“I was gonna tell you,” Nat blurted.
Then he realized that he would’ve gotten into less trouble, if he had pretended to be surprised by Wanda’s demon heritage.
Too late. Stupid mouth.
Duke sat up slowly, the duvet sliding off his exquisite chest. “You knew?” he asked, glancing at Wanda and back at Nat.
Nat’s mind raced. “I’m not supposed to tell anyone. She’s at risk.”
Duke blinked. “You know about the kidnappers.”
Nat laughed helplessly. “Yeah. I know about them.”
“Who told you?”
Nat swallowed. Duke was going to fire him anyway; he might as well tell the truth. “I was there. When you, Ace, Raptor, and the rest broke into the kidnappers’ hideout.”
Duke froze. His eyes widened almost comically. “You...”
“That’s why I trust you.” Nat shrugged. “You came to save us.”
“How did I not recognize you?” Duke frowned deeply.
“You were busy with everything. I think you got us transport out of there, and a place to stay. You didn’t have time to chat with the victims.”
“I... You’re staying at one of our safehouses, aren’t you? And I wasn’t even aware of that.”
Nat shrugged. “I wrote my address on HR’s hiring contract.”
Duke sighed, rubbing his temples. “I didn’t have time to look at the details.”
Nat watched him warily. “Are you going to fire me now?”
Duke’s head jerked up. “What? Why would I fire you?”
“Because I’m trouble.” Nat sagged. “I was kidnapped, and Wanda is still at risk of being kidnapped. I didn’t think you would want to deal with that.”
Duke narrowed his eyes. “No. If you’re working for me, then you’re mine to protect.”
Nat stared. “That’s... not how things work.”
“Mine,” Duke growled.
Nat’s stomach flipped. No one had made him this kind of promise, either.
“You can’t,” Nat said. “You have too many other responsibilities.”
Duke’s gaze dropped to Nat’s fingers, and he frowned deeply. “I’ll make time. For what it’s worth... I’m sorry that I didn’t recognize you from before. You’re remarkable.”
“If you praise me any more, I think my head might explode.”
“Your head has already exploded a few times. I think another explosion wouldn’t matter too much.”
Nat’s mouth fell open. “Oh, gods. You didn’t just say that.”
Duke smirked. “I did.”
Someone cackled somewhere in the mansion.
