Page 27 of Vawn
As I waited for someone to fill me in, Ojo came up behind me, wrapped his arms around my waist, and rested his chin on my shoulder. It was such a domestic move and made my heart cry out for something I wasn’t sure was possible.
“Well….” Xac set their cup down and shifted on the couch to lean against Qé. “Wosh did something to make Utahn mad. I don’t know what, but they were fighting and then Wosh left him. Utahn was crying, and we headed in his direction, Tra reached him first. I guess he knew her from Rennir, too.”
Ojo and I both nodded. She was one of the handful of racers we’d met while on the planet.
“Anyway,” Xac continued, “he left the club with her, and I guess he spent the night at the lodging for her team since I saw him leave not that long ago.”
Shit.I should have been there for him. I turned and glared at Genj. “You should have asked him to dance instead of letting him go off with someone else.”
My brother stood there with wide eyes and his mouth hanging open.
“Just confess already.” Ojo took a step back but left one hand on my waist as he talked to my brother. “Everyone knows how much you like him. Haven’t you pined long enough?”
“Confess?” Genj shouted. “You’re such a fucking hypocrite.”
My comm buzzed with an incoming message, so I missed what else was said, but I did hear a door slam after my brother stomped off.
I’m okay,Utahn’s message said. At the hotel now. I’ll tell you what happened later. But, don’t worry. I’m okay.
I sighed, not sure whether to believe him, but I could talk to him at the hotel.
I clapped my hands together. “While I’d love to see more space racers throw tantrums, I do need to get back to my daughter. I will see you all again sometime before I leave the planet.”
Xac and Qé both waved.
Ret nodded. “See you at dinner tonight.”
I slipped my boots on then opened the door. Ojo raced to catch up and held my hand as we reached the street. “Is Utahn okay? Did Wosh hurt him? I’ll kill him if he did.”
“He says he’s fine, but I don’t know.” I shrugged as I walked along, though I appreciated Ojo’s concern. “I’ll find out when I see him again. Wosh is probably just an idiot. The same as Genj.”
Ojo squeezed my hand. “Hey, I wanted to ask you something.”
My comm buzzed before I could respond. “Hang on a second.” I didn’t know if it was Utahn again or my fathers saying something was wrong with Enif.
Thankfully, that wasn’t the case. I chuckled as I read the message. “My parents want to meet you. They want you to join us for dinner, too. Is that okay?”
Ojo’s face paled slightly before he took a deep breath. “Sure. But, when you introduce me to them, I want to be introduced as your boyfriend. If that’s okay with you.”
I stopped walking and stared at him. “Are you serious? Is this your way of asking me out, or do you simply prefer boyfriend over fuck buddy?”
He wrinkled his nose and played with my fingers in his hand. “I was thinking rather than being introduced as your brothers’ teammate, but I’m serious. I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and I want to try this.”
“Try what, exactly?” I didn’t want to get my hopes up, needed to know precisely what he meant.
He dug his toe into the dirt road. “Just you and me. Not having sex with anyone else.”
“Isn’t that the way it’s already been?” Whether we intended it or not.
He released a heavy breath. “But I want it to be more than sex. I don’t know what they call it on your planet, so you’re going to have to help me out here. I just know I like you a lot, and I want to get to know you better.”
I smiled then kissed Ojo on the nose. “Boyfriend is fine. That’s what we call it on Orez.”
He groaned and shook his head as we started walking again. “I can’t believe you put me through that.”
I chuckled. “Can’t be any worse than what my brothers are like. Besides, you’re a space racer. I wanted to be sure you meant it.”
“Okay, I get it.” He shuffled around in front of me as we reached the hotel. “But, what about your fathers? Are they the same as the rest of you?”
