Page 47 of Fallen

“Sorry, did I wake you?” There was a strange tension in his voice. Had something happened?

“Yes, but that’s okay. Are your drills done already? What time is it?” He rolled over, staring up at the dark ceiling.

“Eleven. I’m sorry. I can?—”

“Nonsense, little bird. What’s going on? Your voice sounds weird.”

“I… I’ve got a lead on the mozgoran.”

There was a brief silence, and Talon suspected there was more to it than that. “Okay. That’s good.”

“Can I see you?”

He stretched one hand across the empty side of the bed, curling his fingers in the black silk and wondering what it would feel like to have him there. “You can come to my apartment. I’ll text you the address.” He could just as easily meet Alex at his place, but something in him preened at the prospect of having Alex in his space.

“Um. Yeah, okay. That might be for the best.”

Something had definitely happened.

They hung up, and as promised, Talon texted him his address and apartment number. Feeling giddy, he peeled back the black sheets and swanned downstairs for coffee. Halfway through making it, he remembered that he would probably need pants—although not for long, if he had his way—so he ventured back up to the loft for a pair of soft black sweatpants.

The scent of coffee filled the apartment by the time the elevator dinged outside the door. Talon stilled, waiting for a knock. His was the only door, because he owned the whole floor. It came a moment later, with no hesitation, and Talon smiled to himself.

He opened the door. Their eyes met, and Alex’s gaze fell instantly to Talon’s naked chest.

“Uh.”

“Hello, little bird.”

Alex smiled, and Talon felt as though a piece that had been missing from his chest had finally slotted back into place.

Talon snagged his wrist and pulled him in for a deep kiss. “You were gone for far too long. Would you like some coffee?”

“Sure.”

Talon led him inside and let the heavy door fall shut behind them. Alex’s gaze trailed around the penthouse, and Talon tried to see it as he did.

Everything was black and chrome and glass. The long, open kitchen had black marble counters and stainless steel appliances. A black fireplace sat below the loft, black brick obscuring part of the upstairs from view. Most of the walls were glass, though he had automatic blinds that he could bring down with a push of a button, which he often utilized on sunny days. The furniture was black leather, the rug black and pale gray. It was all very monochrome, which he’d never thought twice about, but would Alex like being in a space devoid of color? Maybe he wouldn’t be comfortable here. The thought was an unsettling one.

“This is somehow exactly what I expected. Although there are more windows,” Alex mused, turning to give Talon an easy smile.

Relief warmed him. “Penthouses usually have a lot of windows to make use of the view. It’s beautiful at night,” Talon said, pushing him to a stool at the island. “I’ll get you a cup of coffee.”

He went to the very expensive, stainless steel machine and made two cappuccinos. When he slid one across the island to Alex, he let his hand linger until their fingers brushed. Alex cast him a shy smile, pulling the cup closer and hunching over it, inhaling the smell.

“So, what happened?” he asked, sipping his own while it was still scalding hot. Being from Hell, heat wasn’t usually an issue for him.

Alex, blowing on his coffee to cool it, glanced up at him. “Well, somebody saw me going into In Extremis the other night. They reported me to Commander Sloan.”

Talon went still. He didn’t know what the guild’s protocol was for something like that, but he recalled how worried Alex had gotten when the paladins came into the club to question Wolf. Alex was clearly worried about getting in trouble.

“It’s forbidden for paladins to go to the club without backup. They think it’s too dangerous.”

“Of course they do,” Talon said, leaning on the island across from Alex. “What’d they say?”

“I’m suspended from duty for two weeks. I’m notobjectiveenough to hunt the mozgoran, because I disobeyed their orders and endangered myself to hunt it alone.”

But he wasn’t alone, though they couldn’t know that. He had Talon, who would cut his own arm off before he let something happen to Alex. And no matter what he did, they would only suspect him of treachery, anyway.

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