Page 174 of A Soul to Steal

Gideon had the impression he was unsettled when his orbs seeped into blue. “What’s wrong?”

“I miss my kindred,” Aleron answered in a low voice, almost whispering it. “I thought we would be with him by now.”

Damnit,Gideon thought with a curse, looking away as he rubbed at the back of his neck.We probably would have been if it weren’t for me.

But he couldn’t go back in time.

“We’ll find them soon,” Gideon promised, before pulling his guitar from its case.

Now that he was unsettled as well, he’d rather distract himself. Hopefully it’d pull Aleron away from staring at the fire.

Letting his fingers rather than his mind do all the work, he just played whatever came to him. After a little while, the Duskwalker moved in his peripheral, inching closer and closer until he’d crossed half the short distance.

His pulse raced a little, overjoyed that Aleron was finally bridging their physical distance on his own. It didn’t matter that he stopped before he made it the entire way.

Aleron picked at the grass with his skull turned downwards to watch, fidgeting nervously. Like before, his wings twitched.

“Can I sit with you?” he muttered quietly.

Gideon snuffed the grin trying to fill his face, acting casual in the hopes of not making him feel awkward. However, Gideon knew his eyes would have glinted with warmth as he stopped playing and turned his gaze up to Aleron.

“Yeah, of course.”

Quickly closing the distance, Aleron eventually went behind him. Before Gideon could ask where he was going, a surprise gasp shot from him when he was pulled into Aleron’s lap. His backside slipped into the nook between Aleron’s crossed legs, and he hugged his guitar so he didn’t drop or damage it in the process.

A chuckle fell past his lips. This wasn’t what he thought the Duskwalker intended, but he didn’t mind.This is more than he’s ever done before.He’d really been hoping that instigating intimacy would help connect them, and it looked as though he’d been right.

He’s not very talkative, so maybe doing feels more natural for him?

Gideon leaned back against his furry chest, and tension bled out of Aleron. The Duskwalker eased into the seated cuddle and said, “Keep playing. I did not mean to interrupt.”

Gideon was supposed to be making himself tired, but suddenly he was more awake than ever.I can’t remember if I’ve ever sat in someone’s lap like this.

He was almost six feet tall and built like how a novice wood cutter should be. More athletically muscled rather than overtly bulky, though, since he’d only been in his career for a few years. He’d never had someone be nearly two feet taller than him, or twice as big in leg and chest width, so he’d been uncomfortable with a position such as this.

He was heavy and hadn’t wanted to crush the person.

It’s kind of nice. I can feel his warmth, his heart, his very breaths.And Aleron was strong enough to hold him, and mayactually be the only person he would have ever allowed this with.It makes me feel small, but not... weak.

Maybe cherished?

With the end of his snout barely an inch from the side of Gideon’s head, Aleron released warm breaths over him as he stared down. Being peered at with an unwavering gaze, as if Gideon’s face held the most interest in comparison to the forest, flames, or even the clear sky, had his heart flipping in his chest.

Aleron’s voice was soft and whispered as he asked, “Can I touch you?”

Gideon winced when he played an incorrect note, his hands trembling with an odd emotion.Shit. Why am I so nervous?

“Yeah.” He nodded, unsure of what he was actually agreeing to.

His ears grew so hot he worried his earrings would melt from his lobes. Even more so when Aleron tapped the back of a claw against one, causing it to flick forward each time he did.

“I like these. They are pretty on you.”

Gideon laughed at that. “Thanks. Getting my ears pierced started off as a dare from my friends, but I ended up liking them once I saw myself in the mirror.”

That claw then sifted through the sensitive hairs on the back of his neck before drawing down the corded muscle. The long hairs on his arm lifted when his skin prickled in reaction. Aleron looked over Gideon’s shoulder as his large hand drew down his arm, wanting to explore it.

Aleron grabbed Gideon’s hand and took it from his guitar, lifting it when Gideon moved his instrument away with his other, since it became impossible for him to actually play it with only one. It appeared Aleron no longer cared about interrupting him – and Gideon was just thankful he could stop pretending to care to play it.

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