Page 14 of Unbar the Barred
You’re welcome.
Asshole.
Sometimes, his wolf was a real asshat!
He had told no one, not even Kendrick, about what was going on, despite the conversation they’d had after the lack of a condom. Instead, he had led Kendrick to believe that he was still hooking up with other guys, so he got why his friend was acting this way—kind of.
Kendrick sipped the dark brew and eyed Trey. “You ain’t had sex with anyone since Cassidy”—his eyes narrowed over the mug—“have you?”
He sagged against the counter, seeing it was pointless to pretend when Kendrick knew him better than anyone. “No, I tried once, and I just couldn’t…”
“Get it up,” Kendrick finished, smirking.
Trey gave him the finger. “Smug asshole.”
“Always. So what you gonna do now?”
“What do you mean?” Trey asked, unsure what Kendrick was getting at.
Kendrick sighed and rolled his eyes at him over his coffee mug. “The mating bit is easy. But Cassidy lives up at the ranch. You live in town above the bar. He works at the ranch. Early mornings mostly, from what I see. You work here, late nights typically. So how is all that gonna work?”
Kendrick laid out all the things that said life was about to get real tricky and raised the concerns about why Trey had stayed with hook-ups for so long. “We’ll figure it out.”
They would…wouldn’t they?
Chapter Eight
Cassidy
“Lynda, stop pecking at Lila, you know she don’t like it,” Cassidy gently reprimanded while continuing through the large barn, collecting eggs and listening to his ladies' chatter and squawk at him.
He understood that they’d be a little unnerved by his scent. Could anyone wash off a mating scent?
Stop being silly. Our mate’s scent, his blood, is part of us now.
Yes, but does it mean I’ll smell like him all the time? I haven’t had a chance to shower becauseyouwanted five more minutes to cuddle with Trey before we had to leave.
You wanted to make up for the cuddles we’ve missed, so stop making out it’s just me.
Cassidy chuckled at being called out. Yes, he had wanted to linger. Was it wrong? It was so new, but as dawn broke, he had reluctantly slipped out of Trey’s bed, his mind circling around how it was going to work. To Cassidy’s way of thinking, things had started out great.
His mate, it turned out, was a big cuddler. Although was it cuddling when he starfished the bed and therefore lay sprawled over Cassidy at the same time? He didn’t care, because waking that way was something he hoped to get used to.
That would require you to actually hang around to speak to our mate.
I have to work.
They had this argument all the way to the ranch and, it seemed, through all his morning chores. Pail in hand, he bent to run his hand down Luna’s feathers when she pecked at his leg, looking for a little attention.
Then the squawking started in earnest as she rubbed her beak up and under his jeans to his ankle. “What’s this all ‘bout, my sweet girl?”
He placed the pail down and scooped her up in his palm, bringing her up to his face. Her speckled feathers fluffed, and he grinned at the pretty show she was putting on for him.
Luna was a sweet girl who liked lots of attention. He had hand reared her after finding her struggling to get out of her shell. Smaller than the other chicks, she’d failed to thrive alone. Cassidy didn’t like to intervene with nature, but would never neglect a chick who needed a little helping hand.
“Can you scent my mate?” he murmured as he met her gaze. The noises she was making got louder.
Many thought chicks didn’t have a great sense of smell, but they’d be wrong. “It’s alright, you’re still gonna be my favorite girl.”
