Page 17 of Devoted

The truth was that I’d panicked. I’d been so focused on what Sam had revealed that I’d let my guard slip. First with the decades comment, and then when I tried to cover it up by hinting that my interest in those things was related to my job.

I wasn’t lying—I did know about how society had changed over time, but not because I was particularly interested in it. Because I wasthere. That was one of the side effects of being older than Jesus; you tended to notice how rapidly shit could change.

I couldn’t tell Sam that, not if I wanted him to continue talking to me.

And I did. I shouldn’t, but I did.

It’s not like Sam will ever meet you and find out you’ve lied.

That was true. It didn’t matter how much I enjoyed talking with Sam, it wouldn’t go any further than this. Not when I had a mate waiting for me somewhere.

Poor bloke, whoever he was.

I sighed and rubbed a hand over the scruff coating my jaw. Unlike Micah and Rami, I didn’t bother to shave every day. It wasn’t that I was leaning into the current beard trend in the hopes of attracting a bedfellow, but because I couldn’t be bothered.

I’d learned there was little I could do to change myself to be more appealing to a one-night stand. My looks weren’t the problem. It was when I opened my mouth that I sent blokes running. The combination of my grumpy nature, and knack of never knowing when to stop asking about something, didn’t see me getting laid very often.

Hopefully my…ornery nature would be something my mate found endearing. Either that, or maybe I’d learn to rein it in a bit.

I chuckled at the thought. Yeah, couldn’t see that happening to be honest. It was probably for the best that I hadn’t met him yet. Maybe another few centuries under my belt would have me finally letting go of my father’s lessons.

Today wasn’t that day though. My mood had grown darker with every hour that Sam didn’t log on to the game. It was ridiculous that he had the power to influence me in this way.

And even more ridiculous that I knew that, but was unable to stop it.

My temper had been boiling under the surface all day, climbing higher with every snarky comment from my brethren.We were as close as siblings, and like siblings, they enjoyed spending their free time winding me up.

I knew they did it intentionally because my reaction would be over the top. I also knew how often money changed hands as bets were placed on who would shove me over the edge, and when.

I was careful to never let go of the monster completely. Losing control of yourself fully as an arch was catastrophic for anyone who happened to be in your vicinity. Your power would unleash itself on whoever was close by, regardless of whether they were the enemy or not. As much as my father had pushed my temper, he’d also taught me the importance of when to stop and just how much control could be relinquished before you stepped past the point of no return.

Didn’t stop me from wishing the fucker hadn’t taught me anything at all.

I might have never approached my limits, but that didn’t mean my temper wasn’t too much sometimes. I’d tried to be better about it since officially stepping into the role of Micah’s second, I really had.

But today, with Sam’s silence, the monster had grown louder.

I’d held it together until dinner. After all these centuries, Rami and I were the only ones capable of assembling an edible meal. When we were both home, we generally cooked together. Tonight we’d decided on sausage casserole, mashed potatoes, and veg.

It was a shame the twins had decided on being little shits.

Their needling had led to an explosion I certainly wasn’t proud of. I’d managed to destroy three chairs and the table.

Oh, and murder both the twins. Not permanently, of course. I was pissed, not evil.

As always though, I hadn’t approached the limits of my temper. There was always a point where my monster would stop, a line it wouldn’t cross.

I hoped to fuck that line would never be erased.

Micah had rightfully read me the riot act before sending me to ‘cool off.’ Shame filling me, I’d sat in my room silently, waiting for the notification to come through telling me Sam was finally online.

I would’ve waited all night if necessary. There was an itch under my skin, a need to speak to him. I didn’t know what it was about our conversations, but they brought me a calm I’d never experienced before. While I was talking to Sam, I didn’t think about anything but him.

I probably shouldn’t have said anything about myself to Sam. Our friendship was supposed to be an online one only—our everyday lives weren’t supposed to come into it.

Don’t get me wrong, if there were any hope for us to pursue something, I’d have been laying on the charm as thick as possible. Sam was special. I didn’t need to see his face to know that.

But he wasn’t mine and he never would be. If he was my fated mate, I would’ve known by now. There was no way we could’ve been living in the same city but for me not to have felt a pull towards him. Micah and Nox had felt physically drawn to each other. They hadn’t been able to resist seeking each other out.

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