Page 14 of Wishing Upon a Monster
I snorted inelegantly into his chest before deciding maybe I could spend the morning helping Olan through pop culture instead of worrying about the ECCM.
That was probably his aim, so I lay across his chest answering questions about zombies, which were not real, ghosts, which were, and other beings he had not encountered the last time he walked the earth.
I woke disoriented.Not because I had managed to fall asleep on my living room couch, I had done that plenty of times, no, this was because I realized that the cool, comfortable thing I was sleeping on was not my overstuffed couch, but my husband.
His raven skin caught the afternoon light, causing his derma to almost shimmer, making me think of the vow he had made at headquarters when his body twinkled like stars. I shifted in his lap, boosting myself up, not really thinkingpast my curiosity as I raised up on my knees to survey his face.
He didn’t have any ears I could see, but he obviously heard the spoken word, though I knew he preferred to speak mind to mind. He had no hair. I wasn’t looking to check out his chest to see if he had any hair there, I could feel with my hands he did not, but he also had none on his neck or chin, not even tiny baby hairs on his face. His skin looked like ours––it wasn’t scaly. He had similar lines and ridges on his derma like I did.
Originally, I didn’t think he had lips, but he did. The skin there wasn’t particularly thick, like human lips, but they were a deep purple, so purple it was almost as dark as his shadow-colored skin. His nose was a raised ridge along his face, his nostrils not particularly large but not slitted either. I was expecting him to resemble more of a snake close up, but he didn’t. He was wholly alien to me, a mishmash of features that were humanoid and yet not. It was odd not to see his ruby red eyes staring back at me. I had noticed how he watched me when I spoke. Not a lot of men do that nowadays, and I liked it. I remembered feeling his eyes on me when I cooked dinner last night, which made me wonder, could I get him to help me cook tonight?
I continued my inspection, noting he had no eyelashes or eyebrows, but the way his face was shaped, I could see where they would go. I liked the strength of his jaw. I suppose, given how powerful his teeth looked, he would need an equally strong jaw. His neck was slender yet muscular, and his overall build was like a swimmer—strong and slender, with broad shoulders.
I sat back in his lap, still straddling him, my mind wandering south, and I felt heat rise to my cheeks.I already know he is packing...
“What do I need to pack,min lille skat? I thought tomorrow’s trip would be but a few hours long?” He asked me, his voice rugged with sleep.
I have never pictured an image, much less a crown, in my mind so fast in my life. I snapped that sucka into place faster than a Pegasus can loop de loop midair.
Olan gave me an inquisitive look that surely, he’d learned from humans, the musculature over his eye raising like a person with eyebrows would do.
“Uh, no,” I said, my voice higher than normal, “you’re right, we shouldn’t pack for tomorrow. I was wondering if you wanted to help me make lunch? I am super hungry!”
I scrambled off Olan’s lap like my ass was on fire and dashed into the kitchen, only to stop short. There, drinking daintily from her cat fountain, was my Thai cat, Sashimi. She had not come out at all last night, and I was afraid when I found her under my bed that she wasn’t going to come downstairs anytime soon.
“I have met yourkat. She is a fine beast. She greatly enjoys hunting theDisianmice that have been giving you trouble.” He walked around me then, crouching down to let Sashimi sniff his hand.
To my amazement, she looked up and sniffed his hand before rubbing her face along his fingers.
“She likes you,” I blinked in amazement.
“Katshave an affinity for the things in the dark,” he said, making a graceful gesture with his hand. I watched as a shadow pulled itself away from the water dish and became an opaque mouse. It scurried in front of Sashimi, taunting her. With a swish of her tail, she dashed after the shadow mouse.
“Next, you will tell me you can cook,” I said, walking towards my refrigerator.
His rusty chuckle filled the kitchen, “I can, butover an open flame. But I am a fast learner. Teach me to make something you like.”
“Okay, but then you have to teach me something you like to eat,” I said back, pulling out some of the ingredients to make a Cesar salad.
“I can. Do we have any streams nearby? I can fish,” He replied, easily joining me at the counter.
“We do, sector D13 has a decent-sized river close by,” I replied, filling a bowl with water and a healthy amount of salt. “Would you get me the lemons from my fruit bowl?”
I turned around, a partially full bowl in hand, to see Olan holding the bright yellow fruits.
“Excellent, I need to cut them in half.” I put the bowl of water down.
Before I could get out my cutting board and chef’s knife, Olan waved a hand, and I watched as four lemons simultaneously cut in half via his shadows.
“Well, okay then. I can’t wait to have you cut the chicken,” I said, grimacing. “I hate how it feels when it’s raw.”
“Whatever you wish,min skat,” he said, handing me the lemons.
7
Aurora
“Do you have an aversion to me placing a well for my use on your property?” Olan asked me the next afternoon.
