Page 23 of Dead Air
There was also the very minute possibility Cenn could actually die in battle with Dùbhghlas and slip into the void as well, but it was extremely minute. It was practically impossible to kill a demon, but Dùbhghlas was powerful enough to summon blue demon fire and had mastered nearly every dark spell and charm in existence. He was as cunning as he was old and ugly and Dùbhghlas could cheat as well as any demon.
Cenn was prepared for that as well. Being a demon, he wouldn’t go down without a fight but Cenn had suffered humanity and both sides of the void for long enough. There was very little that Cenn would miss, if that was possible once his sentience had immolated. The only thing he didn’t want to leave was Niall.
This would be funny if it wasn’t so pathetic.
He was also on a collision course with MacIlwraith and Oglethorpe and it was known that they had formidable help in the form of a pair of hellhounds and a freakishly strong changeling. That was the obvious reason why Dùbhghlas had made the deal and why Cenn was stuck at the summit of a godforsaken mountain, chasing after an impossibly virtuous mortal’s soul.
The only virtue Niall didn’t possess was chastity but that didn’t count as far as Cenn was concerned. Chastity wasn’t one of the original virtues because sex was only a sin when it violated another being’s will. Niall’s desires, while on the wilder side, were entirely natural and only involved consensual adults. If anything, Niall’s lack of inhibitions would have pleased the gods and deities of his pagan ancestors.
His desires were far more carnal and less harmful than many of the men Cenn had encountered during his time on the mountain with Niall. Which made Cenn wonder: how much of that was a coincidence? Could another force be working against Niall?
Or was it working against Cenn?
He had his suspicions and would be paying close attention from now on. Had Cenn gotten too wrapped up in the chase and let his obsession with Niall make him careless? Cenn would find out if the warlock had indeed summoned those mortal monsters to Niall’s mountain. If Dùbhghlas had sent them, there would be hell to pay.
For the time being, Cenn would wait until Niall had passed out and spend the night watching him sleep.
I will only watch him sleep. Nothing more.
Cenn was too unsettled this evening and knew that molesting sweet Niall as he was unconscious would only make matters more confusing.
Twelve
No more Mr. Nice Ranger.
After weeks of teasing andalmostkissing, Niall wasn’t letting Chance out of his cabin until they kissed. He couldn’t quite remember what happened the night before because everything had gotten very hazy after Niall had blown Chance away with the grilled trout and ramps. He’d intended to actually blow Chance but Niall had woken up the next morning in his bed, feeling disappointingly refreshed and without a single ache or pulled muscle.
Niall had invited Chance to dinner again and they had shared a cozy pasta with grilled vegetable marinara and a wild berry “cobbler” from the freezer. They chatted and laughed by candlelight and Chance had insisted on feeding Niall again, but began to make excuses as soon as the bags were washed and hung up to dry.
“I had a lovely time but it’s getting late,” Chance said, checking his watch.
“Is it?” Niall refolded the towel on the table, smoothing out the lumps as he stalled. “How about a cup of tea before you go?” he asked, turning and almost bumping into Chance.
He laughed softly as he caught Niall. “I should probably take off.” Chance’s thumb caressed Niall’s cheek, as if he didn’t really want to go. “It’s getting dark and I wouldn’t want to wander into the wrong campsite.”
“Come on. There’s no one camping up here except for us.” Niall leaned in and his lips stretched but Chance pulled back. The hand around Niall’s jaw dragged down his neck and to his chest and Chance sighed as he gave it a tender pat.
“I want to… You have no idea how much I want to kiss you and…keep kissing you until I know what every one of your smiles and pouts and frowns taste like. But?—”
“No! Don’t start with a but,” Niall groaned, twisting his hands in the front of Chance’s shirt. “Unless it’s mine,” he added cheekily, making Chance grin.
“Noted. Any chance you’ll relocate to Georgetown?”
“Hmm…” Niall pretended to be pensive, nodding and staring over Chance’s shoulder. “How do you know you’ll want me to in a few weeks? What if I’m nuttier than a bag of granola or really bad in bed?”
“I love nuts,” Chance said as he tapped the tip of Niall’s nose. He winked, setting off fireworks in Niall’s tummy. “And we both know you’re an animal in the sack.”
Niall shrugged nonchalantly, but he was cheering on the inside. “Maybe. There’s only one way to find out.”
“What if I get attached?”
“I’d like for us to be attached,” Niall said with a wide, cheesy smile but Chance’s expression grew serious, his brow furrowing as his lips tightened.
“I know you want me and I can feel that we have incredible chemistry, but you don’t want to let me in. I can handle a fling, I just don’t want to walk away from this wondering if you could have been the love of my life or if I made something worse here.”
“You won’t! I’m in a really good place, literally and mentally and emotionally,” Niall insisted. “I couldn’t live in Georgetown because it is too close to things I’d like to keep behind me. That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t visit you or meet you in the middle. It’s not that far once you’re down the mountain.”
“So you are hiding and any hopes I had of using you as arm candy for parties and fundraisers are dashed,” Chance said as he wound his arms around Niall’s waist. “What if we could have more?”
