Page 24 of Hold my Reins

Rox moved on, not knowing the significance of the name.

Whitehorse is a fine surname. It is what I resemble when I shift.

You never told me what kelpies look like when shifted, and how they differ from horses.

You will have to wait until Saturday.

You’re so mean. I need to go to work. xx

twelve

“So what are we making?” Rox placed a bottle of white wine on the kitchen table. He’d asked Lynck what to bring and had gone to the bottle shop to grab it. The wine was one he remembered his mother drinking between cancer battles…one he’d helped her drink on more than one occasion, even though he’d been underage.

“Fish pasta. I discovered I love pasta. And back home, we ate mostly fish and vegetables and flatbreads, so this is similar to a fish dish from home.”

“You didn’t have pasta?”

“Not where I lived. Maybe in other areas, there was something similar. It’s a lot less effort to tip pasta into boiling water than to make flatbreads.”

“I will have to take your word for that because I have never made flatbread. But I can boil water and make pasta.” He might be able to throw together a fish sauce to go serve with the pasta if he had a recipe to follow, but Lynck did not have a recipe book out.

Unlike him, Lynck had dressed up for the date. He wore a pale gray shirt and darker gray pants. But the pants were not in a style that was human, and they were decorated along the outerseam and around the cuff with silver and green stitching as if they had been made to match his white and gray dappled hair and the green streaks through his tail and mane. A waistcoat in several shades of green completed the outfit, and the effect was arresting.

Meanwhile, he’d put on the now clean mesh shirt—because Lynck liked it—and a short-sleeved black shirt over the top, along with his usual black jeans. He’d added a cuff bracelet that had been his mother’s and a black leather one that he’d picked up at a craft fair. It had been her first outing after completing treatment the first time. One of those stupid fall festivals with pumpkins and cider and too many children. But she’d wanted to go, and he’d wanted to spend time with her away from the fucking hospital.

“I really need to level up my wardrobe.” Rox ran his fingers over the front of the waistcoat.

“I like what you’re wearing. You chose something that represents you, and I did the same. Aski makes traditional monster clothing…or as close as they can. I thought it appropriate for a more traditional date.”

“I feel like I should’ve worn a suit, not that I own one.”

“Why would you choose to wear something that doesn’t represent you on a date where you want the other person to get to know you?”

Rox ran his fingers through his hair, which he had left out. Where did he start? “Some people don’t like the way I dress. Too much black, too much nail polish, and my hair is too long. Most humans put on a front for the first few dates, so the person doesn’t walk away immediately.”

Lynck frowned. “Wouldn’t it be better if they did instead of lying about who they are and wasting time?”

“Yeah, you’d think so, but that’s not how it works. That’s why sometimes it’s better to hook-up first… You can’t hide muchwhen you’re both naked. And how someone treats a random stranger is very telling.”

Lynck landed in and kissed him. “So you like the way I treat you?”

Rox’s cheeks heated. “I wouldn’t have wanted more if I didn’t. You listened to me…like when I said I wanted to face you.”

Lynck stared at him. “Why wouldn’t I listen to someone I’m sharing a bed with, even if it is only for a night? Is it not more fun for everyone?”

“Yeah…but often that’s not how it goes.” And now he’d said it out loud, he realized how bad that sounded. “It wasn’t only that. You’re gorgeous, and I enjoy spending time with you. Despite getting sand everywhere.”

Lynck laughed and swished his tail, which was loose tonight. “You didn’t have to brush it out of your tail.”

“I’d be worried if I suddenly had a tail.”

Lynck gave his ass a squeeze and dropped another kiss on his lips. “I like your ass the way it is. Do you want to pour the wine while I start?”

Rox found the glasses and poured while Lynck got out the ingredients. He followed Lynck’s instructions, liking the way they either accidentally or deliberately bumped into each other. The touch that brushed across his hip, the kiss on his temple. The much slower kiss that left him hungry for more as they waited for the salmon and pasta to cook.

He noticed Lynck’s ears were more expressive than his face. The direction they faced and the angle gave clues Rox had been ignoring because he wasn’t used to looking for them. Then there was his tail. It wasn’t decorative, but it also revealed how Lynck was feeling.

He needed to learn a whole other language to learn how to read Lynck. No, that wasn’t quite right. He needed to learn newwords. He wanted to learn, and he didn’t want to be the reason Lynck decided humans weren’t worth the hassle.

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