He blushed and looked away. “Thanks for the soup and all. I should get replies from all the other places I contacted when I can turn my phone on again. Sorry I made this your problem.”
“Not at all. You just caught me unawares, so I behaved like an ass. I should have let you in when you first knocked. You don’t even have a proper coat.”
He pulled the blanket tighter over himself. “I wasn’t expecting it to be so cold.”
“It’s Chicago. In winter.” I lifted an eyebrow.
“Yeah well, I had no reference. I traveled only to the colder states in summer, and I spent my entire life in California.” He returned his gaze to the fireplace, and the warm glow danced over the pretty features of his face. “I should have known I’d fuck this trip up from the start. When I ordered the plane ticket, I didn’t notice that it wasn’t a direct flight. So instead of a four and a half hour journey from LAX to Chicago, I wasted five hours in Denver for the layover. In the end, it took me almost twelve hours to get here. I came to this house straight from the airport.”
“You must be exhausted.” Now I felt even worse for not letting him in right away.
“I am. Would you mind if I lie down just for a moment?”
“Go ahead.” I gestured to the couch, but he curled on the floor like a human burrito.
“Since you’re renting this place, how did you get here?” he asked, then yawned and hid his face in the blanket, leaving only his big green eyes visible.
“I flew from Mykonos with one transfer as well. That was two days ago, but I’ve just recovered from jet lag.” My flight was long and gruesome too, but he didn’t need to know that.
“You live in Greece?” His ears perked up enough to push the blanket off his head.
“Yeah. I grew up there.”
“Your accent is so good I couldn’t tell.”
Personal questions tended to annoy the fuck out of me, but when he was rapid-firing them while looking adorably swaddled, I didn’t mind. “My dad is American, so we spoke two languages at home.”
“Cool. What’s the best thing about Greece? I’ve never been, but it looks magical in photos.” He shuffled closer to the fireplace like a fluffy chrysalis. Maybe once he rested, he’d regain his confidence wings.
“The weather is decent all year round. A bit too hot in the summer, but we rarely have freezing winters in the coastal areas where I’m from, so it’s a great balance. The northern and mountain regions get snow, though, and similar weather to Chicago.”
A soft, wheezing sound left Kaos. Was he snoring? With the tip of my tentacle, I brushed a strand of hair off his forehead. His face was relaxed and eyes closed. Yup, fast asleep.
He murmured something and gathered my tentacle under his head like a pillow.
Shit. If I didn’t want to wake him up, I had to stay put. I lay back on the shaggy rug and watched the flames dance in the fireplace. The day hadn’t been what I had expected and far from what I’d planned, but the soft purring of an emo cutie was actually more pleasant than being home alone.
Chapter Three
Kaos
Darkness. No, not completely. There was fire next to me, and under my head…a snake!
I took a deep breath and screamed my lungs out.
The snake moved, and someone yelled.
Blinding light suddenly illuminated the room, and I gasped for air, ready to let out another shriek. Burgundy tentacles wove around me as Spiros sat with his hands up like I was about to shoot, holding a remote pointed at the overhead fixture.
Oops. Last evening came rushing back to me.
“It’s just me. Spiro.” His lip quirked into a smile. “I come in peace.”
I wish my name was peace. “Sorry. I dozed off.” I took in the room and frowned. “But why are you still here? On the floor.”
Deep purple tinged his light burgundy cheeks. Was he one of those cephalopods with blue blood? Did that mean that he was blushing? Oh, I’d have to ask him if he squirted ink.
“You fell asleep on my tentacles, so I didn’t wanna move. You looked dead tired.”
