the very room in which he’d taken Devon against the wall.
He’d heard that Eleanor could pick up echoes of events by touching objects—a similar gift to Levi’s ability to pick up echoes of events at death scenes. If that were true, it was possible she’d touched something in the living room that showed her what had happened there. Eleanor would have had one hell of a damn tantrum … which was exactly what the scene of destruction had looked like to him when he’d viewed it on Ciaran’s cell phone.
The only thing that brought Tanner any comfort was the mark on Devon’s palm. As he looked down at it, he got a glimpse of his fingerprints on her wrists. And he couldn’t help but smile.
“You can stop looking so smug about the brands,” she muttered.
“I could. But I won’t.”
“Yeah, I figured you’d say that,” Devon grumbled. “They sure raised some eyebrows. All day I had to field off nosy-ass questions from clients. I need to buy some wristbands or something to cover—ow, that hurt!”
He licked over the delectable lip he’d bitten, soothing the sting. “No covering the brands. I like to look at them. I like that other people can see them. And if you try hiding them, there’s a high chance my demon will decide to just brand you again.”
She stilled, and her gaze turned thoughtful. “That point sadly holds merit.”
He hummed, satisfied that she wouldn’t conceal them. Cocking his head, he stroked his hand over her hair. “You going to tell me what’s bothering you now?” He tapped her temple, adding, “I know something’s going on up here. What is it?”
She bit her lip, so he used his thumb to pull it free from her teeth.
“Is it something Eleanor said to you? You were very vague about her little visit.” He could ask Harper about it, but he’d rather Devon told him. He wanted her to trust him. To trust that she could be open with him. He caught her face with his hands. “Talk to me. You know you can.”
Devon sighed. “She said some things that annoyed me, yeah. She also made me realize something I’m not whatsoever happy about.”
He tucked her hair behind her ear. “What?”
“My demon’s becoming possessive of you.”
Tanner fought a smile, knowing she wouldn’t appreciate his smugness. Especially since this was clearly hard for her to admit. “Possessive?”
She nodded. “It was exponentially pissed when Eleanor made it clear just how much she’d like you to impregnate her.”
He snorted. “That’s not going to happen.”
“Would it really be so bad to start your own line?”
“Some time in the future, no. Right now? It’s not what I want.”
God, it made her such a bitch that that relieved her, didn’t it? But the thought of him fathering a kid to another woman was just a little too much for Devon to bear right then. In the future, long after they’d gone their separate ways and she’d licked her wounds, it wouldn’t be so hard to handle. Hopefully.
“Parenthood has been known to center people who don’t have an anchor. Eleanor said—” Devon clamped her mouth shut and averted her gaze, thinking how unfair it was that she was fishing for information on a subject that could be a sore one.
He gently cupped her chin. “Eleanor said what? Tell me, kitten. What did she say?”
Knowing he wouldn’t drop it, she said, “That you’ll never have your anchor. I didn’t get what she meant. But you don’t have to tell me; it’s fine. Really.” It wasn’t as if she didn’t have secrets of her own.
Scraping his jaw with his hand, Tanner looked away. “Eleanor must have done a real thorough check on me.” He sighed, sliding his gaze back to Devon’s. “I found my anchor shortly after I became a sentinel. We didn’t form the bond, because her mate was jealous. He didn’t want her having such a close tie to another man. He made her choose—me or him. She chose him, which was understandable.”
“But you’ve kept watch over her, haven’t you?” Devon guessed, because she knew him too well.
“I did until she and her mate died in a plane crash.”
Devon winced, wishing she hadn’t brought it up. “Shit, I’m sorry. Maybe it was a blessing, then, that you hadn’t formed the bond. I’ve heard the breaking of it is painful.” She gave his shoulder a squeeze. “Thank you for telling me.” One large hand spanned the back of her head, fingers sifting through her hair to dig into her