Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE

Rule Number 16 - Jealousy is an unwelcome emotion in a feeder. Refrain from unwanted outbursts and keep a level head. It’s a contract, not a relationship.

Avery was just finishing the write up of the proposal when he realized he never asked the man his name. He felt like an idiot, but in his defense, Ozen had been looking at him.

He had never thought of a man as beautiful before, but Ozen fit the bill. Ozen’s features were mostly human. Only his eyes gave away his true nature. Avery had heard incubi, like many Supes, used glamours to fit more easily in the world. Avery couldn’t tell if magic was being used, he was only human, so he had to go off of what he saw—flawless honey colored skin, chiseled jaw without a hint of scruff, straight nose, plush lips. His hair was platinum, shined like silk, was tied out of his face in a low ponytail, and made those blood red eyes pop. He was tall with a lithe frame and he wore a very expensive suit.

He was the stuff of fantasies, and Avery couldn’t get him out of his head. The morning played on a loop in his mind; the pressure of Ozen’s fingers, the cold desk against the warm skin of his cheek, the pleasure that reached heights he didn’t realize existed. He had survived his whole life with only his right hand for company, and now that the flood gates had been opened, the need for more swam through his system like syrup, thick and warm, making Avery’s movements more sluggish than normal.

“Let’s try this again,” Mrs. Sable’s voice interrupted his thoughts, making him blink rapidly. “Calvin, you sit right there. I’ll speak with Mr. Hawksley. Has anything come up while I was gone, Avery?”

“Just this,” Avery replied, holding up the piece of paper. “I was asked to rewrite it into something legible for the research team.”

She came around the desk, took the paper from Avery’s hand, and sighed. “Taron. I swear, that man’s handwriting gets worse by the day. And you can understand it?”

“Yes,” Avery nodded. “I’ve been working as a temp for years. I had to learn to read messy handwriting to do well at my job no matter where I was sent. Reading a golem’s handwriting was a true challenge.”

She huffed out a small laugh, handing Avery back the paper. “Truly. They’re much better suited to physical jobs rather than the written word. Alright. I’ll be right back. We’ll run through the schedule when I return.”

She disappeared into the office after a quick knock, closing the door firmly behind her. It was odd; Avery couldn’t hear a lick of what was going on inside. In all the jobs he’d worked at, he’d at least hear the murmurs of voices from his desk. Nothing came from Mr. Hawkley’s office, despite the knowledge that he wasn’t in there alone.

Avery’s mind once again drifted back to this morning. He hadn’t thought to be quiet, and could barely remember his own name at the time. Was it possible he wasn’t overheard? That would be a relief.

A heavy sigh from near the door drew Avery’s attention. The feeder, Calvin, looked annoyed, studying his nails like he had somewhere better to be. Avery couldn’t imagine where. Feeders’ schedules were almost as flexible as temps. Once their charges were fed, they were free to do as they wished. Besides, Avery would jump at the chance to feed Mr. Hawksley again. There wouldn’t be another place in the world he’d choose over experiencing that kind of pleasure again.

The office door swung open, and Mrs. Sable came out, the man with the bad handwriting following behind her. He stopped in front of Avery’s desk, a smile on his face, but Avery’s focus was on the feeder as Mrs. Sable beckoned him. He sauntered into Mr. Hawksley’s office like he belonged there, all confidence and sex appeal. Meanwhile, Avery stumbled over his words whenever he was in the presence of the beautiful incubus. A healthy amount of jealousy filled Avery’s gut as the door swung shut behind him. That had been him a few hours ago. Now he’d have to be happy sitting outside the office, knowing what was happening inside.

“Did you finish it already?”

Avery’s focus snapped back to the man in front of him, who had a grin on his face like he could hear the thoughts swirling through Avery’s head. He felt his cheeks burn and he ducked his head to hide his reaction, gesturing to the transcribed page he was almost finished with.

“Almost. I realized I didn’t catch your name to sign on the bottom though. I apologize for being so thoughtless.”

The man’s chuckle was low, drawing Avery’s attention back up to his face. He was a good-looking man, with jet black hair and light purple, almost lilac eyes. His skin was like melted chocolate, and his body trim. After experiencing pleasure with Mr. Hawksley, Avery was scrutinizing every man he encountered, searching for a similar reaction. So far, there hadn’t been one.

“My name is Taron Cunningham. Ozen is a dear friend of mine.”

Avery nearly swallowed his tongue. “You’re leaving out the part that you’re his business partner and co founder of the company. I’m so sorry I didn’t realize sooner.”

Taron waved his hand dismissively, like that part didn’t matter. “No need to apologize. It’s your first day. Though good for you for knowing the names of the leadership already. I’m the one who didn’t introduce myself properly.”

True, but neither did Avery. He’d been so focused on Ozen that he hardly noticed Taron’s presence.

With Taron’s name finally added to the bottom of the page, Avery handed him the transcribed document. “I’m Avery. I can bring that downstairs myself if you want, but I’m a little worried I’ll get lost without a map. This place is a little intimidating.”

“True. We didn’t plan it that way. It just works with the large amount of supernaturals in the company. Some don’t get along well with others.”

That made sense. Some Supes had longstanding animosity with different species, and while working here they might be able to overlook those perceived enemies, it was better not to seat them next to each other.

“Do you like working as a temp?” Taron asked out of nowhere.

Avery frowned at his random question. “Yes?”

“What parts do you like the most?”

While Avery didn’t understand the strange shift in conversation, he didn’t mind answering questions about himself. It was normal for people to want to get to know him, even if he was only going to be in a position for a short time.

“Well, I like the variety. I like meeting new people. But I think the most valued part for me is the flexible schedule. If a schedule doesn’t work for me, I don’t have to stick with it for too long. That way I have more free time to work on personal projects.” He didn’t say anything about his book. That was a secret he shared with absolutely no one.

“Free time,” Taron nodded like he agreed with the sentiment. Avery’s frown deepened and he was about to ask where all this was coming from, but Mr. Hawksley’s office door swung open, and Mrs. Sable came out. The feeder followed behind her, looking just as put together as when he’d gone in. Avery released a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding, glad that at least outwardly, it didn’t look like he had fed Mr. Hawksley while he was in there. Mrs. Sable had been with them, but Avery didn’t know much about the feeders or their work, so he wasn’t sure what limits they had on privacy.

Mr. Hawksley’s call button buzzed, and Avery leapt to his feet to answer, earning a smile from Mrs. Sable. He’d always been diligent at his job. No one would need to know it was his eagerness to see Mr. Hawksley that made him so quick to move.

Poking his head into the office, he studied the incubus sitting behind the desk. There was tension around his eyes that hadn’t been there before, his lips pressed tightly into a thin line. Something was upsetting him, and Avery felt overwhelmed with the urge to fix it.

“Mr. Hawksley? Is there something I can help you with?”

“I need these taken down to my accountant, Mr. Martell. Twenty second floor. And I’ll need a coffee upon your return.”

Hurrying across the room, Avery took the file Mr. Hawksley handed to him, disappointment settling in his stomach when his fingers didn’t brush against the incubus’s like they had earlier.

“Right away, Mr. Hawksley. Is there anything else?”

“That’s all for now.”

Avery was slower to leave than he was going in, stealing as much time as he could with the incubus before he left the threshold of his office and the door closed quietly behind him. Then it was a race to get Mr. Hawksley’s needs met as quickly as possible. If he thought the stairs would’ve been faster, he would’ve taken those. Instead, he squeezed himself into the overly full elevator, tucking himself into the corner out of the way of a group of satyrs discussing a new project they were working on. He had to wriggle to get out on the right floor, and he took a moment to fix his hair before heading down the hall to another reception area, this one with a witch manning the phones. He pointed Avery in the direction of Mr. Martell’s office, and Avery followed the directions to a T, finding it without issue.

After knocking on the door to no reply, Avery tried the knob and poked his head inside when the door swung open. “Mr. Martell?”

“What?” a craggy old voice snapped from behind the messy desk.

“I have a file from Mr. Hawksley for you. Should I leave it on your desk?”

“If you want me to lose it,” he growled. “Gimme a minute.”

Avery waited, bouncing on his toes. He needed to get back upstairs to make Mr. Hawksley’s coffee. Mrs. Sable walked him through how he preferred it, and he didn’t want the incubus to have to wait.

Finally, after a few agonizing minutes, the desk chair moved and a goblin with a long hooked nose and wrinkled skin clambered into the seat. He looked irritated, dropping a few nuts and bolts on top of the nearest pile of papers. “Damn chair keeps sinking on me.”

“Oh. Did you want me to ask someone to order you a new one?”

Mr. Martell squinted at him. “You’re new, aren’t you?”

Avery hadn’t realized it’d be that easy to tell. This was a big company, after all. “Uh, I guess you could say that. I’m a temp for Mrs. Sable. I’ll be Mr. Hawksley’s assistant for the next month.”

He snorted but didn’t seem to care either way, wiggling his fingers for the file. He flipped it open, grunting as he read over the documents inside.

“Another feeder. Let’s hope this one lasts longer than the last one. He almost starved to death before he found a replacement.”