Cole

"Wow, so you're, like, all aboard the gay train now," Lucia said. Her eyes were on her chopsticks as she tried and failed a few times to pick up her California roll, so she didn't see me waving my hands at her to try and get her to turn the volume way the heck down.

"Ssh!" I hissed. "This is not a conversation I need my mate's best friend-slash-assistant overhearing."

I darted a glance over my shoulder at Evie where she sat across the room from us. Lucia and I had met up for lunch at our favorite sushi restaurant while Ares went to work. It had been a full week since the attack at the café and this was the first time he had left my side. Evie had been nagging him for a couple of days about going back to work on the negotiations he had been handling before. It got to a point where I encouraged him to at least go back for a couple of hours. Even though I was enjoying this time to get to know each other, I knew I couldn't keep him to myself forever.

Not to mention, it was a good opportunity to dish with Lucia on her day off.

I just hadn't counted on Ares sending someone to keep an eye on me. He mentioned it off-handedly on his way out and by the time I strung together enough words to protest or ask him why, he was gone. And, okay, maybe I had prioritized kissing him goodbye.

Anyway, it was kind of sweet how Ares was trying so hard to keep me safe... but it was also invasive and unnecessary. Nothing was going to happen during my lunch that Lucia and I couldn't handle.

Lucia kicked me under the table. "Hi, Earth to Cole. You okay?"

I shook my head to clear it. "Yeah, sorry. What?"

"How are you feeling about dick?" she asked.

"Lucia!" Her name came out as part gasp, part shriek. "You can't say things like that."

"What? No one's paying attention to us."

My eyes drifted back to Evie, and I knew that wasn't exactly true... though she shouldn't be able to listen in at this distance. I sighed. Lucia would drop it if I asked her to, but I understood her curiosity and didn't mind talking about it, as long as she was the only one listening. "Fine." I took a moment to collect my thoughts. "Dick is good," I admitted. "Great, even. And as for whether I'm gay... I don't know, and I guess it's not something I feel like I need to put energy and effort into figuring out. What does it matter? Ares and I are mated. Whether I like dicks in general or just his, nothing changes."

Lucia finally got her sushi into her mouth before it could fall from the chopsticks again. She didn't bother waiting until she'd finished chewing to reply. "I guess I see your point, but..."

I cocked my head at her. "But?"

She exhaled. "Okay. I wasn't going to talk about this yet because it's a real clusterfuck, but some outside perspective would actually really help. There's this woman at my job, Daisy. She is... she's just awesome. Like, the coolest and the funniest and the prettiest person I have ever seen. She's kind of everything I want to be, and at first that's all I thought it was - just admiration - but then I started realizing that no, it's not that I want to be like her. I want to be near her. You know?"

I nodded because, yeah, I knew exactly what she meant. "People you can admire make the best partners," I said.

Lucia clicked her tongue. "That's beside the point. This isn't about her. It's about me."

"It seems like it's at least a little bit about her," I disagreed.

"No, it isn't. Because she has a boyfriend. They've been together for five years and she's madly in love with him. They're like us, wolves, and it's just a matter of time before their mate bond forms."

I lifted one brow and let my expression do the talking. If a mate bond hadn't formed after five years together, it didn't matter how in love they were. The odds of one forming after so long were pretty much nil.

Lucia shook her head, her eyes hard. "Don't say it. I can't let my mind go down that road. That'll just get me hurt. She's in a loving relationship, and I'm just trying to figure out what this means about me. I mean, if she were single and interested, it would be a no-brainer. I'd jump her or let her jump me or whatever. So am I gay? Or, like, bisexual?"

I finished chewing my tempura roll. I might not find much interest or value in applying a label to myself, but it was clear Lucia needed one to hold onto. "Those aren't the only options, you know. Have you heard of pansexual?" Lucia shook her head no, so I continued. "It's for people who can be attracted to anyone, regardless of how they identify. Like bisexual, but broader. For what it's worth, I don't think you're gay. I think you're on a different spectrum. Otherwise, you probably wouldn't have been trying so hard to sleep with Penny's brother."

"Not just trying to sleep with him," Lucia said with a smirk, looking a bit less worried and a bit more herself. "And let me tell you, it was a real let-down. Someone looking like him and being that bad in bed should be impossible."

I winced. Poor guy. I decided to shovel more food into my mouth to avoid having to respond to that.

Lucia leaned back in her seat, looking thoughtful. Her phone buzzed and she grinned after looking at the screen. "Enough of all that for now. What are you doing on Friday?"

Probably my mate.

I didn't say that. "Depends. What time?"

There. That was a normal response from someone who didn't want to climb their man like a tree at every opportunity.

"Eight. This guy from work is throwing a party and said I can bring a plus one."

I grimaced. I really didn't feel like going out partying, especially with a stranger hosting. Honestly, I didn't feel good about being out late at all. Not anymore. Only, Lucia's eyes turned pleading. "What if Daisy is there with her boyfriend?"

Lucia must really like this woman. I couldn't help feeling sympathetic. I knew how much it sucked to have a crush on someone and have it rubbed in your face how happy they were with someone else. What kind of friend was I if I didn't at least try to be there for her? "Fine. Where's it at?"

"I'll find out," Lucia said, smiling now. "A party is just what I needed. Thanks, Cole-y Bear. You're the best!"

"Ugh, Lucia, how do your nicknames always get worse and worse? Are you trying to find rock bottom?" I complained. I was mostly exaggerating. After all the craziness of the past couple of weeks, it actually felt refreshingly familiar.

"You love me," she said confidently, and went back to struggling to use her chopsticks.

I couldn't help a smile. "You love me, too."

She grinned back at me, and the instant she lost focus on her chopsticks, one of her sushi rolls dropped down, bounced on the table, and rolled off it. We shared a laugh and I gave her one off my plate. I could never eat a whole order, anyway. After that, we, chatted and it felt like old times. It was good to know that not everything had changed.

--

"Any night but this one," Ares pleaded.

It was Friday morning, and Ares and I were getting ready side-by-side in his en-suite bathroom. I removed the toothbrush from my mouth to ask, "Why?" It came out a little garbled from the toothpaste pooling in my mouth.

"Tonight is the work dinner I'm hosting. Evie and I both need to be there, and our security force will be on high alert. I can't spare anyone to go with you."

I didn't like the sound of that. I spit out the toothpaste and turned on him. "Ares, is this dinner dangerous?"

"You don't need to worry about me," he replied, meeting my eyes and holding for a long moment before going back to adjusting his cufflinks.

"That's not a 'no,'" I pointed out, frowning now. "Ares, if it's dangerous, I should be there with you."

That seemed to short-circuit something in his brain. I would have laughed if I wasn't so offended. His mouth opened and closed, and he shook his head. It was the most I'd ever seen him struggle with words.

"If you're about to suggest I can't protect my mate, don't," I said warningly.

Okay, sure, I hadn't been able to protect myself from a human with a knife... but I hadn't been on my guard then. Since that night, I had been doing shifting drills every day, moving rapidly back and forth between my human and wolf forms until I was panting from exertion. I had been training myself on partial transformations, too, and now had the satisfaction of holding up one hand with fingers ending in sharp claws.

Ares' lips twitched upward at the sight and I thought he looked pleased. He wrapped arms around me and pulled me in for a hug, heedless of the claws that pressed against his skin. "Little wolf," he sighed, and kissed my head. "How I adore you."

The words made my chest feel like it was glowing, but I wasn't satisfied yet that I'd made my point. I stepped back and let my hand shift back to normal. "I care about you, too. And that's why I want to know if your dinner tonight is dangerous."

Ares sighed, but nodded. "It's with a faction of demons who want access to a land I am responsible for defending. They test our borders and defenses, and have for many years. Which is why we are extremely careful with our security. And why I need to make sure you're adequately protected. I can't leave you with just anyone."

Did he really think I was so defenseless I couldn't navigate everyday life without a babysitter? "Ares, I know I didn't... I couldn't... I know I needed help that night" - I didn't have to specify which night - "but nothing's going to happen to me at the party."

"No, Cole, that's not what this is about." He paused and I could see him searching for words. "Let's sit and talk in the living room."

Well, that wasn't a good sign.

I followed after Ares and settled next to him on the couch, not touching for once. "What is it?" I asked.

Ares took hold of one of my hands and played with my fingers, eyes fixed on them. When he looked up at me, I saw apprehension. "I told you I run a security company." I nodded, and he continued, "That was a simplification. I rule over demonkind. We are in conflict with the Darong faction, a group of expatriates. The meetings I was in a couple weeks ago were with them, our annual attempt at treaty talks. When you were attacked, I walked out of our talks and insisted we put them on hold. Now they are angry, and the dinner I'm attending tonight is with them, to once again attempt to foster peace between our people."

I knew I was staring at him, and realized when I felt a pain in my chest that I had forgotten to breathe. I sucked in air and shook my head while my mind raced. "You're a demon king?" I asked.

Ares' lip twitched toward a smile that didn't stick, not while he was watching me so warily. "They call me Kah."

I wheezed, remembering. "Kahlen. They called me Kahlen."

"Yes... as my partner, that is your title." Ares tried to withdraw his hands from mine, but I clutched them.

"What does that mean? Am I, like, the demon queen?" The words felt incredibly stupid as I was saying them, but what the hell?

Ares, through what I was sure had to be immense strength of will, did not laugh at me. "Kahlen is a gender-neutral term, as is Kah. It is a title of respect, not one that comes with any obligation on your part."

"When were you going to tell me? How much danger does this put me in?"

Because I finally had an explanation beyond overprotectiveness or a lack of faith in my capability for why Ares was so worried for my safety, and I didn't like what it implied. It had never made sense for him to be so paranoid about my safety, not when he was generally such a rational person. I had chalked it up to the robbery attempt.

"I will not see you harmed," Ares said, which wasn't really an answer.

"Ares."

"You will be safe, little wolf. I will ensure it. I can protect you when we are together, and I've been working on added protections for when we aren't."

My head spun. It would have been nice to know about all of this before we were mated, though that was a pointless thought since it's not like anyone could control a mate bond forming. Knowing in advance wouldn't have changed anything. "Like what?"

"Your very special amulet, and a new pet," Ares said.

The amulet I understood. The pet? Not so much.

I didn't even have to bother voicing the question. "One moment," Ares said, and he vanished.

I leaned my head back against the back of the couch and stared at the ceiling. It looked perfectly ordinary. A very ordinary ceiling for a freaking demon king - excuse me, Kah. Why was he living in a log cabin in the middle of the woods, of all places? Shouldn't he be living somewhere more accessible to his people? He had been spending so much of his time with me lately. Had he been neglecting his duties? What was a demon king even responsible for?

Maybe most importantly, what the hell had I gotten myself into?