Damien’s eyes are alight with something potent, and they’re laser pointed at me. His lips pull into the slightest smirk as he stares me down. “You’re a fucking fool. First class, grade-A goddamned idiot.”
My nostrils flare as my chin lifts, my defenses rising as he continues to give me that maddening smile. “Watch yourself, Damien.”
He pushes himself up from the chair and leans in, palms flat on the table, while smugness practically radiates off him. “Why should I? Is big, bad Micah going to actually do something about it? Or will you just stand up there like the coward you are?”
“Sit down.” I push a touch of power into my voice, but he fights it and continues to leer at me.
“That’s right. Make me sit and put me in my place while you keep pretending to be important. You messed up, do you know that? You trashed something good and you’re too goddamned proud to admit it.”
Azrael's inhaler puffs as another of my shaky inhales tries to calm the peeled-up, frayed edges of my patience. It’s clear in the way I annunciate every syllable, because if I so much as raise my voice, I’m going to explode. What’s left of this battered body will just erupt, and I’ll be reduced to nothing but fragments, too weak to piece themselves back together.
Deep breath.
“The project was a failure. It was an idea that didn’t pan out—”
“I wasn’t talking about the fucking Easter Bunny nonsense, though I think we can all agree it was one of your dumber ideas. It’s impressive, really, considering your asinine schemes we’ve suffered through in the past.”
Father Time speaks up, his dusty voice shocking everyone. “It was almost as stupid as that time you requested extra personnel to catch a leprechaun.” Every single person in the room stares at him for a long second before he lifts his shoulder in a lazy shrug.
“Holy shit, I forgot about that,” Damien says, choking on a hateful laugh as he shakes his head.
“Wait, leprechauns exist?” Niklaus asks, and Damien nods.
“You’re The Santa and you’ve never heard the story of the leprechauns?” When Niklaus just lifts a brow, Damien huffs a laugh. “Several hundred years ago, two Santas back, I believe, a bunch of elves rebelled—”
“Sounds familiar,” Niklaus mutters while Damien grins wider.
“This was a full on rebellion, and they left the North Pole. Decided to live in Ireland and have been causing mischief ever since. Found some way to harness luck, and Micah wanted to steal it for himself.”
I narrow my eyes as my fingers flex against the surface of the podium. “That was not my intention, and you know that. They are a nuisance, and my goal was to restore order.”
He returns my glare, directing his snarky smirk at me. “Stop trying to change the subject.”
“I didn’t—”
“You fucked up, Micah. You fucked up big time, and you knowexactlywhat I’m referring to.” The blood drains from my face as he glares. Xalreth and Damien have always been close. Surely he wouldn’t betray my confidence by sharing my secrets… would he?
Has he been talking about me? Did they have a good laugh while discussing intimate details about our time together?
Does Damienknowof my proclivities?
A cold sweat slicks my skin as the blood returns to my face, crawling up my neck and flushing my cheeks as my heart drums in my ears. Panic grips my throat, a vise around my windpipe, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth. Each beat of my pulse blurs my vision, but I can’t look away from his triumphant smile.
“What do you know?” The words come out strained and raspy, forced from my vocal cords because I don’t want to hear the answer.
Damien’s grin turns malicious. “I know that you and Xal—”
The door bursts open, hitting the wall with a loud bang that sends a cloud of dust motes dancing in the sunbeams. Xalreth’s fury is a living, breathing thing as he storms into the room. The intensity of his uncontrolled anger steals the air,incinerating it until it’s stifling. His eyes burn with that crimson glow that means he’s barely restraining his inner demon.
“Thanks for the heads up about this meeting, Damien, but give it a rest and shut your fucking mouth,” Xalreth growls as he stalks forward, eyes locked on mine. Hushed whispers murmur from the others in the room, but he ignores them.
Right now, I’m his only prey.
His familiar scent surrounds me as he gets close, stopping only when his nose is inches from mine. My heart leaps into my throat, and his brow lifts as his gaze drops to the thundering vein in my neck. “What’s wrong, angel?” A quiet whimper sneaks loose as he takes a deep inhale, inching his lips closer to my ear. “Are you nervous?”
“No… yes. Xal, I—”
“Shut the fuck up,” he snaps, and I bite my lip as I force another swallow that chokes me. “You’ve done enough standing at the podium and preaching, and now it’s your turn to fucking listen.”
