“What?” She smiled at him.
“The books aren’t what they seem to be. They all look like boring Second World War books, but the one I started reading last night…” He widened his eyes and shook his head. He didn’t say it was a gay romance book, but it was. He didn’t know any wolves. There might be a reason this Farris guy had book jackets on all his books to conceal what they were. The pack might not be okay with queers. Though Jyran, his cousin, was mated to a guy, and last he’d heard they were accepted in the pack.
“Is it porn?”
“Pretty much.”
She giggled. “Well, it looks classier to have shelf upon shelf of non-fiction books than it would if he had shelves full of porn.”
Did wolves care about looking classy? He’d always assumed they were tattooed, beer-drinking guys who fixed cars in their spare time. Oil smudges and dirty jokes. “He has shelf after shelf with porn, concealing them doesn’t make them go away.”
She snorted a laugh. “He might have a problem. I’m glad it’s porn in book form and not movies. I hate movies, so unreal and off-putting. The way they treat women in those films.” She shook her head.
Dahy shrugged. He had hardly ever watched porn. When you were running across the country in two-sizes-too-big Crocs, there was no room to ask yourself if you were in the mood. And if he ever searched for something, it wouldn’t be the kind of porn starring women. “I don’t think people have movie tapes or DVDs anymore. Everything is online these days.”
She scrunched her face. “I’m sure you’re right. Still, porn in book form means they’re fantasies and not drugged-up people having to perform in front of a camera, so I’m in favor. Though I believed most books were in e-format these days, too.” She stepped closer and squeezed his arm. “I have to run. I’ll be back later. I’ll call from outside, so you know it’s me and don’t have to spray the perfume.”
“Great. Thanks.”
She grinned. “Relax and read some porn.”
He nodded. He would, and then he might have another bath because it had been fucking amazing.
“Anything specific you want me to pick up from the grocery store?”
“Nuts.” The reply was out of his mouth before he could ask himself if it was okay to ask for specifics or if it was only politeness making her ask.
“Nuts? Do bears eat nuts?”
For a second, he stared at her as if she’d lost her mind, then he remembered she believed he was a bear. “They do, and I haven’t had any in ages.” Not true. He’d been robbing bird feeders for days.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Any particular kind?”
“I love all nuts.” He did. Big nuts, small nuts, salty nuts, chili nuts, roasted nuts.
She shook her head, but there was amusement shining in her eyes. “See you later, Dahy.”
* * * *
Konrad was having a day. It wasn’t a good one, but he’d had worse, so he left it at a day. The group of human tourists stared at him uncomprehendingly when he gestured at the trail that would take them up to the mountaintop. It wasn’t a big mountain, but there weren’t many mountains nearby, so it attracted some people.
Konrad seldom guided. He owned an outdoor tourist company with Oswald and Sewell. They did mountain tours, wildlife safaris, some rafting, and other guided tours in the wilderness with fly fishing in the summer and dog sledding in the winter.
It was not Konrad’s cup of tea. The mountain was beautiful, as were the rivers and lakes, but he preferred to visit those places without the company of humans. Sewell, who normally did the mountain tours, had an appointment somewhere, so someone had to cover. Konrad preferred admin work. People could find him at the office most days, should they need to, but here he was, guiding a mountain tour.
He sighed.
It was a security risk to have him here. He wasn’t the expert, and scaling a mountain might not be too bad, but should he have to go rafting, there was risk he’d put their customers in danger. Whenever Konrad arrived, the others took a step back and expected him to lead. He was their alpha, and it was natural for them to do so, but he didn’t know shit about dog sledding, for example.
It was safest when he stayed in the office. Everyone could do what they excelled at, and he’d answer the phone and take bookings and so on.
“We’ll be back down again before it gets dark, right?” A woman in her mid-forties with auburn hair and huge eyes sent him a nervous look.
“Yes. It’ll only take a few hours to reach the top from here.” Oswald had gone up ahead of them, and he had some provisions, a satellite phone should something go wrong, and would walk down to meet them should they take too long. Konrad wasn’t anticipating any problems. The humans were all in relatively good shape, all able-bodied, and the weather was okay. He believed the woman speaking to him to be the oldest in the group. It didn’t mean accidents couldn’t happen, of course, but he didn’t foresee any problems.
“Good.” She nodded. “I’ve never been on a mountain.” She looked toward the top.
Oh okay, maybe he misjudged. Still, it shouldn’t take more than four hours, max, to reach the top.
