I’m with you, I can make us and the orc disappear from sight, and we can figure out how to haul his ass back to your truck.”
Snorting and remembering how he’d followed me home without me knowin’ it, I didn’t dispute the statement. I pulled off the road and put the car in park even though we were basically parked in the grass right beside the trees. Basil hopped out, and once I joined him, I walked to my trunk and piled on more weapons.
“I’m good to go,” I said once I finished.
He called on his shadow magic and covered my car in it. When I lifted a brow at him, he grinned and shrugged, saying, “This way, you can’t even get a ticket.”
“Works for me.”
“Lead the way, dimples.”
Telling him to stop calling me that only made him do it more, so I wasn’t gonna comment again, which he clearly found amusing. I said, “You’re kind of an asshole.”
“Only kinda? Last I checked you thought I was all asshole, so I’ll take that as a fucking compliment.”
I snorted and shook my head. “Of course you’d take that as a compliment. That shouldn’t even surprise me.”
He grinned at me.
“Before I forget, do you wanna come to dinner at my house after this? I know you said you’ve been feelin’ off being away from your brothers, so I understand if you need to go home, but—”
“Hiro?”
“Yeah?”
“I’m feeling off more than usual because, not only have I been away from my brothers, I’ve also been away from my viramore. I’d love to come over.”
I stopped walking to examine him. “Great. Rasha will be happy.”
“But not you?”
I rolled my eyes. “Don’t go fishin’ for compliments.” When he frowned, I sighed. “Yes, obviously it makes me fuckin’ happy, too.”
He bumped my arm with his shoulder and tried to hide his smile.
Since we had a bit of walking to do before we reached where the orcs could hear us, I asked, “Do most people stay near their viramore once they find them?”
Basil nodded. “Yeah, especially if they’re both magical creatures. Some people get really possessive, so being away from each other isn’t a good idea.”
I thought about that for a minute. “Are you having trouble with it?”
He was quiet, thoughtful, then said, “Honestly, yes, sometimes. I wish I could be near you all the time, but I understand that we both have jobs, and on top of that, you have Rasha, so I logically know I have to be okay with being away. Sometimes it’s hard convincing myself of that, though.”
That made me sad, but I was glad he was being truthful. This time, I bumped his shoulder with my arm and said, “If you’re ever having a hard time, you can always call me so we can figure it out.”
He nodded. “Thanks. It’s usually in the middle of the night, though, so I wouldn’t want to wake you up.”
“Like I said, you can always call me. I don’t give a shit if it’s the middle of the night or not.”
“You’re such a romantic.” Wow, sarcasm, much?
I snorted.
He chuckled. “Seriously though, I appreciate it.”
I nodded. Obviously, this relationship was moving in the serious-enough-to-live-together-eventually direction, and I knew that most viramores connected quicker than we were, but I had Rasha to consider. Until I knew for sure this was the real deal, and that Basil was able to not only stick around but be there for my kid, I wasn’t going to rush it. Fortunately, Basil seemed to get that and wasn’t being overly pushy.
He quietly said, “I do get that, Hiro. It’ll take time, I get it, but I’m here for the long haul.” He’d read my mind. And that right there should’ve been freaking me out, but somehow it felt right with him.
Reaching over, I squeezed the back of his neck to show I was grateful, and he sent me a smile.
After that, we were too close to the orcs’ camp to continue talkin’, so we both silently made our way closer. When I spotted a good place to do a little recon, I tugged on his shirt to get him to follow me, and to my delight, he did so without argument. Once we were squatting behind a thick bush, Basil pulled out a telescope—although I was sure it wasn’t a typical human one since I could feel magic comin’ off it—and he pushed it through the bush so there was no chance of us bein’ seen. He watched through it for a few