Noah swallowed, had to, the drawl Reign added to the syllables that made up his name doing funny things to his insides. “I work in tech development,” he strung together, then took a quick survey of the space behind Reign. “And I… paint in my free time.” The confession was out of his mouth before he’d thought it through. It was risky, but he wasn’t able to stop it, wanting to share that part of him with this stranger that haunted his dreams.
“Hmm… interesting,” Reign acknowledged, the intensity in the garnet of his eyes heightening. “And despite what you might be thinking, you did just fine tonight.”
He was inclined to believe that, since he was sure Teresa would’ve said something if he had messed up in any way. “Thanks, I guess…”
Noah unclasped the hand he hadn’t realized he’d balled into a fist next to his body, his fingers slightly damp. Surprisingly, Reign was easier to talk to than Noah had imagined, even if his heart was still beating a little faster than usual. Reign wasn’t imposing or intimidating in the way the other diplomats Noah had briefly talked to had been, nor high and mighty like those he’d seen interviewedon TV. The man had an effortless elegance about him, in the way he carried himself, in how he spoke and occupied space. His smiles were like that too, barely noticeable unless you knew to discern that mesmerizing curve of his mouth Noah could never mistake.
Again, Noah was stuck wondering how a man he’d just met could be the literal manifestation of his deepest fantasies, and no matter what rationale he tried to impose upon that reality, he couldn’t really fathom it. It was trippy, making him seek signs of something, ofanything, that would prove this was more than the once-in-a-lifetime coincidence he knew it to be, that would confirm there was more to the workings of life than a cycle of mundane occurrences sprinkled with a pinch of randomness.
Which—Noah scoffed at himself internally—was ridiculous, because the nature of the demonic man residing in his head was nothing more than a figment of his imagination. Probably, he had seen Reign for the first time on TV, and used him as a basis for the demon without even realizing it.
That had to be it, the origin of the red blob’s final rendition—misplaced fascination with a man he’d happened to see somewhere.
“Okay, everyone!” Teresa squeaked from inside the salon, ending Noah’s moment of extreme soul-discovery. “Shall we head to the bar?”
Right, it had to be time for that already.
Noah peered at Reign, whose attention was glued to the crowd inside. It shifted to Noah in the next moment, as if he could sense the change of Noah’s own focus. Being caught in the act offset warmth in Noah’s cheeks and neck even if it wasn’t the first time he’d failed in his ‘sneaky’ attempt to appreciate the other man’s attractive features.
“Right…” he started, not entirely sure how to address being caught ogling. “I better go find Teresa…”
“I suppose she gave you no choice but to accompany her?” Reign prompted, picking up his glass, but not taking a sip.
“It’s been… different from what I expected so far. Being her aide, I mean. So I don’t mind. Too much.”Smooth, very smooth.Noah cleared his throat. “Uh, areyougoing?”
Reign tilted his head slightly to the side, amusement along with something that had Noah’s hackles rise on a wave of pleasure dancing in the dark red depths of his eyes. “I don’t really have any other plans for the night,” Reign replied, breaking eye contact as he steadied his gaze lower, where Noah’s lips were. It stayed there for a few heartbeats and then returned to studying the crowd slowly making its way out of the restaurant.
Noah had to work hard not only to school his expression but also to stifle the shuddering reaction of his body. He shouldn’t take Reign words the wrong way, couldn’t, because if he did, he was going to lose it and pin the man against the wall, Holy Empire laws or not. Which just couldn’t happen, because this was the real world and not his fantasies. Here, actions had repercussions and sexy demons did not flirt with you because, just like angels and God and other such religious propaganda, they simply did not exist. Noah didn’t believe in any of that stuff, and, besides, he had already figured out the mystery of his made-up demon’s appearance. He’d seen Reign Lennox somewhere and used him as a basis. Case closed.
Reiterating that simple truth in his mind until he was chanting it like a stupid prayer, Noah pulled himself out of that rabbit hole. For the time being, at least. Beyond the fact that Reign was the human manifestation of Noah’sobsession, he seemed like a nice person who was Noah’s age, so Noah wanted to get to know him a little. He could also learn about the world outside the borders of the Holy Empire from Reign as long as he stopped projecting something that just wasn’t and couldn’t be true.
With a smile that felt slightly awkward, Noah said, “Well, I’ll go help Teresa then and I’ll maybe… find you later? You know, to make sure I’m not using the wrong fork or something?” As soon as Noah blurted out that nonsense, he bit back an exasperated grunt at his poor attempt at a joke.
Instead of rolling his eyes or giving him a weirded-out look though, Reign let his lips arch up playfully, as if he found Noah’s blabbering somehow… funny. “Then I’ll be looking forward to chatting with you again, Noah.”
“Ye-yeah.” Noah threw Reign another quick smile, then jogged back inside, glancing over his shoulder when he reached the door only to find Reign’s eyes still trained on him like laser sights following their target.
And if Noah was being honest? He liked that single-minded focus more than he probably should.
5
Two cars with tinted windows took Noah and the diplomats to the next venue. He rode with Teresa and her two friends, Abi and Trevor, both of whom were from the Asian Federation’s Eastern-Pacific Region like Reign. Abi was blonde, fair-skinned and closer in age to Teresa, while Trevor was a black man with a clean-shaven head who couldn’t be older than thirty. He had chiseled features and piercing hickory eyes that seemed very intent on watching Noah the entire drive over, despite Trevor actively taking part in the talk about the delegation’s visit to Florence.
“Noah, dear,” Teresa said as they disembarked, brushing her fingers across Noah’s arm. “I hope you enjoyed dinner.”
“I did. The food”—Noah let his gaze scan the area, locating Reign almost immediately—“as well as the company were wonderful.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“On that note,” Abi jumped in, looping her arm with Teresa’s, “I wonder where you’ll be taking us tomorrow.”
“Telling you and not the rest wouldn’t be fair. And it would ruin the surprise, wouldn’t it?” Teresa replied, giggling in that uncannily girlish way.
“Was worth a try,” Abi laughed it off, the two women leading the rest inside the venue through a narrow corridor.
The inside of the club was spacious, though they didn’t linger on the ground floor, immediately making their way to the VIP lounge on the second floor. It came with a standing bar, tables and leather-clad booths, walls in red and white with golden accents, and a small stage in the middle. A man was playing piano, and around him spotlights danced in colors matching the bar’s interior, while the rich and famous of Lisbon swayed slowly, sipped drinks, and enjoyed the pleasant stringing of notes.
Once the group sat around the expensive-looking marble table with legs shaped like angels with sheathed wings, Noah excused himself and went to grab a drink. He wasn’t one of them and so he felt a little out of place. If not for Teresa, he would never have set foot here, and for that he was grateful, he supposed, since he was experiencing what no one of his status would likely ever get to taste. Non-alcoholic citrus drink included.
