I feel the low, angry hum of his annoyance.
“Hey, you assigned him to me. And I like him. We’re friends, and right now he’s flirting…”
“Flirting. What kind?”
“Tell you later. Now go away, asshole.”
And then I try to shut him out of my mind. It doesn’t work as well as I planned because I can feel him lingering, but I give him nothing else. And when he tries to engage, he goes ignored.
“You ready to check out?” Dante says when I appear at the register. He and Cielo have been speaking—or rather Dante has been signing and chatting while Cielo watches him intently, lifting his hands every once in a while to respond.
Not sure how the Vyastil who struggle with spoken language learn non-verbal ones, but it seems Cielo is catching on to ASL quickly.
“Yeah, I think so.”
My cheeks flame as I set the items down on the counter, but Dante doesn’t even seem fazed.
“Oh, good choice,” he says when he catches sight of the cock cage. “Seems your Vyastil is in need of some punishment?”
I huff a laugh. “Kind of, yeah.”
“Good then. I’m sure he deserves it.”
He peers over at Cielo, who watches Dante with rapt attention. Before we leave, I hear Dante lean over and whisper to him, “Come back, and we can discuss toys for you.”
Cielo’s entire body is bright purple as we make our way home.
“You okay?” I ask as we make our way inside Rathyn’s loft. “You having some kind of health emergency?”
His eyes flit to mine, and he shakes his head.
“Ah, so you’re blushing. Is this a blush?”
“Bloooshhhh.”
“Yes, like when you’re embarrassed or excited. Your whole body gets warm…”
I reach over and touch his skin. It’s the same as it always is, but ripples beneath my fingers.
“I think you’re into him.” His ears flutter, and then his skin shimmers when I say, “Dante.”
“Doonnnntehhhhh.”
“Yeah. And he was flirting, too, so he felt the same. I think he liked you.”
Cielo flops down on the couch, and his tail twists around his head, hiding his eyes from me.
“Don’t be embarrassed. Flirting is totally normal. It’s what humans do when we like someone.”
His tail moves slightly, and I see that shimmering rainbow iris looking up at me.
“Like winking, you know? Or touching. But I don’t think you do this, so it must be weird.” I stare at him staring at me, and I tap his leg. “I know what you need. A latte.”
His ears flutter, and I move to the espresso machine, frothing some milk and pouring some espresso shots before flopping down next to him and curling my legs underneath me. He’s sitting up now, licking at the foam.
“You should have gotten his number.”
His eyes meet mine, and I add, “That way you can sext. You know. Show him that tail, the things you can do with your tongue.”
