Page 15 of A Layperry's Heart
Gendry stares down at me, his eyes achingly soft. “You charmer,” he says, making me chuckle.
“Look at you! Learning all the lingo.”
“I have a great teacher.”
“Come on,” I say, placing my hand in the crook of Gendry’s arm. We walk down the hallway. “We’ve got some place to be and I don’t want to be late. If we’re late, I will get teased mercilessly.”
“I do not wish to see someone tease you.”
“It’s okay, Gendry. It’s just some of my cousins and their friends.”
“You have family here?”
I nod my head as we make our way outside. The air is crisp and the wind has a chill to it. The sun is out and by noon, it’ll be ridiculously hot but for now, it’s the perfect weather for being active.
“My mother and her sisters immigrated here at the same time. They started on a visa but then they worked really hard to get their green card. My cousins and I were all born here. We were all raised to know English and Spanish which I’ve always been incredibly proud of, being able to stay true to my heritage while also being able to understand everyone here.”
“That is incredible,” Gendry says, awe tinting his voice. “Learning multiple languages is a feat worthy of praise.”
I duck my head, smiling. “Thank you.” I bite my bottom lip for a moment. “Sometimes I still feel like an outsider. When I was younger I would speak Spanish at school with my cousins and people thought it was weird. Sometimespeoplemake me feel like an outsider, but I like it here. It’s my home.”
“I’m sorry people have made you feel like that.”
“Thankfully, this city is a melting pot of people. Diversity makes a city better and I’m proud to be a part of it. It’s probably why you fit in with us so well,” I add with a grin, hitting my hip against Gendry’s leg. He stumbles before correcting himself, turning towards me with a frown.
“Are you alright?”
I chuckle. “I’m good. I just wanted to shove you a little bit. It was an affectionate gesture.”
Gendry is wearing a pair of shorts that cut off above his knees, his shirt is sleeveless. His tail swings behind him and he’s careful not to let it hit anyone as we walk down the street. This is the first time I’ve noticed that Gendry doesn’t really have hair anywhere on his body but for his head. His legs and arms have none. Interesting.
There’s so much dark purple skin on display and it’s taking all of my effort not to stare at him. He’s so hot and I know what I’ll be thinking about tonight when I’m home alone with my hand wrapped around myself.
“This way,” I tell him, grabbing his hand and pulling him over towards the park near our apartment building. “I hope you’re feeling limber and loose, Gendry, because we’re about to play some soccer.”
Gendry’s face lights up with the brightest smile I’ve ever seen. His eyes shine with excitement and I can’t stop looking at his adorable little fangs.
“Really?”
He sounds like a kid who’s been told he’s allowed to stay up late. It’s adorable. “Yes, really.”
Gendry hip checks me but because of his size and the fact that I wasn’t ready for it, he plows me over. I sprawl into the grass, letting out a gasp of surprise.
“Oh gods! I’m so sorry, Aldo! I was trying to do the affectionate gesture back at you.”
I sit up, giving him a thumbs up. “All good! I’m okay!”
“Maybe I should go back home.”
I jump to my feet and grab Gendry by the front of his shirt before he can run away. “Absolutely not. We’re here and we’re going to play some football. Don’t you dare go.”
Gendry blinks down at me. “You’re quite scary when you are dominant like this.”
“Thank you,” I say because I’m not really sure how I’m supposed to respond to a comment like that. “Hopefully not scary enough to scare you away.”
Gendry looks down at himself before looking back at me. “I am not afraid,” he says slowly. It takes me far too long to realize what he’s implying and when I finally get it, my body warms all over.
Oh.
