Total pages in book: 149
Estimated words: 135784 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 679(@200wpm)___ 543(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 135784 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 679(@200wpm)___ 543(@250wpm)___ 453(@300wpm)
In the middle of the narrow bed, I see a blue shoulder, and his entire body seems to be shaking. As I take a step forward, he thrashes onto his back, and I get a glimpse of his mechanical arm as he flings it out and nearly knocks me to the ground.
Sleipnir begins to growl.
I put a hand over his mouth. "Shhh, boy." I can't take my eyes off Jerrok. He looks…well, he looks completely different than he did earlier. Gone are the layers of rags and filth. He's naked from the waist up, tattooed over varying parts of his chest, as if emphasizing the native plating that all mesakkah have. His skin is a smooth blue and his face is definitely a lot more youthful than I thought now that it's clean. He's handsome, too. The scarring around his eye and the mismatched oddness isn't noticeable right now, and he's pretty enough to do adverts. Well, not entirely. His features are a little thinner than most broad mesakkah faces, but he's got beautiful cheekbones and a gorgeous mouth that looks absolutely unfair on a man. His neck is thick and strong and leads down to a heavily tattooed collarbone. There's a lot of scar tissue built up on one shoulder, and it leads to the cybernetic arm that looks…not great. They're not supposed to be rusty, are they? Or have exposed wiring? But Jerrok's has both. And when he thrashes again, it makes a whirring noise, like I can hear the mechanical parts working.
How odd.
"No…" he groans again. "One…two…three…"
Counting? Weird.
"Seven…eight…" he pants, and I can see sweat pouring from his face as it contorts in what looks like pain.
Even though I don't like the guy, I also don't like seeing someone in pain. I sink down next to the bed, mindful of his flailing arms, and gently touch his hip. "Jerrok? You're having a nightmare—"
He rolls over and immediately grabs my arm with his cybernetic one, his eyes flaring awake. A hoarse shout rips from his throat.
I gasp, startled.
Sleipnir roars and leaps into action. The next thing I know, the carinoux has his mouth latched onto Jerrok's metal arm and he shakes his head, furiously, as if trying to separate it from his body.
Jerrok lets me go with a grunt of pain, rolling back onto the bed. Sleipnir falls onto him, all muscle and teeth.
"No!" I cry, putting my arms around Sleipnir's neck. "Don't, kitty! He's just having a bad dream!"
Jerrok gives me a wild-eyed look as I try to pull the cat off, but he says nothing. He doesn't even fight. He just stares at me as if seeing a ghost, his arm in my pet's mouth, and lets the carinoux maul him.
"Sleipnir!" I say sharply and reach into the fanged mouth to pry his teeth off of Jerrok's arm. "No! Bad boy!" The carinoux finally lets go and gives me a wounded look, slinking away a few feet. He immediately moves behind my legs, as if he wants to protect me even if I don't want protecting. "I'm sorry, Jerrok. You were having a bad dream and I thought I'd wake you up—"
"It's nothing," he says flatly.
"Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"
"I said, it's nothing." The look he gives me brooks no argument. "Are you done now? Or do I need to expect another attack from your pet while I sleep? It's a hell of a way to wake a male up."
I straighten, closing my robe as I do. Why the fuck is he lashing out at me? "You woke ME up with your nightmare. Excuse me for being worried."
He sits up on the bed, his hand moving over his mechanical arm, touching wiring and then lifting a panel that sizzles when he does. His mouth—which I thought was beautiful just a short time ago—is a thin line of displeasure.
I wince, thinking of how Sleipnir shook him back and forth, trying to rip his arm off. I guess it's a good thing that it was a mechanical arm instead of a real one, but…that can't be pleasant. "Are you okay?"
Jerrok shoots me a glare. "Do I look okay? Your pet tried to chew my arm off and now I have to fix it. Just stay the kef away from me in the future, all right?"
I suppose that's what I get for trying to be a decent human being. He's not wrong about Sleipnir, but…does he have to be such an ass about it? "Fuck you too," I say, and turn to leave. "Come on, Sleipnir." I pat my leg and leave the room, and the carinoux follows me.
When I head back to my bedroom, I spend about fifteen to twenty minutes trying to shove the door to the hallway closed. It doesn't want to work, which just irritates me, because I'd love nothing more than to shut myself away from that dickface. I give up and crawl back into bed, and the carinoux is all loving cuddles, pushing his big head against my hand for petting. I rub his scales, listening to the sound of Jerrok in his work room. I can practically hear him grumbling, and it just makes my mood as bad as his.