“Do you keep in touch with your family?” he asked, watching Jag add banana to the bowl. The exotic fruit couldn’t have been grown anywhere in the junkyard, so Jag must have gotten it from his friends. Were they aware that he’d kept Dane alive instead of disposing of him like he’d been meant to? And what would they do if they found out?
Jag shook his head and rubbed his narrow chin. “When I ran, I knew I was cutting ties, but I wouldn’t even know where to look for them. My family lives in the woods and doesn’t want to be found.”
Dane’s shoulders hunched, and when Jag wouldn’t meet his eyes, a tender sensation pulled at his chest and made him lean forward. “I mean… if you… walked here, they can’t be that far away.”
Jag pulled a plastic box with strawberries out of his bag and started adding them to the… fruit salad? “I… I traveled for a long time. Over three months. All I know is that their home is south west from here, but I got lost many times. I avoided cities, so I don’t know which ones I passed.”
Dane’s mouth dropped. “So you really don’t know how to find them? Not your mom, nor your siblings?” he asked softly, unable to imagine giving up on his own family like that.
“If I stayed, I couldn’t have the life I wanted. Sometimes, you need to part from your pack and be your own man, but… I didn’t like being alone. It was dangerous, and even though I could handle wild animals and the elements, I was lonely. I should have looked for people sooner, but I used to be so stubborn. If Frank hadn’t found me, I would have probably stuck to living in the forest.”
Dane moved across the space between them and sat next to Jag, flinching when the new position made his ass sting. “How would that have given you the life you wanted?”
Jag rubbed his stubbly cheek over Dane’s shoulder as if he’d been waiting for this kind of closeness all along. “I would have failed.” He chuckled and sprinkled what looked like… chia seeds over the fruit. “Frank was patient with me. I realized I found my sanctuary when we talked about why I ran away and instead of shunning me, he told me he understood.”
Oh, so Frank had to also be gay or different in some other way. “So… you and him—?”
Jag shook his head and cuddled up even closer. “Nooo! Frank is the leader, and the owner of this territory. I respect him, and he’s attractive in his own way, but I need someone to be mine. Frank is too… He’d never live by another man’s rules. We have an understanding though. I owe him my life, and while I may not own this land, I’m his right hand. I can do as I please here, away from the stifling rules of society.”
It sounded like something Jag’s father could have said. But the way he was making sure to mention himself as important at the junkyard was endearing as an attempt to impress Dane either way.
“Oh, so I’m third in the pecking order, huh?” Dane teased, resting his chin on Jag’s shoulder.
Jag grabbed two forks with a thoughtful expression. He’d started using more cutlery at Dane’s request last week. “No. You belong to me only,” he said, serious as if they were discussing religion. “I’d fight for you to the death. Even against Frank.”
It was such a surprising declaration Dane wasn’t sure how to respond at first. “N—that’s not what I meant! I don’t want to fuck some stranger.”
“Good. I’d kill anyone who tried laying a finger on you.”
Dane hoped that never needed to happen.
Jag nudged Dane and handed him the fork, as if he hadn’t just casually mentioned murder. “You need to regain strength after today.”
Dane curled his fingers around the utensil and stared at the bowl filled with fruit and seeds. “So… why did you go so far away from your family? What were you really looking for?”
Jag swallowed and turned to look into Dane’s eyes, his own shiny in the tanned, handsome features. “I knew I could never be happy with a woman. It felt like a choice between life and death, and if I didn’t leave, I’d be trapped in a cage for the rest of my life. My thoughts kept going back to kissing that boy at the market, and I dreamed of having a man at my side instead of a wife. I didn’t know how far I had to flee so I just… kept going…
“When Frank helped me, I realized I found my sanctuary. I spent my days adjusting to the new life, but I started craving company lately. Until I met you though, I hadn’t known how lonely I’ve been. I shouldn’t have lived out here on my own, as if I was still in a forest, fending for myself. I didn’t want to be weak and rely on others, because I believed a man should be self-sufficient. But then we built the house—together—and I see it’s not wrong to depend on my man. And now that you submitted, that we mated, I will trust you with my life.” Jag stroked Dane’s hair with his sticky fingers.