Page 32 of Galen

Alastair had witnessed too many lovers die.

Long ago, I vowed to never fall in love again. The few years with them by my side wasn’t worth the soul-shattering pain of losing them. Better to avoid attachment altogether.

I moved my gaze to the sea, staring at the lighthouse in the distance. The light beamed bright before fading, shining elsewhere. Alastair was mistaken. Other than a physical attraction, I felt nothing for Simon. How could I? I had barely spoken to him. Not to mention he was stubborn as hell and asked too many questions.

Did I want to protect him? Yes. But only because I felt responsible for him nearly dying.

Fucking him wasn’t entirely out of the question though. Simon had an amazing body. Soft and warm. I wanted to bury myself in him, lick him all over, inhale his intoxicating scent and listen to his moans as I filled his ass.

“Don’t make me puke,” Alastair said.

“Get out of my head, then.”

“You damn well know we can’t control it sometimes,” he countered. “Especially with you standing so close.”

It happened a lot with the two of us. I shared a close bond with all my brothers; however, the bond between Alastair and me went even deeper. We butted heads a lot, but I would lay down my life for his without a second thought.

“Lovely night, isn’t it?” someone said from behind us.

I flung around to see an auburn-haired demon flashing a wicked smile.

“Phoenix,” I growled, reaching for my dagger.

“None of that now,” he said, wagging a finger at me. “I only came to chat, so do try to be civil.”

With his porcelain skin, dark brown eyes, and stylish way of dress, he could almost pass for being human. His stench gave him away though.

“We have nothing to talk about,” I stepped forward.

“Easy, brother.” Alastair placed a hand on my chest, keeping his eyes on Phoenix. “What do you want, demon?”

“You have something of mine,” Phoenix said. The infuriating curve of his lips made me want to drive my dagger into his throat even more than I already did. “A box that came from this mansion. Hand it over and I’ll call off my beasties. You wouldn’t want another precious human to be harmed, would you?”

He’s referring to Simon.That meant it wasn’t a random attack.Heordered the shades to kill him.

I saw red. “Fuck you, you goddamn—”

“How about you call them off anyway?” Alastair said, talking over me. “And we might let you live.”

Out of the two of us, he was better at keeping a level head.

“How arrogant you are. Thinking you can defeat me.” Phoenix bared his teeth. At least his stupid smirk was gone. “I’m doing you a favor, you Nephilim swine. You have no idea what power you’re dealing with here.” He took a step closer. “You think you’re safe in your little haven behind the veil? Cute.”

“Is that a threat?” I asked, shoving past Alastair and approaching the demon.

Phoenix glanced around me to Alastair. “Call off your angry mutt before I put a muzzle on him.”

I lurched toward him, and he vanished. My dagger sliced nothing but air. He reappeared on the railing at the opposite end of the balcony, leaning against a column.

Goddamn demons. I hated their ability to do that shit.

“Alastair,” Phoenix said, leg propped behind him. “Think on my offer. The item in that box is of no use to you. Allow me to take it off your hands, and you have my word that I’ll back off. The humans will be spared, blah, blah. But if you refuse me…” That wicked grin from earlier returned, and red flashed in his eyes. “I’ll order my beautiful little pets to attack this entire godforsaken town, killing every human they come across. The streets will run red with their blood, and it’ll be all your fault.”

“How about you go fuck yourself?” I said, tightening the grip on my dagger and wondering if I could throw it quickly enough to lodge it in his chest before he vanished.

“You should really do something about that filthy mouth of yours,” Phoenix told me. “By the way, say hello to sweet Simon for me. When I paid him a visit, he refused to tell me who took the box. But I smelled your filth all over him. I smelled something else too. It piqued my interest more than anything else.”

“What are you talking about?”