Page 13 of Demon

He sniffed the air and picked up a scent that didn’t belong in Lonnie’s house. The scent was faint, so whoever it had been was gone now. And though faint, it held a trace of something…off. He tried to draw it in deeper, but it had just been too long since they’d left.

But someone had been inside this house.

“I didn’t leave that lamp on,” Lonnie whispered from behind him. “I didn’t even have that lamp in that spot. Somebody moved it.”

The quiver in his voice sent a spike of anger into Callan’s chest. “Stay by this door,” he ordered as he crept farther intothe house. He listened to make sure but heard no breaths nor heartbeats beyond their own. “Someone was here, but they’re gone.”

He walked to the lamp to find it shining down on a table with several of Lonnie’s figurines. They weren’t spaced evenly apart as Lonnie normally kept them, all of them crowding the edges of the table with one figurine in the middle. “What’s different here?”

Lonnie slowly walked to the table, and Callan frowned to hear his heart racing. The sour smell of fear was pouring off his skin.

He stopped and gasped. “It’s Sesshomaru fromInuyasha. I’ve been trying to find one because this version is limited. And expensive as hell.” He started to pick it up, but Callan stopped him.

“Fingerprints,” was all he said.

“Oh, right.” Lonnie stared hard at the little statue. “I really, really wanted one of these. There are four figurines I’ve been trying to get, and this is one of them.” He looked up at Callan, eyes wide. “But it’s not like I’d enjoy it. Not getting it like this. Should I call the police?”

Callan shook his head. “We have people who can get prints.”

“But how did this person know I was looking for Sesshomaru?”

“You do it on your computer, right?”

Lonnie nodded. “And it’s no secret because I talk about my hobby a lot in class. I’ve even talked about wanting this very figurine.” He hugged his arms to his chest, his skin going suddenly pale. “Callan, someone wasinsidemy house.”

“You’re just realizing that?”

“It’s hitting me.” He shivered, and Callan couldn’t resist. He grabbed Lonnie and hugged him. The man’s slight form felt so good against him he couldn’t breathe for a second or two. Whenthe bases of his horns began to tingle, he nearly stepped back in shock because he hadn’t imagined it after all. But instead, he held very still. Lonnie needed the hug.

The way his arms came tight around Callan proved that. He also smashed his face into Callan’s chest, rubbing his cheek on Callan’s T-shirt.

Demons were complete suckers for nuzzling. The inside of his chest grew warm, and his heart soared. The one thing he’d always longed for was right here in front of him, nuzzling into his chest. He tightened his arms.

“He—or hell, it could be a she—was inside my home, Callan.” Lonnie’s voice was muffled. “I’m so glad you’re here. So glad my sister is an interfering busybody.”

“I will call my employer and get someone here to look for fingerprints.”

“In a sec,” Lonnie muttered, tightening his arms. “You’re so warm, and I feel cold all the way inside.”

Callan held him close, warming him, while his heart kept soaring. His horns were still tingling. Utter joy swept through him in a wave of heat. Along with that joy, came confusion. Lonnie was human.

And a demon’s horns only tingled when in the presence of a soulmate.

Chapter Nine

Callan

Callan waited until Lonnie was finally asleep before calling Xavier. And that wait seemed like forever because Lonnie was too scared to go to bed. So they’d watched more of that blue eyed warrior show—which hadn’t been a hardship. Callan liked it so much he was looking forward to seeing more of these anime shows.

But once Lonnie was in his room, Callan took his phone into the bedroom he was using with the ridiculous bed that creaked when he sat on it. He stared at a colorful poster on the wall, mind reeling as he called his boss.

“Hello, Callan,” Xavier said, not sounding like he’d been awakened in the middle of the night.

“Lonnie is my mate.”

Xavier made a low sort of humming, murmuring sound. “I had a feeling, yes.”

“Why didn’t you warn me?”

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