Page 32 of The Naga

Keoni was the baby of the Sanctuary, so I knew Dustin was safe with him. Leaving them to chat, I decided to go grab some food for us instead.

"How did you end up with someone as stunning as him?" Jacinta teased when I approached the counter, and I rolled my eyes at them.

"Ha ha. Very funny," I deadpanned as they filled my plates with food, making a smaller portion for Dustin than they did for me. By now, they were as used to feeding humans as they were to feeding supes.

"Take care of him, okay?" they said before I could leave, and I nodded seriously. There was no way I'd let anyone or anything hurt Dustin.

I made my way to our usual table, and found Dustin engaged in a conversation with Keoni and Silas. At first, I didn't pay much attention to it as I placed Dustin's plate in front of him and settled in to eat beside him.

But then I realized that Keoni and Silas were telling him stories. About me. About the stupid shit I'd done as a kid, and some not as a kid.

"Okay, that's enough of that!" I interrupted before Silas could tell Dustin about the embarrassing things I did the first time I got drunk. Some things were better left in the past, and that was one of them.

Dustin

After lunch, we returned to Khush's cabin—our cabin now, I supposed—and spent the rest of the day unpacking. Khush's friends offered to help us unpack, but I wanted to do this part with just Khush. And Scrappy, of course.

Her new cat tree delighted Scrappy, and when I told Khush he hadn't had to get anything for her, he'd said she was his baby now too, wasn't she? Andthatmademehappy.

We couldn't unpack everything by dinnertime, but all my clothes were in the closet beside Khush's, and Scrappy had her little nook all set up in the living room. At Khush's insistence, I'd claimed the spare bedroom downstairs as my 'office,' and set up my computer there.

When we went to the dining room for dinner, Khush brought over my box of utensils so we could hand them over to the 'chef squad' as he liked to call them. The kitchen in the cabin really wasn't meant for cooking, so there was no point in me keeping them there. I made a mental note to ask about helping with the cooking later, but for now I enjoyed another meal with Khush, Silas, Touya, and Keoni. I was surprised to realize I didn't feel like an outsider around them, and I found myself easily swept up in the conversations.

We stayed for a while after dinner, and it was only when we were walking back to the cabin that I started thinking about the big elephant in the room. Or rather, the king-sizedbed on the roof. Khush had shown me around earlier, and I had to admit that the whole roof setup was pretty ingenious, especially because from outside the second floor looked completely covered, offering us privacy without triggering Khush's claustrophobia.

Sleeping on the roof wasn't the issue, though. The fact was that we'd be sharing a bed when we'd only had a few short makeout sessions before. I felt like we'd skipped a few steps in between, and we'd also never had a conversation about sex before. That was something we should've talked about, especially since my sexuality tended to be a bit all over the place on most days.

Deciding now was better than never, I took Khush's hand in mine before leading him toward the couch. While Khush could sit literally anywhere, he looked kind of cute when he sat on the couch with his long, scaly tail hanging over the edge. I settled on his other side, still keeping a tight hold on his hand.

"Everything okay?" Khush asked, and I smiled at him, giving his hand a comforting squeeze.

"I'm okay. I really like your friends. They're welcoming," I said as I gathered up my wits, and Khush smiled.

"They like you too."

Smiling, I turned my eyes to our joined hands. "About sleeping together…" I started, and Khush cleared his throat.

"Um, if you'd rather not sleep together, there's a bed down here in the old bedroom."

I glanced up at him, slightly surprised by his words. "You wouldn't mind?"

"Not at all. I mean, I'd love to snooze all snuggled up, but I'm realistic enough to understand we might not be close enough for that just yet. I want you to feel comfortable."

I met Khush's eyes, trying to determine if he was saying it just to appease me, if he was ignoring his own wants to take care ofme. But I couldn't find any hesitation in his eyes, and that made me feel a little better.

"Um, how about we try it tonight, and if it doesn't feel right, I'll come sleep downstairs?" I suggested, and he smiled, nodding quickly.

"That sounds fair."

"I'm not ready todoanything just yet," I said, then grinned. "Well, maybe some more kissing."

Khush chuckled softly, then gripped my chin with his free hand, nudging my face up so he could press his lips against mine in a way-too-short kiss.

"Sounds good to me," he murmured against my lips before pulling back, and I gazed up at him, stunned. How was it possible he got hotter the longer I knew him?

"Uh, also," I started to say before trailing off, and Khush met my eyes, silently encouraging me with his yellow-brown gaze. I'd always thought snakes' eyes were pretty expressive, but I hadn't realized just how expressive until I met this particular naga. (Google told me naga means snake in Hindi, and the nagas are considered a deity in Hindu mythology, which meant I was basically falling for a descendent of a God. How wild was that?)

Khush squeezed my hand, and I finally found my voice. "Well, I tend to dress more comfortably at home, which means no chest binder. I always put it on when I go out because I don't want to be misgendered, but at home…"

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