Chapter 17

G rant showed up for his second day at the Order of the Fallen Knights Headquarters ready to work. His first eight hours on the job had passed in a blur. He'd been introduced to dozens of people and walked endless hallways of the giant Council buildings, and he hoped he was retaining enough information to get him off to a good start as a Venerable Knight.

"I brought you coffee," Roman said, handing him a bright green mug.

Grant grinned. "You bought me a cup with a lime on it."

"Yep."

"Thanks," Grant said. Without thinking, he leaned closer to his mate, and Roman rewarded him with a soft kiss. They were getting good at those little busses, but Grant was already craving something deeper and more carnal. Since their workplace wasn't the right venue for anything that delicious, Grant straightened. "Want to have dinner with me later?"

"I thought you'd never ask. Did you want to go out?"

"Nope, dinner at your place again."

"Are you sure?" Roman asked, concern in his blue eyes. "Don't you want to experience any of the incredible restaurants Vegas, or any other city, has to offer?"

"Sure. But right now, my biggest goal is to get to know my other half. It's easier to do that if I can be alone with you. I'm also trying to memorize all the information being tossed at me this week, so I'd like the opportunity to ask you questions without interruptions."

"Okay, I know you've got a lot to learn, and I appreciate that you're making us a priority."

Grant brushed his lips across Roman's again. "You're my priority. Just as it should be."

A line of tension appeared between Roman's black brows. "Look, I know we're taught that Fate comes first, but I don't want you to adhere to any rule if it doesn't suit you. If you want to focus on work, our relationship can easily wait until we're both ready."

"Roman, I meant that I enjoy being with you. So, of course we should spend time together. I want to get to know you. Yes, work is important, but so are you. I know it's not just me noticing how well we're already getting along, and we've only known each other for a few days."

"No, you're right. Sorry. Matebonds are a minefield. I want to make sure we're enriching ourselves and growing our relationship."

"Maybe you worry too much," Grant said.

Roman chuckled. "The funny thing is I didn't learn that I had a worrywart part of my brain until I met my other half."

"See, we're both growing," Grant commented with a shit-eating grin that Roman kissed.

The glass door separating the office of the four Venerable Knights from the busy hive of fallen knights zooming through headquarters opened, and Samson peeked in.

"You ready to go?" Samson asked.

Grant nodded and tugged on his jacket, ensuring his formal uniform wasn't wrinkled weirdly. It was nerves more than a desire to appear perfect, but Grant accepted that he'd need a few weeks or months learning the ropes before his anxiety cooled.

"Yep."

"Good luck out there," Roman said, taking the mug of coffee out of Grant's hands.

"Shit, I barely tasted the coffee you brought me."

"I'll fill it up for you later, don't worry. Now, get downstairs or a horde of angry leaders will start calling Kyle."

Grant smiled at Roman as he followed Samson out of their office. They wound their way through the maze of Council Headquarters until they were at the main entrance. Each morning, a Venerable Knight was on hand to assist with getting the dozens of leaders through security for their morning government sessions.

It had surprised everyone when Grant opted to shadow Samson to learn the ropes instead of Roman, but no one had balked at the request.

"So, mostly we're on hand to greet people and jump in if someone forgot their card, or it's not working for some reason," Samson remarked. "The racial rulers are aided by fancy-dressed fallen knight leaders, and we build friendly relationships with them. It benefits both parties. Leaders are more willing to cooperate with a VK they've met and have chatted with if we need to call about an investigation or whatever."

"Makes sense."

"You gave up hours of hanging out down here with Roman and chose me. Why?"

"I guess living with all those sentinels has made you skip pretense and be direct as possible," Grant teased. "It made sense to me to learn from the guy who had a path like mine. You're the only person who knows what it's like to show up as a new Venerable Knight and garner the respect of everyone around you. Your nickname may be kid to Arvandus and Roman, but they sure as hell don't treat you like one."

"I'm glad you were spared the months of trying to navigate a relationship with a testy dragon obsessed with your mate," Samson said. "Do you want my advice?"

"Absolutely."

"Be yourself," Samson replied, his bisque-and-green gaze sincere. "That's what I did. I was driven to prove myself. To be the best Venerable Knight I could be, and I had unfailing support from Arvandus, Roman, Drystan, Conley, and everyone else around me."

"Like your mate."

Samson's mouth curved. "Yeah, B is always there for me. If I called him right now and told him I needed to do something mundane like chat, he'd drop whatever he was doing to teleport here and sit with me until I told him I was good again. Loyalty and honor are innate to sentinels. To any incorruptible soldier like us. Honestly? I'm glad you and Roman both got dead guys."

"I'm pretty happy with Fate."

"Good. I know it's overwhelming too. For me, I was consumed with the idea that I was less than everyone around me because I had no life experience. My training was delayed, so I didn't know when I met B that we would have equivalent titles. I told myself I was nothing more than an untrained soldier with a temperamental dragon whose personal struggles had taken valuable time away from the RKs. I was fucked up."

"Yeah, it's overwhelming. I'm sorry your path was so tough. Like you, I have this insatiable need inside me to excel at both being a good mate and the best damn Venerable Knight I can be. I'm going with that. I refuse to listen to the little voice in my head wondering why I've gotten so lucky. Fate wanted this life for me. I'm damn well going to honor her."

Samson grinned. "I really fucking like you."

"Good, I like you too."

Tugging a bag out of his pocket, Samson unsealed it. "Want a chocolate chip cookie?"

"Of course I do," Grant said, reaching in to grab one of the delicious treats Brynnius had baked.

"Eat it fast or the vultures will descend," Samson instructed and inhaled one in two giant bites.

With a shake of his head, Grant ate his just as quickly. He was getting to know his peers, and thus far, Grant liked them. But his favorite was the gorgeous blue-eyed Venerable Knight who'd brought him coffee in a lime-colored mug.

"What are the chances I can find a mug with popcorn on it?" Grant muttered.

"Oh, we'll find one. No worries," Samson promised. "No way Roman is going to win for the best mate presents."

"Do you feel like you've given Brynn better gifts? I mean, the man can fucking bake."

Samson brushed a black curl off his forehead and grinned devilishly. "Come on. I asked Chand to resurrect a dog for my mate. Have you met Princess? Have you seen how inseparable B and Princess are? Please. It's going to take like a thousand years of cookies to match that. The problem for me is…how the fuck do I top that?"

Grant laughed. "Hey, you created the problem, you get to solve it."

"Thanks for your help," Samson deadpanned.

"Always here to help a friend," Grant chirped and chuckled again at Samson's dour expression. His morning was off to a tremendous start.

∞∞∞

Roman lifted a brow as the man next to him stretched his arms above his head and yawned.

"Did you want to head home and get some sleep?" Roman asked.

The corner of Grant's mouth lifted in a smirk. "Are you asking to come home with me and tuck me in?"

"Nope, not going near a bed if you're in it."

Grant laughed. "Are you afraid you won't be able to stop yourself from ravishing me?"

"Constantly."

A pair of magnificent green eyes slowly drifted from Roman's socked feet up to his face. "Yeah, I understand. My dick is obsessed with you."

"But we aren't thinking with those, are we?"

"No, sir, we are not," Grant teased with a chuckle.

"The sir thing is cute."

"I wouldn't get used to it if I were you."

"That's a pity."

Grant shook his head and yawned again. "Too bad."

"Are you upset that I'm insisting on taking the physical shit slowly?" Roman asked, brushing a stray hair off Grant's forehead.

"No. I get it. This is special. Fucking is easy. Or at least I hope so because I'm going to be terribly embarrassed if it isn't."

"Why would you be embarrassed?"

"Because I'm the one in this relationship with zero experience."

"That's not a problem for me," Roman assured him honestly. "On some level, I feel bad that you didn't get to experiment, but this weird and completely possessive part of me is thrilled."

"Did you experiment a lot, Roman?"

"Haven't we had this discussion already? I'm not talking about the past with you."

"Yes, but you're fun to tease. Your mouth gets all pinched, and you lift your nose a little in the air."

"Wow, that's so flattering."

Grant chuckled and leaned close to brush his lips across Roman's. "You're beautiful no matter what expression is on your face."

"Compliments will definitely get you more kisses."

"Oh, really? Do you have a preference on the features you'd most like me to highlight?"

Roman laughed and shuffled a little closer to Grant on the couch. To his delight, Grant dropped his head on Roman's shoulder. "I'll let you decide where to begin."

"Hmm, that's a tough one."

"Is it?"

"Hmm, yes. I've tried to make a mental list of my favorite features, but I can't seem to figure out the correct order."

"I understand," Roman said, grabbing Grant's hand and toying with his fingers. "Every part of you is beautiful. But what I most like is learning about who you are."

"Isn't it weird how it's only been a week since we met?"

"Yeah, feels longer, doesn't it?"

"It does. I hope you know I mean that in a good way. Like, I'm not tired of hanging out with you or anything."

"You'd tell me if you were. Correct me if I'm wrong, but you haven't held anything back from me so far," Roman said, internally wincing at the secret he was keeping from Grant. As a naturally honest person, Roman didn't like it, but he remained convinced it was for the best. In the future, he could reevaluate the necessity of withholding the short past they'd shared. Grant buzzed with energy and his desire to conquer every aspect of his complicated job. The last thing Roman wanted to do was dim his light or put something in the way of Grant's ambitions. The past could wait.

"Nah, I think honesty is the way to go. Lies are complicated. I'm glad I can sense them in others. I know it's not like a sentinel, but that doesn't make it any less valuable to me."

"It's definitely handy in our line of work."

"I've learned so much in this past week and in training, but I still feel like I'm behind," Grant confided.

"Don't worry so much, okay? You have a lot on your plate, and I'll help you. So will Arvandus and Samson. It'll take a while to catch up on major ongoing cases, but right now, it's more important for you to understand procedures and get to know everyone at headquarters."

"Yeah, intellectually I understand that, but I'm also impatient to be well-versed in every aspect of my job. You know a bunch of sorcerers; can't they invent a way for me to have additional hours in the day? I need to be with my mate, and I want the opportunity to lose myself in case files."

"Sorry, as far as we know, there is no sorcerer who can twist time."

"I hope they exist somewhere and that they suddenly have a burning need to help me out."

Roman chuckled. "Speaking of sorcerers, next weekend is a monthly gathering at D'Vaire. Did you want to come?"

Lifting his head off Roman's shoulder, Grant turned and stared at Roman wide-eyed. "Seriously? I'd love to go with you."

"I was hoping you'd say that. I have a permanent guest room there; did you want to share it with me, or should I talk to the D'Vaires about ensuring they have a bed made up for you?"

"Roman, I won't ever deny an invitation to share your bed, but I'm surprised you're willing to let me. Didn't you tell me a few minutes ago that being in bed together wasn't on the agenda yet?"

"Yeah, but don't get too excited. I heard it's a themed weekend, which means it'll be busier than usual. We'll be lucky if we snag a couple of hours of sleep while we're there."

"It's going to be awesome, isn't it?"

"They usually are."

"And I get Roman cuddle hours? My life keeps getting better."

Roman kissed Grant's bright smile. "Mine too."