He frowned, and my soul leaped. Did he want to? Did I want to? Humans had never inspired much arousal in me. Of course, both of the humans I’d met were mates of my younger brothers. Bartholomew wasn’t. He was free. Very free and very cute and sweet and a little grumpy. Maybe I wouldn’t mind being fuck-friends with him.
Vince.
The name stabbed me in the gut. He might have someone; someone he was committed to. Humans didn’t mate once like drakcol did, but some did form lifelong relationships.
“Is this okay?” I asked, squeezing his ankle with my tail.
“It’s fine.”
I took his hand, pulling it to my chest, and my soul raced from the contact. “This?”
“Yes.”
My mouth went dry. “What else is fine?”
“Well, we have to snuggle for warmth.”
“True.” We could do other things for warmth, and I was beginning to believe I would like such things. My cock twitched at the thought and desire raced through my veins. Yes, Bartholomew and I being fuck-friends would be very nice indeed.
“I don’t really care. Vince likes to hold me too. He doesn’t like being alone.”
That human again. A growl started deep in my chest. I didn’t like Bartholomew speaking of another person in that soft tone while I was the one in front of him.
I tightened my hold on him. “How can I touch you and when?”
“Detailed, aren’t you?” he asked, but continued before I could speak. “Hugging, snuggling, touching me with your tail, or holding hands is fine. Honestly, I’m cool with whatever. Well, that’s not true. Don’t grab my ass or kiss me or anything like that. You said friends, right? Well, human friends don’t do that usually, and I don’t want to. You?”
“You can touch me however, wherever, and whenever you want,” I said with complete sincerity. I wanted his fingers on me. I wanted to feel his much cooler skin on my scales. If he wanted to grab my butt, I was perfectly fine with that. I had a lovely butt, and had been told so by many of my past partners. It made sense if Bartholomew wanted to grope it. If he wanted to bite me… Iached for the feel of his teeth on my scales. I longed for his lips roving over me, telling me how much he liked me, how lovely he thought I was.
“That is a lot. Mindy, you have to have something you don’t like?”
“If we are to remain friends, then you can touch me however. I like to be touched and to touch people. If we were discussing fucking, it would be different.”
Bartholomew shrugged again. “Alright.”
He shuffled out of his trousers—or rather my trousers. I swallowed, unable to rip my gaze from him. Was he going to get naked? Right after I’d brought up fucking? Why did I want to see his bare skin so badly?
“Your clothes are more comfortable—can I wear them?”
“Yes,” I said, voice raspy. He most certainly could. I was fine with that. My clothes on his thin form made my soul pound. Bartholomew should always wear my clothes. That seemed logical. Why wouldn’t he always wear my clothes? Covered in my scent. I let out a slow breath, unable to rip my gaze from him.
Snagging a shirt and the same trousers he’d taken off, he crawled out of the tent. My head fell onto the pillow. Why was Bartholomew changing outside? It was cold out there, and more importantly, I couldn’t see him. After a moment, he clambered back in wearing a dark blue shirt and a pair of my black workout pants. He settled against me, curling close under the blanket.
I wrapped my arms around him, and he buried his head against me. I stroked his back, my fingers slipping into one of the wing slits on the shirt and brushing his smooth skin. I bit my lip to stifle a moan. By the Crystal’s light, he was soft.
Bartholomew didn’t say anything, so I continued to trace his prominent shoulder blades and the knobs of his spine. He was underweight, severely so. I had to make sure he ate enough.With his low weight and the cold, it would be a struggle to keep him warm.
I rubbed his bare, bony arm, claws dragging through the hair there. Drakcol didn’t have much hair, but humans were different. I’d never seen one naked, so I didn’t know the extent of how much hair he had, but Kalvoxrencol had painted Seth nude frequently—though my brother had mentioned humans varied in the amount of hair they grew. No matter. I loved the feel of the strands on my scales.
How had I gone my whole life without this?
“Stay close.”
He grunted. “I’m not going anywhere.”
My soul throbbed at his words. I didn’t want him to leave me. Ever. Bartholomew needed to stay right here. With me. It was logical. He fit. We fit.
Chapter 11
