Page 72 of Epidermis

Konrad had gone to the restaurant, so Jasper picked up his car and went home. He’d sent a text when they got to New York, and he sent another when he got to the house, letting Konrad know he was home safe before he unlocked the door and let the torrent of dogs out. Hiyori had asked Shariah to come let them out while they were in New York for the day, but they still stampeded toward him like they hadn’t seen a human in a thousand years.

Jasper sat down in the grass and wrapped his arms around whichever of their bodies he could get to hold still enough for a hug. He didn’t think he would have taken the job in New York even if Konrad wasn’t a factor; he couldn’t imagine confining his pack to an apartment, no matter how many walks he’d take them on. Jasper buried his face in Legosi’s long fur and squeezed her. She whined, clamoring up onto him, her paws over his shoulders.

He went inside and took a shower, then went out to the barn with almost half a dozen dogs following. The wide doors opened with a creak of old wood. A large spider scuttled out of the barn and into the grass, and he gave Orion a gentle tsk when he made to chase it. He propped the doors open and pulled the tarp off his easel.

The shed was equal parts storage and studio, with all his tools and lawn care equipment against the walls, and a cataclysm of art supplies in the middle. A few sketches were scattered around on the walls or the counter that ran along the back wall. Tarps were spread out on the ground, splattered with mostly black paint, and the dogs had nearly chewed through an entire leg of his stool. His paints were lined up on top of a tool chest, though the ones he’d been using most recently were sitting on the ground beside his stool.

He took a seat, hooking his feet behind the rungs, staring at the almost blank canvas on the easel. All he’d managed last time was a few abstract shapes that could just as easily have been the result of slinging black paint at the canvas and seeing where it landed. He’d been lacking inspiration. He wasn’t now.

He grabbed a few brushes from the old mason jar that held his mismatched brush collection and dumped some black paint onto his palette. It only took a few minutes to paint the entire canvas black. He took off his shirt that had started to cling to his back with sweat. Even in the colder months the barn managed to get stuffy once he started moving, and he dropped his shirt onto the tool chest, leaving him in his paint-splattered jeans that were a size too big. They sat below his hipbones but went no further than that, maintaining their precarious position on his waist.

He selected a couple more paints and returned to his canvas. He’d already sent texts to both Hiyori and Konrad when he got home, letting them know he’d gotten there safely, so he turned on his music and started working.

Lines formed on a solid black background. White ink splatters with black lines on top that turned them into living things. He was finishing an outstretched wing when his phone rang and he saw that it was just after eleven; it had been almost two hours since he’d started. He wiped his hands on his jeans and swiped the screen, putting it on speaker and picking his brush back up. “Hey,” he said warmly.

“Hello, elskede. I apologize for taking so long to call, there was a bit of a mess at the restaurant that required my attention. Nothing dire, only time consuming.”

Jasper dipped his thin brush into blue paint. “Nothin’ to be sorry for. You sound tired, do you want to postpone reading our next chapter until tomorrow?”

“As loathe as I am to accept, I believe I will. But tell me before I go to sleep, how was your trip?”

“I hated it,” Jasper laughed. “New York is too damn congested. Gonna be up half the night trying to wind down.”

Silence. Konrad wanted to ask, and Jasper should have just told him, because he knew Konrad was only hesitating to ask because he didn’t want to push Jasper into making a decision prematurely. Jasper swallowed. “Do you want to come out to the house tomorrow?”

“Of course.”

“I’ll cook,” Jasper offered.

“Wonderful.” Konrad sounded tense; he didn’t know if this was a date or goodbye.

Jasper would have reassured him if he trusted himself to even touch the subject without everything spilling out at once, and there were some things he just didn’t want to say over the phone.

“Good night. Sleep well.”

“Good night, darling.” There was a quick intake of breath on the other end of the line, like Konrad meant to say something else, then the call disconnected.

Jasper laid his phone down and ran a hand over his face, realizing too late it wasn’t the hand he’d wiped clean and he probably had blue paint smudged on his face. Oh well. He picked up a clean brush and dipped it into the red.

Last chance, he told himself as he worked on the last of the painting that was nearly done. Their relationship had been moving fast ever since he stood in Konrad’s kitchen and agreed to give them a chance. If he was going to hit the brakes, now was the time. Not that he couldn’t ask to slow down at any time, he knew Konrad would if that was what he wanted, but what scared Jasper was that he didn’t want to.

This felt right. They felt right, and spending so much time together felt as natural as dipping into the lake in the summer. He took a deep breath and turned his music back on.

Sweat beaded on his forehead as he worked. He wiped his face again, smearing it red this time, probably streaking it violet in places. There was no stopping when he got to this point. He wouldn’t be able to sleep until it was done, which would probably be sometime in the morning. Most of the dogs had gone to sleep on the blankets he kept out here for them. There would be beds, but he didn’t trust insects not to make a home in them, and blankets were easier to wash. Siouxsie liked to paw up a bunch of blankets into a pile and sleep on them, so he’d had to put a dozen down just to give the rest of the pack somewhere to sleep by the time she was done nesting.

Orion sat up and started baying, his floppy ears falling back as he lifted his head. Of course, then Gomez woke up out of a dead sleep to start his best imitation of a siren, as huskies so loved to do.

Jasper got off his stool, paused his music and shushed them gently, scratching each of their heads so they knew they weren’t being reprimanded. Having an early warning system was invaluable when he liked to listen to his music so loud that he couldn’t hear anything else—one of the few loud things he could stand. Controlled loudness was the key.

He reached for the old .22 rifle he kept propped in the corner, but paused when he heard the crunch of footsteps outside. It had to be past midnight, who the fuck would be at his house?

Jasper let his hand fall without picking up the gun. It was to scare off wildlife that came too close, not people. He’d never had one of those wander up in the middle of the night before.

Konrad stepped into the open doorway of the shed and Jasper’s heart nearly stopped.

He was striking, as always, in slacks and that red cashmere sweater he’d let Jasper borrow when they went on the double date with Hiyori and Amara. His hair wasn’t styled and hung over one side of his forehead. “I’m sorry to visit unannounced. You said you would be up late, so I had hoped you would still be awake.”

“Don’t be sorry.” Jasper started toward him then stopped, remembering that he was sweaty and covered in paint. “What are you doing here, sweetheart? You sounded so tired on the phone.”