Page 11 of Demon’s Desire (Lovers of the Damned #3)
Nico led him inside, up the stairs, and down a hallway with worn carpet. He unlocked a door and stepped through, slipping off his shoes. Onyx followed and did the same.
The scent of citrus filled the air.
“I won’t bother offering you a drink, but I’m going to grab something.” Nico rounded the entry’s tight corner and disappeared.
Onyx stepped after him. He took a deep breath, and the citrus scent deepened into something more earthy, soothing Onyx’s foul mood as if it were a personally tailored balm made to inspire a creeping sense of comfort.
Déjà vu hit Onyx in the chest. A feeling he’d forgotten tugged at the edge of his senses. The Eternal Realm popped into his mind, bright blue skies, wispy clouds, and towering mountains.
For a second, it was as if Onyx had been transported home. Not to his loft or any other place he’d lived on Earth, but home. To the realm he’d never wanted to leave.
“I know it’s small.” Nico filled a glass with water in the kitchen area to the right of the open living space.
Onyx shook himself, and the feeling faded. “There’s nothing wrong with small. I don’t live in a mansion, you know.” He walked further into the room and sat on a leather couch that looked well-loved.
Nico joined him, pausing to turn on the TV and gaming console before sitting. “Where do you live?”
“A loft on the other side of the river.” Why had he answered? He never told anyone where he lived, except Scott.
Nico’s brows raised. “Across the river?”
“Yeah.” Onyx’s tone turned defensive. “Is that surprising?”
“It’s not what I pictured.” Nico set his glass aside and glanced toward the window. “I used to live right on the border of the South Banks and Port View.”
It was Onyx’s turn to be caught off guard. Those were the two Shearwater Landing neighborhoods that sat separated from the rest of the city by the river. They’d nearly been neighbors.
“I’m in the South Banks. Near Marlo’s Bakery.”
Nico ran a hand through his hair. “Shit, Marlo’s. I haven’t been there in ages.”
“Marlo was the reason I moved there in the first place.” Onyx was half kidding, but he did like the man’s baking.
“You knew him?”
Oh, right. By the time Nico would have been born, Marlo hadn’t been running the bakery anymore. “Not well. But I went by often enough that he recognized me.”
Nico shifted, turning sideways to look at Onyx. “How long have you lived in Shearwater Landing?”
“This time? Maybe forty years? I’ve lived here off and on since the turn of the century. Last century, I mean.”
Nico nodded. “What about Ash and Dante?”
Onyx’s peaceful mood soured. “Dante hasn’t left since they started building the place. We were all here then. Ash moved around. I didn’t keep track of where. Though most recently, he was hiding in the woods.”
Nico stifled a snort. “Hiding from what?”
“Who knows?” It was annoying that Nico cared.
He seemed to stare Onyx down. “What’s that frown for?”
“It’s just my face,” Onyx snapped automatically, but for some reason, he added, “Ash said something about Harper growing up in the mountains where he’d been living. So maybe he wasn’t really hiding.”
Nico leaned closer. “Like Harper drew him to the woods?”
“Yeah.” Onyx’s world tilted, unease knocking him sideways. “Ash and Dante think it has to do with the mate connection.”
“Is that why Dante was here in Shearwater Landing? The mate connection kept him in the city?”
“That’s what he says. He always claimed he’d find his mate here. It took more than a hundred years for Ollie to show up, but Dante wasn’t exactly wrong.”
“Wow.” Nico’s brow creased. “I had no idea magic like that existed. Or that the bond was so all-encompassing. It goes beyond even meeting the person.”
“Seems like it,” Onyx muttered.
Before Ash and Dante mated, Onyx hadn’t realized the bond could influence a demon’s subconscious before crossing paths with their mate.
With Dante, being drawn to the place he’d find Ollie was somewhat logical.
He’d always believed his mate was out there, so on some level, he’d been seeking Ollie this whole time.
But the fact that Ash had hunkered down so close to Harper, even when he had given up on ever finding his mate, spoke to the cosmic nature of the connection.
Unease slithered around Onyx’s heart.
He’d kept returning to Shearwater Landing because of his brothers, refusing to let them forget him. What if his determination to stay within reach meant he’d missed his mate?
No. He didn’t need a mate, so it didn’t matter. He’d had no strong desire to be anywhere else, and surely ignoring an instinct like that was impossible. His mate probably wasn’t out there.
Onyx liked his life in Shearwater Landing. He’d built something good this time around, something that brought him undeniable joy. Even if nothing had changed with his brothers.
Onyx pushed his discomfort to the back of his mind. “So, are we playing this game, or what?”
Nico jolted like he’d been in a daze. “Yeah. Unless you want to start with something more beginner level, since you’ve never played anything like this before.”
“That might be a good idea.” Onyx slumped into the couch cushions, the motion bringing him closer to Nico than he’d intended. “I don’t want to suck at your stupid game.”
Onyx felt Nico’s laugh vibrate through the couch more than he heard it. “I’m surprised you don’t want to get playing over with so you can tell me you were right, and gaming isn’t for you after all.”
But then they’d have one less reason to spend time together.
Fuck, Onyx wanted to spend time with Nico. How annoying. He couldn’t even deny it to himself.
“You won’t get rid of me that easily,” he grumbled.