I rubbed my stomach where it started to ache in embarrassment. “I want to surprise him.”
She laughed then and grinned at me. “Oh God, you two really are adorable.”
“We’re not together.” But fuck, I wish we were. I didn’t say that. “He said he isn’t gay.”
She snorted. “Sam doesn’t know what he is. He’s had one girlfriend and it barely lasted a couple of months.” She paused and turned her body toward me, giving me her full attention. “Let me tell you something about my cousin. He’s not a psychopath. Heknowswhat’s right and what’s wrong, but he doesn’t feel the way normal people do. I don’t think either of us do. He can’t express remorse for the people he kills and he doesn’t want to, and he’s a geek if you ask me. He’s hella smart and he prefers science to humans because it’s easier to predict. So, he’s got his smart little job in his smart little facility and that’s made him happy for a long time.”
I sucked in a breath and released it again, the conversation digging deeply into my abdomen, somewhere between my ribs.
She gave me a sharp look. “Then you came along. He protected you when he didn’t need to. He kept you around and told you secrets he’s never shared with anyone else. He doesn’t trust because he doesn’t understand other humans. Butyou, you he trusts. So, Ezra, maybe he’s not gay. Maybe he’s not bi or straight. What I do think he has, though, is attraction to you.” She stepped forward. “If you hurt him, you won’t have to worry about being added to the cheese because the pigs will eat you. Only after I torture the hell out of you. Am I clear?”
I swallowed, then raised my chin. “Yeah, definitely.”
A wide grin spread across her face. “Great. Welcome to the family.” She patted me on the shoulder with a soapy hand. “Lucy has Mondays and Tuesdays off. She can come around and teach you ASL while Sam’s at work.”
I smiled back at her. “Great.”
8
SAM
The mall was full of Christmas shoppers and screaming kids. I hated it here this time of year, but Ezra needed his own clothes and belongings. While he’d protested me buying him anything, I wasn’t going to let him win this fight. I wanted him to have his own wardrobe instead of wearing borrowed clothes, even though I loved seeing him in mine. He deserved that and so much more, even if I liked seeing him in my stuff.
Since it was right before Thanksgiving, everything was chaos. The sounds were like nails on a chalkboard. I winced every time I heard a kid yell or throw a tantrum. It was worse when school was out and I’d never been a fan of little humans. The heavy scent of fake pine wafted through the corridors decorated with gold tinsel garland and red bows, making everything just a tiny bit worse.
Ezra’s hand tightened in mine and he gave me a soft smile. The simple gesture made everything seem a hundred times better. I returned one of my own as we passed a mother trying to wrangle her three children.
“We won’t be here long, right?” It sounded more like Ezra was trying to reassure me.
I nodded as we headed past a chocolate store, and I didn’t miss the way his stare lingered on the candy for a little too long. A wistful expression swept over his face. I took note of his reaction.
We passed Double Shot, a coffee shop that I would’ve gone into if it wasn’t packed with people, and found one of the clothing stores I liked to frequent a little farther down from the mall courtyard. I dragged Ezra through to the men’s section. There was an assortment of shirts and pants, but most were well made and worth the pretty penny they asked for them. I didn’t want to buy Ezra anything cheap and I had the money to spend.
Ezra stared at the shirt rack we stood in front of. When he finally let go of my hand, he stepped forward carefully, like the clothes would bite if he got too close. He glanced at me, and I ran my finger along the shirts, stopping to shake one that I thought would look good on him.
“Budget?” he asked, but I shook my head and made a motion over my throat to show there was none, which caused him to frown. “I’m not going to use all your money, Sam.”
I shrugged and grinned, grabbing the polo shirt I’d noticed off the rack and showing it to him.
His frown deepened, but he sighed and stared at the shirt with a shake of his head. “No. Absolutely not. Pink isnotmy color.”
“Salmon,” I murmured, the scratching sensation and echo of pain making me flinch.
“Salmon. Pink. It’s the same thing.” He laughed and grabbed the shirt from me, slipping the hanger back onto the metal rack. “Absolutely not.”
He began to peruse the shirts, and I let him, watching him take interest in a shirt before moving on to the next, and Irealized after a moment what he was doing. I picked out the first one he seemed to like and checked the tag. A hundred dollars. It was nice, though. A cobalt blue button up that would match his skin tone well.
“No, it’s too expensive.” He reached for the hanger, but I moved it out of the way so he couldn’t grab it.
I pointed at him seriously, then shook my finger at him.
He huffed. “Sam.”
I made a face, and his lips twitched in amusement. I waved at the rack again, my message clear.Grab the ones you want regardless of price.
He sighed. “You’re something else.”
I grinned and caressed his cheek with my thumb. We both froze, and then he leaned into my touch. I didn’t stop because his skin was smooth and soft despite his years out in the elements.
