Page 1 of Demon's Desire
1
ONYX
“This is an art gallery,not a coffee shop.” Onyx pushed past Ash and Dante, who stood in his foyer as if they were welcome to stroll in any time they liked.
They were not.
Ollie had come in with them today, and Onyx tried to reserve his contempt for his demon brothers, smiling apologetically at the human.
Ash glared, his hulking presence nowhere near as intimidating as he tried to make it. “Why are you yelling? No one could ever confuse this with a coffee shop.”
“I’m not yelling.” Onyx clenched his teeth, his voice barely raised.
Gallery Four was his space. His work. A legacy he was proud of. Why did his brothers have to barge in? Ash had no respect for anything. It was only a matter of time before he knocked over a sculpture. Damn oversized brute.
“We’re sorry to bother you.” Ollie eyed his companions as if he hoped they’d back him up.
“I knowyouare.” Onyx tone lost its icy edge. “If you’d comeby yourself, I’d have been delighted. You could have at least left Ash behind. He’s never here to say a friendly hello.”
Ash muttered something undecipherable.
Dante slipped an arm around Ollie’s shoulders, eyes on Onyx. “You didn’t answer your phone.”
Onyx stalked to the reception desk. “If only you’d take the hint.”
Scott, Gallery Four’s curator, wasn’t working today. If he were, Onyx might have forced everyone out. This visit smelled of magic business. Scott was human and provided a nice buffer, an excuse not to talk about whatever shit Ash and Dante were trying to saddle him with this time.
Onyx sat behind the desk and opened the laptop, waking the screen. “I have things to do. I’m showing a new artist soon, and there’s a lot to coordinate before the opening. Unless you’re buying one of the pieces on display, you need to leave. We aren’t open to the public.”
Gallery Four operated by appointment only.
Ollie extricated himself from his mate’s hold and approached the desk. “Come on, we aren’t the public. Harper is on his way. After we talk, why don’t the three of us get lunch?”
Onyx’s lips twitched, but he recovered his scowl. “Depends on where we’re going.”
“Your choice. I don’t know any good restaurants in this neighborhood.”
Onyx stole a glance at Ollie. Fuck, he had a face that was impossible to say no to. Soft, round cheeks cut with dimples and tumbling hair befitting a stylist. “We’ll see. I’m not lying about being busy.”
“I didn’t think you were. But if you don’t want us stopping by, bothering you, then you have to return the demons’ calls.”
Onyx focused on the computer screen, ignoring the twinge in his gut. He didn’t care if his so-called brothers only camearound if they had to. Only if they wanted something. It wasn’t like Onyx wanted to spend time with them.
The front door opened, saving Onyx from responding to Ollie as Harper walked in, his gaze immediately landing on his mate.
Onyx couldn’t imagine what Harper saw in Ash—the universe’s most insufferable being—but Onyx was glad Ash made Harper happy. The young witch deserved it.
“Sorry we’re late.” Harper planted a kiss on Ash’s cheek.
A second witch entered Gallery Four.
Onyx’s spine stiffened. “What ishedoing here?”
Nico Velázquez glanced around the gallery, running a hand through his short dark brown hair. “I thought we were having a meeting?”
Dante flipped the sign in the window to closed. “We are, and we’re glad you could make it.”
The nerve!
