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OLLIE

Ollie was having a great Saturday. Relief that Dante and the others had caught and banished the demons hurting his birds cured the tension he’d been carrying around all week. It was one less thing to worry about.

“We’ve got overlapping lunches today,” he said to Ellie as he organized his station.

“I saw that.” She passed him a comb she’d borrowed. “Sushi?”

“And coffee.”

“Uh, totally. I’m going to need an extra-large by the afternoon. I really should stop going out on Friday nights.”

Ollie laughed. “You need gaming friends. Though that might not help with the late nights.” He and Dante had played World’s End for hours last night.

Ollie had a few new clients scheduled that day, one an artist that Onyx had apparently referred. Ollie swallowed his surprise. Onyx was nothing like Ollie’s first impression of him, and the artist turned out to be a generous tipper.

The morning flew by.

As Ollie stood in line getting coffee while Ellie got their sushi, he pulled out his phone to thank the demon for the referral. A message was already waiting. Onyx had added him and Harper to a new chat. Ollie rolled his eyes at the group name, smiling.

Your Favorite Group Chat

Onyx:

I’m taking you mates out. Let me know when you’re free.

Ollie quickly replied.

Ollie:

Where are we going?

The texting dots popped up almost immediately.

Onyx:

You pick. Exclusive club or a five-course dinner?

Harper:

Dinner!

Wait. Why does it feel like you’re taking us on a fancy date?

Ollie snorted.

Onyx:

Because you are a sweet, innocent little witch. This is not a date. You couldn’t handle a date with me.

Harper:

How would you know?

Ollie:

Yeah, he handles Ash just fine.

Onyx:

Stop right there!

There are things I can’t allow inside my brain. Not when they’ll live there for eternity, and the details of Harper handling Ash is one of them.

Harper sent a devil emoji.

Ollie grinned, looking up in time for the barista to ask what he wanted. He placed his order for two iced coffees, one extra-large, and then went to wait by the cream and sugar.

Ollie:

So does that mean you don’t want to know how Dante and I got together?

He wasn’t really going to share how they’d stumbled into phone sex, but the threat should rile Onyx up.

Onyx:

Not if it’s anything other than a cute story about Dante swooning all over you. That’s my perspective on the situation, by the way.

How unexpectedly sweet.

Harper:

Aww

Ollie:

Yeah, Dante is pretty cute. I’m keeping the details to myself.

Onyx:

Dante is not cute. I’m cute.

Harper:

Being short doesn’t automatically make you cute.

Ollie:

Hey, don’t call us short.

Onyx:

Yeah!

Harper:

Sorry. But come on. Onyx, you were never going for cute.

Onyx:

True. I’m too sophisticated. Too sensual.

“Oh my god,” Ollie muttered under his breath. The barista called out his order, and he shot off one more text before grabbing the drinks.

Ollie:

How about next week for dinner?

They coordinated the details as Ollie added cream and sugar to his coffee and cinnamon to Ellie’s. He’d loved to have invited Dex since he was way more of a foodie than Ollie, but this was clearly a demon’s mate thing.

Next time Gallery Four had an opening, he’d make sure to take Dex. Maybe Onyx had contacts in the art world who sold handcrafted homeware. It would be cool to get Dex’s pieces in more shops.

Ollie and Ellie took their lunches to a small park near the river. Time passed too quickly, and soon, they were hurrying back to work. Ollie would be dead after this, but it was the good kind of tired. At least it was the end of the week.

The attack at the beach seemed further away than ever. Yes, more time had passed, but it went beyond that. Ollie’s doubts and fears faded with each passing day. His life had settled back into place and he felt like himself. Even things with Dante felt normal, leaving Ollie excited for the future .

Back at the salon, a poised woman with chestnut-brown hair waited for him. His last new client of the day.

“Hi, Pamala?” Ollie approached her. “I’m Ollie. I have you scheduled for an updo?”

“Yes.” She beamed at him. “Thank you for taking me at such short notice. I have an important event this evening and my stylist was sick, so my friend recommended I come here.”

“Happy to help.” Ollie led her back to his station. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

She was very organized, pulling up references on her phone and showing Ollie the dress she would wear. She walked out looking stunning and leaving Ollie with another generous tip.

“I hope she comes back,” Ellie said in his ear. “She’s magnetic.”

Ollie swatted her playfully. “I’m not being your matchmaker.”

“Good, because I don’t need your help.” Ellie grinned evilly before going to check the schedule. Probably to see if his client had rebooked.

As Ollie was about to turn away, Pamala returned to the salon. It seemed she’d forgotten something at the counter. Ellie handed it to her and Pamala lingered, leaning in.

Ollie finished tidying up. No, Ellie didn’t need his help at all.

When Ollie got home, Harper was curled up in the armchair, struggling through a first-person shooter game.

“I died again? This sucks.”

“You’re getting better. Did you check if you’re on easy mode?”

“Yeah, it doesn’t help.” Harper blinked at Ollie like he’d been focused on the TV for too long. “I need a break anyway. The demons are coming over soon.”

Ollie plopped on the couch. “All of them?”

“Even Onyx.” Harper set the controller aside. “They want to discuss their plans with us.”

Ollie’s light mood darkened.

Dante wanted to make his move against Lucifer soon, but tonight? Hunting the Devil in Hell seemed a lot less scary—or maybe less real—when they’d been chatting about it, snuggled in bed.

“Did Ash say anything else?”

Harper shook his head.

Ollie ran a hand through his hair. Dante going to a completely different realm left him feeling like he was teetering on the edge of a cliff. He’d rather find a way to feel safe from Lucifer without Dante having to do this. Maybe they could figure out something else.

It wasn’t long before there was a knock at the door.

“How did they know when I’d be home?” Ollie asked as he got up to answer. It wasn’t like he shared his exact work schedule with Dante when his hours varied.

“I sent Ash a signal down our bond when you got here.” Harper paused. “Was that okay? I should have told you.”

“No, that’s fine. It’s not that different from texting.” For a brief moment, jealousy strangled Ollie’s insides. He wanted to communicate with Dante like it was normal to share so much.

Was he ready for that? Ollie had assumed he’d never want to blur the lines between them as individuals, but sharing didn’t mean losing himself. It meant gaining something new with Dante.

Later. He’d think about it and talk to Dante later.

Ollie opened the door and let the demons in.

“Lovely home,” Onyx said as he stepped inside ahead of the other two. “You’ll see that I came properly dressed out of respect for human customs.”

Ash rolled his eyes, pushing past Onyx and heading straight for the living room. He and Dante were both shirtless.

“Uh, thanks, Onyx. But you can do whatever’s most comfortable for you. Harper and I don’t mind.”

Onyx narrowed his eyes. “Angling to see me undressed, are you? Watch out, Dante. I’ll steal your man.”

“I think I’m safe.” Dante pulled Ollie close. “How was your day?”

“Good.” Ollie snuggled in, pressing against Dante’s warm skin. “My friend Ellie got a hot date.”

Dante rumbled softly. “I’m glad that makes you happy.”

“It does, and so does seeing you again. Playing online last night wasn’t enough.” Being committed to relatively normal dating meant not spending every second together, and though they’d talked and met online, Ollie hadn’t seen Dante since he’d spent the night in Dante’s huge bed.

“Last night was fun though. Wasn’t it?” Dante covered Ollie’s lips with his without waiting for a reply, purring softly as they kissed.

Ollie got lost in the heat of Dante’s mouth, his scent swirling around them.

Remembering why Dante was there, he pulled back. “I’m not denying it was fun. But why are you all here? Are you going after him tonight?” It was too soon.

Dante’s soft expression hardened. “Let’s join the others, and I’ll explain.”

In the living room, Ash had repositioned Harper on his lap and Onyx was perched on the back of the couch, his bare feet on the cushions. Ollie couldn’t bring himself to disentangle from Dante’s side and sit, so they stood by the TV.

Dante didn’t seem to mind, rubbing his hand back and forth over Ollie’s lower back as he said, “We’re ready to make our move against Lucifer.”

Ollie’s heart clenched.

Harper visibly stiffened. “Like, ready, as in now? Tonight?”

“If we all agree,” Ash said, and Dante and Onyx nodded.

Everyone seemed to look at Ollie.

He only had eyes for Dante. “I know we talked about it, but are you sure it’s safe?

I don’t need this for my sake. Not like I did before.

I’d rather you stay here, in this realm.

I mean, there’s got to be other ways to manage my fear.

I am doing better, and you’ve all said now that we’re mated, Lucifer won’t attack like that again. ”

Dante cupped the back of Ollie’s neck, grip warm and tender.

“You’ve done so well acclimating to all this, but nothing will be completely safe as long as Luc is free.

He’s hurt you and Harper, and knowing he won’t kill you any more than he’d kill me isn’t enough.

Harm isn’t only physical. And what if we do nothing, and he hurts someone else next time?

How much of that will be on us? It doesn’t feel right. ”

“But is it safe for you to go down there?” Ollie glanced around at the other demons. They could be hurt or captured. Could they still get back to this realm if Lucifer imprisoned them?