Page 35 of The Shapeshifter’s Secretary (Charmed Away Temp Agency #3)

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

Something was wrong. When Tony woke up the next morning, he wasn’t surrounded by both his boyfriends like he was the first night. He was alone. Zephyr wasn’t far, Tony found him making breakfast when he got up, but Taron was nowhere to be found. When he asked, Zephyr wouldn’t look him in the eye.

“I don’t know. I’m sure he’ll meet you at work. Do you need a ride?”

He shook his head slowly. “No. It's not far.”

Only a couple of blocks, actually. Taron protested walking to work the first day until Tony explained it’d be just as many steps to take the train and, with the morning traffic, twice as long to take a car since Spellbound was smack in the middle of downtown. Walking was better, and as long as he left early enough, he could take his time.

They ate breakfast together– apparently Taron wasn’t the only good chef in the relationship– and Tony locked up before they headed out. It was a little later than he normally left since Zephyr wanted to make sure he finished all his food, but he still had enough time to make it without being late. On the street, Zephyr gave him a kiss goodbye, and Tony told himself he was imagining it when he felt like it lacked as much warmth as usual. He waved as Zephyr headed in the opposite direction and turned to head to work.

The sidewalk was busier than usual and he got jostled a lot. He tried to stay to the side out of the way, but a car came too close to the curb and made him jump, forcing him to scurry back and a demon actually shoulder-checked him and nearly knocked him on his ass for his efforts. The only reason he didn’t fall was because magic wrapped around him like a giant hand, righting him on his feet.

“Are you alright?”

Taking a shaky breath, he nodded and looked around for the speaker. The man who spoke to him was a few inches shorter than him and willowy, with bicolored eyes, one dark blue and the other light purple. It was an interesting mix, one Tony had never seen before. He was frowning and looked concerned, tipping his head to study him.

“You look like you’re in pain. Did he hurt you?”

Magic seemed to flex around the man, making Tony blink in surprise. He looked around and then back at his rescuer, confused.

“Uh… No? I’m sure it was an accident. I got in the way.”

The man made a tick sound behind his teeth, crossing his arms. “You’re disabled. He was an asshole.” He stuck his hand out, introducing himself. “I’m Kian.”

Tony shook his hand, relaxing a little more when Kian was extra careful around his injury. “Tony. Thank you for helping me. I usually leave a little earlier than this, and there isn’t so much of a crowd.”

“Where are you headed? I’ll walk with you.”

Surprised, Tony pointed down the street. “It’s only a couple of blocks. I’ll be alright.”

He waved away Tony’s excuse. “It’s fine. I don’t have anywhere else I need to be right now. I just got fired.”

His mouth fell open, but Kian didn’t give him any chance to ask questions before starting down the street. He walked slow enough that Tony didn’t need to hurry, and with Kian walking next to him, people seemed to part around them instead of barreling through him.

“How…” He was a little worried it’d be rude to ask, but he’d never seen people acting like that before. It was like they didn’t even notice they were doing it.

“It’s a spell,” Kian explained. “It just gets them to walk around us. I use a smaller one regularly, because if people push me, I end up pushing back, and it's a whole thing. This way, there’s no problem. They don’t even notice it's there.”

Tony jerked to look at Kian again, his eyes almost bugging out. “Aren’t you not supposed to use your magic on people without permission?”

Kian lifted a shoulder. “I’m not hurting anyone. Besides, no one will know if you don’t tell them.”

That felt a little weird to Tony, but he had to admit, it made the trip a lot easier getting the rest of the way to Spellbound. And maybe Kian was right. It didn’t hurt anyone. Turning to face him, he offered his hand again.

“Thanks again. My boyfriends hover a lot. If they found out I got hurt walking to work, they’d never let me go anywhere by myself.”

The smaller man chuckled, shaking his hand. “Glad I could spare you the trouble.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder. “I’m gonna head off. Maybe I can find a bar open this early nearby. All these fancy suits are making me itchy.”

Tony snickered, shaking his head as he watched Kian shove his hands in his pockets and turn to walk away. He wanted some way to thank Kian properly, but he didn't really have a lot to offer. Except maybe a recommendation?

“Hey, Kian?”

Those bicolored eyes locked on him again as Kian looked over his shoulder. “Yeah?”

“If, uh… If you’re having trouble finding a job… Not that I think you can’t or whatever. I’m sure you’re fine. But if you’re looking…” He felt awkward. Was it rude to mention Charmed Away to a stranger? People looked down on temps sometimes. Kian wasn’t human, so at least he had that going for him, but he’d still probably catch some heat for being a temp.

The corner of Kian’s mouth kicked up in a smirk. “Relax. I won’t get offended.” His eyes flicked to Spellbound and back, and he wrinkled his nose a little. “You’re not going to tell me about a position in that company, are you?”

Not after the suit comment, he wasn’t. He shook his head with a grin. “I used to work at a temp agency. They’re really accommodating, and I liked it. A few people I work with used to work there too before they found their forever jobs. If you want, I can call my old boss and put a good word in.”

His eyebrows jerked up in surprise. “Why? You don’t even know me.”

Tony shrugged. “You don’t know me, but you still stopped to help me. I want to help you, too.”

Kian smiled in understanding. “An even exchange. I like it. Alright. I honestly didn’t have a clue where to go next, so why not?”

They exchanged numbers and Tony told him to text once he sent his application in to Charmed Away. Morana was really happy he found a job that he could do without getting hurt and he left on good terms. He felt confident if he called to recommend Kian, she’d listen.

“Thanks, Tony. If I get the job, I’ll take you out for a drink. You can bring your mates.”

His brow furrowed in confusion, but Kian turned to walk away again, and this time a portal opened in front of him, and he disappeared through it. Tony’s jaw fell open as a few people jumped out of the way to avoid it. It popped out of existence as fast as it had appeared, leaving no trace behind.

Someone made an irritated sound behind him, and he turned in time to see a goblin shake his head with a scowl. “Damn fae. Always causing trouble for others.” He looked up at Tony. “He didn’t make a deal with you, did he? They’ll kidnap unsuspecting humans and take them to their realm, never to be seen again.”

Startled, Tony looked back to where Kian stood, and then back to the goblin. “No… We didn’t make any deals. He seemed really nice.”

The goblin tsked again. “Don’t trust the fae. They’re shifty.” He narrowed his eyes on Tony. “You’re Cunningham’s assistant, right? Walk with me. I need an appointment with him, and I don’t like playing phone tag.”

Tony found himself hustled inside while the little goblin talked about when Taron might be free to meet. Tony wasn’t exactly sure he was around, but he knew Taron’s schedule by now and listed off a few times that might work. He bypassed the turnstiles since Taron told security he could use the gate at the end. The golem security nodded at him in greeting and then to the goblin, who chuckled to himself.

“You get to skip the line. Must be nice.”

He forced a smile that masked his grimace. “Yeah…”

Honestly, he’d rather take the lines than the injury, but he wasn’t going to point that out. He was already scolded by the goblin for talking to Kian. He didn’t need to make things more awkward.

Taron wasn’t in the office when Tony showed up. He texted him asking if he was coming in that day, and Taron replied that he was walking around the building and to let him know if anything came up. Tony’s heart sank. Taron was usually right by his side all day. He must’ve done something wrong. The only problem was he had no clue what he did.

* * *

Taron was avoiding everyone. The guilt ate at him for avoiding Tony especially, but he couldn’t help it. He couldn’t sit still. He kept replaying that kiss in his head over and over. That always led to him replaying the best and then the worst parts of his and Zephyr’s relationship, followed by the heartbreaking reality of how things ended. It made him moody and quiet, and he didn't want to upset Tony by being around him like that. His only hope was that if he walked enough, he’d be able to shake off the anxiety and get back to what was important.

His phone buzzed with a warning about a meeting with Ozen. He winced. Of all the people he had to meet with, Ozen was the last person he wanted to be stuck in a room with. His friend would pick up on his mood immediately. He floundered a little before calling Collette, Ozen’s secretary.

“Mr. Hawksley’s office, Avery speaking. How can I help you?” a familiar voice greeted him.

“Avery? Why are you answering the phone?” Taron demanded. “You’re supposed to be working on book three. You promised you’d finish by the end of the summer.”

Avery sighed heavily. “Good morning, Taron. Someone damaged Collette’s car, and she’s going to be a little late. I’m just filling in to help out, that’s all. And stop pestering me about my deadline. It takes me longer when I focus on it too much.”

Ah, true. Avery warned him about that. The deadlines freaked him out, he tried too hard to get the pages done, and then his mind went blank on the storyline, and he couldn't finish. He’d never gotten close to missing a deadline but pretending they didn’t exist helped him stay focused.

“Sorry. I forgot.”

“Was there a reason you were calling? Aren’t you supposed to be heading up here soon?”

He grimaced. Lying to Collette was one thing. She didn’t question his motives. Avery would ask questions.

“Uh… I was going to ask to reschedule…” he mumbled.

Another sigh. Why did his friends always sound so exasperated with him? It wasn’t like he did this often. He loved meeting with his friends. They usually got annoyed that he showed up without an appointment instead.

“Do you have a reason? Because his schedule is pretty full today, and I’m not sure how easily I’ll be able to fit you in.”

His mood was already sour, and it was hard not to take Avery’s short tone personally. He bit back a growl, glaring at the empty hallway he had been wandering in. “Move it to tomorrow, then. Or cancel it completely. I’m sure he can stand missing one meeting with me.”

The line went quiet for a moment, and when Avery spoke again, he sounded concerned. “Taron? Is something wrong?”

That ache that showed up last night throbbed in his chest again, and a lump formed in his throat. He didn’t want to talk anymore. He just wanted to be left alone.

“I have to go. I have other things I need to do. Have a good day, Avery.”

He hung up without waiting for a reply. He was going to head for the stairwell for some privacy, but he heard voices coming from that direction, so he headed the opposite way, ducking into an empty conference room. He sank onto his haunches, folding his arms on his knees and hiding his face.

“Stop it, stop it, stop it…” he muttered to himself. This had to stop. He was not going to let one stupid kiss ruin all the good things in his life. He and Zephyr didn’t work. They tried it once and it failed so spectacularly, Taron thought he’d never love someone again. Then he met Tony. He refused to let anything take that away from him. Even his first love.