Atlas sat, with Bel taking the chair beside him. Gage on the other side with Cary across from Atlas and Lucifer next to Bel. The round table allowed Atlas to see all his new friends easily.
It was easier to sit with his new friends without the guilt at what he’d been trying to do. Bel had forgiven him. He’d tell the others eventually. It was only fair.
Platters began to be passed around the table and everyone’s attention went to food. Well, everyone’s attention except for Bel’s. Bel was like Atlas’s own demon prince. He served Atlas, offered more options, and spoke gently. Atlas had never had someone dote on him this way.
Atlas wasn’t the only one being catered to. Lucifer did the same for his boyfriends.
It made Atlas feel special. Important.
Now Atlas might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but he was beginning to put a few pieces together. Like Bel’s reaction to Atlas since Atlas had literally landed in Bel’s office.
From the first moment, Bel just seemed to accept that Atlas belonged.
In almost every conversation they’d had, one word had been front and center.
Mate.
Seeing how important mates were to one another in this new world that Atlas found himself part of tickled something in the back of his mind.
Mate.
Could he? What if? Atlas was almost afraid to even think about the possibility.
Was he Bel’s mate?
Would it be weird to ask? Atlas really needed to get Cary and maybe Adam alone. Those two seemed like the most likely not to hide things and tell him the truth. Stuffing a perfect piece of steak in his mouth, he watched Bel from the corner of his eye.
Bel would tell him the truth. Atlas didn’t know how he knew but he was certain about that one fact. However, Atlas didn’t know if he was ready for that conversation. Or the implications of what being Bel’s mate might mean. Yeah, he really needed to talk to someone who wasn’t Bel and that left someone in the group.
Catching Gage’s gaze across the table, Atlas smirked. He cut his eyes toward Bel and back. Gage followed his eyes then gavejust the smallest nod of his head and winked. Cool. Gage got him.
“That’s not true,” Cary argued. “Seb already has most of the database created from tracking mates. He showed off those spreadsheets with pride. It should be easy enough.”
“We need to follow all the bloodlines,” Lucifer told him. “That may be more complicated than we think.”
Focusing back on the conversation at hand, Atlas cocked his head. “Bloodlines?”
“Demon blood,” Lucifer said. “It’s powerful. You’re a quarter demon. That means it must be a grandparent that…”
“That?” Atlas pressed.
“Who banged a demon?” Gage asked.
“What?” The fork slipped through Atlas’s fingers.
“Gage!” Lucifer exclaimed.
Cary looked over at him. “If we determine which demon line you come from, that might help us figure out how to get rid of the flickers. Or what caused them. If I’ve learned anything about magic from my studies, it’s that magic likes being used. Your demon blood is trying to work for you.”
“Demons don’t normally father a child with human women that aren’t their mate,” Bel said.
“Why does it have to be the father that’s the demon?” Gage asked. “Why couldn’t it be the mother?”
“The chances of a child being born from sex between a demon and a human is extremely rare. Less than a hundred incenturies. Even between mates, pregnancy is difficult. It would take a very powerful demon to impregnate a human. I doubt they had a relationship or the demon would know about the child. And if the demon was the mother, they would never have left the child in the human realm. They might not have another child. The demon has to be the father,” Lucifer explained.
“So my grandmother,” Atlas said.
“You’ve only mentioned one grandmother,” Bel said gently.
