by Parker Skye
The air mattress pushed into the far corner of the living room was practically calling his name, even though he despised sleeping on air mattresses. They always seemed to deflate a little, no matter if they were new out of the box or a year old. By the next morning, he expected his spine would feel like it was a stand-in for a bendy straw..
At this point, he was really too tired to care. He just wanted to lie down and rest. He hoped he didn’t snore too much. Sometimes he did when he was super exhausted like this. The space between his makeshift bed and the couch Izzy would be claiming was only wide enough to fit a small coffee table. If Izzy was a light sleeper, he may need to invest in some earplugs next time they hit the store. As Ryan mulled this over, he finished brushing his teeth. He turned toward back from the sink towards the living room and was surprised to see Izzy sitting in his space at the bar, watching him intently. Ryan thought he had already gone to sleep.
“Did you need something, Izzy?”
Izzy just shook his head slowly, his gaze intent on Ryan’s face, like he was trying to puzzle out the meaning of something. Izzy’s right hand reached up to fiddle with the silver hoop in his lower lip. He had noticed Izzy only did this when something was making him uncomfortable. Ryan leaned back against the counter, crossing his arms over his chest and waited. He figured Izzy needed a moment to flesh out whatever was bothering him.
“Why are you being so nice to me?” Izzy finally broke the silence to ask.
“What do you mean?” Ryan asked, his head tilted to the side as if honestly confused by the question.
“You’re being nicer to me than you are to anyone else. Why?” Izzy repeated.
“No I’m not. I’m treating you the same as I treat everyone... I think. Aren’t I?” Ryan asked, honestly flummoxed by Izzy’s conviction.
“No, you aren’t. Not at all. I’ve seen you enough around the others I think, Mas...darn it, I mean... Ryan. You tease and poke fun at everyone. I’m sure you’re just kidding, but you’re still not being overly nice to them. But with me, ever since we cleared the air between us, it’s like you go out of your way to be nice. I don’t understand why,” Izzy asked, the innocent expression on his face in that moment stunningly apparent.
Ryan stood silent for a moment, thinking back over their interactions throughout the day. He realized Izzy might actually be onto something. It seemed once Izzy was no longer considered a threat, Ryan’s first instinct was to offer comfort to the D'Jinn. He knew Izzy was no fragile being, but Ryan did feel honest sorrow when he tried to imagine what Izzy’s existence must have been like up until now. He must have subconsciously shifted how he interacted with Izzy to reflect that, almost as if he were treating him with kid gloves, trying not to cause him any further harm unintentionally.
“I guess I just want you to be happy, Izzy. If I’m making you uncomfortable, though, I can try to stop treating you differently. Honestly I didn’t even realize I was doing it until you pointed it out,” Ryan said, arms crossed tightly over his chest as he met Izzy’s gaze across the kitchen counter.
Izzy exhaled frustratedly and ran his hands through his hair, causing the platinum spikes to look even more disheveled. “You don’t get it, do you? I’m not here for me. I’m here for you. My sole purpose is to provide what you wish for. Have you even thought about what you want? It’s like you’ve forgotten what I’m doing here,” Izzy replied, irritation evident in his tone.
“No, I remember. It’s just that I haven’t really thought about wishing for anything. There’s just nothing I really need right now. I’ve always been a pretty easy to please guy, I guess.” Ryan continued when he saw Izzy’s mouth drop open, apparently ready to argue his point further. “Wait, just a second, Izzy. Let me try to explain,” he huffed out and sat silent for several moments, compiling his thoughts.
“I’m just not greedy, I guess. Geez, I feel like I’m saying ‘It’s not you, it’s me’ like we’re in some dysfunctional codependent relationship. How’s this for an example? When I was a kid growing up, my mom used to take me to the grocery store and I would watch the other kids there begging for candy and toys in the checkout line. I would physically shudder at their behavior. I just couldn’t imagine being like those kids. It's just not in my nature, I guess. I’m honestly generally happy with what I have already. I’ve just never needed anything more than what I can earn for myself. Does that make any sense at all, Izzy?”
Izzy’s confusion was apparent, the line between his dark brows becoming a virtual canyon. He continued to flick the silver hoop in his lip back and forth with his right index finger. Ryan hated causing Izzy so much obvious internal conflict, but he strangely loved watching him squirm all the same.
“So, I guess you’ll just have to get used to someone being nice to you and valuing you as a person. It looks like you’re going to be stuck with me for a while,” Ryan said with no apology at all. Izzy’s head dropped to the bar and he groaned dejectedly in response.
Chapter 8
Izzy
Izzy was torn. He had never had a master not care about the wishes before. He honestly didn’t know what to do. Sure, there had been a few that couldn’t make a decision about what to wish for first. Eventually, the magic of the lamp forced them into a decision somehow. Even Izzy wasn’t entirely sure how it worked. But to not care at all, to not even be thinking about what to wish for, Izzy had never seen that behavior from any of his previous masters.
Izzy did wonder if it was the werewolf component that made the difference. True, all his masters in the past had been human and humans were inherently more selfish than other species he’d encountered. He’d never had the chance to interact this closely with a werewolf or any other shifter before.
To be honest, it filled him with a sense of wonder to be taken care of, even in the small ways Ryan had done so far. Ryan’s offer to try to treat him differently if Izzy so desired was the final straw. His brain practically short-circuited at his level of confusion.
No one asked Izzy what he needed. Not ever. A bloom of heat settled in his chest as he finally accepted that Ryan didn’t see him as just his servant. Izzy felt the tendrils of connection developing between them, possibly even stronger than the curse of the lamp. Izzy’s eyes sparkled in wonder as he met Ryan’s smiling gaze again. He knew in that moment, he was looking at the face of what could be his first true friend.
He should have been afraid, but hope blossomed somewhere deep inside like new leaves pushing up through the earth to taste the sun for the first time. He was mesmerized.
Once Adam and Ben had finally spilled from the bathroom, steam pouring out after them, darkness had fallen. Izzy was ensconced on the couch, curled on his side with a wildly patterned quilt wrapped around his slim form. He pretended to be asleep as he listened to the mates settling into their own room for the night. The master bedroom door clicked shut and Izzy breathed a sigh of relief. He may not be ready to fall asleep, but he was ready to not interact anymore today. Truth be told, he was a little overwhelmed.
Izzy peeked over at Ryan’s still form on the other side of the room. Honestly, he was barely more than arm’s length away the room was so small, but it could have been the width of the Grand Canyon for how far away it felt to Izzy in that moment. Ryan was sprawled diagonally across the air mattress and had kicked most of the bedding to the foot of the bed. He slept in simple red plaid sleep pants, bare-chested. Izzy thought he was surprisingly smooth for a werewolf. He didn’t know if that was stereotypical, but he always imagined shifters in general just being furrier, even in their human forms.
As Izzy caught himself cataloguing the details of his roommate’s body, Ryan’s soft rumbling snores penetrated the silence surrounding them. The sights and sounds brought a sense of peace over the D'Jinn, as if he was watching over his charge, keeping him safe from harm. Izzy’s eyes started to burn with fatigue as he spent uncounted moments drinking in Ryan’s calming presence. In the final moments before he gave himself up to sleep, Izzy decided t
hat while Ryan may not consciously wish for anything, that didn’t mean Izzy wasn’t going to try to give him everything he could possibly need.
Chapter 9
Ryan
The smell of pure deliciousness pulled Ryan out of his restful slumber. He inhaled deeply and one eye popped open scanning the room for the source. The fragrance of cooking meat and spices was like a physical presence in the room with him, forcing him to get up and move. His wolf almost howled in physical pain at the force of his empty belly’s grumble. He’d been so full when he’d fallen asleep the night before, he hadn’t thought he would ever be truly hungry again. Obviously, Izzy’s cooking prowess was enough to undo that belief.
Ryan took in the sight before him with a surprising amount of pleasure, almost like contentment. Izzy stood at the stove, his back to the living room where Ryan still lay. He obviously was listening to music through earbuds as he cooked, his hips shaking to an unheard beat as whatever was in the skillet popped and crackled. He wore only a thin lavender tank top, that was more holes than fabric, and cut-off grey sweats. The sweats hung precariously low on Izzy’s hips. Ryan was surprised they hadn’t already fallen to the floor as he could see the fabric inching further down with every rhythmic shake. Just when a hint of pale white flesh started to show the tops of two rounded cheeks, Izzy rescued his bottoms from their eminent dive with a well-timed yank.
Ryan’s brain was on full alert after that brief show. Who needed coffee when there was imminent hot male nudity instead? He pushed himself into a seated position, to better spy on his roommate’s dancing form, and the air mattress precariously shifted, bodily tossing him onto the floor. Ryan landed on his hands and knees, catching himself before he sprawled flat, but still not graceful enough to avoid Izzy’s notice. He looked up from his place on the floor to find Izzy turned back to the stove, pretending not to have seen Ryan’s utter humiliation. The subtle shake of his back and shoulders left no doubt, however, that he was quietly laughing at Ryan’s failure to stick the landing.
Ryan shook it off, willing to admit he had never been a pro at navigating air mattresses. He hadn’t felt the need to be such a prima donna about his sleeping arrangements before. Heck, he didn’t know why he hadn’t just shifted last night and curled up on the floor in wolf form. He probably would have been more comfortable. His lower back was stiff in a way it only ever got after sleeping on a damn air mattress. Standing upright, he stretched his arms overhead and his spine audibly cracked.
“Geez, you sound like a ninety-year old man the way you are creaking and popping over there,” Izzy commented, having removed his earbuds once he saw Ryan was fully awake.
Ryan groaned in agreement. “I feel like it, too. I don’t think an air mattress is going to work for me. I think I’ll just sleep on the floor tonight instead. My back feels like a herd of elephants walked over it all night.”
“I’m surprised you could sleep if you were that uncomfortable. You sure seemed like you were out to the world. Once you laid down, I don’t think I saw you move again until just now,” Izzy added, turning the heat off and moving the skillet into the oven to keep warm. Faint sounds of the others stirring started to echo from the back of the house. Izzy opened to the cabinets and started pulling down plates and glassware. Ryan hurried to join him in setting three spots at the small table and two more at the bar.
“I didn’t keep you up did I? I’ve been told I snore sometimes,” Ryan asked, sounding more than a little embarrassed at the prospect.
“Oh, you snore a little, but not as bad as most people. Trust me, I’ve had much worse roommates. I had a little trouble going to sleep, but it wasn’t because of you. Just had a hard time turning off my brain, you know?”
“I guess I do. You know, I thought after everything that happened yesterday, I would have had trouble sleeping, too. If my wolf gets upset, he’ll pace all night sometimes. I’m actually shocked at how fast he let me get to sleep last night. I’ve always had more trouble sleeping on the road, even without everything that happened yesterday,” Ryan commented as he finished the place settings at the bar.
Logan sauntered in, rubbing a hand over his bare stomach. He headed for the coffee pot like a man on a mission. “Man, I could get used to this,” Logan moaned out as he downed the first sip. “What is that heavenly aroma and when can I start eating it?”
Izzy snorted out a laugh at Logan’s praise. “It’s migas, another one of my specialties.”
Logan cocked his head to the side, his coffee mug still held at chin level. “What are migas?”
“Seriously? You’ve never had migas before? How could you live in the South your entire life and never have had migas?” Izzy asked, obviously excited to have possibly created a unique dish for the shifters. He turned to Ryan, the question apparent in his expression.
“Nope, me neither,” Ryan replied, pleased with how Izzy’s violet eyes were sparkling with excitement. Ryan had no doubt they would love whatever Izzy had prepared. Just as he was about to go wake Adam and Ben, he heard their door open and feet shuffling toward the kitchen. Adam entered first, yawning widely. He ran his hand through his crazy reddish-brown hair, trying to tame the insanity. Ryan smirked at the unsuccessful result. It looked even worse than before, if that was even possible. Ben pushed Adam gently into the nearest chair and hip-checked his brother out from where he had staked a claim in front of the coffee machine.
Ben poured two cups of coffee and doctored Adam’s the way he knew Adam liked -- mostly milk and sugar with just enough coffee to add color. He set the coffee in front of his mate and pressed a kiss to his forehead before taking the seat next to Adam at the table. Ryan took in the scene with a surprising amount of envy. He frowned slightly, realizing he’d never had that sort of reaction to watching his friends interact before.
Izzy made quick work of pulling the still warm skillet from the oven. He doled out servings, saving his for last and put the empty skillet in the sink. He handed out packs of foil-wrapped tortillas and tiny ramekins of homemade salsa to each man and took his seat next to Ryan at the bar. Izzy made quick work of ladling salsa on his pile of eggs, cheese, peppers, chorizo, and corn tortillas and took the first bite.
Ryan tapped his fork on the side of his glass, halting everyone from eating any more. Izzy looked up from his meal in confusion, his mouth still full of the spicy egg dish. Ryan made sure Izzy was watching him as he set down his fork and spoke formally.
“I think I speak for us all when I say that you, Izzy, are amazing. This is a virtual feast you have placed before us this morning. I don’t know what it is, but it obviously took a lot of effort and I am positive it will taste as exquisite as it smells. Thank you once again for providing for us so well,” Ryan said, too seriously for Izzy to even have a hint of doubt at Ryan’s veracity. Logan joined in the praise with a well timed ‘damn straight’.
Izzy’s face flushed bright red in embarrassment as he met the eyes of every wolf in the room and saw their agreement. He dropped his head slightly and muttered faintly, “Um, thanks guys. Now hurry up and eat before it gets cold.” Ryan smiled widely, still staring at Izzy’s red cheeks as he attacked the food on his plate. He groaned aloud at the first bite, unable to stifle his pleasure.
“Not again,” Logan moaned faintly from the kitchen table. “Ouch, damn it, Ben,” Logan said, pointing his fork in his brother’s direction. “Stop kicking me. I’m going to need to invest in a good set of earplugs if I have to keep listening to Ryan making love to every meal.”
Izzy flushed even brighter at this. Ryan’s eyes sparkled with his own laughter as he continued to audibly enjoy his breakfast. Logan may not like it, but Ryan didn’t care. He was focused on making sure Izzy knew how much he was appreciated. Izzy could have served them fried cat with a side of poisonous mushrooms and Ryan would have acted the same. Izzy may have led a shit existence up until now, but that didn’t mean he had to keep leading it. As long as Ryan had any say in the matter, Izzy was going to be treated with
respect and, Ryan hoped, he would be happy about it.
Chapter 10
Izzy
Izzy’s cheeks didn’t feel like they would ever stop burning. He’d blushed through the remainder of breakfast and it had nothing to do with the heat from his specialty salsa. Sure, it was hot, but not so hot he couldn’t handle it. Thankfully it seemed to be the right level for the wolves, too, as he’d gotten several more compliments on the food before it was all eaten. Actually, he decided maybe next time, he would make it hotter. Maybe if their mouths were on fire, they would stop embarrassing him and just eat their damn meal.
After breakfast, Izzy found himself taking a long steamy shower instead of cleaning the kitchen like he’d planned. Ryan had practically forced him bodily from the kitchen once Ben and Adam had left for school. He’d insisted again that cooks didn’t clean and Izzy had no choice but to walk away once it was obvious Ryan wasn’t going to budge on the matter.
Logan had disappeared back to his own room once they had started ‘bickering like old women’ as he put it. The more Izzy had resisted, the firmer Ryan had gotten in his resolve. When Izzy realized they had actually progressed to yelling at each other, their faces only inches apart, he’d stepped back and instantly surrendered. In that last second, before he waved the white flag, Izzy realized he didn’t want to fight with Ryan. He wanted to kiss him. No, not just kiss him. He wanted to eat Ryan Fearborn alive, climb him like a ladder and never come down, do bad bad things to him. Things he hadn’t even considered in a millennia.