With a smirk, I grab his hand, pulling him into the ensuite. “Then prove it.”
Warmth radiates from Felix as I lay snuggled in his massive arms. His fingers comb through my curls—as much as they can, at least.
His snakes are dormant, sleeping atop his head as we cuddle in my bed. I didn’t expect to be cuddling at the end of the night, but I’m quite content with it.
“Why do you hate Christmas?” Felix asks, and if I weren’t in such a blissful state, the question might frustrate me.
I probably won’t be seeing him again, so I’ll give him a partial answer. “Heartbreak on the holiday.”
“Recently?” His voice is soft as he presses for more detail.
Shaking my head only makes his fingers scratch my scalp in the perfect way, so I take a second before saying anything. “No. A few years ago.”
“Still holding the grudge?” He lets out a chuckle, but there’s a genuineness laced through each word. “Seriously, though…what happened?”
Why does he want to know so badly? And why do I feel so okay opening up to him?
It must be leftover bliss from all the orgasms he gave me.
“The holidays are just terrible. They’re supposed to be happy, but they are filled with greed and disappointment,” I say, but my words aren’t as harsh coming out as I intended. “I just don’t put the energy into things that don’t make me happy…and the holidays don’t.”
Thoughts of what happened fill my head, a headache beginning to form. This is not how I want the night to end.
Before he can say anything else, I ask, “Can we talk about something else? Like…your snakes?”
“What do you want to know?” he asks, his fingertips tracing along my thigh as he pulls my leg over him.
I nestle into him, letting the strange feeling of safety wash over me. “Do they hiss when they like something, or only when they don’t?”
“They hiss whenever they feelanything.” He laughs, making my head rise and fall on his chest. “They are part of me, so it’s not like they truly have a mind of their own. They just seem to know things, feel things, sometimes before even I do.”
This is slightly confusing. If they are still him, why are they asleep right now? Does that mean he’s tired?
Instead of trying to figure it out myself, I ask, “So, they’re asleep…are you feeling tired?”
“Are younot?” The shock is hardly hidden in his question.
Letting out a giggle, I tease, “Yes, but not as much as you, clearly. Your snakes give you away.”
“Damn these guys,” he jokes, cursing up at his snakes quickly. He gives me a squeeze, catching me off guard with what he says next. “You are pretty incredible, Holly.”
My cheeks warm, but thankfully, he can’t notice with my face resting on his chest. “Because I’m not tired?”
“No, it’s everything else about you,” he responds.
I want to scoff, but instead my heart just flutters in my chest. Like life has just been breathed back into it.
Shrugging, the only words I can find are, “You don’t even know me.”
“But I want to know you.” He holds me tight to him. “It’s one of my snake senses—knowing when someone is amazing on the inside.”
Does he really think that?
Does hereallyhave an extra sense for something like that?
“Liar,” I say, giggling again. “There’s no way that’s one of your special snake abilities.” I can’t remember the last time I laughed so much. It feels kind of freeing.
His words are starting to blend together, his tiredness taking over. “Let me just wake them up and ask, how about that?”
