Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 65437 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 327(@200wpm)___ 262(@250wpm)___ 218(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65437 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 327(@200wpm)___ 262(@250wpm)___ 218(@300wpm)
Owen had dropped his toothbrush in the process, but he’d caught Jason around the thigh, the knee, immediately taking his weight. A firm pressure guided him around his waist, then skidded to the small of his back, between his shoulder blades. The heat of splayed fingers burned, like a shield, and hips cocked to keep Jason perched, a supportive pressure under his arse. Jason shuddered and tightened his legs around Owen. Shaking arms curled behind that blond head. “Don’t put me down, please, please.”
“Okay, Jason. I’ve got you.” The door closed. “I’ve got you.” Thumbs rubbed against his back and serious eyes met his. “What’s going on?”
Mary had come to check out the chaos and clearly didn’t sense his fright. Not a yap to be heard, nothing but padding paws and a waggling tail. Like somehow this scene pleased her. Karma coming for him after all his lies? Oh God, maybe he did deserve this.
Jason convulsed with more shivers. “I’ll just live with you, okay? It’s only a few weeks. I just . . . you’re so calm and steady and strong and you can deal with all this.”
A light chuckle, and a tightening grip. “Deal . . . I don’t know about that.”
Right, Jason hadn’t exactly given him context. If he’d just stop panicking, he could spit it out.
Owen hitched Jason up further and moved into the living room. The motion sent gravity slithering through him like a snake of his very own. He ducked his head to Owen’s neck, hugging him close. “How do you manage it?”
“What, sweetheart?”
“The vicious pounding of your heart just at a glance.”
“Mmm, not well.”
“It’s the first time I’ve ever . . .” Snake, snake, snake. The word wouldn’t pass his tongue. “I’m freaking out.”
“I’m right there with you.”
“No, you can’t freak out. I need you to be the one to tell me what to do! To make it all better.”
Owen said nothing to that, just settled him gently onto the couch. Jason wasn’t ready to unlock his arms though and Owen was left no choice but to collapse atop him. Heavy, warm armour that encased him from head to toe. “Can I stay under you forever?”
Owen expelled a breath that funnelled over the top of his hair.
Mary padded to the armchair beside them and curled up, and . . . he liked Mary around too. She would certainly let them know if there were a snake or any other unwanted wildlife inside. “You, me, and Mary. The three of us together.”
“Christ, Jason.” That deep gravelly voice vibrated through the very thin material trapped between them. “Do you ever listen to yourself?”
Jason let his head sink back on a cushion that Owen had fed under him. “Sorry.” He didn’t handle panic or fear well. He took a deep breath and loosened his hold on Owen.
Owen rose just enough to look him in the eye. Dark depths, and something lurked there . . . Something that made him want to jump, just like—“I’ve never seen a snake like that before.” He hadn’t seen any snake before, except for that one at the zoo. “It was bigger and longer than I’d imagined they could be, and its eyes shone like . . . like it wanted me.”
Owen’s mouth twitched at the corners. “I’ll help you.” He pulled himself off Jason, grabbed his phone, and turned his whole body towards the window overlooking Carl’s.
He made a call to a snake catcher. He organised the when, the where, the how. Jason watched the taut lines of Owen’s back as he shifted. The way they flexed when he laughed, when he confirmed the schedule, when he said cheers. Calm and clear. What would it be like to have that sort of practical confidence?
Jason heard a dull click and looked down at his hand, surprised to find himself still gripping his phone. He hadn’t been aware of it as he bolted over here, but apparently it had fused onto him with his fear, and he’d just popped the cover off. He fixed it and pulled the folded blanket from the back of the couch over his goosebumped limbs.
“Steve will be right over. I’ve used him a couple of times for a tiger snake and a lowland copperhead. He’ll move them down the hill.” Instead of coming over to Jason, Owen tucked himself behind the kitchen island and began brewing them tea. Jason had to tip his head over the arm of the couch to see him. “You may want to check there are no gaps in your doors or screens.”
“Um . . . yeah, I was serious.” Another shiver punctuated his point. “I don’t think I can go back there tonight.”
Owen paused, a spoon hovering above the honey jar, then slowly dipped it inside. “I have a guest room.”
“Can Mary sleep with me?”