Chapter 2

Two

After settlinginto my temporary apartment—Tanyl was next door, Isalendra across from him, and Savelle next to her and across from me—and checking over the car I'd purchased and had delivered to my place, I decided to walk to my office and see the space in person. I'd done plenty of video chats with the real estate agent, but things always looked different in person, and I wanted to get a head start on any issues with the building itself before I met with my team there tomorrow.

I'd come here myself to help set everything up and make sure all the staff were properly trained. I had multiple offices all over my home country, but I still made sure I got to know each and every one of my employees enough that I'd recognize them and be able to put a name to their faces. Plus, I enjoyed training people. I was very hands-on in the beginning stages of each office, and this one would be no different.

At home, my dads and many of my siblings were agents with the Brinnswick Central Agency, and they kept our country safe from criminals and terrorists. They were the big guns, and the Ellwood name was very well-known there.

I, on the other hand, owned my own security company and helped keep individuals and families safe by installing security systems that were a mix of magic and electronics—something no one else did—and hiring out guards and personal security details. We did businesses too, but we were mostly a home security company.

I headed out as quietly as I could so my friends wouldn't hear me sneaking out without them. Not that I wasn't allowed to go without them, but I knew they'd offer to come, and I'd feel obligated to let them. But I wanted to take in the new space by myself.

Once I was out on the street, I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and simply breathed in this new, exciting city for a moment. It smelled how pretty much all cities smelled, which was honestly kinda gross, although there was a scent of something different underneath it all. Like the earth here was different than back home. And hell, it probably was.

Being a wolf shifter, my nose was more sensitive than many other creatures, so I could pick out individual scents in the mix, but I didn't want to. This was supposed to be a relaxing trip to the new space, not an opportunity to put my sniffer to the test.

So I pushed all scent thoughts to the back of my mind and headed down the street. The office wasn't far. Only about four or five blocks away, and it was a nice night for a stroll. There weren't a shit-ton of people out, but the streets definitely weren't empty yet—crowded, but not in an overbearing way. Earlier, it had been bustling. I was sure most people were home for the night, but it was dinnertime, so there were people headed to the grocery store or out to eat.

My gaze took in as much as possible, trying to memorize every store, street, alley, and townhouse I passed. Before I knew it, this route would be second nature and ingrained in my subconscious. But before that happened, I wanted to see everything.

Of course, I couldn't help but notice the huge-ass tower in the middle of the city. It was the tallest building—some kind of skyscraper or something—and I'd heard that the locals called it the castle because it was where the king of the Sedoba Territory worked and lived.

Just looking at the tower made me dislike this King Garrick Von Stein person on principle. I mean, who the hell built a giant building like that right smack in the middle of the city when there were so many people who couldn't even afford groceries or a place to live? It was like he was looking out over everyone, looking down on us, and judging us. Like we were all his little minions. Like we were beneath him.

"What an asshole," I muttered under my breath.

I wrinkled my nose at the monstrosity, then turned away from it and concentrated on the buildings and the people around me. It was too bad I could see that eyesore no matter where I was in the territory because it was so damn tall. Ugh.

I was just under two blocks away from my destination when I saw a man walk out of an alley up ahead of me. Normally, I wouldn't pay much attention to one specific person, but this man had chin-length, vibrant purple hair, which drew my gaze… and then my eyes stayed on him because something about it told me it was his natural color.

And if that was the case, he was likely a fae.

There were other creatures with different colored hair of course, but fae was the most likely.

As if sensing my eyes on him, the purple-haired man stopped and half-turned, offering me his profile.

The second I saw that cute button nose, it felt like the air was knocked from my lungs. Even from this angle, I could tell he was beautiful. The most beautiful man in existence.

Without realizing what I was doing, I started following the man instead of worrying about going to the office.

He wore jeans, boots, and a very old-looking leather jacket that probably wasn't thick enough in this cold weather. He had a worn black backpack on his back and a guitar case over one shoulder, so I couldn't really see much of his body, but he was short. Much shorter than me. And tiny. Lithe.

He looked like he'd fit perfectly in my arms.

I wanted to shake away that thought, but I couldn't take my eyes off him for even a second.

Mother of All, was he an incubus? Did he have me in his thrall or something?

As soon as the thought passed my mind, I knew it was wrong. Purple wasn't doing anything to me, at least not on purpose. I might not have been a magic user myself, but I'd grown up in a home surrounded by them, so I was good at detecting magic.

Not to mention, my dad made sure I had runes tattooed into my skin to prevent things like a vampire's pull and an incubus's thrall.

It must've been his natural charisma or something. Although, fae magic had never affected me like this before.

I was watching him so intensely that I noticed the second a coin fell out of one of the outer pockets of his backpack. The man, the purple-haired beauty, didn't seem to notice, so I rushed forward a few steps, picked up the coin, and ran after him.

He was quick, I'd give him that, but he was no match for my long strides.

"Excuse me," I called out, but the man ignored me. "Excuse me, uh… Purple. It seems like you lost something." That seemed to get his attention.

Finally, he turned around, and my breath was knocked from my lungs for a second time. He stared at me for a moment, looking as shocked as I felt. His light purple eyes were wide, and I saw him swallow thickly.

Something seemed to… wake up inside of me, but I couldn't figure out what it was. It stirred and uncurled inside of my chest, and if I'd been a cat instead of a wolf, I had the feeling I'd be purring.

I wasn't sure how long we stood there, staring at one another, but finally, Purple seemed to shake himself out of it. He lifted one perfect eyebrow into an arch and asked, "Did you need somethin'?"

His smooth voice with the local accent sent a shiver down my spine, and I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out.

He stared at me for a beat longer, then let out a tiny huff of annoyance before turning around.

"Wait!" I finally called out loudly. Too loudly. I winced.

He turned back, that brow still arched in a way that made me want to rub my thumb over it to make it go back down.

"Um…" I cleared my throat. "You, uh, you dropped this." I held the coin out between us. It was a gold coin, one I didn't recognize—gold with a picture of a dragon on one side, and I didn't know what on the other since I hadn't checked—so I could only assume it was local currency. There was a nationwide currency in Gauhala, but the territories also had their own. I didn't think the Sedoba Territory's looked like this, but I suppose it did. Unless this coin had made it over from one of the other territories.

He stared at the coin, looking at it like he'd never seen it before, so I thrust it toward him again. This time, he didn't hesitate to take it. He snatched it out of my hand without so much as a brush of his fingertips against my skin—unfortunately.

He let the coin roll back and forth across his knuckles, gaze flicking between it and me. He did it a few times, reminding me of some kind of magician.

And then the coin suddenly disappeared, and I held in a gasp of surprise.

He opened his palms up to show the coin wasn't there. It could've been sleight of hand, but since he was definitely fae—those pointed ears were a dead giveaway—he could've used a glamor.

He grinned and winked, saying, "Thanks, doll." Then he turned on his heel and headed farther down the street, disappearing into the small sea of people.

And I just stood there, staring after him and wishing I'd at least gotten his name and number.

Mother of All, how could I have let that beautiful man get away?

"You're a fucking idiot, Remi," I muttered to myself, letting out a long sigh.

Why the hell was I out in the middle of the sidewalk on an unfamiliar street again?

Oh. Right. My new office.

After sucking in a deep breath and trying to release the disappointment of likely never seeing Purple again, I turned on my heel and went in search of my new building, though thoughts of the gorgeous fae never strayed far from my mind.