“I missed my arm.” Gray ushered Shadow out of the room, shaking his head at Nao yet again. At least this time it was her he seemed upset with, not Shadow.
He’d missed Shadow, for sure. And Shadow would find a way into Gray’s heart. Just like he would find out what fucking from behind was.
Chapter 14
Gray had never felt comfortable living with another person after Mike had moved to a room of his own. Their parting had felt like ripping off a particularly sticky Band-aid off his balls, and while Gray wouldn’t have said so out loud, it hurt him that Mike no longer wanted to share everything. They had stayed exceptionally close and lived in the same building, but it was as if the interest in women had taken a part of Mike away and hidden it behind a semi-translucent curtain.
Gray had matured since then, and having so much space and freedom to himself had him settling into routines that he didn’t like disturbed. Exercise and helping the other guys at the gym filled a large chunk of his day. He ate at fixed times and didn’t like his things moved. The habits helped him stay organized and reach every goal he set for himself, so the schedule would only be disturbed when necessary—for club business. People respected his plans.
Until Shadow came along.
Gray had to keep Shadow close if he wanted him to behave, but ended up surprised by the ease with which they created a new routine that worked for both of them. Granted, it was mostly Shadow who aligned his life to Gray’s, but once they’d passed through the awkward phase of teaching Shadow to keep his dick in his pants, everything else was child’s play. They installed thicker curtains to protect themselves from sun, and Shadow got a place of his own in the corner where Gray put a comfortable mattress for him.
Since they’d discovered Shadow was perfectly fine eating ‘controversial’ human foods that were either fermented or contained some kind of mold, he could also join everyone at the table without causing an uproar. Shadow still loved his creepy crawlies but stuck to eating them when Gray wasn’t looking, apart from times when they were ‘really big and juicy’. Gray could live with that. At least thinking about roaches crunching between Shadow’s teeth meant the urge to kiss him dwindled.
Still, even knowing that cockroaches were Shadow’s favorite crunchy snack couldn’t hide the fact that he was unbearably handsome. Tall, with broad shoulders and a strong physique, he was impossible to ignore. Free of human preconceptions and shame, he enjoyed his nakedness in the bath whenever he could and bared his soul to anyone willing to listen. His big smile lit up a room, and his hair was so luscious Gray would gladly fall asleep with his face in it.
But he couldn’t. Even if Shadow were human, even if he learned to behave like one, there was no future for him. Shadow’s stay here would only last a couple of weeks, and opening up to him would have resulted in unnecessary heartache.
A week on from the disastrous moment of weakness that ended up with Gray on his knees, and Shadow’s dick on his tongue, he was glad that he’d managed to avoid the catastrophe of attachment.
All he now had to do was pretend he didn’t notice the clumsy attempts at flirtation Shadow kept coming up with.
He’d invited Gray to shower with him many times.
He’d once offered Gray a dead crow, assuming Gray would enjoy its flavor since he ‘liked chicken’.
He’d loudly claimed the air was way too hot as an excuse to sleep naked, and keep uncovering himself ‘by accident’.
All those clumsy attempts at seduction were manageable and kinda cute. Like watching a puppy trying to nuzzle its way nto the owner’s plate, so Gray generally let them slide. And when Shadow wasn’t looking, Gray allowed himself to secretly admire Shadow’s beautifully formed body. Because what was the harm in that?
As he cleaned all of his firearms, Gray couldn’t help feeling grateful for Shadow’s presence. After the failure of suddenly remaining one-armed a week back, they’d tested the reach of Shadow’s power, and the number came up to fifty feet—just enough to allow them both a bit of privacy.
For that purpose, Gray set up a little office for Shadow in a room just across the skywalk, where he could spend his time filling the gaps in his knowledge with the help of a television set, books, and magazines. When Shadow stayed in his own little room, Gray was free to exercise or otherwise utilize the gift of having two arms without being ogled.
It was with a heavy heart that Gray encouraged Shadow to roam, to mingle with people and ‘make friends’ around the clubhouse, because it inevitably left Gray with an emptiness on the left side of his body. He still hadn’t come to terms with his disability, and whenever they were close, it was just so easy to ignore the fact that Shadow would eventually leave forever, and take the black arm with him. Whenever the shadowy limb disappeared, Gray went through a minor panic attack that took him right back to that moment when he realized it would be either his arm or his life. He chose to think of this as an adjustment period, so he worked on the changes that would make his home more one-arm-friendly, and read into the necessary modifications to his motorbike.