Page 86 of Primal Urges

“Well, if it makes you feel better, he didn’t say anything nasty about you.” She chuckled.

That didn’t make Caden feel any better.

He thanked Alexis and then left the bar in a hurry.

When he arrived home, the kitchen light was on. Hopefully, that meant that Lucas was home.

“Luc?” Caden called as he pushed open the door.

“In here,” Lucas answered from somewhere inside the kitchen.

Relief flooded Caden’s insides. The man was safe. Thank god.

“Where have you been? I’ve been calling you all day.” Caden asked, walking into the kitchen and giving Lucas a kiss on the cheek.

Lucas was standing by the stove, plating up some steaks.

“Sorry, my cell phone died, and I had to run some errands. Didn’t mean to worry you.”

“It’s alright. Was just worried, is all.”

Lucas passed Cade an open bottle of beer, then took a sip of his own red wine.

“Thanks, babe. Dinner smells great.”

“Perfect timing. Dinner’s ready,” Lucas noted, carrying their plates to the kitchen table.

Caden carried his beer and Lucas’s wine to the table and sat down in his usual spot. Lucas sat down across from him.

Something was off about Lucas. He was quieter than usual and had trouble making eye contact with Cade.

“Cheers,” Lucas whispered, raising his glass and then taking several gulps of his wine. Caden followed suit. It was rude to stop drinking while the other person was still going.

He had heard that was a thing. Perhaps an Irish folktale or European superstition. Someone had told him once that one was supposed to keep eye contact with their drinking buddy and only stop drinking once the other person did so as well.

Or something like that.

He never questioned it before because, hey, who didn’t love drinking?

“So, how was your day?” Lucas finally asked, glancing up briefly before diverting his eyes once again.

Something was up.

There was a struggle in his eyes, something he was trying to keep hidden from the world. If Caden had just met Lucas, he might not have noticed. But now, Caden was an expert when it came to reading Lucas’s tells.

The boy was hiding something, and he was feeling awfully guilty about whatever it was.

“My day was spent trying to locate you,” Caden said, annoyed and a tiny bit suspicious. Caden cut into his steak and shoved a piece into his mouth.

Flavors and juices exploded all over his tongue. He had no idea that Lucas was such a fantastic cook.God, if the boy could make such a delicious-tasting steak, what else was he amazing at cooking?

Taking another bite of his steak, he watched as Lucas still refused to look him in the eye.

“Yeah, I’m really sorry about that.” Lucas took another sip of his wine, looking uncomfortably to his left as he drank.

He finally turned and locked eyes with Caden. He swallowed hard, appearing nervous as fuck.

“That’s one of the things that I love about you, Cade. You’re always looking out for me.” He smiled, then raised his glass. “Cheers.”

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