“That’s what I said! But, no, turns out he was making some kind of sculpture for an art show. A bust of Elvis made entirely from dairy products.” Danny’s hands moved as he spoke, beer bottle painting arcs in the air. “He showed me pictures on his phone. It was horrifying.”
Ash watched him talk, watched the way his eyes lit up, the way he tucked his hair behind his ear. “Please tell me you have photos.”
“I wish. My manager said he could purchase up to ten because ‘we’re not in the business of supporting lactose-based delinquency.’”
“Your manager sounds like a treat.”
Danny’s expression darkened for just a moment before he caught himself. “Mr. Pike’s... particular about things.”
Like the nail polish. Ash had caught that whole interaction earlier. He’d wanted to tell that bald prick exactly where he could shove his dress code. But Danny was here now, relaxed and actually talking, and that was what mattered.
They ate in comfortable quiet for a while, just the clink of forks on plates and the distant sound of someone’s music drifting over from a few houses down. Danny had curled sideways in his chair, feet tucked under him, looking younger and softer in the golden light. A moth fluttered between them, drawn to the string lights, and Danny watched it with an expression Ash couldn't quite read.
“This is nice,” Danny said quietly, almost to himself.
Ash nudged his mate’s chair with his foot. “Just wait until you see what I’ve got planned for dessert. Hope you like chocolate lava cake, because I might have gone overboard at the store.”
His mate’s smile was small but real, aimed down at his nearly empty plate. “I like chocolate anything.”
“Good answer.” Ash stood, gathering plates. “Come on, help me clear this stuff and we can start the movie. Fair warning. I’m one of those people who quotes along with the whole thing.”
“You’re not.”
“Oh, I absolutely am. Ask anyone. I’ve been banned from the town movie nights.” Ash headed for the back door, pleased when he heard Danny’s footsteps following. “Twice.”
They deposited their dishes in the sink, Ash’s gaze sweeping over his mate.
Pink crept up Danny’s neck. He ducked his head, hair falling forward to half hide his face, and Ash’s fingers itched to brush it back. To tilt that chin up and—
“Is the movie really as long as everyone says it is?” Danny asked.
“Two and a half hours of pure magic.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of.”
But Danny was smiling as he said it, real and unforced, and Ash would sit through a dozen Harry Potter movies if it kept that expression on his face.
* * * *
The movie wasn’t even halfway over when Ash felt the warm weight of Danny against his side. He’d started in the middle of the couch but had drifted sideways, his head now nestled against Ash’s shoulder, body curled into the protective curve of his arm like he belonged there.
The movie played on, forgotten. Ash couldn’t tear his eyes away from Danny's face in sleep—the gentle arch of his eyebrows and the fan of dark lashes against his cheeks. Ash breathed in his scent, clean like summer rain dripping off honeydew after a thunderstorm.
Ash’s fingers twitched with the urge to carry Danny to bed and tuck him between sheets, which would smell like both of them by morning. But the last thing he wanted was Danny waking disoriented in a strange bedroom.
His phone vibrated on the side table. Aiden’s name lit up the screen. Ash snatched it before the buzzing could disturb his mate.
“Yeah?” he whispered.
“Why are we using our library voices?” Aiden asked softly. “Someone die?”
Ash almost snorted. His brothers never asked if he had company. They knew better. Ash’s house had always been off-limits to hookups and short terms. Too many exes and one-nighters had proven themselves unhinged once the night was over or the cupcake phase wore off. He didn’t need anyone waltzing into his backyard unannounced, trying to make themselves at home. That wasn’t a hyperbole. It’d happened more than once, by more than one guy.
“Is there a point to this call, or are you just bored?” Ash murmured, stroking Danny’s side when his mate stirred.
“Touchy,” Aiden grunted then lowered his voice to a growl. “Do not tell me you’re with Henry. Dude, crazy sex can’t be that addictive…can it?”
Swear to god, Ash was not related to him. “I’m hanging up now,” he breathed, voice barely audible to human ears but just loud enough for Aiden’s enhanced hearing.
