Page 29 of Her Males

Rock is already waiting for me in my office, and I shoot him a wide smile as I make my way to my desk. He’s already laid down a math workbook for me, and I groan as I sit and open it up. Math is easily my least favorite subject.

“Oh, stop whining.” Rock snorts. “It’s either this or language.”

Language is my second-least favorite subject. It was fun initially, but the demonic language Silas and Gray insist I learn is literally impossible. It’s full of contradictions and is unlike anything I’ve ever heard before.

A good ten percent of the noises don’t exist in the human or universal language, and I feel stupid when I try. I’m relatively decent at reading and writing it, but speaking seems to be where my brain stops working.

I shoot Rock the most menacing glare I can muster as I flip open my workbook and reach into my desk drawer for some snacks. Gray recently restocked it for me, and I grab two bars of the chocolate- and caramel-covered nougat.

Rock catches the one I throw in his direction, the man obsessed with them, and I tear open the other and munch on it while I flip to the page Rock bookmarked for me.

“Variables?” I ask.

“You ever heard of them before?”

I shake my head. “No.”

I’ve never heard of math with letters, and I stare blankly at the page as Rock grabs his damned whiteboard and starts writing down a problem to go over with me. I rest my chin in my hand, not excited to learn about what ‘X’ is and how I’m supposed to do math with a letter.

__________

I flip onto my back and stare at Gray. He’s sitting on the opposite end of the couch, his eyes locked in on the screen mounted on the wall. The TV is a new addition to the house, and I have a feeling it was added for me.

“Graaaaay,” I sing, peering down at him.

I poke his bare thigh with my toes as I admire his profile. His sharp jawline and prominent cheekbones are every human’s wet dream, and his full lips are to die for. He truly is one of the most beautiful men I’ve ever seen.

Gray sucks in his cheeks, no doubt sensing where my thoughts have strayed.

“I love you,” I say.

That captures his attention, and I feel my cheeks warming as he turns and shoots me a toothy grin. His eyes fall to the spot on my neck where demons mark, and I scrunch my shoulders to hide it. Now’s not the time for that.

“How much longer do you think they’re going to be?” I ask.

Silas and Aziel left hours ago, and I’m beginning to get worried. I even convinced Gray to send them a few messages, but they haven’t responded.

“I’m sure they’ll be back soon,” Gray says. “I’d be able to feel through my bond with Aziel if he were hurt, and he’s perfectly fine.”

I frown, happy to hear it but still worried.

I’ve never met a shifter before, but many rumors are floating around about them.

News clips always portray them as wild creatures, their bodies shifting between man and animal with ease. I’ve seen a few images, and they sure look the part.

The men are enormous, and they’re always photographed wearing nothing more than short, leather skirts that hide very little. I suppose it makes sense they’d wear clothing that’s easy to remove when they need to shift, but I couldn’t imagine being comfortable being so exposed.

Gray grabs my feet and begins to gently massage them, his thumbs pressing into my arches before moving up the soles. It feels incredible, and I let a quiet groan slip from my lips as I relax on the couch.

I’ll give it one more hour before asking Gray to check on Silas and Aziel again.

We turn back to the TV and continue watching the human sitcom Gray put on. Movies and television shows aren’t being created anymore, but he found a collection of old ones. I’m enjoying it more than I thought I would, and I even find myself laughing a handful of times.

“I have to go to the bathroom,” I say, rolling rather ungracefully off the couch.

Gray moves to get up and follow me, but he freezes as I turn to glare at him. I can go to the bathroom by myself.

He doesn’t look pleased as he sits back down, his lips pursed and arms crossed over his chest. I can’t help but laugh as I bend and kiss him, and I feel him smiling against my lips as I pull away.

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