Page 20 of Soar

“It’s late, what are you going to do next?” Gregori asked.

“Bed.”

“Ah. Good night, then.”

Seriously? No argument still? Did the man have the patience of a saint?

Shaking his head, Salem set the thought aside and went about the routine of getting ready for bed. Because it was a cold night, he ended up in a long-sleeve shirt as well as sleep pants. Then he snuggled into bed, sighing with pleasure as he settled. Ah, his bed was such a good friend.

He could feel sleep already tugging at his mind, trying to seduce him under. But he could also hear Alexis’s voice in his mind calling him an idiot. Just wait until she learned Gregori could cook and clean up after himself—then Salem wouldreallyhave his sanity called into question.

The thought amused him, in a dark way, as sleep sucked him under.

Salem wokeup the next morning to his alarm blaring. Gregori wasn’t in the bed with him, but when he sat up, rubbing sleep from his eyes, he saw messy sheets on the other side of the bed. So Gregori had slept next to him, and he’d been too deeply asleep to notice.

All right, this? This limbo thing had to stop. He emotionally couldn’t take it. If Gregori wouldn’t take a no, then at the very least Salem had to lay down some ground rules. He had to define and cage this before Gregori started getting ideas. Past experience told Salem so.

He dragged himself out of the bed, took a shower mostly to help wake up, brushed his teeth, and then felt human enough to have a conversation. Well, maybe. A cup of coffee would aid him in this endeavor.

Salem headed for the coffee maker only to find a pot already made up and Gregori making breakfast. Dammit, the adage about winning a man’s heart through his stomach was true. Gregori played dirty—he knew precisely what he was about.

Salem stared at the man suspiciously as he poured himself coffee and doctored it as he preferred. Gregori cocked a brow at him, amused, even as he flipped over bacon.

“You,” Salem informed him, “are a hard nut to crack.”

“That’s my line,” Gregori returned mildly. “What is it going to take for me to convince you I’m not leaving?”

Salem believed nothing at this point. He’d heard too many broken promises. Human hearts were too fickle, and he wasn’t sure if a dragon’s heart was made of sterner stuff, honestly.

He sipped his coffee, turning to put a hip against the counter. Okay, time to face this head-on. Trying to avoid Gregori did fuck all.

“All right. You want to stay.”

Gregori removed the pan from the burner and turned toward him. “Are we talking about this?”

“Yes. Because otherwise, I’ll end up strangling you.”

“That’s fair. Yes, I want to stay with you.”

“I really, really do not get why. Unless you’re a glutton for punishment.”

Gregori grinned. The surprisingly boyish grin made him look almost mischievous. The messy fall of his hair around his shoulders—he’d obviously not done anything with it yet this morning—only reinforced the impression. “I’ve been accused of that from time to time.”

“Ha. Why doesn’t this surprise me? But fine, if you want to stay, I won’t argue, but I insist upon some ground rules.”

Gregori waved him on, all smiles still. “Hit me.”

He looked far too cheery for this conversation. It conversely worried Salem. Like he was missing something big, something Gregori knew, and it was going to bite him in the ass later.

He shook the thought off. “All right. You can stay, but only if you don’t expect something from me. I want to be clear: We’re not mates. We’re not in a relationship. Do not expect me to act like a boyfriend, or someone you’re dating, because I won’t.”

Gregori’s eyes narrowed, smile dimming. A second drew out into several seconds before he finally dipped his head.

“I can work with that for now. Sex?”

“I’m not turning down sex.” Because he wasn’t a moron. “If we can act like roommates with benefits, sure.”

“Roommates with benefits, huh.” Gregori’s head canted to the side. “Interesting. Agreed.”

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