Page 78 of Demon's Mate

His stomach tightened.

If only Ash hadn’t felt the need to reveal himself before talking to the others. Harper didn’t want to start off on the wrong foot. But if Ash hadn’t been truthful about who he was, Harper might not be here now. He’d have pushed Ash away.

He entered the living room, determined to win the other demons over. They were important to Ash, and gaining the Hounds’ favor had been his plan all along. Hadn’t it?

Ash’s wings were out, folded against his back. His tail twitched as he loomed over a blue-haired man sitting in an armchair. Beside them was another demon, looking out the large windows, his dark-gray wings and tail snagging Harper’s attention.

The second demon was almost as tall as Ash, though less bulky. He turned slowly, his gaze finding Harper’s like he’d felt him staring.

The demon had black irises so mesmerizing Harper couldn’thelp taking a step toward him. “Hello.” The demon smiled, showing no fangs. “Welcome to my home. I’m Dante.”

“Hi.” Harper waved like a dork.

Dante stepped forward and offered his hand. Harper shook it. “It’s an honor to meet you, Harper.”

He laughed nervously. “Thanks.”

Dante seemed as intense as Ash. Which made sense if they’d been searching for their mates for thousands of years.

Harper’s gaze shot to Ash, only to find Ash beaming at him.

The guy in the armchair glared. He must be Onyx, but with his wings, tail, and horns hidden, it wasn’t obvious he was a demon. He was smaller than the other two in height and build, his skin pale and eyes an icy blue.

He stood and stalked over to Harper, sweeping his gaze up and down like he was inspecting something suspicious. “So you’re Ash’s mate?”

“Um, yes?” Harper couldn’t help it sounding like a question. Why did Onyx sound skeptical?

Ash pushed past Onyx and slipped an arm around Harper, staring down the smaller demon. “Are you ready to accept that Harper isn’t one of Lucifer’s tricks?”

Onyx frowned, still inspecting Harper. “Do you feel the connection?”

Harper nodded. “Yeah, especially now that I know what it means.”

“Hm. Why should we believe you? You’ve been lying to Ash,” Onyx challenged.

Ash growled.

Harper frowned at the blue-haired demon. “I’m not lying about my feelings. I’ve been hiding from my coven, and it’s not like I’m foolish enough to trust random guys the second I meet them, so I didn’t tell Ash my problems at first. But I’ve told himeverything now.”

“Not trusting blindly is a good trait to have,” Dante said diplomatically.

Onyx rolled his eyes. “Yeah, well, if you meet a taller, more handsome version of me, don’t trust him.”

Harper glanced at Ash, not sure what Onyx meant.

“Lucifer has returned to the Human Realm,” Ash explained. “We’ve been unable to track him and aren’t sure what he’s up to other than coming for us. But don’t worry, I’ll keep you safe.”

“We’ll imprison Luc before long, and he won’t be a problem anymore,” Dante added.

“Do you think he’s in the city?” Harper’s heart rate picked up. The idea that the Satan his coven worshipped was in their world made his skin crawl.

Ash’s arm tightened around him. “Probably not, but we can’t say for sure.”

Dante hummed thoughtfully. “I wonder, if he is here, perhaps he’s made contact with the witches hunting us. He might have realized what they were up to like I did.”

“He wouldn’t work with witches.” Onyx waved a dismissive hand. “Luc doesn’t bother with beings of lesser power.”

It was the same attitude Harper’s father had.