Page 105 of Reforging Onyx

He got to his feet, feeling steadier than he had since he’d woken up, and ducked out of the ring.

Dominic held out his hand in the familiar come here gesture, waiting for Onyx to join him. He lifted his hand to cup Onyx’s face for just a moment, his thumb brushing over Onyx’s cheek. “You should rinse off before lunch,” he said softly.

Onyx tensed at the touch, but he nodded. “Okay,” he agreed.

He hesitated, remembering both what Dominic had said and what Shane had said, then leaned in to brush his lips against Dominic’s in a light kiss. Not the peck of earlier, and not anything deep, but more of a chaste kiss that was still there nonetheless.

“I’ll be right back,” Onyx promised.

“Any requests for lunch?” Dominic asked before Onyx had fully turned away to head for the showers.

Onyx shook his head. “Just something quick,” he said. “I’m starving.” He glanced at Shane. “Thank you." For the training, for the talk, for all of it — and he hoped he conveyed that.

“Any time.” Shane smiled.

Onyx vanished into the showers, where he took just long enough to soap himself up and rinse off before getting dressed while his skin was still wet. His hair dripped down when he emerged, and he went back to Dominic without being beckoned.

He stopped by Dominic, resting his wet head lightly against his shoulder for a moment. If this was going to happen, if this was going to be inevitable, he had to try to control some of it. Right?

“When I get better at the katas, you should watch one day,” Onyx said hesitantly. “It’s really cool watching Shane. Maybe you’ll think it’s cool to watch me, too.”

Dominic’s hand came up automatically to rest against his lower back and allowed it to drop away when Onyx stepped back. “I will do that." A smile played at the edges of his lips. “I was impressed watching you and Shane fight yesterday. You’ve learned a great deal from him.”

Yesterday. That had been… intense. He eyed Dominic, wondering what the other witch thought about Onyx putting Shane onto the mat. Was he having any sort of regrets, knowing that Onyx could potentially take Shane down and go for him? Or was he pleased that all the time they’d invested in Onyx’s training was paying off?

It had certainly helped the day before, when Onyx had gone through Ambrose’s shields like they were nothing thanks to all of Shane’s training.

“I have,” Onyx said. “Thank you for letting him teach me. I’m enjoying the staves.”

Dominic smiled. “You’re welcome, and I’m glad. I’m surprised you didn’t ask to learn knives first.”

So was Onyx, and he was surprised at himself for not having immediately asked to learn knives today. It would be easier to kill Dominic with a knife than it would be with hand to hand or with a staff. A knife, though…

“You don’t leave knives lying around,” Onyx said, his tone almost conversational. “And the staves build strength and discipline.”

At least, he thought they did. He might’ve been making that up.

“True,” Dominic agreed. “And the ones in the house are enchanted.”

Onyx cast an annoyed look at Dominic. Of course they’d be enchanted. Even if they hadn’t been before his attempt on his life, he expected Dominic would’ve made it harder for him to get anything he could use on himself, too. “Good to know not to waste any attempts on you that way."

Dominic smiled, then guided Onyx out of the gym and toward his office. “Music or book after lunch?”

Onyx had a feeling Dominic had listened to his entire conversation with Shane — though what he thought of it, who knew? — so he asked, “Can I have a book on psychopaths?”

Dominic hummed. “There are many different kinds of books on psychopaths,” he said without surprise at the request. “Ones involving the clinical symptoms, diagnostics and psychological underpinnings, ones involving management and maintenance of the condition, others about how to interact with psychopaths. Shall I assume you want the latter?”

Onyx twitched, but he nodded. “I don’t think I need to manage the condition, personally,” he deadpanned. “So yeah, learning how to deal with them properly would be nice. In the event I ever found one, obviously, and not because I’m living with one.”

Dominic laughed. “I can see where that might be useful,” he acknowledged. “I’ll see what I can acquire on audio.”

“Thank you,” Onyx said.

“Just be wary of trying too hard to be manipulative,” Dominic said as they arrived at his office. “It can start looking artificial quickly.”

Onyx rolled his eyes. “It’s not like I think I can out-manipulate the manipulator, so you don’t have to worry about that. I’m just… curious, that’s all, and I know you’re not going to give me a laptop or phone to do my own research.”

Would he?