“Yes.”
Adrian narrowed his eyes. “You already knew what Stephan was, didn’t you?”
Ah, the man’s mind was as keen as always. “When we found what was left of the gang who took him, I may have considered the idea. He claimed to not remember what had happened. His shields were slammed tight, and I didn’t push. Not that it would have mattered if I had even wanted to. Liam wouldn’t have let me.”
“I see.”
“I won’t lie. It’s a choice I never question and one I made easily. Even if I had known back then what was to come, it wouldn’t have changed anything. My thoughts are the same. Demanding more from him would have been cruel. He had lost so much. The child didn’t deserve to be punished more for something he could never change.”
* * * *
A few hours later
Adrian watched Baylin guide the two young men out of his throne room. He hadn’t learned much more than what Dante had told him. Though he had confirmed Dante’s assessment—not that Adrian had doubted him.
Stephan was such a sweet young man. Not a pushover, of course. He wouldn’t have survived the business world if he was.
But Adrian was sure that sweet man would vanish if he felt threatened—or if someone threatened Jayden’s safety. Which would be a shame, because not only was Stephan sweet, but genuine.
He did find it slightly amusing that the little elf gave him more pause than the large homicidal vampire.
“It’s hard to believe such a small man could cause much damage,” Xavier murmured.
“Yes, well, many have thought the same about me.”
His husband let loose a deep chuckle. “I’m sure you showed them all how wrong they were.”
* * * *
Stephan couldn’t seem to wipe the smile off his face. Everything was going so well.
They were all on their way to Dante’s office. His plan had worked! They were finally safe! Stephan was so happy he could cry.
After Jayden and Stephan met with the king, they had received a call from Dante. The man wanted to discuss a few details of Jayden’s new position. They’d been on the road for forty-five minutes and were almost there.
Going to meet the king had been stressful. But the man had heard them out, and Stephan had left feeling as if a giant weight had fallen off his shoulders.
Not only had King Adrian approved of Jayden joining the Zaytari, but he had agreed to not put Stephan on the national registry. Of course, it wasn’t that much of an allowance. Apparently, King Adrian had stopped creating an actual list years ago and instead opted for just keeping one in his mind.
Whatever, his plan had worked!
“Happy?” Jayden asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Of course!” He squealed.
Both Liam and Jayden laughed at his enthusiasm.
“Would you go on a date with me tomorrow?” Jayden asked out of nowhere.
Stephan’s face warmed. “I, um…I, um…yes.”
Liam let out a disgusted snort and pulled the car up in front of a mansion. The Kozen group’s main office was also Dante’s house. They were instantly surrounded by those who knew Liam when they walked inside. Pushing through the crowd, they somehow made it to the waiting room outside Dante’s office.
The man’s secretary was…well, she was a bit stiff. She was petite and rather beautiful with her long white-pink hair and swirling black horns—fire demon, no doubt. However, he felt judged from the minute he walked in. Stephan wondered how she worked with Dante, who appeared to be rather laid back.
“Judith, we’re expected,” Liam announced.
“Yeah, yeah.” She waved them on.
Liam smirked. “As friendly as always, I see.”
Judith grunted.
Dante opened the door to the office and greeted them as they came in. “Welcome. Come in, come in. Please ignore my rather inhospitable secretary.”
Judith popped her head in, glaring. Then she slammed the door shut.
Laughing, Dante had them all sit down.
“She seems…nice?”
“Judith may seem a bit much, but I assure you, under that hard exterior is a teddy bear.”
Liam snorted. “Yes, one with claws.”
“Well, let’s get started, shall we?” Dante folded his hands on top of his desk. “In my group, those in higher positions are for the most part required to live at, or near, the main office, though many of the younger members live with me, as well, not to mention in the few large homes farther back on my property. As I have multiple smaller branches throughout my territory, I, of course, am referring to those who work at the main branch only. It is done for convenience purposes, not to mention protection. While you will be considered the executioner for the entirety of my group, you will be stationed here. Bottom line, where you currently live is unfortunately too far away.”
Stephan worried his lip. “While I don’t have an issue with moving, it’s not possible for Jayden to live in a house with so many people.”
“Yes, I thought that might be the case. Recently, the mansion next door came up for sale. I took the liberty of buying it.”
“Oh, you didn’t have to do that. I could have done so myself. Money is not an issue.”
“Yes, well, properties around here sell fast.” Dante leaned back in his chair. “Considering I’m the one asking you to move, it seemed only right. You will, of course, have to pay for any renovations you wish to make.”
Stephan didn’t know what to say. The man had bought them a house. A simple thank-you didn’t seem right. Though, it was a bit presumptuous for him to think they’d move just because he told them to. To be honest, Stephan didn’t want to move—he was rather attached to his parents’ house. The fact that they’d died there hadn’t diminished all the other happy memories. Even so, he’d do it for Jayden.
“Thank you.”
Thinking of Jayden, he realized how quiet the man had been. As they were talking about him, it was odd that he hadn’t said anything. Actually, it was odder that the man hadn’t uttered a single word since entering the mansion. Usually, Jayden would have made, at the very least, a snide comment by now.
Stephan peered over, his brows furrowed at the lack of color in the man’s face. Jayden’s jaw was clenched as if he were in pain.
The reason smacked him in the face and made him feel like an idiot—Dante’s home was filled to the brim with people. Something Stephan literally just gave as a reason for Jayden not being able to live here. Damn, he should have asked Dante if they could meet somewhere else.
“As for your position, there are some small details we need to go over, but we can do so later. I’m going to put off your first assignment until you all are fully moved in. Which I would assume will take a few months, as I’m sure you will want to make changes to your new home.”
“I see,” Jayden mumbled. His voice sounded strained.
Stephan bit his lip. “Jayden, are you all right?”
“What an excellent question. It actually brings me to what I wanted to discuss next. You need to gain better control of your walls, Jayden. I’m assuming that’s what is bothering you now. I need you to be able to function in crowds. And while you may not have to live here, my basement will be your, ah…workroom. I’ll be setting you up with a teacher that knows more about mental abilities than even Liam.”
“Maybe we should go somewhere else…” Stephan suggested hesitantly.
“Yes, great idea, young man. Why don’t we take a tour through your new house? It’s empty and it will be easier to talk there.”
* * * *
That night
Two people sat on the couch in front of him, and neither of them looked pleased to be there.
Lily Wolfhart’s arms were crossed, her lips pressed tight together, and her green eyes glared at him. At six foot three and built of lean muscle, Dante’s second-in-command could look rather intimidating at times. Right now was not one of those times.
With Lily’s long black hair fan
ning out around her shoulders and the floor length red silk robe she was wearing, she looked like a woman ready for bed—or sex. Dante wasn’t sure if he wanted to know what Lily had on under it. Though, considering the copious amount of bare flesh she flashed each time she crossed and uncrossed her legs…probably not much.
Sin Draven, the boss of the Draven Zaytari group, sat next to her. Looking as sophisticated as always, he wore a tailored suit, his shoes were polished, and his short black hair was expertly swept back. His light baby-blue eyes, however, were tired.
“Well, if you wouldn’t mind, I would like to know why I just spent five hours on a plane.” Sin tapped his fingers against his crossed legs. “Not that I haven’t enjoyed sitting here silently for the last five minutes, of course,” he drawled sarcastically.
Dante laughed at the man’s grumpiness. “Believe me, what I have to tell you will be worth the trip.”
“If you say so,” Sin said dryly.
“Dante, it’s late, and at this very moment, I have a naked man tied to my bed waiting for me. Can we get on with this?” Lily snapped.
One of Sin’s perfectly arched eyebrows rose at her announcement. “I concede, you have more reason to want to leave than I do, dear Lily.” A smile danced on the man’s lips, his eyes sparkling with unreleased laughter.
The growl the woman released belied the vampire she was—Lily would have done well as a wolf shifter.
“Everyone is so impatient.” Dante sighed. “You guys always ruin my fun.”
“Dante, Asa is waiting for me. I don’t give a damn about your fun. Now hurry the fuc—”
Dante held up his hand to stop her tirade and told them everything that had happened. By the time he finished, their irritation had fled.
Sin was the first to break the silence that followed his findings. “Well, it appears you were correct. It was worth it.”
“Are you sure it’s safe to allow him to join us?” Lily asked.
“Yes.” Dante had known Lily would question his decision. She always did. It was why she was his second-in-command. Having one that would never question him would have been useless. Those who followed blindly never looked for a better solution—it was dangerous.
“I think you’ll like him. He’s as blunt as you are.”
“If you say so.” She stood. “Well, I’m going back to my little muffin.” With that, she walked off.
“Do you think she’s wearing anything under that?” Sin asked, staring after her. The look in the man’s eyes wasn’t sexual—it was curious.
Dante chuckled. “Probably as much as her little muffin.”
Sin smiled. “Yes, well…while I do trust your judgment, Dante, no one is perfect. I ask that you please keep me informed. Have you contacted Gabriel? I’m actually surprised he wasn’t at this meeting. Some of Jayden’s ‘victims’ were from his territory.”
“I’m wondering if it’s necessary. Gabriel refused to help with the investigation. He let his personal feelings toward the ‘victims’ get in the way of his responsibilities.”
“I see your point. Whether he is contacted or not, I’ll leave that for you to decide.” After standing, he smoothed down the wrinkles sitting had created and buttoned his suit jacket. “Now, I have a plane to catch.”
Chapter Seventeen
Stephan rocked on his feet. His body buzzed with unreleased energy as he waited for Jayden outside the movie theater.
He was going on a date! They were going on a date! Together!
Stephan couldn’t help but feel a bit nervous. It was his first date, ever. On top of that, his mind kept wandering to what they had done in the bathroom.
Would it happen again? Was that where their date would end? More importantly, would Stephan be able to build up the courage to…to suck Jayden, as well?
He was sure they would do something when it was over. It was a date after all…isn’t that what people did?
Stephan lowered his brows—was it what people did? Maybe it was only for one-night stands…wait, that wasn’t right. One-night stands were just about sex, right? But hadn’t first dates turned into one-night stands for some? Maybe…
But that wasn’t what they were doing. Did that mean they weren’t going to do anything? Were multiple dates required? If so, they had messed up the order.
Oh, hell, he didn’t know. Stephan was completely unprepared. His heart began to drum in his chest as he worked himself into a panic.
Ugh, why did he always do this to himself? It seemed being nervous was never enough for him—why be nervous when he could just panic? Who wouldn’t want to experience a hyped-up heartbeat, cold sweats, and dizziness? Panicking was obviously a better choice, Stephan thought with self-disgust.
He always panicked, so why the hell hadn’t he planned for it? He should’ve read a book or something. Seriously, what had he been thinking going in blind? At the very least Stephan should have discussed it with Liam. No doubt his godfather would have given him some useful advice.
Wait, did Liam even date? Now that he thought about it, Stephan couldn’t remember the man ever dating. The man was over five thousand years old. Surely he’d dated at one point.
The rumbling of a motorcycle pulled his mind away from Liam’s love life. His gaze followed the man as he parked. Jayden moved like a predator, his gait slow and steady as he started toward Stephan.
Jayden placed a kiss on Stephan’s lips the second he was in range, and rumbled, “Hello.”
“Hi,” Stephan giggled. He blushed at how smitten the word had sounded.
“Ready to go in?”
“Yep!” After linking his arm with Jayden’s, he dragged Jayden into the theater.
* * * *
Absently sipping his pop, Jayden stared mindlessly at the screen. God, the movie was so boring—some romantic touchy-feely bullshit. Which meant lots of crying, kissing, hugging, and declarations of love. It. Was. Awful.
But he could get through it…for Stephan. If only for the fact that the man had bought out the whole theater for today, just so Jayden wouldn’t be bothered by the voices. Other than them and two workers, there wasn’t a single person in the whole building. Therefore, he could fucking get through it.
“This is so bad.”
“It really is,” Jayden agreed.
His monster whined, “There’s no blood!”
“There isn’t.”
Well, as long as he had his monster’s attention, he might as well ask a few things he’d been wondering about. It wasn’t as if Jayden was paying attention to the movie anyway.
“Where do you go when you’re…not here? I mean you’re here, but you’re not here, here, so where do you go?”
Did that question even make sense? Probably not.
“I’m always here.”
“Yes, but I can’t always see you,” Jayden pointed out.
His monster nodded. “Nope, you can’t.”
“Okay…so where do you go?”
Blinking, he smiled and said, “Deeper.”
“Deeper where?”
Shrugging, he waved at the darkness around him. “Deeper.”
“What the hell does that mean?” Jayden snapped.
His monster’s face scrunched up into an almost childlike pout, and then he poofed away. Well, shit—apparently his darkness hadn’t liked Jayden’s tone. Note to self—upsetting his entity when he wanted answers was a stupid idea.
Sighing softly, he peered at Stephan.
The corners of Jayden’s mouth twitched—well, at least Stephan was having fun. The man’s eyes were glued to the screen. His expression changed multiple times in a matter of seconds as he stared forward. It was adorable.
Midway through the movie, Jayden felt like stabbing himself just to end his suffering. When the movie’s credits finally began to roll, he had to hold back the sigh of relief that tried to slip out.
The disaster of a movie had been two fucking hours long—thank God it was over.
At the thought of leaving, Jayden
began to relax, until he realized that he probably had an unimaginable number of these crappy romantic movies in his future.
And there to make his anxiety about his future suffering worse was Stephan, babbling on about what he enjoyed about the movie. Considering Jayden spent most of the last two hours staring at the man, he was forced to remain quiet and nod in agreement.
“You didn’t pay attention at all, did you?” Stephan giggled.
Without feeling even a twinge of guilt, Jayden admitted, “No.”
Pushing aside his worries, he absently wondered why they were still sitting in the theater.
“I figured you wouldn’t…but hopefully, you’ll like the next movie.”
Jayden blanched. “Next movie?”
Stephan started giggling harder. “Don’t worry. There’ll be blood in this one. It’s called Dark Love. I heard there’s actually a few murders.”
Jayden sagged in his seat.
* * * *
A few hours later
Stephan felt perfectly happy walking hand in hand to one of his favorite places to eat—Jib Hot Dog Shop. The food was mouthwatering, but nothing fancy.
Actually, it was probably only a step above fast food, but Stephan loved it anyway. Wealthy or not, food was food. As long as it tasted good, who cared how much or little it cost.
“Where are we going?” Jayden asked.
Stephan hummed. “You’ll see.”
“And we had to walk, why?”
He admitted shyly, “I wanted to hold your hand.”
“Ah.” Jayden grinned, squeezing Stephan’s hand lightly.
A minute later a brick building with a dull blue roof came into sight.
He squealed, “We’re here!”
Jayden raised his eyebrows as he eyed the building. “I have to say, this was not what I was expecting.”
“I know it doesn’t look like much, but it’s good. I promise. I mean, I haven’t been here in a while, but I’m sure everything is still good. Well, none of it is good for you, but it tastes good.” Stephan worried his lip.
Stephan's Monster [Vampires of Vadin 2] (Siren Publishing Classic ManLove) Page 13