Quickly washing up, he found a neat pile of his clothes on a stool in the bathroom when he emerged. How had Ayden snuck in without him noticing? And where had he got his clothes from? Ugh. Portalling.
“Boundaries, Ayden! You can’t just let yourself into my apartment,” Liam snapped as he stepped back into the office.
Ayden glanced up from where he was talking to another demon standing in front of his desk. Liam panicked for a moment as he remembered what he’d just done there, but there was no sign of the mess he’d made. Ayden must’ve cleaned up quickly. The demon in question was twice his height, with bright red skin and large, curling horns. He was also watching him with a smirk.
“He’s cute,” the demon said to Ayden.
“He’sstanding right fucking here,” Liam snapped, striding closer.
“You’re hangry, pet. Come eat something,” Ayden said, patting his lap.
Liam ignored his invitation but snatched up the plate on offer regardless to take it back to his desk. Someone had left a folder there labelled contract addendum. He flicked it open with one hand as he took a bite of the sandwich Ayden had made him. The one that somehow had all his favourite ingredients. He choked on a crumb as he scanned down a list of checkboxes.
A flash of red in his periphery was followed by a too-heavy hand patting his back as he continued choking. Putting the sandwich down, Liam pushed the demon who was leaning too close away, his hand brushing against his sweeping horns by accident.
“I’m fine,” he rasped, clearing his throat.
The demon moaned in unmistakable pleasure, and Liam froze.
“That will be all, Az,” Ayden snapped, dragging the bigger man away and shoving him through the fiery portal that had suddenly appeared in the room. The peals of the other demon’s sudden laughter cut off as the portal snapped closed behind him.
“What just happened?” Liam asked.
“Demon horns are sensitive, pet. Just like our tails.”
Liam craned his neck from where he was sitting to peer up at Ayden. “I feel like I’m stuck in a fever dream. A sexy one.”
“Perils of working in a department of demons. That’s what the list’s for,” Ayden said, pointing down at the paper.
“It’s a list ofkinks.”
“Consent can be a little challenging for my kind when just existing in our vicinity makes you overcome with lust. This will help make sure I don’t overstep any more boundaries. Fill it in at home, where I won’t distract you as much.”
“You’re assuming I want to fuck you at all.”
Ayden just smirked and opened another portal. “Off you go.”
Sweeping the contract off the desk, Liam strode through it, finding himself outside his apartment building. Apparently, his boss had taken his request literally when he’d told him not to let himself into his apartment, even if it was just letting a portal into it. That was kind of sweet.
The same orc from the weekend was coming out of the building as he stood there regaining his bearings after the disorientation of suddenly being elsewhere.
“Hi, human!”
“It’s Liam,” he said, doing his best not to grump at his cheery neighbour but getting a bit sick of being called his species.
“Nice to meet you again! I’m Moss!”
“Hi.”
“I was just going out to grab a coffee. Do you want to join me?”
Liam looked down at the folder in his hand that felt like a bomb he needed to disarm, and then back at the hulking orc with the friendly smile. “Ah, sure.”
“Yay! I just knew we were going to be best friends after Ayden moved Rhys upstairs to make room for you. I’ll be the best girlfriend you’ve ever had!”
Liam had been trailing along behind the orc as she made her way down a side street towards the nearby bakery he hadn’t had a chance to try out yet, and it took him a moment to process everything she’d just said.
“Wait, what? Who’s Rhys, and why did Ayden move them? And you mean girlfriend in a platonic sense, right?”