VEE

I hate to admit this, because I don't want him to be, but Xander's right. Work is a world away from my new life, and sitting in a cubicle answering queries feels insignificant after the last forty-eight hours.

Heath and I rushed to arrive on time after the decision was made to work, which means I didn't see Ewan and Xander before we left. I worry about Ewan after Joss's words. Ewan last saw me in a hysterical mess he was partly responsible for, and the regret on his face sticks with me. Xander... hmm. Not so sorry I missed him.

Heath works in a different part of the building to me, so we part ways at the elevators. With our passionate encounter yesterday evening now pushed down by the events that followed, I engage in mundane conversation before we separate, although the false brightness must be apparent to everybody else crammed in the elevator with us.

Heath texts a couple of times to check up on me. Joss does too, which isn't a surprise. I smile to myself when the second message from Joss arrives while I’m by the water cooler, and I glance over at Charlotte and Victoria. They can lust over Heath, but not only do I have him, but also his equally hot friend. My fingers itch to type back a request for Joss to meet me after work and flaunt in the girls' faces that both guys are in my life and care for me.

One day I should allow myself to be seen with both of them, in the Clone Club's vicinity, of course. Or maybe all four of my new harem. My smile grows, amused by the thought and the word, and I return to my desk.

For today, I’ll have to make do with Heath as a lunch date. Make do. Ha ha.

At lunch, I head to the cafeteria where Heath stands outside, facing away from me, hands in suit pockets. He draws looks from girls passing, as ever, but remains oblivious. Yep, ass still awesome in a suit. I have mixed emotions as I look at him. First, the instant arousal from remembering how his hands felt on my skin and how intoxicating he tasted, but trepidation joins because I'm walking away from my fading human life and into my new one with each moment I spend with him.

I poke Heath as I approach, and he blinks around at me. "Hey," I say.

"Vee." He kisses my cheek, and I freeze in surprise.

Friendly. Caring. Not a sign he wants to pin me to the wall and continue our activities from last night.

"You okay?" he asks. "You look flushed."

I touch my cheek with the back of a hand. "Warm in here."

"Uh huh." His knowing smile confirms what I suspected—Heath is aware of the effect he has on girls.

We head into the cafeteria, and I fight giving a little wave to Charlotte who turns from the cashier holding a tray with her solitary salad wrap and bottle of water. She blinks, barely disguising her disbelief, before walking over to a table to sit with her friends. No Victoria? Perhaps she’s working on her hair.

Shiny wooden round tables and chairs dot around the place, some occupied by fellow employees on phones, or others chatting, and my stomach rumbles at the smell of fried food. Bacon for breakfast? I suppose I should pick a healthier lunch.

We choose a quiet corner, and I sit on the hard chair, avoiding the fake Yucca plant attacking my head. Heath heads off to order and returns with a plate piled with burger and chips for him, and a salad for me. I watch with curiosity as he digs in. Do Horsemen genes stop massive weight gain? Is chasing demons a good workout?

"What do we have planned for this evening?" I ask as I pick up my cutlery. "Demons need killing? Trip to the pub? Maybe you could introduce me to some werewolves?"

"Vee," he growls in warning. "Keep your voice down."

"You guys really need to lighten up."

Heath gives a despairing shake of his head. "Sure, Vee."

"Can we talk?" I ask

"What did you want to talk about?" Heath’s discomfort level ramps up as worry crosses his face. "I can’t really explain anymore about your... origins."

"Not last night, don't worry. Or the other issue between us. We already had that awkward conversation."

We sure did. As with last time, Heath's "act as if nothing happened" show started, and on the way here, I called him out on the behaviour. The short exchange didn't touch on how intense the situation was for the pair of us, and it ended with an agreement not to touch each other again.

Not to touch in the same way, at least.

Or soon, anyway.

Well, maybe in the future.

Ah, crap.

"You guys talk about something called the Order. What’s the Order? Is this all connected to the demons holding power?"

"The Order?" Heath lowers his voice and I look around the cafeteria. Everybody’s too engrossed in their own world to worry about ours. "The Order is the name for the demon-led organisation in the world. Their activity criss-crosses and tangles every area of human society in a web." He draws on the table with his fingers as he talks. "It’s an umbrella term because the Order’s split into many cells present in most countries. They influence governments or control business and financial institutions, but they’re also found in lower level roles. Law enforcement, medical, even schools. You name any part of society, and there’ll be a demon influence in there somewhere."

"How the hell are four of you supposed to deal with that?"

Heath bites down on a chip. "We can’t deal with everything. That’s why we’re allied with the other races who exist here. Nobody wants a world taken over by demons; the humans won’t be the only ones wiped out or enslaved. After what happened with Portia, seems our alliances have become shaky."

I stare back, unable to find words as I attempt to process all this.

"Our main role is to keep the portals closed and prevent more demons arriving. A side role involves interrupting communication and planning between the demons who exist here already, or stepping in for damage control."

"Damage control?"

"Preventing attacks on humans, small scale or large scale."

Wow. "How widespread is the demon influence?"

"Wide. Getting wider. We can’t keep on top of this without the help of those on our side. That's why this fuck-up with the fae doesn't help."

I recognise the self-blame on Heath’s face and place a hand over his. "Heath. Your killing the fae attacking me was orchestrated and so was the attack on Portia."

"Doesn't change the ripples it causes." He sinks back and runs his hands through his hair, elbows at right angles

His words exhaust me; the juggling the guys do hurts my head. "Let me get this straight. You're here to keep portals closed. And keep the peace between supernatural races. And investigate and stop demon corruption."

He raises both brows. "Fun, huh?"

"Whoa. No wonder you need a Fifth. Surprised you don't need another fifteen."

"The portals are safe currently; we haven’t seen major activity around any in months. Plus, the keeping the peace part isn’t too hard. Usually. Like I said, we have help, but we never totally trust people. The biggest problem? We may need to ally with those we don't want to, if this gets any worse."

Does he mean demons? I don't voice the question, but Portia mentioned that too. But there’s one question, bigger than all my others. "Heath, what happens if the Horsemen fail?"

Heath clenches his jaw and looks behind me. "I have no fucking clue."

I bite inside my cheek. Why did I ask that? He’s already told me they only vaguely understand their own situation. Heath pulls out his phone, brow tugged, and switches his attention from me. Ordinarily, this rude behaviour would irritate me, but I’ve pushed him too far out of what he can cope with.