Page 39 of Her Males

I hope she does. She won’t be happy with my answer, and I think she knows that as she quiets down and returns to her studying. She loves giving Rock a hard time, and I’m glad we chose him as her tutor.

Most shadows in our home are desperate to appease her. They think it’s a way to win our favor, but I like that Rock doesn’t seem to care much for that. He pisses her off more often than not, and he doesn’t back down despite how hard she occasionally pushes.

Their conversation is cut short as Aziel storms into her office, his footfalls loud as he stomps down the hallway and pushes open her door.

“I spoke with Shay last night,” he says.

I lean back in my chair, eager to hear this conversation.

“And?” Charlie urges, my female clearly desperate to hear all the details.

Aziel clears his throat, an action he does whenever Charlie does something he thinks is attractive. He’s been doing it a lot recently, and I can only imagine what she’s done to provoke it this time.

“She had nothing to share other than what she’s already said to you,” Aziel says. “Shay’s untrustworthy, and I hold Levia’s word above hers.”

There’s a long beat of silence, and Aziel clears his throat once more before continuing.

“This was a waste of my time, and you’ve used up the one favor you’ll ever get from me. I don’t want to hear any more talk of Shay, and you’re to stop trying to use my males to manipulate me into doing your bidding. You’re a small human, insignificant, and you’d do well to remember that.”

I raise a brow, fighting the urge to laugh. Aziel tries so hard to pretend Charlie isn’t anything to him, but he’s not fooling anybody.

Charlie hums, and I hear the faint sound of a pen being clicked a few times.

“We’ll see about that,” she says.

Absolute silence follows her words, and I can only imagine how infuriated Aziel is right about now. He’s used to being in charge, and I can tell Charlie’s lack of respect drives him mad. I think it’s good for him.

He’s been leading Wrath for a long time, and he’s grown quite callous over the years. Charlie’s been forcing him to think about his actions, and I’d go as far as to say she’s softening him. He doesn’t like to show it, but I can see it in the way he’s always trying to evaluate and understand her emotions.

“Wewillsee about that,” Aziel eventually says.

He’s storming back into his office a second later.

Even though his meeting with Shay was as unproductive as he thought it would be, he doesn’t need to be so dramatic about it.

We’re old, and one hour is hardly a loss.

Besides, it’s a small thing to give Charlie peace of mind. I know she has trouble trusting us after learning about our initial reaction to the female information, and it’s good for her to see that we’re taking her concerns seriously.

Drawers slam shut as Aziel searches his office for something, his audible frustration only growing as he leaves and makes his way down the hallway toward Gray’s. He refuses to turn in my direction as he passes my open door, continuing forward until he busts into the incubus’s office.

“Where’s my keyboard?” Aziel snaps.

There’s a snort followed by a loud clanging. I imagine Aziel has shoved aside the chairs sitting in front of Gray’s desk in order to better hover over it and glare. Gray’s probably got a sly grin on his lips, happy with the attention he’s getting from Aziel.

It surprises me the lengths he’ll go to get Aziel’s attention, purposefully doing small, meaningless things to piss the Wrath off.

I should’ve known Gray wouldn’t be able to help himself from tormenting Aziel, but he will need to tone it down if he doesn’t want to hurt Charlie’s feelings. She’s protective over her relationship with Gray, and quite insecure. It’s easy to see she’s scared Gray will end up choosing Aziel over her, and his subtle flirting will only backfire on him.

Charlie is going to get upset, and Aziel’s going to get his feelings hurt when he eavesdrops on Gray comforting her.

“I didn’t touch your keyboard,” Gray says.

“No? Then care to explain to me what your greasy, stubby fucking fingertips are resting on right now?”

I shut my eyes and hold my breath to keep from making any sounds. As annoying as they are, I can’t lie and say their bickering doesn’t amuse me. It’s better than the sharp digs and physical fights they’ve been resorting to these past few months.

I’ll take an annoying, childish Gray over a bloody one any day.

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