#wrspice

Kelly pulled the Chevy into a parking spot with a grimace. He hadn’t been expecting a crowd, and there were even more folks out today than usual. Some event that he didn’t know about? Wicked’s Rest had plenty of odd traditions and, with the town settling back into its normal, it seemed that average folks had a bit more pep in their steps. The skies were clear, the pre-summer sun was shining, and the breeze from the water made it prime walking weather. Which was good, since Kelly’d parked damn near as far away from the hardware store as possible. Parallel parking in a sling sounded almost worse than being blown up in the first place. ‘Sides, it wasn’t like he needed much. Supplies that could all… probably… mostly fit in a bag or two. One trip, two trips—whatever. All he’d need to do was explain the situation (though his arm did plenty explaining for him), and the owners’d be happy to hold his bags. Wasn’t like he hadn’t been in there dozens of times.

‘Sides, the more trips, the more he’d get to exercise. Since his little accident in Netherville, Kelly’d gotten precious little. At work, he’d been relegated to desk duty. At home, he was being observed within an inch of his life. So, he’d told a tiny fib, just to get up and move. A stack of library books sat on his passenger seat as his cover. Zack had offered to lug ‘em himself, but Kelly had to put his foot down somewhere. It’d just be quicker in the truck, he’d said. Doctor hadn’t said he couldn’t drive, he’d said. (Now, the doctor had been Mickey, and Kelly’d exaggerated his healing ability just a touch, but Zack didn’t need to know that.) So, if he stopped by the hardware store before heading to the library, well, Kelly hadn’t technically lied. He’d get there. Flip was starting to outgrow the current setup in his den, and the last thing Kelly needed was to make repairs when he could shore it up before the next full moon. With all the soundproofing, it was easy enough to sneak down while Zack and Flip were asleep. (Frankly, he’d have snuck out to the hardware store, too. But his trips down to Netherville were pushing his luck… and, well, the hardware store wasn’t open in the dead of night, anyway.)

The smell of sawdust hit Kelly’s nose when he finally arrived, and he quickly ran down the list he’d made in his head. (Even with his dominant hand free, the list was proof that he didn’t want to try hiding.) Probably had enough boards at home locked up in storage on the unfinished half of the basement. He’d… need sheet metal for scaffolding, though. (Definitely would need to make a few trips, then. It hadn’t gotten too hot out, so maybe he wouldn’t be drenched in sweat by the time he was finished. Could fake a light run, maybe.) Chains, to suspend a few platforms from the ceiling—jumping to ‘em would give Flip some enrichment, and he wouldn’t be as inclined to bite through metal as, say, a rope. Hooks, to hang ‘em from. Unless he’d stuck ‘em someplace strange, he was pretty sure he was running low on—

In his distraction, Kelly ran right into another customer, jostling his bad arm. Fuck. He winced, biting out a, “Sorry, man.” He started to apologize further, but, as he blinked away the pain, his eyes drifted over a familiar set of bare arms, arms that he hadn’t in months. (Arms he’d been expecting to see, though maybe covered up, at Covet Couture, a few days prior.) Shit, uh. Maybe Kelly could pretend he hadn’t seen Kieran? He whipped around to look at the store’s fine selection of… caulk. The one thing he had plenty of. Kelly tensed, waiting for the inevitable, feeling a little too exposed.

—

To perhaps no living creature’s surprise, Kieran had never stepped foot inside a hardware store previous to this current adventure. It had never been a necessity — why bother when there was always someone else able and willing to complete such menial tasks for you, from going to a store that somehow embodied masculine fragility to finishing whatever task needed completing with products from said store. Now that he was here, however, Kieran realized this was a place of great curiosity. He’d never admit as much to Glenn, who had sent Kieran off on this mission, and the only reason for the faun’s cooperation was his good mood — with magic finally back in place, how could he not take silly requests in stride? And, as per usual, things had worked out splendidly in Kieran’s favor. 

He had been busy considering the unfiltered joy radiating off a customer as he explained in no short terms to an employee just how lacking his knowledge was on load-bearing materials, when a body barrelled into his own. Expecting to find someone rude, someone to perhaps play a bit with, Kieran was surprised to find familiar features greeting him instead. Kelly’s face was easy to remember, partly because it had been the only thing visible of the man during their initial encounter. Such wasn’t the case now, Kieran noted with a warm rush of glee, proud to find that he hadn’t been too far off in filling in the blanks of Kelly’s physique, now nicely on display in a… less nice choice of outfit. It was all very casual, from the ratty tank top to the khaki (sigh) shorts, which at least had the benefit of leaving little to no room for more of Kieran’s filling in the blanks. Topped off with the socks pulled too high and the hat, it was indeed an outfit that looked much better on the floor, preferably hidden from view, but Kieran shockingly had more important details to focus on than the crimes being committed against fashion (and public decency but those he was obviously on board with). 

Kelly’s injuries did the opposite of his shorts, prompting the imagination to run wild, with everything from bruises and healing scrapes to the slinged arm. Before Kieran could even decide just what he wanted to comment on first, Kelly was turning away from Kieran or, more accurately, the arms Kieran proudly had on display, body rigid as he ridiculously pretended not to have recognized the faun. Lips instantly twitching into a sly smile, Kieran sidled closer, also now fake-examining the rows of… Kieran let out an amused huff. “Caulk? Not a very subtle message, but then I suppose subtlety isn’t a trait I should be expecting from someone who picked out those shorts,” Kieran hummed, voice amused as he eyed Kelly without turning his head.

—

When Kelly had left Lichen Lane, he’d just thrown shit on, quick as he could. His outfit was practical; it was easier to fit his cast through a tank, easier to cinch up these shorts than fumble with a belt. Hell, the only time he’d seen fit to wear a belt in the last few weeks had been when he was working or patrolling. But, since he was off-shift and wasn’t looking to stalk any beasts out in broad daylight, the only thing that set Kelly apart from anyone else out and abou running errands was a hunter’s knife, folded and clipped to his waistband. (And, ‘course, one of his guns in the Chevy.) Kelly wasn’t trying to impress nobody. Still, his outfit was a far cry from the turnouts he’d been wearing when he’d first met Kieran. (Far cry from what Kieran was wearing, too.) Without the tank (…or even with it), it was closer to what he’d been wearing when he’d encountered Sawyer.

(Which… had Kelly seen Kieran, the other night at Baz’s party? Seemed like that might be Kieran’s scene, what with the “clothing optional and/or discouraged” nature of it. More important, relevant question, might be if Kieran had seen Kelly.)

“Somethin’ wrong with my shorts?” Kelly asked, figuring his cover had been blown. Should’ve brought his sunglasses in with him. Would’ve made the whole act more convincing. His best bet was to ignore talking about caulk. Getting Kelly to blush was still on Kieran’s to-do list, after all, and even Kelly, shameless on his best day, didn’t think he could get through that many innuendos without a hint of red across his cheeks. The last time, he hadn’t known Kieran was interested, not until the very end. This time, work wouldn’t save Kelly, and, given recent events, he didn’t have much faith in his ability to plan a way out of this conversation, neither. He’d just have to grit his teeth and bear— Shit, not the best metaphor.

Like before, Kelly felt Kieran’s gaze. Somewhere, buried under his competitive spirit, Kelly could admit it felt nice to be watched. Even if this particular arrangement (standing together, not touching, looking ahead) just reminded Kelly of when someone took the urinal right next to his for no damn reason. There was a whole, open, store. Plenty of space. But the universe, and Kieran himself, didn’t seem inclined to give Kelly space. Which, it wasn’t like Kelly’d been avoiding the other man. Just… Well, given how often Kelly thought about their initial encounter, he’d been hoping some distance would dull the buzz, just a little. If the universe wouldn’t help him out, though, Kelly’d help himself. If Kieran wanted to follow him around, well, it was a free country. Kelly had a mission to focus on. (Just wasn’t the sort of mission that sharpened his focus, made Kieran easier to ignore. And if Kelly shot a look over his shoulder, challenging, wondering if Kieran’d bother following him, that wasn’t anyone’s business but Kelly’s.) 

Kelly thought again about his list. If Kieran’d latched onto caulk, Kelly figured wood and nuts were out of the question… “Hell’re you in here for?” he asked, taking a leisurely pace. Both men knew this was the last place he’d’ve expected to see Kieran, no need to hammer that point home. “If you’re lookin’ for the bolt cutters, those’re hangin’ on the back wall.”

—

Kieran had cut through the spiel of not being recognized with ease, as Kelly proved unable to defend his current outfit. Which, it was worth mentioning, Kieran hadn’t said there was anything wrong with the shorts (even though they were a subtle cry for help in the faun’s opinion) but just that they weren’t subtle. Most likely, nothing about Firefighter Brooks was very subtle — including but not limited to what his shorts were actually struggling to conceal — from his job to his eagerness to accept bets with strangers. “Wasn’t complaining, just pointing out that they don’t leave a lot to the imagination,” Kieran teased, pointedly enjoying the view since Kelly was still oh-so focused on the rows and rows of hefty tubes in front of him.

“How thoughtful of you, to try and even the playing field,” Kieran continued, fully meaning and hoping to drag Kelly’s mind back to their last meeting, when professional courtesy had contained the poor firefighter’s instincts. Although apparently, being on the clock didn’t seem to be the only thing holding Kelly back, forcing Kieran to wonder if the other man was still struggling with some adventure of self-love or whatever. His partner in rescue hadn’t even pretended to hide his distaste, so it didn’t seem all that farfetched for Kelly to still be figuring things out, to be braver online than he was in person. Lucky for him, Kieran had plenty of experience helping others down this particular road, leading them on to much, much greener pastures.

Whatever the reason for his holding back in person, Kelly wasn’t entirely immune, pointedly providing an invitation for Kieran to follow him when the firefighter continued about his hardware store business. Not that Kieran had needed an invitation, but it was promising. Falling into step with Kelly, close enough for their arms to brush every other step or so unless Kelly made a point to shift away, Kieran grinned at the predictable question. 

“Oh, just hunting,” Kieran all but purred, which hadn’t been the initial reason for being here but had quickly become the truth, even before Kelly’s appearance. “What do I need bolt cutters for when calling for help proved such a success last time?” Actual reason for being here all but forgotten, Kieran was more than happy to trail Kelly deeper into the store. “Say, do you think asking another customer for help with some hardwood is too obvious? Or checking whether they’ve ever had a proper drill? Suppose I could actually use someone with experience to finally get that hook installed in the ceiling, since it needs to hold the weight of at least two people…”

—

Even the playing field? Kieran’s meaning didn’t hit Kelly until they’d left behind the caulk and were walking side-by-side. (Which, Kelly being on the back foot was becoming a running theme between the two of ‘em, huh? Least he’d gotten up to speed more quickly, this time.) Once he realized, the ranger stopped in his tracks, acting like he’d seen something he actually needed in their march towards wherever the hell Kelly could get in this store that would keep him safe from Kieran… uh, hammering him with more puns. (Groan.) Unfortunately, he’d stopped next to the pipe fittings, which felt a little on the nose. Glancing downward, Kelly made a mental note to toss this pair of shorts. He must’ve picked ‘em up when he’d been traveling with Flip; they were clearly bought for a version of Kelly with a little less meat on his bones. The extra muscle he’d put on when he’d been training for his certifications… Yeah, Kelly may as well have been wearing Kieran’s crocodile underwear, for all the good these shorts were doing him.

Kelly didn’t think it was unreasonable to imagine that Kieran was watching his every move, looking for any signs of weakness. So, instead of doing something obvious like adjusting himself, Kelly decided to squat down to get a better look at the bottom row. (Eyes firmly to the fittings, lest he get an eyeful of Kieran out of his periphery.) Come to think of it, he had been meaning to take another crack at the pipes out in the pool house. Stubborn shits were still acting up from time-to-time. And much as Kelly didn’t mind Zack using the shower in the main house, it was an ongoing battle that he didn’t want to lose. (Hiring a plumber? Admitting loss.) He had the measurements in his head, so he grabbed a few options. When he stood, he hoped everything downstairs was a little more tucked in. (Kieran would let him know if it wasn’t, he figured.)

“I ain’t been out in a minute, but I seem to recall better places to cruise. Hell, if you’re real hard up, just drive on out of town and hit the highway. I bet there’s a truck stop,” Kelly said, finally, trying his best to keep his tone casual. His gaze flitted around the store as they walked, making sure there weren’t any Flip-aged folks running around. When their arms brushed, Kelly knocked a shoulder against Kieran’s. If Kieran asked, well, his injury had Kelly unsteady on his feet, that was all. Kieran wasn’t going to give him space, but Kelly wasn’t going to let himself be cornered either. “To answer your question, though… I figure folks like you don’t need to beat around the bush. Can just come right out and ask, right?” Normally, he’d have flashed a smile, to let Kieran know he was mostly kidding around. The bet loomed large, though, and it kept Kelly buttoned up.

“…And I don’t think your apartment complex would take too kindly to you installin’ a sex swing, man. ’S probably quicker to charm the pants off a real estate agent.” (Though, Kelly’s own didn’t seem Kieran’s type, despite her credentials.)

—

At least Kelly had the good sense not to try and argue in these pants’ defense. Kieran did like the firefighter’s instincts for talking back but only when he had an actual point to make, and trying to claim these shorts were fitting for anything other than a suburban-dad themed adult show was a fruitless mission. On Kelly, anyway — lesser built humans might have pulled it off. So the subject was subtly dropped, which Kieran counted as a win, even if it did little to bring him closer to an actual win for their actual bet. Not that the faun was particularly worried.

If Kelly had been hoping for Kieran’s departure just as long as he stared intently enough at the various pipe bits, he was in for disappointment. Kieran wasn’t in a hurry to return to the store, not when there was headway to be made on his bet and the summer weather providing all these nice views. As soon as Kieran won the bet, he was counting on even better views, of course, but a little bit of teasing never hurt. Curious to see if Kelly would just let the silence drag on, Kieran simply waited, allowing the other man to take the lead in the conversation. He was pleasantly surprised when Kelly went in for a hit instead of continuing with pleasantries, clearly done with just listening to Kieran’s low hanging fruit of innuendos.

Kieran huffed out a laugh, the glancing around on Kelly’s end not going unnoticed and making the faun’s smirk even more mischievous. “Oh, don’t lump all of the clientele here in the same box,” Kieran chastised playfully, pleased when his brief contact generated more — more touching, more pushback. It had been a while since he’d had a proper challenge — not since Henri before that inevitable breakup, perhaps? “Why shouldn’t a dull trip to the hardware store be brightened by a bit of flirting? You’ve got people here that are handy, strong, probably even used to being in control of a situation as a general rule. Sounds like the perfect set up, in my opinion. And it let me run into you again,” Kieran added, making no effort to comment on his supposed being hard up on hook ups — they both knew how far from the truth that was. Kelly seemed smart enough to come to that conclusion on his own, at least. 

“Are you hinting that I should be more forward?” he teased, abandoning the ongoing mission of encroaching in Kelly’s personal space in lieu of being able to look him in the eyes, even if it meant walking backwards. “Do elaborate on folks like me, though. I insist.” Kieran’s landlord wouldn’t have an issue with any sort of modifications the faun might see fit, tied up in a deal as he was, but Kieran could have mentioned that with the return of magic, the need to expand had been growing. Lest the discussion accidentally shifted to real estate, of all things, Kieran avoided sharing that fact for now, simply providing a coy shrug in response to Kelly’s “worries” about Kieran’s landlord. 

—

Kieran had a point, not that Kelly was going to up and tell him that. A younger version of Kelly wouldn’t have given a shit about who was around, would’ve met Kieran’s innuendo with his own, tried to convince the other man to duck into the warehouse, out of view of the cameras. There wasn’t any harm in flirting, even blatantly. Kelly’s injury had reminded him of a couple things, though. First, he wasn’t immortal—though, he’d hadn’t thought he was, so much as he was content to ignore it. Most hunters did. Second, he needed to think shit through. It wasn’t like an ill-advised hookup in a hardware store of all places was going to kill him, so long as they avoided the sharp bits, but he didn’t feel the need to pounce on every impulse. This… whatever the fuck it was between him and Kieran, it could simmer.

Still, Kelly almost (almost) had to laugh. “Let you run into me again? Man, that’s rich.” Kieran wasn’t actually hard up. Kelly didn’t think he was a speck on the other man’s radar, really. It was part of why he’d been content to place a bet. Kieran’d get bored, most likely, before Kelly ever had to perform. If it weren’t for how they met, how Kieran had wanted to push at Kelly’s boundaries, Kelly was sure the other man wouldn’t have paid him a second glance. If they were at a bar or a club, Kieran would’ve gone for an easy target. Kelly couldn’t blame him, really, when he was the same, in that way. Even if Kelly wasn’t the best at knowing when men were angling to get him into a bathroom stall, Kelly could be forward. If he struck out, so be it. If he didn’t, well, that was one night taken care of.

“I’m sayin’ you can. Givin’ you permission, not that I thought you really needed it.” Kelly walked towards the man, rolling his eyes as Kieran decided to step backwards. If Kelly was a worse man, he’d let the other run into another customer or a display rack. Instead, he kept one eye on Kieran, the other on the path ahead. Even if his attention was split, technically-speaking, all of his effort was still being directed onward. He thought of his list, mentally crumpled it. “I ain’t strokin’ your ego. If you win, you can make me say whatever you like. Or just tell me to speak my mind.”

Kelly liked when he earned a compliment. Kieran knew he was gorgeous. Now that Kelly was looking, it was obvious. The outfit, the attitude, the little shrug when Kelly suggested someone might have a bone to pick with him. It was infuriating, that easy confidence. If Kieran was looking for a fight, Kelly could think of a number of reasons to try and wipe the smirk off Kieran’s face. But the only fight between them was a war of wills.

“Folks like you don’t usually worry with folks like me. So, cards on the table.” Kelly didn’t want his ego stroked neither. He wanted to get inside Kieran’s head. Try to figure out why. He doubted the other man would entertain the question. Or talk around it, pretty words from a pretty man. But there was something simmering under Kelly’s skin. Kieran was right, ‘course—why shouldn’t he, really? He took a half-pace forward, edging closer to the man. “Why bother?”

—

Something that might have been a laugh, or the beginning of a smile, was audible in Kelly’s incredulous — and definitely amused — voice. Kieran could practically taste it; the bet edging towards its inevitable end, the satisfaction of being right, even Kelly’s contained but still there enjoyment around this encounter. It would be so easy to snare the man into Kieran’s bright flame, a content little moth for the faun to properly feast on. There was nothing to say he couldn’t, no part of the bet keeping that away from him but Kieran found himself resisting anyway. There were lesser meals to snack on while Kieran worked on finishing things in the right order. As much as he liked indulging, there was a reason wine was left to age. “That’s my bad — accidentally let you enjoy my presence for a second time. Better?”

Now it was Kieran’s turn to laugh, only he didn’t need to hold back, the sound most likely carrying over to the adjoining aisles, bright and genuine. “Oh, permission?” His eyes sparkled with glee at the choice of phrasing and the hardware store wasn’t really the place for an explanation on how Kieran didn’t need anyone’s permission for… anything, really, but hopefully Kelly got the meaning from his laugh and his look. “I’ll keep that in mind,” he purred. More forward, then. 

Kelly was definitely leaning more into the things Kieran wanted to hear now, the win, the whatever Kieran liked, the tell me to. All of it had the faun’s skin buzzing with anticipation and the fact that Kelly only seemed to be growing more frustrated as this dragged on had Kieran’s smug smirk reappearing. “Decisions, decisions,” Kieran sighed, as it genuinely would be a task and a half to decide just what sort of prize he’d be taking away from his win. A performance or a monologue, letting Kelly ramble on until he possibly said something he hadn’t meant to let slip free. The possibilities really were endless. If Kelly wasn’t too occupied with his own exasperation, he might have even caught the glimmer of excitement in Kieran’s eyes, the way they seemed to size Kelly up now all over again.

Why bother? Oh, someone wasn’t feeling worthy of the chase? “Why? Because you interest me,” Kieran said simply, leaning in to erase even more of the space between them. “I mean, obviously you’re handsome and stubborn, so I can’t wait to eventually fuck you until you’re just making incoherent noises, after trying so hard to continue talking back the whole time, those nice, rough hands shaking as they wait for me to finally give you permission to touch yourself, but—” Kieran paused, tongue darting out to wet his lips as he let the inevitability of what he was describing settle between them, “—you wanted to elaborate on this bet after seeing someone handcuffed to my bed, and that makes me curious. There’s not an abundance of ‘folks like you’ out there, Kelly. And there’s no one like me.”

—

“That’s more like it,” Kelly said, a smirk (not a smile) making its way onto his lips. “Careful, now. You keep talkin’ like you want me around, a fella’ll get ideas.” The flicker-flame of Kelly’s amusement wavered under a cupped hand, wanting to grow and grow, despite the wind of Kelly’s determination trying to blow it out. (Or maybe Kieran himself had lit the match and, when Kelly managed to blow it out, the other man would just strike another match, hold it to the wick. Over and over and over, until Kelly got tired of huffing and puffing. Or until those puffs came out like a chuckle.) Kelly’s sense of humor had always been particular. For the kid of a warden, he’d always liked wordplay, liked the dance of it. He’d’ve made a fantastic warden, if he didn’t disappear into history as a truly awful one. (Not that Kieran was fae. Just too smart for his own damn good, most likely. Kelly could lie to himself, say Kieran was a dime a dozen.)

Kelly thought, maybe, that he was safe. That in giving Kieran permission, he’d dampened the other’s excitement. That by playing along, the allure of it would lessen for Kieran. He thought wrong. Kieran’s laugh echoed in the store, louder to Kelly’s ears, given how damn close they were. Kelly’d heard Kieran tut, and sigh, and breathe out his amusement, but it was the first time Kelly’d heard the other man laugh. Even though the goal was for Kieran to get Kelly to laugh, the ranger couldn’t help but feel a little proud of himself for wringing that sound from Kieran. He had no way of knowing if it was a hard-won thing, but their brief encounters had given Kelly the impression that, shameless as they both were, they were excellent at poker. Even if Kieran had laughed purely for Kelly’s benefit… or, hell, even to try to shock a laugh out of Kelly… Huh.

An upping of the ante lingered at the back of Kelly’s throat. Kieran hadn’t even won yet, and Kelly was, what, trying to keep him on the hook? He bit his tongue, hummed as Kieran mused on decisions. Where was there to go, even if Kelly truly wanted to? Bargaining with his body, when all he really had to go on was talk? ‘Cause, truth was, Kelly wasn’t frustrated with the other man. Here, out in his day-to-day, Kelly was willing to meet Kieran’s gaze, unflinching. To preen, just a bit, as Kieran evaluated and reevaluated him. When Kieran’s eyes met his, just for a second, Kelly could’ve swore he saw more than base interest, detached from Kelly himself.

So, when Kieran said he was interested in Kelly, the ranger… believed him. It caught him off-guard. So much so that he froze on Kieran’s approach, waiting to see what he’d do, how brazen he could be. Turned out, pretty brazen, and Kelly couldn’t stop himself from listening to every damn word that fell from Kieran’s pink lips. If there was anyone in an aisle near them, they were getting an earful, and, fuck it, Kelly laughed. A snicker turned into a whole damn giggle fit, and Kelly couldn’t bring himself to give a shit that, technically, he was giving Kieran an easy time of it. The dull ache in his shoulder had subsided, just for a second, because, despite his best efforts not to, Kelly was having a good time.

“I— Fuck.” Shit, was he blushing, too? Kelly thought he was pretty damn shameless, but, it wasn’t the acts Kieran described. Kelly might be interested in all of that, sure, but he’d done it, too. It’d be different with Kieran—always was, no matter how many times Kelly found himself on top of or underneath a warm body—but just talking about it, that wouldn’t get him to blush. No, the reason his cheeks went red was the insinuation that whatever drew Kieran to Kelly was in at least somewhat short supply. That there was a reason in how Kelly acted, not just in how he looked. It wasn’t like Kieran wanted to wine and dine him—and, frankly, Kelly wouldn’t have been all that interested in that. (Not… right now, at least.) Honestly, Kelly wanted to smile. But that, he could control, it wasn’t solely impulse. Much as he might not have expected it, Kelly wanted to keep Kieran waiting just… a little while longer.

“There really ain’t anyone like you,” Kelly said, voice strangely warm.

—

Oh, Kieran wanted him around, no doubt about it. He was perfectly content to play games with Kelly, however, with the obvious end goal in mind to drag him to bed or a couch or somewhere vertical for all he cared, hopefully on more than one occasion. As silly as humans could be with their dreams and purposes, those weren’t entirely compatible with how Kieran saw it fit for those exact humans to live. They were happy enough to just stay content, not seeking out a life of comfort and pleasure, spent serving a higher purpose — Kieran. Kelly came across as one of those humans, content, maybe even the kind to squint at the future Kieran was planning for himself and some other lucky, lucky humans. But just two encounters weren’t enough to set such assumptions in stone. In whatever form would be available, Kieran was more than happy to figure out everything Firefighter Brooks might have to offer. “Mm, I think your ego could take a few good strokes.”

That much had been a correct assumption on Kieran’s end, at least. Kelly’s mostly unfazed attitude ground to a halt when unfiltered truth entered the conversation, Kieran’s words genuine and the effect was instantaneous. Whereas the faun had held Kelly’s attention before, sure, he now had a rapt audience clinging to his every word. The laugh wasn’t entirely expected, only because Kelly was stubborn — Kieran had made men of all sorts of standing or gruffness or perceived ‘manliness’, dissolve into fits of giggles through the power of well picked words. Kelly had made him work for it, an enjoyable amount, and the payoff was a rush all on its own. Nothing to compare with the delicious flushing of the other man’s skin, though.

Kieran’s own eyes darkened with satisfaction as a curse tumbled from Kelly’s lips, but, more importantly, it was accompanied by his pupils expanding. The faun’s grin was nothing short of predatory, crooked and smug as Kelly worked to compose himself, seemingly fighting a smile of his own. Fine, let him cling to that one for now. Only by Kieran’s grace, not because he couldn’t push this into a smile if he wanted to, now that even more of Kelly’s buttons had revealed themselves to the faun. The genuine compliment from Kelly might have assisted in that decision, too, made Kieran more amenable to let Kelly walk out of here with the last remaining string of their bet uncut. For now.

“You have no idea,” Kieran replied simply, shifting back a step before he’d give in and simply let his hands start to wander. “Only one to go, then. I’ll see you around, Kelly. Try not to overwork your good arm when your mind starts to wander tonight.”