Chapter 60

They both froze. And then relaxed, chuckled awkwardly, and Makai went to shower.

The casual way Makai had touched him was nice. Easy. Safe.Despite the conditioned way they both had tensed, nothing in Emil’s body or psyche had actually gotten alarmed. It had felt… natural.

He was taking the seeds out of some tomatoes—because who wants those in their salad—when tiny pinpricks started to travel up his leg.

“Oh, ouch, Mouse! Your kid is misbehaving!” he called out and carefully extracted the gray kitten from his pants leg. “No, little girl. You’re going to make someone chop their finger off one day,” he told her and carefully went to place her on the couch where her siblings were wrestling.

Then he finished making the salad and went to sit with the kittens. The shower turned off in the bathroom, and soon Makai walked in, looking much less sweaty and painty.

“Do you mind checking my hair now?” Emil asked, and Makai turned around to go get a comb from the bathroom.