“Pyx, I think everyone is a little ugly standing next to you.”
With a roll of his eyes, Pyxlevir smacked his ball. “You’re nuts.”
“Says the top model for Elven D’Vaire.”
“My dad runs the company,” Pyxlevir argued.
“No offense to Kalthekor, but he takes business seriously. If you looked like some gnarled troll under a bridge, he wouldn’t put you on advertisements for his highly successful company.”
“I take a decent photo. I’ll give you that much.”
“Should I be happy that you’re humble despite your beauty or sad that you honestly can’t see yourself as the most beautiful elf to ever draw breath?”
Pyxlevir stared up at Gramlithyn. “Do you really think that?”
“Of course I do,” Gramlithyn replied, nodding his head to emphasize his point.
“That’s so weird. I’ve always thought of you as being the gorgeous one in our friend group. I’m just another Valzadari elf with blue skin and blue eyes. As a hybrid, you stand out. No other Verdanyth has black hair or brown eyes, and there isn’t another zebra with your lovely green skin.”
Gramlithyn leaned close and kissed Pyxlevir’s nose. Then brushed his lips across Pyxlevir’s forehead. “Maybe it’s okay that we both have different opinions about who the beauty is in our relationship.”
Although Pyxlevir wanted to toss his club aside and wrap himself around his mate, they were in public and there were other people on the golf course, so he grinned. “At least we can both agree that I’m the brains.”
“See, you think I’m going to argue, but you’re right. It’s you. The elf with the master’s degree, a solid track record, and the foundation of a long, successful career. I’m the dumbass that threw everything away because he was a scared little boy who still can’t talk to his parents like an adult.”
“Gramlithyn?”
“Yeah, Pyx?”
“Knock it off. If you don’t have anything nice to say, shut up and find something positive to focus on. That goes double if you’re thinking something negative about yourself.”
“Okay. You’re right.”
“Say something constructive.”
“Hmm, well, I’d say that what my life has most right now are two things. One is the lovely but evil elf glaring at me, and the other is potential. My future is whatever I want to make it.”
“Excellent work, my friend. Now, take your turn and try to be less good at this shit because I’m falling farther behind on each hole.”
“How have your already poor golfing skills atrophied in the past six years?”
“Probably because I’ve spent most of my time either studying or working,” Pyxlevir replied. “I literally finished school last semester.”
“You never mentioned getting a master’s degree when we were younger.”
“Maybe if things were different, I wouldn’t have pursued it, but honestly, I enjoy school and I learned a lot. It’s also imperative that my coworkers and bosses believe I’ve earned my job title.”
“Your dad wouldn’t let you be promoted if he didn’t think it was earned or warranted.”
“I know, my dad is a good businessman, but I want it to be obvious to anyone who works with me that I understand my job and do it well.”
“How’d you wind up with a centaur as your assistant?” Gramlithyn asked as they made their way to yet another hole. This one was tricky, and Pyxlevir wasn’t sure how to get his ball into the dragon’s mouth, but it couldn’t be impossible.
“Ask my uncles,” Pyxlevir said. “They sent over an overqualified centaur for an admin job, and they think I’m dumb enough that I don’t know he’s there to keep an eye on me. Like I haven’t been surrounded by overprotective centaurs since my parents met.”
“You didn’t have to hire him.”
“At first I did it so I could fire him because I assumed he sucked or would refuse to take orders from me, and I wanted to shove it down the throats of my uncles,” Pyxlevir confided. “But he’s fabulous. He worked for Uncle Timotheus before me, so now the joke’s on them because he’s far too good to be in his current position, and I can’t wait to ensure he gets promoted often at Elven D’Vaire. As far as I’m concerned, they’re never getting him back.”
