Page 8 of Castor
Kyo
“Is that… a penis dinosaur?” I asked after walking into the storage room where Simon was sorting new inventory.
“It’s atrocious, isn’t it?” Simon pushed his glasses farther up his nose, his cheeks darkening with a blush. He got flustered easily.
“Eh. I wouldn’t say it’satrocious.” I picked it up, running my finger over the smooth texture of the glass. The head of the creature was the tip of a green cock, the shaft was the neck, and the body was squatty with two ball-shaped legs and a short tail. “But I’m curious why you bought it.”
“I didn’t know what it was! The description just said antique glass figurine.” Simon groaned and turned away from me. “I can’t even look at it.”
I laughed. Hard.
“What’s so funny?” Gray walked in, rubbing at his eyes, his blond hair wild with curls. Like the other Nephilim he lived with, he was cursed with one of the seven deadly sins. His sleepy, lazy nature made him the perfect embodiment of Sloth. However, unlike the others, he had a baby face that made him look eighteen. He came with Simon to work sometimes but spent a majority of the day napping in the loft above the store.
“Look what Simon bought.” I held up the figurine. “A penis dinosaur.”
Gray’s brown eyes widened, and he rushed over, reaching for it. “It’s cute!” He clutched it to his chest and turned to Simon. “How much? I want him.”
“Take it,” Simon said, waving his hand around. “Please. It’s yours.”
I laughed again.
Simon was a quirky guy whose entire wardrobe consisted of cardigan sweaters, vests, and a few bow ties. He had an average build and was a little shorter than me. He complained a lot and got embarrassed easily, but he was also really funny. His quirkiness added to that.
I’d been working at his antique shop for going on three years. Within that time, we’d become good friends. Friendship came easy for me. I was a total people person. An extrovert. But Simon was the firsttruefriend I’d had in a long time. Because he knew the real me. I didn’t have to hide from him anymore.
“Is your killer husband lurking around here somewhere?” I asked, searching the room. Unopened crates took up one corner, and shelves along the wall held items we had no space for in the front of the store.
“He went to get us coffee.” Simon smiled. He always lit up at the mention of Galen.
“And food,” Gray added. “Because you didn’t eat breakfast.” He looked at me. “I heard them banging this morning. It made Simon run late. He barely managed a shower.”
“Well, now I’m mortified,” Simon said. “Thanks for that, Gray.”
“You’re welcome.” Gray admired the glass penis and hummed to himself. A scar went across his neck from where his throat was slit two months ago.
It happened the night Castor and Simon had been taken to the underworld. A demon had sliced Gray’s throat wide open. The Nephilim had crazy awesome healing powers. They could be stabbed, and the wound would look like a scratch by the end of the night. The exception to that was when a celestial blade was used. The magic in the forged blade combated their healing abilities and hurt them as if they were mortals.
If not for Clara, a witch we’d befriended who excelled in healing magic, Gray would’ve died.
The bell above the front door dinged, signaling that a customer had come in. I left the storage room and returned to the main part of the store.
“Oh. It’s just you,” I said, seeing Galen.
The man was a beast, standing at six foot eight and stacked with rippling muscles. His dark brown hair was longer on top and buzzed on the sides, and his light gray eyes were unsettling. He intimidated me a bit. Probably because I had seen him go all Incredible Hulk on some demons and rip them apart with his bare hands.
“Don’t sound so disappointed,” Galen grumbled. He handed me a cup from the drink carrier. “Especially since I brought you coffee too. Asshole.”
“Thanks,” I said and took a sip, nodding in approval as the strong brew hit my taste buds. “Simon found a glass penis dinosaur in one of the new crates. You should ask him about it.”
The edge of Galen’s lips hitched upward. “Oh yeah?”
He walked past me and went down the hall, turning into the storage room. I drank more coffee and booted up the computer at the register.
“Oh my god. Don’t mention it ever again,” Simon said moments later. “I’m going to kill Kyo.”
I choked on my coffee as I laughed again. I was such an ass.
“Is he in there laughing at me?” Simon’s voice trailed from the other room. “That’s it. I’m murdering him. But first I’m getting rid of that thing. Gray? Give it here.”
