Not Your Ex's Hexes (Supernatural Singles, #2)(100)
“Considering the pretty witch and her Supernatural Scooby Squad would love nothing more than to clip your demon tail and shave off a few scales, I’m your only option.”
“You’re not an option. You’re a thorn in my side. Don’t you have Council duties to fulfill, or are you still working the old Julius Kontos way of employment: look busy but let those around you do all the work.”
“That was a long time ago, Damian.” Julius followed him as he made unnecessary checks on all the animals. “In case you don’t remember, we both acted like dumb shits back then.”
“You were extra dumb and loads shittier,” Damian muttered.
“You’re right. I was … and I’m sorry about that.”
Damian paused, turning around. “Did I stumble through an upside-down world or something? Julius Kontos doesn’t do apologies. Isn’t that what you’ve always said?”
Jules shot him a sardonic look. “Turning over a new horn isn’t easy, but I’m trying. As I’m sure you know, it’s easier falling back on old habits than it is to make new ones.”
“You mean like when you baited me into taking your Hunt assignments growing up? Or when you bribed me into dragging Rose into it?”
“Like I said … old habits. But you can’t fault me for my own when you’re obviously still letting yours dictate your life.”
Damian reached the stairs to the loft and stopped, making it clear his brother wasn’t invited upstairs. “I’m not taking life advice from someone who’s made it his own personal goal to dupe everyone around him into thinking he’s something he’s not. You strut around in your expensive suits and drive your fancy cars, but I know for a fact you prefer vintage heavy metal T-shirts and that rusty-ass pickup you used to throw all your money into.”
“Ruby?” A nostalgic glint twinkled in his eyes. “I still have her. She’s in the garage with the rest of my collection.”
“And when was the last time you took Ruby out for a night drive?”
“Ruby wouldn’t pass a basic inspection and would get me arrested for single-handedly evaporating the ozone layer the second her engine turned over. And yeah, you’re not entirely wrong. There’s always a certain amount of theatrics within Supernatural society. But we’re not talking about me here, Dam. We’re talking about you and what the hell was going through your head when you sent Rose Maxwell packing. Do you have your eye on the Miserable Man of the Year award?”
Hearing her name fall from his brother’s lips was like a scythe to the damn chest all over again. His fingers clenched on the banister, the wood cracking.
Julius continued, “We both know that was a huge fucking mistake.”
“I don’t know anything of the kind,” Damian lied. “As for that award, I’m not a man, remember? At least not all man … which is what someone like Rose expects. Hell, it’s what she deserves.”
“She deserves to be pissed off to the point of melting plastic with her pretty little magical hands? Because that’s what I witnessed when I took her over to her sister’s place.”
Another jab to the chest, this one momentarily stealing his ability to take a breath.
“She’s pissed? Good. Then sooner or later, she’ll realize it was for the best.” Damian headed up the stairs.
“The best for who?” Julius shouted up.
“For both of us!”
“Liar,” Julius called as Damian reached his apartment door. “You won’t Hunt because it’s easier to blame your demon for fucking things up than it is to admit that it’s not the demon that’s the problem.”
“It is the problem. If it weren’t for that bastard’s love of the job, Callie never would’ve—”
“What? Hexed you? Newsflash, brother, you were a sixteen-year-old shithead whether you embraced your demon side or you didn’t. But the key ingredient there is sixteen-year-old. You were a damn kid, Damian. Kids screw up. They learn. Except—it seems—for you, because you’re standing here making a nearly identical mistake as a thirty-four-year-old.”
“I’m not making the same mistake. In fact, breaking things off with Rose is—”
“What most people call a self-fulfilling prophecy of doom,” Julius retaliated. “You’re blaming your inner hellion for why you can’t have a future with her, when in reality it’s your human self that’s sabotaging it all. Hex be damned.”
Damian growled, hating that his brother’s words began penetrating their way into his head.
“You deserve to be fucking happy, D. You and Rose both. If you didn’t think it was possible, then you wouldn’t be using it as an excuse to duck your head in the sand. You wouldn’t be fighting so hard to protect that dusty-ass heart and soul.”
“If I wasn’t fighting against something, I wouldn’t know what to do with myself,” Damian admitted.
Julius went silent, the first time for as long as Damian knew him. Hell, he didn’t know his brother was capable, so he used it to his advantage.
“You didn’t have to fight for a damn thing in your life, Jules,” he admitted without the least bit of animosity. “You didn’t have to constantly prove yourself to Ezeil when we were out in the field. Anything you did was always enough. I—on the other hand—to be worthy of even a second of his time, had to train harder. Be quicker. I needed to be the Scourge of the Underworld and literally fight my way through the ranks, and it still wasn’t good enough for the old man. I had to fight my way through every damn inch of life.”