Page 9 of Ridge

He didn’t. He was a council assassin, and if there was one thing Kael knew for sure about them, it was that they were trained until they could kill in their sleep, let alone drive.

It scared him a bit. It was one of the reasons he hadn’t reached out to Ridge. He was conflicted, although he wasn’t sure he could explain why.

Nymon had tried talking to him once, but Kael had brushed him off. It wasn’t the same. Tex wasn’t actively killing people. He was working with Gregory, even though he’d trained as an assassin. Ridge, though? Killing was his job. The council sent him around the world, telling him to kill people, and he did.

Nymon and Kael had talked about that, though. They’d talked about a lot of things when it came to Tex. That meant that Kael knew more than most people about the council and their assassins.

The council was a delicate balance of different members. Each of them represented a kind of shifter or paranormal creature, and there were many members. They made sure that no one used the assassins for personal gain, and that any order to kill someone was justified and right. The assassins didn’t just go around killing random people. They killed when the justice system couldn’t stop someone, when there was no proof that would be acceptable in court, when people were monsters who had no right to be in the world.

Kael could understand that. He even agreed with it. He’d had a very sheltered life, but finding out what those demons had been doing had horrified him. He understood not wanting to mingle with humans, but causing their deaths? That wasn’t something he could agree with.

Should he tell Ridge that? Would it make things even more awkward? He didn’t know.

As it turned out, Kael shouldn’t have worried. He spent so much time obsessing over what they could talk about that by the time they reached the town, he still didn’t have an answer. Hell, he was even more confused than when they’d left. Maybe he and Ridge didn’t have anything in common, and that meant they couldn’t be mates.

“We’re here,” Ridge said, stopping the car and reaching for his phone. “I got a number from Gregory. Someone’s going to let us through the shield.”

Kael looked around. He couldn’t see the town, but then, he hadn’t expected to. They were hiding behind a shield, just like Starhaven. It was what every demon town and village did. There were countless of them around the world, hiding from humans in plain sight.

Ridge had a brief conversation with someone, but Kael didn’t listen in. Instead, he squinted, trying to see the shield. He couldn’t. He hadn’t been able to see Starhaven’s shield from the outside, either, or from the inside for that matter. He’d just known that it was there and that he should be careful not to step out, because he wouldn’t be able to come back in.

The air suddenly shimmered in front of him. His eyes widened as a demon stepped through, then waved at them to follow. They glanced at each other. “So we’re leaving the car here?” Kael asked.

“Looks like it. I’ll carry your bag.”

“I’m perfectly capable of carrying my own bag, thank you,” Kael said, although he hoped they wouldn’t have to carry them too far because his bag was heavy as hell.

Thankfully, Ridge seemed more amused than irritated or offended. He didn’t roll his eyes, but something told Kael it was a close thing. Still, he didn’t say anything about the bag, and Kael appreciated that.

At least until he had to haul his bag out of the trunk of the car.

He did so while Ridge was talking to the demon. Kael took a moment to watch her. She was a warm pink, almost reddish, and she was smiling, which was a surprise. Kael knew that someone had to have agreed to have him and Ridge here, but he hadn’t expected most demons to be happy about it. In fact, he’d expected most demons to be unhappy. Why would they want strangers in their towns? Why would they want a shifter here? Kael could blend in, but Ridge? Everyone was going to know he was a stranger the second he stepped through.

Ridge didn’t look worried, though. Instead, he shook the demon’s hand, then turned to Kael.

“Kael, this is Poppy. She’s going to be our guide, and she’s responsible for us while we’re here.”

Kael nodded at her. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. Thanks for allowing us to stay.”

She waved her hand. “I’m not the only one responsible for that. Trust me, it was a whole thing. I think the only reason people relented was that you’d be there. A lot of us have questions for you since you’ve been living in the human world.”

“Oh?” Kael had never thought of himself as interesting, so he was surprised—although maybe he shouldn’t be, considering the circumstances.

“If you follow me, I’ll take you to my house. I’ve prepared accommodations for you there. You can clean up and eat something, and we can decide what the first step will be. We have meetings set up for tomorrow, but I thought it would be better to give the two of you some time and space to relax before we focus on work.”

Kael was ready to relax, so he nodded.

Maybe this mess wouldn’t be so bad, after all.

* * * *

RIDGE LIKED POPPY. She was upbeat and clearly happy to have them there, which he hadn’t expected. In fact, he’d half expected to be run out of town. They were here because the demons had agreed to have them, but that didn’t mean that everyone was happy.

Ridge was sure that plenty of them were unhappy. He could see the way the demons they walked past were looking at them. In such a small town, everyone knew everyone, and Ridge stood out like a sore thumb. He was the only known shifter around, so of course everyone knew he didn’t belong. The fact that he was walking with two demons meant he was allowed to be here, but people would still have questions and doubts.

Ridge knew that he had them. He’d agreed to come because he’d been willing to protect the person Gregory was sending, but he hadn’t known that person would be Kael. Now, he had no idea what to make of any of this. He needed to focus on the job, as did Kael, but it wasn’t going to be easy.

Well, it would be easier for Kael since he didn’t know he was Ridge’s mate, but Ridge felt like he might not be able to keep that secret for much longer. Kael should know, especially if they were going to spend a lot of time together. At the same time, Ridge didn’t want Kael to be distracted from the mission they’d been sent on.