AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“If you do not want the people here to know I crave you with every breath of my being, you will need to keep these perfect fingers to yourself,” he murmured against my hair.
“Are you asking me to stop?”
“Never. I’m only making you aware of the consequences when you choose not to.”
I didn’t miss how he’d said “when” instead of “if.”
“I’ll keep my hands to myself,” I said.
He grunted and breathed in deeply. I itched to go back to playing with his chest.
“Maybe someone else should carry me today?”
He jerked against me.
“To prevent temptation,” I clarified. “And so it won’t be so weird when I have to leave you behind at the house to go out for supplies.”
He pulled back to study me, confusion on his face.
“The fey who stays with me needs to remain hidden at all times. That means you’re stuck in the house until we’re done. I’ll still need to go on supply runs, though.”
“I will ask Scath to carry you today.”
Scath was more than willing to take on carry-duty. It didn’t matter who vaulted over the wall with me or who carried me to and from the truck when we reached the neighborhood Ryan meant for us to clear out. Tor stayed close regardless. Always. And he still entertained me with his conversation and questions. Especially about the tote filled with tiny beheaded humans.
“Those are dolls,” I explained. “A child plays with them.”
“A child removed their heads,” Tor asked, looking slightly worried.
“Seems so. Maybe she was switching heads with bodies.”
I dug out a random head and put it on a body. Noru shivered.
“That is unnatural.”
“From a guy who’s removed more heads than this tote has dolls,” I said with a laugh. “Let’s take the tote with us. If there are kids in Tenacity, they might appreciate the playthings.”
They grudgingly listened.
The day went fast like any other, and I was a little more boisterous about the haul when we were back at the trucks, loading the last of it.
“Hard work pays off,” I said, trying to give one of the Tenacity folks a high-five. He reluctantly caved when I waved my waiting hand. “You should seriously consider applying for Tolerance citizenship. You get to keep what you find. All of it. Not some stupid percentage.”
He glanced at the fey, who’d moved farther away from me.
“Not sure I could deal with the change of scenery.”
I shrugged. “Close the curtains. You can’t see anything then.”
“They’re not making you live with one of them?” he asked.
“Pft. My assigned fey has a freezer full of meat. There was no making involved. I’d fight my way to the front of the steak-for-breakfast line. Who cares if I have to house share? Tenacity’s the same way, only without the steak and a lot more stealing. My name’s June, by the way.”
“Bram. And I meant with a fey, but I can see your point. I wouldn’t care who I had to live with to eat decently for a change. It’s a little unnerving to watch them remove heads and then sleep in the same house as one of them, though, isn’t it?”
“I’ve stabbed infected through the underside of their chins. Violently and bloody. Would you hesitate to room with me?”
He looked off thoughtfully for a moment. “I guess you have a point. Humans can be just as vicious. One of my past housemates was angry and an asshole to be around. But he didn’t rip anyone’s head off, you know? I think the idea that a fey could easily overpower me makes it harder to relax around them.”
“Try being a woman in a room full of human men. I’ve lived with that kind of worry my whole life.”
I walked away from him without another word.
