“Noooo-ooo,” Roscoe said, his ears falling flat against his head. “And don’t you dare bring it up, okay? We’ll go up there and explain things. I’m sure they’ll understand.”
“And if they don’t?”
“Then we should probably look for somewhere else to live.”
“I don’t think Darryl’s house is big enough for all of us.”
Roscoe shook his head. “He’s a last resort. Sure, he offered, but you could tell he wanted his house back to himself. I overstepped enough by dropping in on him like that.”
“Who the hell are you and what have you done with Roscoe?”
He grinned sharply and moved in closer. “Wanna eat first, or fuck?”
“What do you think?”
Downtown was busy for a Sunday. People scrambled in and out of shops, and cars packed the parking spots along the street. Adam was unusually contemplative, only giving one-word responses, so I left him alone, but it was weird that Roscoe didn’t have much to say either.
“Oh, I almost forgot. What fake name did you give the bureau for Austin?” I gave Adam a slight tap on the shoulder. “I don’t want to slip up in there.”
“Oh, you’re gonna love this,” he answered with a mischievous grin. “Bernie Blödmann”
Roscoe snorted but didn’t say anything.
“You named him Bernie?” I said, the volume of my voice rising. “He’s going to kill you!”
“The last name’s the best. I was looking up the word for ‘dumbass’ in a translator, and German was the most unassuming.”
“Adam, you idiot! You gave that name to a government agency. Are you insane?”
“He never told me what name he wanted, so I gave him a suitable one.”
I shook my head but tried to keep a straight face. “Did you guys talk at all this morning?”
“What do you think?” he responded with an eye roll. “He said ‘clean yourself up, soldier,’ rolled over, and that was the last coherent thing that came out of his mouth. Whenever I’d try to talk to him, he’d grunt at me. Like usual.”
“What did you say to him?” Roscoe asked.
“Well, I was angry because he finished too fast and didn’t get me off—”
“That’s yer problem right there,” Roscoe interrupted. “Even if he sucks at it, why don’t you try strokin’ his ego a bit?”
Adam glared at Roscoe.
“Hey, just giving you a helpful tip here. I’ve done it all, and I’ve been with more werewolves, humans, and half-turns than I can count. Not all of ’em knew what the hell they were doing, but I learned how to get what I wanted while making ‘em feel like they were the best lay I’d ever had.”
“How the heck do you do that?” Adam asked.
“Well, when it’s over, you tell him how amazing he was, then ask if he’d be up for tryin’ something new. This way, you can teach him what you want while buttering him up. That could lead to more conversation—and better sex. It’s a win-win.”
I stopped in the middle of the sidewalk, the skin on my face so hot it could have boiled water.
“You okay, Cody?” Roscoe asked.
“That was exactly what you said to me after our first night together.”
“Oooo.” Roscoe cringed, his ears folding against his head. “That wasn’t what you think. You were amazing.” He went to wrap his arm around my waist, but I shoved him away.
“Just shut the hell up.”
