Page 37 of The Naga

I'd learned a long time ago to be responsible for my own contentment, to not depend on someone else for it, and it'd served me well for all the years I'd spent alone. But I thought it was time I stopped being so self-reliant, and allowed someone else to make me happy, allowed Khush to make me happy.

Because he did. Khush made me so very happy with every little thing he did, whether that was painting my nails, or feeding me snacks, or carrying me around just because I asked, or any of the million little things he did for me without asking.

Khush stirred under me, and I leaned up on my elbows to watch as his eyelids fluttered. He squinted up at me, and I grinned as I tapped his nose.

"Hey, there, sleepyhead," I said, and he yawned as he blinked his eyes open.

"Shit, how long was I out?"

"I have absolutely no idea. I woke up a few minutes ago, but we left our phones downstairs, so." I shrugged, and he hummed, wrapping his arms around me.

I shrieked in surprise when he suddenly twisted us around so I was on my back with him hovering over me, his elbows braced on either side of me. He'd removed his shirt before the nap, and I reached up to press my palm against the smooth skin of his chest, tracing the faintly iridescent impression of scales that covered it. It was all over his skin, but so faint that it was invisible unless you looked at him in a brightly lit room—or under a bright sky.

"You're so mesmerizing," I murmured, glancing from his chest to his luminous eyes, and he lowered his head to rest his forehead against mine.

"Right back at you, handsome," he murmured, his nose brushing mine, our lips inches apart.

"Such a sweet talker, aren't you?" I teased, and he huffed out a laugh, then smacked a kiss against my lips before moving upright.

"Come on. We have to beg Jacinta to let us have some of the lunch leftovers, or we'll be starving until dinner."

"Will they really make us beg?" I sat up too, holding the sheets up to my shoulders as I searched for my hoodie. I was sure I'd asked Khush to grab it…

"Here." Khush held out my hoodie, and I took it from him, quickly pulling it on as he picked up his tank top and then wrinkled his nose at it, making me chuckle. "And yes, they really will. Jacinta takes pride in their cooking, and they hate it when anyone disrespects it. Not showing up on time, in their eyes, counts as disrespect."

"I guess I can understand that," I said as I got to my feet. The hoodie was oversized enough that it covered my ass, but it still felt weird to be naked underneath. It was way too breezy for my tastes.

Khush led the way downstairs, and we both washed up—separately—before sliding into fresh clothes.

Scrappy was happily dozing in the sunlight in front of the window on her cat tree, so I gave her a few pets while rushing about.

I brushed my hair while Khush simply ran his fingers through his, and then we grabbed our phones and left the cabin, hurrying across the grounds to the door.

"Okay, so we're about two hours late. Maybe they haven't gone nuclear yet," Khush said in a voice that implied it wasn't very likely.

"If they have, I'm sure you'll take the fall to save me," I said with my sweetest smile, and Khush rolled his eyes at me, then sighed.

"I probably will."

Was it wrong that him saying that made me unbelievably happy? It was a dumb thing to get all excited over, but I didn't care. Stupid shit like this was worth way more than grand romantic gestures in my book.

When we reached the dining room, Jacinta wasn't there. What was there was a pile of dishes in the sink, and a note beside it.

Latecomers! Want food? Do the dishes first. And remember to show up on time next time, or you won't even get the leftovers. - The person who spends hours every day cooking for ungrateful jerks like you.

Well, I couldn't say we hadn't earned that. So we washed the dishes and earned our meal, then ate together in the empty dining room, chatting and laughing the whole time.

Sixteen

Khush

Dustin and I wereout on a shopping trip, but this time, I wasn't using the wheelchair.

No, this time Dustin had had the genius idea where I turned into my snake form and he wore me like a scarf.

People kept giving him strange looks, but did he care? Not at all. It was one of the many, many reasons why I adored the man.

The problem came when a coffee shop refused to allow Dustin inside because of me. I hadn't known Dustin could swear like that. He didn't curse at the employee—he knew the poor guy was probably underpaid and just following the owner's rules—but hestill muttered all kinds of swears under his breath as he walked down the sidewalk.

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