Four

Calux

Now that's what I called a complication.

A few weeks after I came to the human realm, Artemus—the King of Otherworld's mate, and the man who'd summoned me to the human realm to guard it—had shown up at my place with Kym in tow.

Kym was a kitsune-human known for his purifying fire. His fire now burned in the Burning Chasm, and it was slowly cleansing all the evil souls so they could be better people and get a chance to be reborn.

Well, to cut a long story short, some other demons had led to the discovery that we demons were unable to recognize our fated mates because of an archaic spell put on us at the time of our creation to make us better torturers. By the time we were relieved of our duties and got our place in the demon realm, everyone had forgotten about the spell.

Luckily, Kym's fire could remove this spell, and he'd done just that for me. After that, I'd spent a few days wondering if I'd stumble upon my mate somewhere before realizing it wasn't that easy.

Just because I could sense them now didn't mean I'd bump into them in a coffee shop or something equally cliché. That was nothing but wishful thinking.

Or so I'd thought.

Because when my arm brushed against Archer's, when our skin touched for the very first time, a bolt of lightning crashed through me, and a voice filled my head, chanting one single word again and again.

Mate. Mate. Mate. Mate.

I remembered mumbling something about bottles before escaping to the kitchen to get a moment to myself, and now I leaned against the counter with my face buried in my hands.

Just my luck.

What was I supposed to do now?

I hadn't really thought much about Archer before now. Sure, I'd noticed he was handsome, and I hadn't minded that little peek at his chest the other day, but I didn't know him that well yet. Not enough to know if I might be interested in him.

And just because we were mates didn't mean we had to be together, right? Fated mates weren't always romantic—though non-romantic mated pairs were rare—so maybe I didn't need to worry.

I didn't think Archer was even into men, so that was a whole 'nother issue.

While I enjoyed sex as much as any other allosexual person, I'd never been romantically interested in someone, and I didn't know if that would change just because Archer was my mate.

"Nothing has to change," I muttered, then gave a firm, decisive nod, stuffing the little morsel of information in the back of my mind. It changed nothing.

I was here to take care of Gunner and to make Archer's life easier, and that was all I was going to do. The fact that we were mates had no bearing on my work.

Feeling a lot more clear-headed, I cleaned up the dirty bottles—I'd started collecting them in the kitchen instead of leaving them out on the coffee table—and then filled a new one, carrying it back to Archer and Gunner.

Archer was walking around the room with the baby cradled in his arms, and he smiled as he took the bottle from me, then settled on the armchair as he started feeding Gunner. Gunner seemed determined to hold his own bottle, but Archer still kept a few fingers at the back of it for support.

While Gunner had his meal, I cleaned up around the living room a little, returning the wet wipes and powder to the nursery and collecting all the toys in the basket.

Lastly, I changed the blankets in Gunner's crib, switching them with a fresh set from the nursery.

When I was done, I loaded up the washing machine, adding clothes from the laundry basket I'd found in the nursery to the cycle.

Returning to the living room, I found Archer right where I'd left him, now with a dozing Gunner in his arms.

"How about you take care of this little guy for a bit and I'll make us some dinner?" Archer suggested, and I frowned.

"I can do it."

Sure, I didn't know how to cook all that many things, but I could magic things up. As long as I made sure to only use the things he had in his pantry and refrigerator, something I'd forgotten to do at lunch, I'd be golden.

"It's fine. Today's your first day here, and you've already done a lot. Take a breather while he's napping, and I'll make us something."

I sighed, but then did as he asked. He was the boss, after all, and that's all he was. All I could allow him to be in my head.

Watching as he carefully tucked Gunner into his crib, I was struck by the realization that they actually looked quite beautiful together.

Archer was this tall, imposing man, and considering where he lived, I was sure he had a long job title and went to work dressed in expensive suits. But right then, he just looked like a father who loved his son, and would do anything to keep him safe. I'd never seen this type of love in real life before, and I realized there wasn't much I wouldn't do to keep these two and their precious bond safe, and it had absolutely nothing to do with what Archer might mean to me.

While I clicked through the TV channels with the sound off so it wouldn't wake Gunner, I could hear his dad moving around in the kitchen.

Over the past few months, I'd gotten used to living on my own, but it felt nice to be around people again.

My interest in this job had started off with a simple fascination with babies, but it'd grown into something so much bigger now that I knew how important it actually was.

I wanted to make sure Gunner's day always started with a smile or with one of his little giggles, and that he was never hungry or sad. I wanted to make sure Archer didn't lose sleep over his son, or exhaust himself trying to take care of him.

I wanted to support both of these humans so they could live fulfilled lives and be happy. As long as I could do that, I would be the happiest demon in all the realms.

Archer

The first day with Lux went by almost too smoothly. It was strange how easy it'd all been, and I wondered if maybe things were too good.

It didn't feel right to be so suspicious, especially when he'd been so good with Gunner and me all day, but I supposed part of being a new parent was being wary of everyone, and especially the people who were in close proximity to your baby.

The buzzing of my phone distracted me, and I eyed the pasta I was making as I accepted the call.

"Archer Shaw speaking."

"Hey, Archer Shaw. I was actually calling for my best friend. He goes by Archie, if you've heard of him," Jerry, my business partner and a constant pain in my ass, said. "Soooo? How's the new nanny? Or do you call him manny?"

"He's good. And he's a nanny." I hadn't really asked Calux if he had a preference, though.

"Good, huh? That's high praise coming from you."

"No, it isn't. I praise people."

"Oh, really? Name the last time you told one of your juniors they did a good job," Jerry challenged, and I glared at the pasta because we both knew I didn't remember.

"Well, it's not my fault barely any of them can do their work right without being told at least three times."

Jerry laughed, and I could almost see him lounging back on his couch, his long hair loose now that he was home, his green eyes sparkling as he laughed at me. He laughed at me often, but I always knew it was in good fun, and I gave it right back to him.

"Back to the nanny. Is he taking good care of my little godson?"

"Yes, he is. He's a regular Mary Poppins, actually. I don't know how he does it."

"You sound impressed." Jerry sounded surprised, and I sighed as I flipped the stove off.

"I suppose I am. I keep thinking it's too good to be true, that I'm missing something."

"That might just be your dad instincts going into overdrive, but you should still keep yourself from forming an opinion until a few days, at least. How about I come over for dinner one of these days?"

There was no one's opinion I trusted more than his, and I felt relieved at his offer.

"Yes, please."

"Okay. I have a meeting at 4 on Wednesday, so I'll come over after instead of going back to the office."

"I'll make you your favorite roast chicken."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. I have the time now," I said with a chuckle, and he groaned happily.

"Wednesday can't come fast enough. 'Kay, I'll talk to you later. Keep me updated."

"Will do."

Ending the call, I grabbed two plates and filled them up with the pasta, carrying them into the living room.

Lux smiled as he spotted me, then shot to his feet to take a plate from me. Glancing over at the still-sleeping baby, I settled on the other end of the couch as Lux took his first bite and smiled widely.

"This pasta is amazing!"

Laughing, I gave him a slight tilt of my head as I got comfortable. "Thanks. It's my mom's recipe." It'd been long enough since her death that just talking about her didn't cause me pain, but I wished she'd gotten to meet her grandson. She'd have adored him.

"Well, it's absolutely delicious."

We ate in relative silence, neither of us with any intention to break it.

When you lived with a baby, you learned to treasure every second of quiet you got, because you knew it could all disappear at any moment.

After dinner, Lux offered to clean up while I gave Gunner a bath, and I carried Gunner into his nursery, grabbing fresh clothes before taking him into the ensuite. I didn't give him a bath every day just yet, instead doing an alternate day schedule.

Gunner loved baths, and like every single time, he enjoyed splashing me with water as I cleaned him up, and I laughed as I avoided getting sprayed in the face with soapy water.

Once Gunner was clean and smelling like strawberries, I quickly dried him, put on a fresh diaper, and slid on his pajama onesie. It had closed sleeves and legs so he wouldn't tug at his hair or toes at night—Gunner really loved pulling at things—and a cute unicorn print.

When Lux appeared in the nursery, I was just settling into the rocking chair. He blinked, then smiled, taking a step back.

"Would you like me to leave?"

I should've probably let him go. He'd been working all day since he showed up, and he needed his rest too. But I felt like I hadn't spent time with an adult in so long, and I didn't want him to go just yet.

"Or I could read Gunner a story while you rock him?" he offered, and I nodded instantly.

Smiling, Lux walked over to the tiny bookshelf and pulled out a book about a lost rabbit. I'd read almost all of them to Gunner at least once, and I remembered he'd cheered especially loud for this one, probably because of the brightly colored pictures inside.

Grabbing a chair from the corner of the room, he slid it beside the armchair, then settled in. Our arms brushed as he reached over to tweak Gunner's nose, who peered up at him as if he was his new favorite person.

Leaning back into his chair, Lux started reading, making faces as the story went, changing his voices with the characters, and just having fun with it.

As I watched Gunner and Lux, I couldn't decide which one of them was enjoying it more.

Lux must've read the story three times before Gunner dozed off, and when he did, Lux gave me a cheesy little thumbs up that almost made me laugh.

Slowly rising to my feet, I placed Gunner in his crib. For a moment, I just gazed down at him, running the pad of my finger over his chubby cheek. This little kid was the most precious person to me now. He'd only been in my life for a little over six months, and yet I was ready to throw everything away for him.

Exhaling softly, I leaned down and pressed a kiss to Gunner's forehead before taking a step back. Turning around, I switched on the baby camera, then handed Lux one of the monitors while I kept the other.

"Um, good night," I said, and he smiled. Even though he'd worked all day, his smile hadn't dimmed in the slightest. I was a little bit in awe of him as we left the room, and I found myself wanting to say something so he'd know his work was appreciated. "Hey, Lux?'

"Yeah?" he asked, pausing at his door to glance at me.

"You did a great job today. Thanks for all your help."

Impossibly, his smile brightened. "My pleasure, Archer. Actually, it didn't feel like a job at all."

Before I could say anything in reply, he gave me a little finger wave and ducked into his room, softly shutting the door behind him.

Shaking my head, I walked across the hallway to my own bedroom.

As soon as I'd cleaned up and fallen into bed, I was asleep.