Page 18 of Demon's Heart

The man snorted. “Thanks.” He eyed the wine in Dante’s hand. “Want something stronger?”

“No, this is fine.” Dante turned, gesturing toward Ollie. “Onyx, meet Ollie. Harper’s roommate.”

Onyx’s gaze flitted briefly in Ollie’s direction. “Hi.” He turned back to Dante. “I’m surprised you came tonight.”

Cool snub, dude. Ollie narrowed his eyes at the guy.

“Why are you surprised?” A hint of offense bled into Dante’s tone. “Haven’t I come to your openings before?”

Onyx wrinkled his nose. “I suppose.”

What was the deal between these two? The slight animosity practically screamed ex-boyfriend behavior. Ollie’s gut twisted.Was Onyx the kind of guy Dante was into? A burning sensation rose in his chest.

“I enjoy these events,” Dante said. Of course he’d be kind and want to keep the peace. Ollie had never seen Dante be anything but considerate. “You’ve done a great job with this place, Onyx. It’s a lovely gallery.”

A different kind of jealousy swelled within Ollie. This guy was the owner? The one whom Harper had mentioned was friends with Ash? Owning Gallery Four was fucking impressive, especially since Onyx looked no older than Dante.

The real drawback of Dante being older was that people Dante’s age were generally more accomplished than Ollie. How could he compare? Ollie struggled to make decisions for himself and be his own person. Meanwhile, Dante was used to friends—or boyfriends—who owned renowned galleries.

“I have done well here.” Onyx’s lips twitched in a smug smile, clearly pleased by Dante’s compliment.

Maybe Ollie should find Harper or Dex and leave Onyx and Dante to catch up. But he didn’t want to. Being near Dante felt good.

“There you are.” Ash appeared next to Onyx, clapping a hand on his shoulder.

Onyx shook him off. “Oh goodie, Ash is here.”

Ash gave Onyx a stern look as Harper joined them. “We need to talk to you.”

Anger flashed across Onyx’s delicate features. He turned an accusatory look on Dante. “Is that why you’re here?”

“No.” Dante sighed. “We’re here because you invited us. Remember?”

“Right.” Onyx turned away, scanning the room as if he’d lost interest. “I have more important people to talk to than the two of you. Don’t wait up.” He walked off without a backward glance, nosein the air.

A strange sound emanated from Ash, almost like a growl. “That rude little?—”

“I’ll go talk to him,” Dante said before Ash could finish. He turned an apologetic smile on Ollie. “Excuse me for a second?”

Ollie met Dante’s dark stare, stomach swooping. “Sure.” Why was he even asking permission?

Dante nodded and slipped into the crowd. Ollie felt unsteady on his feet. It had to be too much wine on an empty stomach, not anything to do with Dante’s departure.

Harper linked his arm with Ollie’s. “You two seem to be having a good time.”

“Oh.” Had Harper been watching them? “Yeah, it’s been fun. Nice to find someone to talk to who doesn’t make me feel dumb for not knowing about art.”

Harper chuckled. “I could have done that for you.”

Something about the silence between them seemed expectant. Like Harper was hoping Ollie would say more about Dante. But why? Harper couldn’t read Ollie’s mind and detect his weird, conflicted feelings.

Needing to change the subject, Ollie gestured with his wine toward Dex, who seemed deep in conversation. “He’s in his element.”

“Totally. Oh! Should we introduce him to Onyx?” Harper glanced from Ollie to Ash, who shrugged.

Ollie’s attention wandered to where Dante was talking to Onyx in a far corner of the room. Dante’s expression was tense and slightly pleading. What were they talking about? Fuck, maybe Dante wasn’t over Onyx. Nothing else would give his face that hint of desperation. Right?

He clenched a fist, pushing the nausea filling him down. “Yeah, let’s introduce them. Dex doesn’t do studio art, but he’d love to meet the owner.”