Page 21 of Gravel and Grit

“Yes you did!”

It was the shifty look in her eyes that clued him in that she was attempting to distract him. He narrowed his eye at her then scanned himself and the room.

“Whaa were oo ooing while I waz hee-ling?” he asked suspiciously.

“Hmm? Doing? I wasn’t doing anything,” she scoffed and rose to her feet, dusting off her clothes. Cutting him a look, she muttered, “You’re the one that scared the hell out of me! I probably lost two years of my life with that dirty trick you pulled.”

Zaek went motionless and felt his heart skip at least three beats. Without thought, he lunged at her and quickly put his fingertips to the pulse in her neck as he’d seen humans do on television. He didn’t feel anything which sent him into full blown panic.

“Lar’s wings!”

He scooped her up in his arms and started for the door, intent on getting her to a physician before she keeled over dead.

“Wait! I didn’t mean that literally! It’s just a figure of speech,” she exclaimed, wiggling against his chest in a futile effort to get down.

Zaek stopped just as suddenly as if he’d run into a wall. Slowly bending his neck, he looked down at her.

“Figuur of sceech?” he asked disbelievingly.

“Yes! Just a figure of speech. An idiom,” she breathed. When he didn’t respond immediately she continued, “Umm, it’s a word or phrase that means something different than the literal translation. When I said you scared two years off my life I was just using that as a dramatization, meaning you startled me. There’s been no conclusive science to prove that being scared actually affects a person’s lifespan.”

“I see,” he growled low in his throat. Lowering his face to hers, he narrowed his eyes warningly. “No mrr figuurs of sceech. Taut oo were dying.”

When she nodded in agreement, he reluctantly lowered her to her feet until she was standing in front of him. Neither moved at first, just stared at each other, their bodies mere inches apart. He didn’t fully believe her explanation, so he took the opportunity to inspect her for any overt signs of illness or injury. After a thorough once-over, he didn’t find any and relaxed.

That was when he realized she was staring at him just as intently as he was her.

His tail went still behind him, and the base of his horns heated as he imagined she was thinking about how hideous and scary he was, especially after snatching her up like he had, but no matter how hard he searched, he couldn’t see any signs of revulsion or fear on her face. As best as he could tell, she looked fascinated with just a hint of wariness.

He watched as her gaze flicked from the horns crowning his forehead to his lips, then higher to his wings before dropping lower his… stomach?

The bright pink that bloomed high on her cheeks suggested it wasn’t his stomach she was looking at, but rather something a bit lower. Zaek’s eyes went wide with surprise before he glanced down as well, wondering if his suit had somehow slid down while he was sleeping to reveal his cock and that was why she was looking.

Nope. His pants were exactly where they should be, so why was she staring?

Did she just lick her lips? She definitely just licked her lips.

His heart skipped a beat for the second time since waking, but this time it was with hope instead of panic.

Okay. Retain your composure. Do not lose your senses. She is probablyjust thirsty.

Reeaally? Granted, it has been a very long while, but I am sure that is an

expression of desire. Curiosity at the very least!

He scoffed silently at that thought.

Impossible. Still. We should be courteous and not startle her from herinspection, whatever it is she is inspecting, as that would be rude. We may becrazy, but we have manners.

Zaek stood very, very still, not wanting to pull her attention from his lower half and reveal that he knew where she was, hopefully, looking.

Well, mostly still. If he thrust his hips outjusta little, he was sure she didn’t notice and honestly, who could blame him? He hadn’t been the recipient of a female’s appreciative stare in so long he’d forgotten just how enjoyable it was and how much of a boost it provided to a male’s pride.

She gawked for long enough that he felt his cock beginning to rise in hopeful anticipation, before she cleared her throat and glanced away.

Disappointment was swift, but he thought he managed to hide it well, not that she was looking at his face to notice. Of course, his dick—the poor fool—

took a little longer to get the message that he wouldn’t be receiving any attention and stubbornly stayed at half-mast just in case she changed her mind.

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