Page 16 of The Prince's Mate

I was pretty sure Caelan had figured out what I was up to. I hadn't exactly been subtle with the sharing-the-bed idea, but he hadn't tried to stop me, so I figured he was onboard with letting me do what I was doing.

I wasn't dumb enough to think that getting them into the same bed would be all it'd take considering the number of issues they had, but I figured it couldn't hurt. But I wasn't quite sure what todo next. I might need to get some help on this. The question was, who to ask?

Step Seven: Figure out who can help with Plan Caeker. But first, find a better ship name for them. Maybe Day would have some suggestions…

Eight

Caelan

I didn't think either of us got any sleep last night, and it was even more apparent as I watched Walker zombie-walk over to the coffee machine, his head slumped. I resisted the urge to smile at his appearance, instead turning my attention to my phone.

The demons who lived in the human realm were free to do whatever they pleased, for the most part, as long as they didn't hurt any humans or reveal themselves for what they were. All we'd be doing was checking in on each of them to make sure they were upholding their side of the deal, and I didn't think it would take more than a couple of weeks.

"Morning," I greeted him as I slumped on the other end of the couch. He grunted at me, eyes still narrowed into slits, and leaned his head against the backrest, the coffee mug clutchedbetween his palms like a lifesaver. I would never understand people's addiction with that sludge.

"Good morning, boys," Ro greeted as he appeared on the coffee table out of thin air, and Walker scowled at him.

"Shuddup, Ro. I have a headache," he groaned, and Ro'Shassz tsked.

"Did you get into the liquor, Walker?" he asked like a concerned parent, and Walker sighed deeply.

"No, Ro. I don't have a hangover," Walker retorted, and I bit back a smile, keeping my eyes firmly on my phone and acting like I wasn't watching the two of them.

"Aaah, I see," Ro murmured, as if he'd just realized something, and Walker huffed.

"No, you don't. You don't see anything," he said, a note of warning in his tone that had me curious. What did he mean by that?

"I'm going to go get cleaned up while you have your breakfast. There are only three demons here in Seattle, so we can check in with them today, and then decide where we want to go next," I said, and Walker glanced up at me, nodding slowly. The three demons had moved here after the original three demon residents decided to tour the human world with their human mate, mostly because Seattle was close to the town of Mistvale, where Fate spent much of their time, and where Maximus had taken some kids he'd rescued almost two decades ago. The town was special to Otherworlders, so we wanted to make sure it was well-guarded.

"Yeah, okay."

In the bedroom, I dug out a pair of dark wash jeans and a blue Henley, placing them on the bed. The weather was a little chilly here, and while I didn't feel cold from it, we needed to keep up appearances, so I'd also packed a couple of jackets, and I picked out my favorite one. It was dark blue, so dark it almost lookedblack at first glance, and leather. Damien had given it to me a while ago, and I'd worn it practically every day at one point, despite the heat of Otherworld.

I grabbed my towel and headed into the bathroom. After taking a quick shower while ignoring my half-hard cock because I was worried Ro would pop up at any time, I wiped myself down and wrapped the towel around my waist, stepping out of the bathroom.

Walking over to the bed, I ditched the towel and grabbed my underwear, tugging it up. I heard the door open a moment before I heard a very loud "Oh!" and then the door slammed shut again. I turned around, catching the faintest hint of his retreating footsteps as he hightailed it. Did Walker just catch a glimpse of my naked ass?

I dressed quickly, using my fingers to comb my hair, knowing it would be in a disarray the moment it dried. When I felt dressed enough, I stepped out of the bedroom and walked over to the couch, where I could see Walker sitting.

"I'm done if you wanna grab a shower," I said, and he jumped as if I'd screamed at him.

"Uh, yeah. Okay," he said and then rushed off before I could say another word, not that I'd been planning to. I watched him slam the door shut almost too hard, before turning to Ro.

"What happened there? He came back looking like a tomato," Ro said, voice filled with glee, and I shrugged. Somehow, he had become a friend in the last few years, and since he was pretty close to Walker too, I didn't feel wrong sharing things with him.

"He walked in while I was getting dressed," I said, and his eyes practically lit up.

"Did he get a look at what you're packing?" he asked, eyes flitting to my groin, and I felt an urgent need to cover myself up. I grabbed a pillow and covered my lap with it, and he let out a pitiful sound.

"No," I said, and then added, "My ass."

Ro whooped, and I rolled my eyes at him, and he slithered closer to me on the couch.

"There's the confirmation you need. That boy is into you," Ro said.

I shook my head.

"That isn't a confirmation. I'm pretty sure he would've reacted the same if he'd walked in on one of his dads."

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