Page 8 of Love in Unexpected Places

He raises his head to look at me. “Yeah? Why is that?”

My heart starts pounding and I know he hears it, but I don’t care. I need to tell him how I feel, at least in part. The part I understand. “I like you a lot, August. I feel whole when I’m with you. You’re the first person I’ve felt I could trust.”

“You can trust me,” he says quickly, his eyes soft and tone earnest.

“I know.” I kiss his nose and brush a thumb down his cheek.

Sighing, he lies back down. “I trust you too.” I smile, happy that I’m not in this alone. “Crowds are dying down. People are leaving because they haven’t seen the creature.”

I’m thankful for that. Tips will go down, but this is still a tourist spot, so I won’t starve. It’ll be nice to have my city back.

I’ve also been restless. I haven’t let my dino out in almost two weeks. I usually take my boat out, anchor it and dive in, shifting underwater and swim out a few miles, being free. With all these people around, I don’t dare risk it. But when we looked out at the beach earlier, there were only a few tents. It was like a mass exodus, cars leaving quickly and some drivers looking put out for having their time wasted.

Maybe August and I can chance it tonight. We can look at the stars and I can shift so he knows what’s out there. Hopefully, he likes what he sees.

“Wanna go on my boat tonight?” I ask, wrapping my arm around him, feeling his round belly. God, I love his body. He feels so good against me, his soft body warm when we cuddle.

“I’d love that. It might be the only time for a while.”

My heart stutters and I move him so he’s looking at me. “What do you mean?”

“I think it’s time I head back to my place. I’m not sureif I’ll stay, but I think … I don’t know … I think I may need to move on from here.”

“Why? I thought you liked it.” That silly organ in my chest thumps hard, even though I try to calm myself. I knew this would come sooner or later. I knew August might want to leave, but I didn’t think I only had a week with him. I thought I had more time.

August sits up, pulling his legs under him as he faces me. “I do. I love it here. That’s the problem.”

I give him a curious and confused look. “How could that be a problem?”

He sighs, leaning back on the headboard. “You’ll think I’m crazy.”

“Never.”

“I’ve always felt a sense of urgency. I always felt like I needed to be on the move, to see the sights, get some culture, travel, and gain new experiences. Since I’ve been here, I haven’t had that. And it scares the shit out of me.”

Lacing our fingers, I bring it to my chest. “What are you afraid of?”

August lets out a shuddering breath, then looks at me with a question in his eyes. “I’m afraid that I’ll love it here too much and never want to leave. I’m afraid I’ll get attached … to you and to this place. I don’t want my heart broken.”

“I won’t do that. I want you here. If you want to stay, I’d really love that. Maybe tonight, after we go out on the boat, you can make up your mind for sure.” I don’t want August to say he’ll stay, then see my dino and is afraid of me. It would suck big time to get my hopes up, thinking the man I’m falling for will be open to us having a future, only for him to run for the hills when he sees my other form.

Or maybe I won’t show him. Maybe I’ll keep it to myself. It’s better than the alternative.

Immediately, I push that from my head. August deserves the truth, even if I get my heart broken. I need to grow a spine and let someone in. Let my future partner in. Because that’s what I want August to be. I want him, now and for as long as he’ll have me. He’s it. He’s the one.

August nods, then stretches. “If we’re going out, we should get going soon. It’s almost one in the morning. Do you plan to take us far out?”

“Yeah. The tide has calmed, so we can go further out and be okay. My boat can handle it.”

We get our things together and I organize a small bag with water and a few snacks. As well as a special something.

Hand in hand, we walk to my car and I feel complete. Who would have thought the hot, nerdy looking guy that sat at my bar would be the man I’m falling head over heels for? Who would have thought that him saying he wanted to see my dino, but not profit from it would be what made me want to get to know him?

The drive out to my boat is quick, just over the hill from his hotel. While we’re driving, one of his songs comes on and he chuckles. “I never stop getting butterflies when I hear my words on the radio.” I turn it up but can catch a hint of him singing along. Despite what he says, August has a good singing voice. I wish I could hear it more clearly, but I don’t want to embarrass him.

By the time the song is over, we’re at the marina. There’s no one around but the security guard. After I show him my ID and give him my boat slip, he lets us through. August follows closely behind me, and I smile faintly as I think about us doing this all the time. August coming out with me to watch the stars after I shift.

My palms grow sweaty when I think about that bit. The only people I’ve shifted in front of are my parents.There aren’t many Spinosaurus shifters left, most of us mating with human women and the genes not passing. It’s not widely known that Spinosaurus males can have children if they want, since we’re born of eggs. Hell, it’s not widely known we exist, so no one would be privy to that information.

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