit to the order?” Duke asked.

“Of course,” Lector said absently.

Nat’s eyes widened. “Why would I need one of those?”

“Just in case.” Duke smiled. “I think you’ll look great in a suit.”

“You can wear this set out of the shop if you’d like,” Lector said. “None of the adjustments are critical.”

“But what should I wear tomorrow?” Nat asked.

“I’ll deliver two sets to your office by this evening,” Lector answered.

“Thank you,” Duke said.

Nat didn’t want to ask how much money was involved, placing a rush order like this.

Duke stepped onto the low platform. He came to stand in front of Nat, tugging lightly on Nat’s collar to straighten it. Nat stopped breathing. Duke’s hands were large against his chest, warm through the thin shirt, and it felt... intimate.

“You really do look good,” Duke murmured. “This makes such a difference, doesn’t it?”

“I look like rich people now,” Nat blurted. Then he could’ve smacked himself in the face.

Duke laughed. “Perhaps. Although not all rich people dress like this. Not that I’m calling myself rich.”

“What else do rich people wear?”

“Grubby clothes. I wear that sometimes, you know. You’ll see it for yourself soon enough.”

Nat tamped down his excitement. He really wanted to see Duke when he was less than put together.

They thanked Lector and left the store with Wanda, getting back in the car.

“Is everything in your wardrobe tailored?” Nat asked.

Duke shrugged. “I have a few fire department T-shirts. Those are standard size. The shelter ones too.”

“I can’t imagine what you’d look like in a tailored T-shirt.”

“Just the same as everything else I own.”

“That’s because you look like a model. You would make everything look good.”

Duke smirked; Nat’s toes curled.

They got back to Duke’s office with three minutes to spare. Nat rushed around, flapping his hands at Duke so he would get to his meeting faster.

“Oh?” Duke grinned. “You’re chasing me to the next meeting?”

“It’s my job!”

“It’s not your job to flap your hands at me,” Duke pointed out, but he looked amused anyway.

“I’ll do whatever it takes, to make sure you get there on time,” Nat said firmly.

Duke cocked an eyebrow. “ Whatever it takes?”

That sounded like a come-on. Nat froze, his cheeks growing hot. “Um. Yes. If I have to.”

“Hmm.” Duke’s mouth twitched. He nodded at Nat, then headed into his meeting room.

Nat placed Wanda back in her playpen. He sent Uriel a photo of it for some protective spells; gods knew he didn’t feel safe leaving her there by herself, even if Duke’s staff needed special security clearance to reach this floor.

With Duke at his meeting, Nat did more practice tasks that Hubrie assigned him.

He looked up after he’d completed one such task, only to notice the butler snickering. Nat watched him warily. “What’s are you laughing about?”

Hubrie beamed. “Hell Master found out about the ad.”

Bewildered, Nat said, “You’re happy about it?”

“Well, yeah. At some point he really needs to unload.” Hubrie clucked his tongue. “You’ve seen his schedule. He doesn’t even have time to jerk off.”

Nat blinked hard. “That’s not something I should know, right?”

Hubrie shrugged. “I’m just giving you some perspective on why it was included in your job scope. Whether he wants to act on it is his choice.”

Nat thought about it. Yeah, he could imagine Duke falling into bed exhausted every night, instead of taking some time for himself. “Hang on. How am I supposed to help him with... unloading, when he doesn’t have time?”

“He’ll make time if he’s interested.” Hubrie waggled his eyebrows. “He’s been checking out your butt ever since you got back.”

Nat flushed. He hadn’t even noticed; he had been so focused on doing his job. “Because of the clothes?”

Hubrie sighed dramatically. “Rolled-up sleeves and pants that actually hug your butt? Yeah, he’s all over that. Mark my words, he’ll make sure the meeting ends early.”

“How early—”

The door to the meeting room opened, and Duke walked out.

Nat stared.

Hubrie gave him finger guns.

“What are those supposed to mean?” Nat hissed.

“Get ready for some shooting action,” Hubrie whispered back.

Nat hid his face in his hands. “Oh, gods.”

He straightened and faced his laptop, trying to work even though he could see Duke approaching from the corner of his eye.

“Nat,” Duke said smoothly when he was close enough. “I’d like to discuss something with you in my office.”

Nat’s insides grew hot.

Behind Duke’s back, Hubrie winked exaggeratedly, several times. “I’ll watch Wanda.”

“But she doesn’t know you,” Nat pointed out.

Hubrie shifted. He emerged from his mess of clothes as a raccoon, dancing on his hind legs. “She’ll know this.”

Well, Nat couldn’t argue against that. He followed Duke into the office, his heart thumping.

“Close the door,” Duke said. “And lock it.”