Page 22 of Rifted Hearts
Kaveh visibly flinched. “Absolutely not. I wouldn’t want to break up a happy couple or, even worse, a family. But I can’t leave the person the Matchmaker has chosen for me alone. The sentience involved has creative and sometimes unpleasant ways of bringing people together. Besides, Rhys is worried the individual might be in danger. The drakones have many enemies who might go after a human linked to our clan. There was a worrisome incident involving the ratkind in Salem, Massachusetts last summer.”
“I think I heard something about that.” Remi had, in fact, been the ratkind behind the incident in question. He meant to steal an amulet of immense power and value from a marine biologist married to an aquatic drakone. Ceto, the biologist’s wife, did an excellent job of living up to the sea monster stereotype and almost eating Remi. It had been a disaster, and Remi was lucky Ceto’s husband Jal had distracted his wife with a promise of some hot married sex.
The less he and Kaveh talked about the ratkind and the clusterfuck in the Salem monstertown, the better.
He decided a quick change in conversational topic was in order. “Enough about what you have to do. Tell me what youwantin a partner.”
“I’m hoping the person will know at least a little about Riftworld society and be open to accepting the clan’s protection.” Kaveh sure was focused on keeping this guy—for some reason, Remi hoped they were looking for a man—safe. But Kaveh continued to avoid giving Remi any clues as to what type of person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. “Most people would have run screaming when Rhys walked into my office. If this person has had exposure to Riftworld culture, like you, this would be easier.”
Not fleeing in terror was a pretty low bar for a future spouse. After all, the drakones were rich and powerful, and money and influence made anyone more attractive. Trying to gently lead Kaveh into sharing wasn’t working. Remi decided to take charge of the questioning. “You’re still not talking about you. If I’m going to help, I need information. Let’s start with sexual orientation, shall we?”
“I’m homoromantic and asexual.” Kaveh cocked his head toward Remi. “And you?”
“Pan and so, so allosexual.” Remi grinned at Kaveh and was rewarded with a curve of the man’s lips. “Okay, let’s move on to my favorite topic—sex. Are you sex-favorable or sex-averse?”
“Indifferent, I guess.” Kaveh let out a breath, as if relieved Remi knew something about asexuality. “I enjoyed making love with Rhys, even though he usually initiated sex. But after we broke up, I haven’t missed being intimate with someone.”
“What type of men do you think are attractive, even in an aesthetic sense?” Remi asked.
Kaveh mulled that over for a moment. “Well, you’re very good looking.”
“Absolutely correct.” Remi tried to ignore the butterflies in his stomach after that statement. “And yet I’ve been throwing myself at you for days without any luck.”
“I wasn’t sure why you would be interested in me.” Kaveh frowned. “Granted, I’m not good at picking up those kinds of signals.”
“You must look into a mirror at some point,” Remi shot back. “It would be hard for me not to be interested.”
“You’re a lot easier to talk to when you’re too frustrated to lie.” Kaveh tilted his head to look up at the sky.
The brilliant sunshine was gone, dimmed by darkclouds. It rarely rained this time of year, the ranch’s website had said, but it seemed they might get a little wet. Remi allowed himself a brief fantasy in which Kaveh was so drenched he had to take his shirt off.
“This was the first time I’ve ever asked someone out on a date, and I was dreading it.” Kaveh truly was terrible at flirting, but he seemed to be saying that his day with Remi hadn’t been all bad. Progress. “I have no idea how to find the person the Matchmaker has picked for me, much less how to court them.”
That should have sounded old-fashioned and stilted, but instead Remi felt another stab of envy toward the eventual object of Kaveh’s affections. “Well, I’m great at dating.” Not so good at relationships lasting longer than the con he was pulling, but he kept that to himself. “You can practice with me while I help you find the person the Matchmaker has decided you’re fated to marry.”
Kaveh didn’t answer right away, his eyes on the horizon. Remi tensed. He had pushed too much. The vet had asked him for help finding the right person, and this pretend dating suggestion had taken things too far.
“It’s only a rainstorm.” Kaveh turned back to Remi with a relieved expression as fat raindrops splashed onto the dry earth around them. “Rift storms have been coming with increasing frequency the last few months, and that can indicate a superstorm is brewing.”
“No rampaging horde of monsters is on its way. That’s good.” Remi enjoyed seeing Kaveh when he was happy and liked the fact the vet was smiling at him even more. He decided to make an even bigger bet. “How about we go into town tonight for a practice date?”
11
Kaveh walked into the restaurant Remi had picked out for their first fake date, already feeling uncomfortable. It wasn’t that the place was overly formal—in fact, it exuded a studied casualness. The clientele was young and well-to-do, the decor avant-garde, and the menu prices ridiculously expensive.
He could have guessed that last part without the online search he had performed while waiting for Remi to get ready. There had been plenty of time to learn about Tucson’s upscale dining options. Kaveh had cleaned himself up and put on a Western blazer over a button-down shirt with a bolo tie before walking over to Remi’s cabin, only to find that his date for the evening hadn’t even made it into the shower. Fortunately, Lyall, the Scottish terrier, kept Kaveh company. Remi’s dog was a little wary of Kaveh when he first arrived, sniffing him with the air of a concerned parent meeting their child’s prom date for the first time. A few doggy treats won him over though.
Remi finally emerged, wearing a version of Westernformal wear that looked like it cost more than Kaveh’s secondhand pickup truck.
“Expense account,” he had explained breezily when Kaveh asked if he had bought the clothing on this trip.
The two of them now were being ushered to a table toward the back, and Remi took the seat that faced the door, leaving Kaveh a view of the open-air kitchen and its busy chefs.
“I like to check out everyone when they come in,” Remi said before Kaveh even thought to ask about the seating choice.
He was as charming and affable to the staff as he was to everyone, but underneath his polished exterior Kaveh sensed uneasiness. Perhaps it had sunk in that he was dining out with a drakone, but Kaveh got the impression the streamer was also a little on edge about his surroundings. He couldn’t imagine why. Remi fit in perfectly with the hip and urbane customers the restaurant catered to.
“It’s too bad they don’t allow dogs, or I would have brought Lyall.” Remi beamed at the server who greeted them and ordered a frightfully expensive bottle of wine before Kaveh could protest. “He was quite annoyed I was going out without him.”
