Ascension - Book Eight - Man x Man

Chapter 7

Slipping into the front seat of the sleek car, I rest my hands on the steering wheel and marvel at the smooth leather. The irritated light side-eye I receive from the passenger seat rewards me with a silent thrill that brings the grin back to my lips. "You are awfully chipper for someone who is about to wreck his husband's car..." Verando grumbles, opening the glove box to retrieve a flask. He unscrews the cap, taking a small sip and wrinkling his nose in disgust. 

"Lotta has been teaching me to drive." I retort, "And right now, you're technically my fiance once more, are you not?" Lifeblood courses through my veins, almost as good as the high I'd received from the drug. Freedom lay at my fingertips, much as I wanted to return to our home, I longed to live in this moment for just a bit longer. The promise of punishment no longer intrigued me, for this punishment was not one that I craved. I was not prepared to return to lockdown. 

Rolling his eyes in his normal amount of theatrics, he leans across the small space to buckle my seatbelt pointedly. His warm hand skirting across my collar bone, I inhale sharply, momentarily meeting his gaze as I catch the delicious scent of alpha male remnants. "Thank you for humoring me." I attempt to coax him out of the foul mood the evening had put him in. 

"You're giving me whiplash." He grumbles, "Perhaps a near-death experience might frighten you into taking things seriously."

With a sigh, I adjust my seat belt and wait for him to buckle in. Pressing the illuminated light blue button, the car roars to life before settling to a quiet purr, a predator ready to pounce. While Lotta had been teaching me to drive, this was a bit more than we had available to us in the meager offerings of France's transportation department. 

Given the mass production of war type vehicles due to the outbreak of feral felines, the car was one of the last of its breed of luxury type, quick action vehicles designed to be more for status and less for function. I thought of Marisol's warning, that Verando didn't think much about money as they had had so little of it growing up and run my fingers over the steering wheel once more. 

Was he concerned about my safety or the fact that this car had no replacement? "It isn't like you to be materialistic..." I hedge, unsure of how best to phrase such a question to a man who wasn't the most open on such topics. In most recent times, I suppose it had been me who'd been more stand-offish. I related to the vehicle, in some odd sense, in that I was also a dying breed. 

Powerful, a luxury more than a necessity, I didn't quite fit in with the other models either. I wish we could have had longer to remain with the elves, I couldn't help but wonder if I might feel differently about my lot in life rather than wallowing in self-pity for six months. 

My words soften him the tiniest bit, he takes another small sip off the flask. "It's not the car I'm concerned about. More so everything that surrounds it and those that reside in it." 

I could handle that. I was practically indestructible. Revving the engine in response, I can't help but grin as his hand grips the handle above the door for leverage, his arm flexed against the thin material of his rolled sleeve. "I'll be gentle." I tease, placing my hand on the gear shift and carefully sliding the car out of park. "

My foot touches the gas and the car lurches forward, roaring to life and causing a horrified reporter to leap out of the way as it stalls and coughs, dying on the spot. Red-faced, I stare at the road wide-eyed, stealing a glance at my warlord who does his best to keep his face composed and hide the fear behind the stone expression. "Gas, brake, clutch, love...." He manages. 

I catch his eyes inspecting the handle to make sure it was still intact from his iron grip. I restart the car, earning a blinking light that indicates it was not automatic. My experience with a clutch transmission was limited. "Right," I mumble, feeling my confidence in the decision ebbing. "It's sensitive."