Page 22

B rimming with excitement, Keegan grinned at Phillip, whose dark eyes were locked on his laptop. They were in their home office, and although it was a plain room with nothing but two desks inside, Victor was already hard at work planning the design. Like their bedroom, Phillip and Keegan wanted it to be unique and colorful. But Victor had vetoed the idea of it mirroring their living space.

Victor wanted it to reflect the title Keegan had accepted on Saturday and the one Phillip refused to call himself until the test he’d completed that morning was reviewed by the Lich Sentinel. To Keegan, that was nothing more than a formality. He’d helped Phillip study the information in the textbooks Keegan had used for eight weeks, but it hadn’t been necessary.

Phillip had used his time in his dorm wisely and had read everything multiple times. Keegan wouldn’t have been surprised if Phillip received a perfect score; the man was highly intelligent and had apparently memorized everything necessary to aid him as a sentinel. Since Phillip hadn’t accepted his role as Cinder Lord yet, Keegan had worn his normal fallen knight uniform, but he couldn’t wait to don the ones Larissa D’Vairedraconis had designed for them.

In addition to the formal uniforms they’d wear in the afternoon, she’d sent Keegan ones reflecting his unique position of belonging to both the Order of the Fallen Knights and the Sentinel Brotherhood. They were a mixture of charcoal gray and black, and his title was printed on dark T-shirts. Keegan decided he’d also give in to the temptation to wear his holster so he’d constantly have his daggers with him.

While he wasn’t proficient with the weapons yet, he loved to train.

“Why are you smiling at me?” Phillip asked, glancing up.

“I always want to smile at you. But I’m actually excited because it’s lunchtime.”

“I was engrossed in reading and trying to understand a training manual the reapers designed. It explains how we update our map with the locations of various races. I was not aware it had grown so late. Should we go see if Victor is ready to go?”

Keegan rose. “Absolutely. What’d you think of the training manual?”

“I have not read the entire thing yet, but it is daunting.”

Walking over to brush their lips together, Keegan hid his surprise. He’d found the manual easy to comprehend, and he’d already tested everything in it. Phillip was highly intelligent, but perhaps Keegan had overestimated the sentinel ability to handle technology.

“I’ll help you with it,” Keegan promised.

“I am afraid I will have to lean heavily on your expertise to learn the map system,” Phillip muttered as he laced their fingers together.

“Don’t worry, I love helping you.” The truth was Keegan adored every damn thing about Phillip and Victor.

They left their office and went down the open staircase. Keegan’s lips curved. Victor was dusting a bookcase in the living room with his sparkly tiara perched on his head. He was mouthing the words to whatever song was playing in his earbuds. But he stopped and smiled once he spotted Keegan and Victor.

“Lunchtime?” Victor asked, tugging out his earbuds and pulling the case for them out of his pocket.

“Yes, I will text Evergreen,” Phillip replied.

Victor rushed to them and lifted to his toes to kiss Keegan, then Phillip. “Let me grab some shoes,” Victor said. He sailed out, and Keegan kept his gaze trained on the lovely curve of Victor’s ass, delightfully showcased in snug pink pants.

“Sometimes I find it annoying that convention requires you and Victor to so often be clothed,” Phillip offered conversationally.

Keegan chuckled. “Try lusting after a sentinel. Your uniform pants are way too baggy.”

“They allow me to move freely as I train.”

“Good for you. I wish they showed off more of your assets.”

There was a knock at the door. Phillip lifted a hand to Keegan’s cheek and brushed their mouths together. “I will get the door. Think about how you wish to make love to me and Victor later.”

“I don’t want to spend my entire afternoon with a raging hard-on, Spicy.”

“Who has a hard-on?” Victor asked as he returned to the living room in a heeled sandal.

“Phillip told me to think about how we’re going to make love later,” Keegan said. “I can’t do that.”

Victor shook his head as he laced his fingers with Keegan’s. “Of course you can’t. That’s too spicy of a request.”

“What’s this about spicy requests?” Evergreen asked as he rushed to them in a sharp grayish green suit that complimented his eyes. “Tell me everything.”

“Not much to tell. I’m not doing it,” Keegan replied, hugging the druidic necromancer and nodding at Dudley.

“Once again thwarted by someone’s sense of propriety,” Evergreen complained. “Where are we eating?”

“Should we take Phillip and Keegan to Council Headquarters and eat in the cafeteria?” Victor asked.

“I think it would better benefit the Sentinel Brotherhood if we waited until their titles were official and they were wearing their new uniforms,” Dudley stated.

“Oh, good point,” Victor replied. “The little sandwich shop we like?”

“A sandwich sounds good,” Keegan enthused. “Phillip, what do you think?”

“I enjoy sandwiches.”

“Me too,” Dudley remarked.

“Yes, I want to go too,” Evergreen commented, slapping a hand on his hip. “Not that anyone cares.”

Victor smiled. “Rough morning?”

“What Monday isn’t?” Evergreen asked. “I swear everyone in the Council spends their weekend thinking of all the things they want to do to annoy office managers everywhere. Gather in everyone, and I’ll teleport us to the nearest Dérive station.”

Dérive was a company founded by Killian the Dwyer, the ruler of the druids, and their principal mission was to offer teleportations to whoever needed them. To facilitate their jobs, the druids had placed stations throughout the Council, and they were available for use by everyone so no one popped onto a busy sidewalk and startled any poor soul who happened to be nearby.

Although Keegan preferred to use his own ability to teleport, he was grateful for Evergreen’s sorcery. It allowed Victor to flash from one spot to another—a skill he unfortunately lacked as a shifter. As far as Keegan was concerned, magic was the only thing Victor didn’t have, and that didn’t bother him one damn bit. Victor was phenomenal, and so was his beautiful cat.

Their little group arrived at the Dérive station thanks to Evergreen, and Dudley led them swiftly to a pretty cafe decorated in blues and greens. The floors were thick wooden slats, and Keegan liked the elegant wall sconces. They complemented the enormous wall of antique mirror squares. A polite host led them to a giant booth with a thick linen tablecloth.

“This is nice,” Keegan said.

“I’m glad you like it,” Victor replied. “It’s owned by Henry Gennevios. He’s part of our extended D’Vaire family. You’ll get to meet him soon. We’re overdue to visit the D’Vaires, but everyone wanted to give us time to get to know one another.”

“I can’t wait for the next D’Vaire weekend,” Evergreen enthused. “You guys will love it.”

“It is a peaceful place to shift,” Phillip remarked. “I look forward to a lengthier visit and to meet everyone you consider family, Victor.”

A strange expression crossed Victor’s face, and he bowed his head to give his attention to the menu.

Evergreen gasped and slapped Victor’s arm. “You haven’t talked to the Antonovs yet, have you? Oh shit, how did we miss talking about this?”

“The server is heading over; let’s figure out what we’re going to eat. Then we’ll talk about the Antonovs.”

Keegan was so stunned Victor had a secret that he picked a sandwich at random. Picking up on his surprise, Phillip laid a palm on Keegan’s thigh to soothe him.

“Sparkles, you are entitled to speak about what you wish and on your own timetable,” Phillip stated calmly once their server walked away.

“No, this is silly, and I’ve been so focused on happy things that I ignored this conversation for far too long,” Victor said. “I’m an Antonov-Daray. The Antonovs are my birth family. And no, I haven’t told them I’ve met my mates. It’s not because I’m ashamed of you two. The truth is, I’d be surprised if any of the Antonovs were supportive. They don’t approve of same-sex relationships.”

“Nor have they ever approved of their gay son,” Evergreen added with a look of pure disgust. “Victor is a wonderful person. He’s kind, caring, eager to help anyone, and loves so damn fiercely as long as you have his trust. But his fucking family only sees him as the gay son with the weird clothes.”

Phillip frowned severely. “What is wrong with your clothes?”

“Yeah, this I want to hear because I fucking love your clothes,” Keegan commented. It sickened Keegan to think of Victor being subjected to anyone who disapproved of him, and the fact that they were discussing his biological relatives made it that much more distasteful.

“To the Antonovs, my clothes are too loud and not suitable for a man,” Victor replied, his mouth twisting as he shrugged. “And when I visit them, I try to pick out the most normal stuff I own.”

“I am sorry they do not accept you exactly as you are,” Phillip said.

“Me too,” Keegan added. “Phillip and I love that you sparkle. It’s part of who you are, and your self-expression is one of the many things I find beautiful about you.”

“He barely wears any make-up either,” Evergreen confided with a pointed look of disapproval for the cat shifter Keegan adored.

“Hey, I used to skip applying any,” Victor argued. “I’ve come a long way since I was eighteen. The Darays love me the way I am, and my confidence has grown. Mostly I tame my looks so I don’t have to deal with as many comments from them. And thankfully, they mostly ignore the way I differ these days. I think they grew tired of repeating themselves.”

“You do not have to tell them about Keegan and me if you prefer,” Phillip offered.

“No, you’re my mates, and I hate hiding you from anyone,” Victor said. “I’m sorry we didn’t discuss this before, but I’ve been focused on building our relationship. The Antonovs haven’t been a priority because they don’t matter as much as everyone else in my life. Not anymore. I know what it feels like to be loved unconditionally, and they can’t or won’t offer me that. But I’ve maintained a relationship with them because they gave me life. I’ve latched onto that duty for years.”

“You know how I feel about it,” Evergreen replied. “You deserve better. But I respect that you honor your relationship with them. They haven’t earned your kindness, and if they can’t accept you as you are, then they sure as fuck don’t merit a damn minute of your time.”

“It is good that you kept your feelings about it to yourself,” Dudley teased.

“I tried,” Evergreen said. “I tried so hard. Most of it stayed in my head, but some of it fell out of my mouth. I can’t help it. Victor, I love you. I hate that they hurt you.”

“Everyone here is an incredible friend to me, and I appreciate that you want the best for me,” Victor responded. “But I need to call them and arrange to go over there to tell them about the incredible gifts Fate gave me.”

“I hope you see Sunshine and I as more than friends,” Phillip joked with a small smile. Keegan leaned close to kiss him.

“He’s really feeling spicy today,” Keegan said.

“I’m loving it,” Victor remarked. “And you are both absolutely a whole lot more to me than friends.”

Evergreen propped his elbows on the table and stacked his chin on his hands. “And what do you do with these more than friends? Give me every explicit detail.”

“Go watch porn, Evergreen,” Keegan replied.

“You suck, Keegan,” Evergreen retorted.

“Yes, he does, and very well, thank you,” Phillip stated succinctly.

“Phillip is my new bestest friend,” Evergreen enthused. “Tell me everything.”

Keegan rolled his eyes. “When do you think Alaric is going to grade Phillip’s test so we can officially accept our titles?”

“The Skelly Seven already did,” Evergreen replied with an absent wave of his hand. “He got one wrong. He passed. Title earned. Blah blah blah. We already knew he’d crush it. He’s a sentinel.”

Phillip frowned. “I wonder which one I answered incorrectly.”

“It was the one Alaric snuck in regarding the map system Keegan is now in charge of,” Dudley explained.

“Oh, that makes sense. The entire system is confounding,” Phillip responded.

Whatever expression Keegan made had Evergreen hooting with laughter. “Oh, I think our new Cinder Lord is figuring out that he accepted a job that will eventually drive him mad.”

“Keegan will aid us,” Dudley stated. “He is mated to a sentinel. None of the reapers are. He understands how we think because he spends so much time with Phillip. With his help, we will learn how to use the system properly.”

“Good luck with that,” Evergreen scoffed. “He’s fucking a sentinel; he didn’t learn how to read minds.”

His trepidation growing, Keegan dearly hoped he wouldn’t embarrass himself by letting the sentinels down. The last thing he wanted to do was fail at one of the tasks he was assigned, but Keegan wasn’t sure if he could manage a task that the reapers hadn’t already conquered. Thankfully, he’d have Phillip at his side, and hopefully together they could create a manual to aid the sentinels in mastering their own system.

In the meantime, he was worried about Victor. Keegan didn’t want to think about Victor being rejected or treated in any way unkindly. If the Antonovs objected to Victor’s matebond, then their issue was with Fate—not their son.