Page 16 of Sinner
Nix hid a smile behind his hand, pretending to clear his throat as he joined him. The night breeze was nice, the light spattering of misty rain somehow soothing his frayed nerves and he suddenly understood why it hadn’t bothered Yejun. He hadn’t realized how tense he’d been all day, too lost in his head and his feelings, but now the knots in his shoulders became apparent,and he rotated them in a poor attempt to ease some of the discomfort.
“Should I get West?” Yejun offered. “He’s better at massages than I am. He’s preparing a room for Briant. Just in case he’s not comfortable staying in Lake’s.”
Noting the hint of disappointment in his gaze, Nix shook his head. “Nah, I’ll be all right.”
Yejun stilled once more. “Will you?”
It was a weighted question, and one he didn't have the answer to yet, so Nix chose to stare out at the smooth surface of the mountain face across the patio instead.
The Roost was a large structure built against Munin Mountain. From some vantages, they could catch a glimpse of the Club House hovering above, since it also jutted from the hulking stone. Demons, or legacies of the Club, traditionally called the Roost their home during their years at Foxglove Grove. Nix was the first honorary resident in a long time. Technically, his records still showed him living in his dorm room with his friend Grady.
Were they still friends?
Would Grady want to be?
Did he…hate him?
“What were you doing before I interrupted?”Nix asked, mostly to keep himself from spiraling all over again. He’d spent the day feeling sorry for himself. Enough was enough.
“You could never interrupt,” Yejun said.
Nix quirked a brow and gave him a pointed look.
“Fine,” the artist chuckled, “I’ll lay it on a little less thick.”
“Please do. I’m not made of glass, and false platitudes won’t magically make everything better.”
“What does better look like for you?” he asked. “What’s the future you envision for yourself, Nix?”
“Now, or before I met you three?”
Yejun glanced away.
Nix sighed. “You already know. My dreams were pretty basic before. Hard to achieve, sure, but nothing grand. Nothing like being named Royal Consort or moving to the palace.”
“Nothing like publicly dating three men.”
“Exactly.” It was an odd situation, not unheard of, but not common anymore. Typically, a Fourth was part of an already existing relationship, but the three Demons weren’t like that with each other.
At least, not unless Nix made them be.
Memory of Yejun on his knees, sucking Lake off came unbidden, and a flash of heat coiled in his lower region before he could help it.
“What are you thinking about, Firebird?” Yejun’s tone changed, turning teasing and suggestive in an instant. He was the biggest flirt out of the three, could turn it on like flipping a switch.
“Nothing.” He for sure wasn’t going to say he’d been thinking about Lake’s cock in June’s mouth.
“Nothing won’t make you blush like that.”
“Pretty sure what you’re trying to say is, something had to make me blush like this,” he corrected, mostly trying to lead the conversation in a different direction.
Yejun snorted. “Gods. You sound like Lake.”
“Take that back,” he feigned affront.
“Are you really all right with it?” Yejun brought them back around after they’d finished laughing. “Dating the three of us? Having the entire planet know you’re shared?”
He shrugged. “It doesn’t really matter. That’s what’s happening.”
