Page 6 of Time to Stirrup Love
Not exactly appropriate business kind of relations at this moment. Maybe this was the perfect time to go farther up the shore and practice some of his fly-fishing. Then he could put some distance between her and him. Maybe that would quell the naughty thoughts running through his head.
There was a splash and he realized that she had climbed down the small ladder and was in the shallows.
“You okay?” he asked.
She glanced back at him, a net over her shoulder. “Perfectly. I’m heading into the littoral zone because that’s where the pickerel spawn will be.”
“The…what?” he asked, confused.
She quirked an eyebrow like she couldn’t believe that he didn’t know the scientific zones of the lake. He didn’t exactly have the chance to go to school. It’s not as if he could goto university like the humans had. Especially, given his flawed shape-shifting abilities.
“Closer to shore,” she explained. “Right here, it’s part of the limnetic zone. Light still penetrates enough for organisms, but littoral is where the plants grow. It’s a safer spot for young.”
“Right. Sure, sure.”
“Are you just going to stand there and watch me?” she questioned. “I mean, if you want to help…”
“No thank you,” he bolstered. “I’m going up the shore farther. There’s a stream there, and I have some new flies to try out.”
“It’s not fishing season yet,” she reminded him. As if he needed it.
He frowned and crossed his arms. “I know this. I’ve been in this business for a few years. If I catch anything, it’s a catch and release, but as someone who makes their own tackle, I have my own research and development to do.”
A smile tugged at the corner of her lips. “I didn’t mean any offense. My apologies.”
“Thank you.” He picked up his gear before splashing down into the ice-cold water. The water didn’t bug him. “I’ll be up the shore. I’ll be back in an hour.”
“Okay. I might be longer.”
He shrugged, feigning indifference. “That’s fine. You have the entire afternoon.”
“Great.” She turned her back and made her way slowly, sloshing in the water. He watched her, just for a moment, fighting the urge to go and scoop her up and carry her to where she wanted to go, and instead made his way up the shore to where the larger stream flowed into the lake.
That’s not in the job description.
There was safety in distance from her. As he found a nice spot in the sun, he sat down on a rock and readied his fishingrod, pulling out a new tie, but he really couldn’t get into the excitement of it. Usually, he loved trying out his new ties. It was one of his favorite things to do in the winter, when the lake was frozen and all his rentals were put away for the winter. He would spend time prepping for the summer season and he’d work on tying new lures and thinking about better ways to entice fish. He did have a slightly secret dream of patenting a fishing lure, and then he could buy a great big house in Harmony Glen for his mother and his little sister Pearl. They would want for nothing.
Maybe then Pearl could go away to university, because she could. The thing about female glashtyn-human hybrids is they mostly kept their human form and without the ears. They could shift into a horse, but usually they were a beautiful pearlescent color, with violet eyes, and most had a horn, like a fabled unicorn.
The problem with Pearl going away was the full moon cycles, where she had no control over her shifting. But he didn’t want to hold her back either. If he could afford to send her now, he would in a heartbeat.
Then there was the worry of hunters. Even though the world was trying to be more tolerant of monsters, it wasn’t always.
Female glashtyns were incredibly rare and also very coveted. Their blood had healing properties and their horns were also prized. He was very protective of his little sister. She was safe in Harmony Glen, but he still wanted to take care of her and encouraged her to blend in with the human world as much as possible.
So if she wanted to be a doctor or a lawyer or whatever she wanted to do with her life, she could go off to school and not be fetishized outside of Harmony Glen as a monster.
Finn was doing everything in his power to take care of her and his mother. He was the head of the household.
With a flick, he cast his line out over the water, whipping it back to entice any bites, but there was nothing. Still, it was a beautiful day to be out and just enjoy the silence of the water and the trees on this isolated shore of the lake.
“Dammit,” a cuss echoed out. It was faint, but unmistakable.
Finn sighed and reeled in his line, recognizing Margaid’s voice as it broke the beautiful silence. His ears pricked as he listened, and he lifted his nose, but nothing was out of the ordinary.
Maybe she likes to curse in private?
It wasn’t his concern. He cast his line out again, winding the reel.
