Page 15 of Demon's Mate
In Harper’s wildest fantasies, the Hounds took him under their protection for warning them, and he was able to destroy his coven with their help. But that was never going to happen. It was a nice dream. Something to comfort him during the nights when he couldn’t sleep.
Even if he never found the Hounds, Harper had to make sure his father didn’t either and never gained anything from Lucifer. He couldn’t be allowed any more power.
Harper might be unable to ruin his father with the blood loyalty binding him, but he could stop things from getting worse. He already had. Now that Harper was beyond Arthur’s reach, he’d lose some of his power regardless of what happened with the Hounds. From now on, Harper would be the only one using his blood to strengthen spells.
Harper shivered at the memory of being tied down and having his blood drained. He hated his rare power. If he’d been average, his father would have felt him alone. Sometimes, he’d been left so weak that he swore he’d been on the verge of death, and he’d been helpless to do anything about it. All that power in his blood, yet he’d still been trapped, as weak as a human against Arthur Nightingale.
Something sticky spilled over Harper’s fist. He looked down at the crushed remainder of his sandwich, peanut butter everywhere.
“Gross.” He grabbed a tissue and wiped it up.
The front door slammed shut, and Harper jolted. Hispotion stuff was hidden, but he didn’t want Ollie to see the mess of peanut butter and now tissue that was all over his hand. He quickly dashed to the bathroom and cleaned himself off.
Harper entered the living room, finding Ollie’s friend with him. He looked about their age, with curly brown hair, light-brown skin, and a similar style to Ollie. Harper fisted the hem of his boring T-shirt.
“Oh, Harper, hey. Come meet Dex.” Ollie waved Harper farther into the living room.
Dex lifted his chin in Harper’s direction. “Hey, man.” He had the most stunning gray eyes. They fixed on Harper and it was like the guy was x-raying him.
A quick scan revealed Dex wasn’t a witch or vampire. “Hi.” Harper double-checked there was no lingering peanut butter on his hand before shaking Dex’s.
“You should come out with us tonight.” Dex glanced at Ollie, who nodded.
Harper perched on the arm of the couch. “Out where?”
“There’s a new gay club opening.” Ollie practically bounced with excitement.
Dex unlocked his phone and checked something. “My cousin is DJ-ing and put me on the list. I’ll be able to get you in no problem.”
The sandwich churned in Harper’s gut. “A club on a Sunday?” That seemed weird, right?
“It’s an exclusive opening. Don’t worry, it’ll be packed,” Ollie assured him. “It’s perfect since Dex and I don’t have work tomorrow. And you don’t either, right? We’re going to watch a movie then get ready. You in?”
“Um… Where is it?” Leaving the neighborhood wasn’t a good idea, and neither was going on the subway. It felt like pushing his luck.
“It’s in the Docks, near the old Rivermouth Cannery,” Dex said without looking up from his phone.
That was fine. Not this neighborhood, but only the next one over, and Harper had never been there before. No one would have any reason to look for him there. Still, it would be safer to stay home. He’d brewed enough of his magic-suppressing potion to last a few days, but he could use the evening to brew more, or he could get started on the potions he sold to The Herb Emporium.
“It’s okay if you’re not into clubbing,” Ollie said. “We won’t be offended if you say no.”
It was the perfect out, except Harper found himself saying, “I’ve actually never been to a club.”
“Really?” Ollie seemed excited by this for some reason. “But you’d want to go?”
“Yeah.”
Dex looked up from his phone, studying Harper. “What’s holding you back? There’s plenty of great spots around the city.”
“I haven’t lived here long.” Harper hadn’t told Ollie he’d been in the city for a year and didn’t plan to. “I lived with some, um, pretty strict family before this.”
Dex nodded.
“You should definitely come with us.” Ollie flashed an encouraging smile.
Fuck, it was tempting. He’d love to go to a gay club, dance with guys, and maybe even go home with someone. When he’d tried to go out before—in a hot new outfit and everything—his coven had stopped him, and he’d worried he would never get the chance again.
If he’d been off to do anything else that night, finding out how trapped he was wouldn’t have hurt nearly as much. Whenever Harper had expressed himself or did anything his father deemed feminine or, Satan forbid,gay, he would lectureHarper, punish him, shame him. Trying to go out that night had been no different, even with his father several states away.
