Page 37 of Starlight

“No…you said that. I am evolved for flight and night hunting. You are meant to run around and hunt in daylight.”

They were not the same at all.

“But some hunting is done best at night?” Akai tilted his head.

Was Akai hitting on him? Was that a monster pick-up line?

And if he was wrong? “I guess that depends on what you’re hunting?”

He shoveled a forkful of potato salad into his mouth, not sure if Akai wanting him was better or worse.

Better because it had a chance of happening…

…worse because it had a chance of happening.

Could he go through with it? When else would he ever have the chance? He fidgeted, uncomfortable on the stool with his dick jammed up against his fly. He should have showered before dinner and sat there in his pajama pants…but then there would have been no hiding the truth.

He slid his gaze sideways to Akai’s lap, but the folds of his pants hid everything. This was ridiculous. He was acting like an awkward teenager.

“Do you want to do a puzzle or play a game after dinner?”

“I have done all your puzzles, but a game would be nice as I’ve played too much solitaire this week.” He gave Cole a lingering look, which made him think Akai wasn’t talking about cards.

That, or he was overthinking everything because he’d played solitaire thinking about the oversized moth in his cabin.

“I’d like to shower and get out of my work clothes and make up the sofa bed first.” He was only going to manage a couple of games before he crashed. Would Akai tell him not to bother and that they could sleep in the same bed?

“I’ll wash the plates and can make up the sofa.”

“Are you sure?” He tried not to sound too disappointed.

“The only reason I didn’t do it before was because I needed somewhere to lay out the puzzle.”

Which was exactly where he did the puzzles. It was nice watching the rain over the valley while he was cozy in the cabin. “Okay.”

Akai gathered up the plates and started filling the sink, which meant he needed to get a move on. He dropped the empty beer bottles in the box the shopping had been in, ready to take back home along with the rest of the rubbish, then grabbed his bag and slipped past into the bathroom.

As he undressed, he was very aware of Akai moving in the kitchen, and only the thin wooden wall between them. He kept the water a touch too cold for the shower to be relaxing, hoping that it would cool his blood. His dick did not get the memo.

For half a second, he considered rubbing one out. His fingers wrapped around his shaft, but Akai was humming and clattering around, and what if the door flew open and he was caught?

He gave his dick a squeeze and poked the sore spot on his cheek with his tongue. Maybe after Akai had gone to bed…

He tipped his face under the water, not sure what was wrong with him, only that he wasn’t thinking with his brain. Questioning everything he thought about himself was not the upheaval he expected Akai to bring. Yet there he was, wondering if it was because Akai was a monster or because he was being nice to him.

Possibly both.

One meant it had to be a secret, so he didn’t need to come out. The other was because it was kind of the first time anyone had actually looked at him and asked him what he wanted. Which didn’t make answering the question any easier. He was twenty-three. He should have an idea about what he wanted his life to look like. And all he had was what he didn’t want.

Except for Akai. He wanted him.

He turned off the water because there was a limited supply, not because he was ready to get out and face the monster in his cabin. He needed to stop thinking of him as a monster. He was a mothman…a harpy.

And Cole had no idea what was in Akai’s pants. Did it matter when he was so keen to find out? They’d figure something out that felt good—that was, of course, assuming Akai was interested.

He rested his hands on the edge of the sink and stared at his foggy reflection, not sure he even knew who he was anymore. Perhaps he hadn’t known himself for the last seven years, and it was time to find out.

If he didn’t ask, he was going to be awkward all night, and if he did, and Akai wasn’t interested, it was also going to be awkward. So he had nothing to lose, right?