Misunderstandings.

DELLA

We somehow manage to reach Tenn’s office without any mishaps. The five-minute walk was nerve-wracking, but we made it through unscathed.

“Hello, Della.” Tenn greets me with a smile that makes me blush.

Micha practically shoves me inside the office. Oh, right—the impending doom.

I slump into my usual chair, completely drained. I’m sick of constantly being on high alert. The visions have been draining me too. I feel like I could sleep for an eternity.

“What was that all about in class?” Micha inquires, concern etched on his face. He’s always worried.

“Well…um, Professor Coach noticed my fear when he told me to see Raziel. So, I had to explain why. Things got a bit heated,” I respond, skirting around the details.

“Professor Coach?” Tenn raises an eyebrow, smirking.

“Professor Issac,” Micha corrects, chuckling.

“You demons need to start introducing yourselves better. I still don’t even know The Doctor’s first name,” I grumble, a hint of hysteria in my voice, causing him to blush.

“It’s Gavin,” Tenn reveals with a smile.

“What do you mean heated?” Micha probes. Well, shit.

“Um… So he asked how he could serve me and offered to become my consort,” I mumble, feeling a wave of discomfort wash over me at the memory.

Their faces harden into scowls.

“What?” Tenn’s voice is low and hard, causing me to shrink back into my seat. I feel small. I don’t like it. Why is he mad at me? I didn’t do anything.

The door swings open, revealing Kade and Sorin.

“What is going on here?” Kade demands, rushing over to me. “What’s wrong, baby?” He kneels in front of me, concern etched on his face.

“Why is she scared?” Sorin asks.

“I don’t know! She said Isaac found out about her and then asked to serve her!” Tenn exclaims, his voice filled with rage.

“Serve her how?” Sorin asks gently. His eyes, filled with anxiety, quickly turn fearful. “Oh no.” It’s like he can see right through me.

“As her consort,” Tenn growls, his aura bathed in red.

“Della?” Micha’s voice is filled with concern rather than anger.

“I—” Before I can finish, Sorin wraps me in his arms.

“Did he try something?” Sorin whispers.

“He just asked and touched my leg, but it was enough to cause a PTSD flashback and almost send me into a panic attack,” I whisper back.

He holds me closer, and I know Kade heard me, too, because he’s at my back, holding me, sheltering me between them—keeping me safe.

“Why are you mad at her?” Sorin questions Tenn.

“I’m not mad at her!” Tenn defends.

“It looks like you are,” Kade murmurs into my hair.

“I’m mad at Isaac! I just need to know what is going on between them!” Tenn shouts.

“Doc, calm down. She doesn’t need you yelling right now,” Micha scolds before turning his attention back to me. “I can’t believe I didn’t see it. You even told me about your scar. I’m so sorry, sweetness,” Micha says softly.

“What’s going on?” Tenn seethes, and I can’t help shrinking in on myself even with Kade and Sorin holding me. He’s not yelling anymore, but he’s still mad. I don’t know what to do.

“Do you mind if I tell him?” Micha asks.

“It’s fine. I just… I can’t…,” I stammer. I can’t hear it right now.

“It’s okay, sweetness. I understand.” Micha nods and takes Gavin away to the other end of the room to talk.

“Can we go home? I don’t want to be here right now,” I say quietly to Kade.

“Of course, baby,” Kade says, planting a kiss on my temple. “Guys, we’re going to her place. Meet you there,” he says a bit louder.

I hear a gasp from Tenn as Sorin turns me to the mirror and into the cell.

“I’m going to go up to the clock,” I mutter.

“Of course, do you want to be alone?” Sorin asks, spreading that beautiful magical warmth over my skin.

“Give me a few minutes?” I request.

Kade lays a gentle kiss on my forehead before he lets me go.

Once I’m outside, I look out over the expanse of colorful trees and just breathe. I feel my heartbeat calm down and my mind slow to a less frantic pace. My shoulders relax and I can finally just let go.

I feel like this has been the longest week of my life. Between finding out I’m not crazy but a demon, meeting my real parents, school, the guys, and Raziel, I am fucking exhausted. I feel empty and tired and like I just want to cry. So I do.

I let the tears fall down my face and onto the cement walkway far below.

I feel someone behind me, but I just don’t care at the moment.

“Della?” Tenn asks.

“I’m not ready to talk yet,” I admit, my voice trembling.

“That’s fine. Can I sit with you?” he asks instead.

I nod as I stare out into the trees. I feel him sit down beside me—not close enough to touch but close.

After my tears dry up and I feel a bit more in control, I turn to him. He looks rough. His suit is rumpled and his hair is all over the place. His beautiful green eyes are rimmed with red.

“I’m sorry,” he whispers, looking at me. “I didn’t understand. I got jealous.”

“How? You’re okay with the others,” I ask. Why would he be jealous?

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s because I don’t know Isaac very well. And I haven’t heard you talk about him before,” he admits.

“There’s a reason I haven’t talked about him before. He’s not important to me,” I shrug.

“Can I ask how he found out what you are?”

“I told him,” I say with a sigh. “My center told me to trust him. So I listened. As soon as he saw I wasn’t okay, he stopped and apologized. He even helped me get away.”

“I don’t like that he tried something with you,” he confesses, looking at his hands.

“I’m not a big fan of it either,” I say with a wobbly smile.

“I’m sorry for yelling. It’s not your fault. I was afraid that you might choose him over me, and I just didn’t know how to handle the situation,” he says with a wince.

“I get it, but it seems like every time you find out something you don’t like, you start yelling at me. I can’t do that,” I admit.

“I’m sorry, Della, I am. I’ll try harder, I promise,” he swears. “Don’t leave me,” he adds in a whisper that breaks my heart. What?

“I wasn’t going to. What’s going on?” I ask. How could he think that?

“You’re not?” Oh my God. I’ve never seen him look so vulnerable.

I take him in my arms and hold him against me. “Of course not. We just need to communicate better—that’s all. Why would you think that?” I ask, smoothing his hair down.

“I’m older than you. I…I don’t…fit. We haven’t spent much time alone together. Most of our time together has been spent arguing. And my last girlfriend cheated and left me for someone else. Issac brought up all those feelings—and I just thought…” He shrugs as he lets his words trail off. I move his face to look at me.

“It’s only been a week. A busy week. We have a date tonight all by ourselves. We’ll work on talking more, but I’ve already chosen you as one of my consorts. I have no intention of being without you…if you’ll have me.” I smile softly, looking into those bright green eyes.

“Of course I want you. That’s all I’ve ever wanted,” he says, bringing his lips to mine. I pour my heart into the kiss as if I can ease his mind by showing him how much I care for him.

“We better head inside. I have a hot date to get ready for.” I smile against his lips.

He hums and pulls me against him so I’m straddling his lap while we continue kissing. Heat flushes through my body when he rests his hands on my ass under my skirt. I whimper against his kiss.

“Okay, let’s get ready…” he groans.

“Oh, I’m ready,” I tease with a wiggle of my hips, making him groan again.

He squeezes my ass before letting me go. I reluctantly stand up with him, and we head inside.

I can’t help but laugh at the three men waiting outside the door in some overly casual poses. Kade is reading a book while leaning against the wall. The book is upside down. Sorin is playing patty cake with Micha, who seems to be playing rock, paper, scissors. Very inconspicuous.

“Well, whenever you guys are done snooping…” Tenn chuckles.

“I’ll be back. I’m going to go get ready,” I announce, giving them each a kiss on the cheek before heading to the baths.

I chuckle at the sight of a rather blue-looking tub as I strip out of my uniform and slip into a sexy emerald-green thong and my dress, but I can’t get the zipper up all the way. Damn it.

“I need some help with my zipper!” I holler out the door as I put my heels on. I hear the door open while I’m putting two knives into my garter straps.

“Holy shit.”

Kade.

“Do you mind zipping me up?” I ask, pulling my hair over my shoulder.

“You look beautiful, Della,” he whispers, stepping up to me, making my heart flutter. I feel his warm hands graze the skin of my back as he zips up my dress. He lays a sweet kiss on my shoulder. “All done,” he whispers against my neck.

“Thank you,” I say, turning to face him.

“Anytime. I better go before I make you late for your date.” He lets out a rueful chuckle. Then he leaves me after another lingering kiss.

I put on some eyeliner and mascara and call it good before heading toward the guys. I find them all in the entrance chatting.

“Hey, boys,” I greet them.

“Fuck,” Tenn breathes as I make my way down the hall. He looks delicious in a blue suit with a matching tie. Then it hits me. He matches my hair! That is so adorable!

“We match.” I smile.

“It’s not an accident.” He grins down at me, then offers his elbow like a gentleman and leads me to the rest of the guys.

“You look gorgeous, sweetness,” Micha says, laying a kiss on my cheek. “Have fun.”

Sorin lets out a hungry sound before spinning me into a dip and kissing the life out of me. “Have a good time. I’ll see you when you get back,” he whispers before kissing me again and spinning me into Kade’s arms.

Still giggling, I pull Kade down to my lips.

“Have a good night, babe.” He smiles and walks me back to Tenn…~not Tenn, Gavin~, I remind myself. I need to start using his first name if he’s going to be one of my consorts.

“We’ll see you guys later,” he says, leading me over to a mirror.

We step through and I can’t hold in my gasp.

“Oh my God… Gavin, where are we?”