“As whatever we need him to be.I’m not planning on putting him in danger, but he could give us a lot of information we wouldn’t get otherwise.”
“I’m sure he’d be willing to talk to me, but I’m not putting him in danger, Gregory.There’s no way to know how these people would react if they found out he talked to an outsider.Like you pointed out, demons don’t have mates.I don’t know if they’d follow council rules when it comes to that.”
“They better.They might not like leaving their towns or even working with the council, but they have an agreement with them.That agreement only stands if they follow it.”
“What do you want me to do, then?”
“I think it depends on whatyou’replanning on doing, or rather, what your mate is planning on doing.If the two of you want to be together, there aren’t a lot of options.Either you stay in Starhaven, which is probably impossible, or he leaves it.”
“I don’t think he’d be allowed to.”
“Are you going to give him up, then?”
“Never.”Not if Tex had a choice.
“Maybe you should talk to him.Not only about why you’re in Starhaven, but also what comes next for the two of you.He has to know he needs to make a decision.Unless he doesn’t want a mate?”
Tex thought of the way Nymon had welcomed the news.“I think he wants me,” he said.But he couldn’t be a hundred percent sure.Gregory was right.
Nymon and Tex needed to talk.
They would do so tonight.Tex couldn’t afford to waste time.Whatever Nymon’s decision would be, Tex needed to know as soon as possible.That way, he could start planning his next steps, just like Gregory would.If they needed to smuggle Nymon out of town, they’d have to find the best way to do that.It would be a pity, considering how nice Nymon’s home was.Nymon might not want to leave, but the alternative was just as impossible.Tex couldn’t move to Starhaven.He might be able to stay in Nymon’s house for a bit without anyone noticing, especially if he stayed in his wolf form, but what kind of life would that be?He didn’t want to hide.If they moved, they wouldn’t have to.They could be open about their relationship, and Tex could introduce Nymon to his friends.
They’d get another house.Tex would get the cutest house for his mate, and he’d let Nymon fill it with plants.
“Talk to your mate,” Gregory said.
“Is that in order?”
“Damn right it is.You need to know what’s going on.The only way to do that is to talk to your mate, which means it’s what you should do.Once you know, you can start making decisions.This isn’t just a guy.He’s your mate.He’s the rest of your life.”
“I’ll let you know,” Tex promised.
“You do that, and hopefully, he’ll agree to help us.Even if he doesn’t, though, I want you to have the possibility of being with him.I don’t know how we’re going to make it work, but I’ll help you every step of the way.”
Tex was surprised, but maybe he shouldn’t be.Gregory was his superior, and they weren’t exactly friends outside of the job, but they were close.Gregory was a fair man, always willing to help and do the right thing.Tex was lucky he’d ended up with him as a boss.
And even luckier that he’d ended up with Nymon as his mate.
He and Gregory hung up.It felt good to know that Gregory was aware of everything that was going on, but now that he didn’t have any distractions anymore, Tex wanted nothing more than to be with his mate.He’d left when Nymon’s best friend had arrived so that he and Nymon wouldn’t hear the conversation he needed to have with Gregory, but now that they weren’t on the phone anymore, he could go back.Even if Nymon’s friend was still there, Tex could sit outside the fence and wait.He was sure that Nymon would call out for him as soon as he was alone, and Tex wanted to be close by when it happened.
He’d never felt this way for anyone, which made sense since he’d never met his mate before.He wanted to spend every second of his time, awake or sleeping, with Nymon.He always wanted to have him in his sight, especially right now, when things were still unsure.The thought of something happening to Nymon while he wasn’t there made Tex’s skin crawl.
He didn’t know demons well enough to be sure that no one would hurt Nymon if they found out about Tex.He’d been curious about demons, and he still was, but right now, he was mostly curious about the demons who’d managed to leave their towns.How had they done it?How had the demons they’d left behind reacted?Would it be something Nymon would agree to?Tex hated that they needed to be sneaky.Finding your mate was something to celebrate, not something to hide.Tex didn’t want Nymon to have to leave everything and everyone behind, but it looked like he wouldn’t have a choice.Tex couldn’t stay.Would Nymon be willing to leave his family?His home?His best friend?
Tex hated having to ask him to do that, but it was the only way for them to be together.It might not be enough.
Hemight not be enough.Nymon was his mate, but in a way, he wasn’t Nymon’s mate because Nymon didn’t have a mate.He was a demon.
But the bond between them was very real.Nymon could feel it, even though he was a demon.At the very least, he’d give Tex a chance.
That was all Tex needed.
* * * *
NYMON ALMOST KICKEDKael out of the house.He kind of wanted to, even though he loved his best friend.Normally, he wouldn’t think anything of Kael staying for dinner or even spending the night, but not tonight.Tonight, he had someone else to spend time with.
The problem was that he couldn’t tell Kael that.If he did, Kael would want to know everything about Tex, and Nymon would either have to tell him or lie, and he couldn’t do either of those things.Kael would freak out if he found out that Nymon had been talking to a shifter, never mind that Nymon was that shifter’s mate.Nymon didn’t think he would go to the authorities, but he might do or say something that would get someone’s attention, and it wasn’t something Nymon could afford.He needed to keep Tex safe.
