Uncovered (Dev and Lee Book 4) (51 page)

I grin. Of course Gerrard doesn’t waste time starting workouts. “Can I bring, um…” I founder mid-sentence, realizing that I want to bring Lee, but I don’t know if he’ll want to come. Fortunately, Zillo walks by just then, so I grab his arm. “This guy?”

Zillo looks startled; Gerrard looks faintly disapproving. “If he really wants to work.”

“What?” Zillo’s ears flatten. He looks between the two of us.

“Off-season workouts,” I say. “No argument. You’re coming.”

“Oh, um.” He looks at Gerrard. “Yeah. Sure. I guess. You got my number, right?”

“I do,” I say, turning on my phone to make sure.

When Zillo walks off, Gerrard fixes me with a look. “You make sure he comes,” he says. “I’m not going to waste time running after him.”

“I got it.” I wonder what I let myself in for. But it’s okay; Zillo’s a good guy and maybe he’ll pick up some work ethic.

Gerrard walks off, and I expect Carson to follow, but he doesn’t. He sticks his paws in his pockets and sways his feline tail, watching the coyote go, and then he turns to me. “You can bring whoever you want,” he says.

Just like that, like it’s no big deal. “Uh. Thanks.”

His muzzle twists, and it takes me a moment to process that he’s smiling at me. “Shit builds up during the season. Off-season, relax and work it out.”

“Yeah. Thanks,” I repeat, and lift a paw to wave as he walks off.

My phone beeps. I take it out of my pocket and look at the text message, which might have been sent just now, or at any time while I was in the air. I read the two words once, twice, and then just stare at them, hearing them in his voice. They feel vastly meaningful and at the same time completely redundant. Just like that fox, to choose his words that way. I slide my thumb over them and put the phone back in my pocket. There’s time to decide what the next step is.

Well, fuck. I
know
what the next step is. I just have to decide when to take it.

Epilogue (Lee)

Monday night. Hal’s off on a date with Pol, practically ran right to her the moment we got off the plane. I’m rattling around the apartment that isn’t mine, thinking too much in circles around my head. I need to write up the Vince King trial, and I want to write some stuff about Polecki coming out, in case anyone wants a football player’s boyfriend’s perspective (not ex-boyfriend; I refuse to believe that). Hanging around with Hal has rubbed off a reporter’s lifestyle on me, I guess. And there’s Gena; I want to call and ask her how Fisher’s doing, whether I should get Hal together with him. The lack of information about his condition after the game makes me nervous, though it’s hardly the biggest thing on my mind.

The TV and Internet are full of the championship game and Polecki’s startling coming-out speech. A pair of analysts trying to be funny have rated his coming-out speech compared to Dev’s. It’s close, but Dev’s wins because it was first. They talk about what it all means for the future of gay rights, for the UFL, for pro sports. They speculate on which sport will be next.

It’s hard to watch. Mostly it reminds me that Dev hasn’t answered my text. In Yerba, I could see the future; here in Chevali, I’m mired in the present uncertainty and loneliness, sweeping my tail across the carpet as I pace around, leaving more fur behind. I already vacuumed earlier today, already cleaned the dishes. The living room is as tidy as I can make it without disturbing Hal’s things. I could look at apartments up in the Yerba area, but I don’t want to take that step yet; I could (and probably should) look at the boards for the upcoming football draft.

I could just sit at the window and wonder why the dry air and the smell of the desert and cactus make me feel useless now.

It’s a glorious evening outside, all purple night sky above and cool breezes below. A family of desert rats ambles down the street, the mother pushing a stroller, the father having an animated conversation with the daughter who barely comes up to his waist. Walking in the other direction, a cacomistle and coyote, both male, both about my age, converse animatedly over their Starbucks cups. They might be a couple.

I turn away from the window and draw my knees up on the couch. There’s plenty of beer left in the fridge, Hal’s generic light brand. Perfect feeling-sorry-for-myself refreshment.

Beer in paw, unsatisfying taste lingering on my tongue, I am feeling like a crappy country song when there’s a knock at the door. I ignore it at first, and then it comes again, louder. I slam the bottle onto the end table hard, and stalk to the door to answer it.

“Hal’s not home,” I call through the door.

Then my nose catches up to my brain and I stop, throwing back the bolts on the door even before I hear the rumbled answer on the other side: “Good.”

He’s standing there in the hallway, all six-foot-two and gorgeous, in a neat suit with his Firebirds tie and a light saffron shirt that I bought for him. His gold eyes freeze me to the spot, icing my muzzle shut. He raises one eyebrow. “Wiley Farrel,” he says in an approximation of my voice.

“Why…” I clear my suddenly-tight throat. “You didn’t answer my…”

“Mm-hmm,” he nods. “Was going to, but, uh. I think…I think we need to…” He coughs, clears his throat.

My ears perk up. “Talk?”

He shakes his head. His whiskers twitch in a smile. “Well, yeah. But I was gonna say ‘fuck.’”

“Um.” I inhale so hard I worry I might hyperventilate, just drinking in the scent and sight of him. “This is—uh—this is Hal’s place…”

“Uh-huh.” He grins. “He said it was okay as long as I take you and the sheets home after.”

I flick my ears and try to hide the flush in them. I do shift my legs, as much to let him know that I still want that as to ease the awkward pressure rising in my groin. “Don’t we want different things, still?”

“Yeah.” He is trying hard not to lean in closer, inching forward and then pulling himself back. “But I dunno. I don’t think we can’t both be doing those things. And I think we can do them better together.”

“So we should talk.” My tail swishes behind me. I try to hold it still, but that pressure isn’t any better. I let it go again.

Now he does take a step forward, inches from me. He drops his voice. “Yeah. But I think we should fuck first. Because I want you so bad right now that if we talk first, I’ll agree to anything just to get you in bed again.”

“Well, if that’s what you want…” I can smell the answer to my question, loud and clear.

He lowers his head. His breath smells of something sweet and meaty, probably one of those burgers he loves so much. “I want it for the right reasons.”

“So why should I let you in bed before we talk?” Like I have a choice.

I don’t even see his paw come up under my chin. He lifts my muzzle gently with strong, warm fingers. “Because you want it for the right reasons, too.”

My breath catches. I know right then I’ll say anything that will bring him in the door, and I know how dangerous that is. “All right, doc,” I say.

The smile lights up his muzzle then, and he gives me a short tiger laugh at the nickname. His paws reach around to pull me toward him as his body steps forward, muscle and force driving me back into the apartment. His arms are iron around me, the rise and fall of his chest a quickening steam engine. “C’mere,” he murmurs into my ear, and kicks the door shut behind us. “Stud.”

I’m hard as a rock already, and I want to just drag him back to the office and pull that suit off him. I know this isn’t the time for talking, but words burst out of me before I can stop them. “I watched you,” I say. “In the game. You were great. I watched every minute. I’m—”

He lowers his muzzle to mine, silences me in the very best way. “I know,” he says in his velvet voice when he lifts his muzzle away, and his breath is so welcome on my nose and whiskers that I close my eyes, then open them again because I don’t want to stop looking at him. “I felt you there. We can talk about it…” His paw reaches down to my rear. “After.”

“Okay, but. But. This is just for us to talk.” I pant, my ear flicking. My heart’s racing and I feel giddy. I can’t even try to stop my tail from its back-and-forth exultation. My paws lock together at the small of his back, resting above his tail. “It doesn’t mean…doesn’t mean everything’s suddenly fine.”

“Uh-huh.” He scoops me up as easy as thought, my tail dangling free. “Which way to your bedroom?”

And I throw my arms around his neck and press my muzzle into his shoulder, and I show him.

Goddamn tigers.

Afterword

Dev and Lee, having finished the fourth book tied, will have to return in “Over Time” (January 2016), the fifth and final book in this series. But I have more stories of them and their friends in my mind, including a novel that takes place a few years down the line, so don’t despair. The “Out of Position” series has always had a definite end in my mind; I just didn’t expect it to take three quarters of a million words to reach.

Many, many thanks to those of you who have followed them for the better part of a decade now, from short stories posted on my website to this novel. Your support and excitement helps me make more books. Extra thanks to the people who have made and continue to make these books special: my writing colleagues Ryan Campbell, David Cowan, Malcolm Cross, Kevin Frane, and Watts Martin, who have provided inestimably helpful feedback; artists BlackTeagan and Kenket for their amazing illustrations; editor Jeff Eddy and Sofawolf Press for their unfailing support and professionalism; and my husband Kit Silver for his feedback on the story, his enthusiasm for it, and his love and support for me. I have said many times and will say many times again: if you love these stories, you owe him a thank-you, because they would not be possible without him.

See you all in a year and a half!

-Kyell, July 2014

About the Author

Kyell Gold took up furry erotica writing after high school, making the team at his small liberal arts college as a walk-on. He was drafted late by Sofawolf and blossomed in the professional league, earning four Ursa Major awards in his first three years as a pro for his novels and short stories. He has since won eight more Ursa Major awards, including one for "In Between," the first Dev and Lee story, one for Out of Position, which also won two Rainbow Awards for gay fiction, and one for Isolation Play, the second Dev and Lee book. At least one more Dev and Lee books is planned following Uncovered.

His various online presences are linked from www.kyellgold.com, and you can follow him on Twitter at @KyellGold. In the off-season, he lives in California with his husband.

About the Artist

Blotch was one of the top-rated high school furry artist prospects of 2006 and starred in college before being made the #1 pick of Sofawolf. He excelled in his first two years, garnering several convention GOH appearances. He has won the last three Ursa Major awards for Best Published Illustration (including a 2009 win for the cover of
Out of Position
), and in 2008, his full-color graphic novel
Dog’s Days of Summer
won an Ursa Major for Best Other Literary Work. His next project is the Nordguard Adventure, a painted graphic novel to be released in three parts.
Across Thin Ice
, the first volume, has earned wide acclaim, and part two,
Under Dark Skies
, is forthcoming.

His all-ages gallery can be found at
www.blotchinc.com
. For more information on the Nordguard Adventure, please visit the official website at
www.nordguard.com.

Other Books by Kyell Gold

The following books by Kyell Gold are available from Sofawolf Press (
http://www.sofawolf.com
) in print, except where noted, and from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other retailers in electronic form:

Argaea

Volle
– The story of how Volle came to Tephos, and the first adventure he had there.

The Prisoner’s Release and Other Stories
– The story of how Volle escaped from prison, and the story of what happened after, plus two other stories following characters from “Volle.”

Pendant of Fortune
– Volle returns to Tephos to defend his honor, but soon finds himself fighting for much more.

Shadow of the Father
– Volle’s son, Yilon, must travel to the far-off land he is meant to rule, but he will have to fight treachery to take the lordship.

Weasel Presents
(print edition from FurPlanet.com) – Five short stories from the land of Argaea, including “Helfer’s Busy Day” and “Yilon’s Journal.”

Forester Universe

Waterways
– The full story of Kory’s journey to understand himself, and what it means to be gay.

Bridges
(print edition from FurPlanet.com) – Hayward seems content to set up pairs of his friends. But what does he really need for himself?

Science Friction
(print edition from FurPlanet.com) – Vaxy never took sex seriously, until he found out the professor he was sleeping with was married...

Winter Games
(print edition from FurPlanet.com) – Sierra Snowpaw was an unsure high school student when someone he thought was a friend changed his life. Now he’s fifteen years older and still looking for answers.

The Mysterious Affair of Giles
(print edition from FurPlanet.com) – A servant in a British manor house tries to solve a murder (coming Spring 2014).

Dev and Lee

Out of Position
– Dev the football player and Lee the gay activist discover how to navigate their relationship.

Isolation Play
– The continuing story of Dev and Lee, as they contend with family and friends in their search for acceptance.

Divisions
– As Dev’s team fights to make the playoffs, Lee fights to keep his sense of self.

Dangerous Spirits

Green Fairy
– A gay high school senior struggling through his final year finds a strange old book that changes his dreams and his life.

Red Devil
– A gay fox who fled his abusive family in Siberia seeks help from a ghost who demands he give up his gay lifestyle.

Black Angel
– Third book in the series, coming in 2015.

Other Books

The Silver Circle
(print edition from FurPlanet.com) – Valerie thought the old hunter was crazy when he warned her about werewolves—until she met one.

In the Doghouse of Justice
– Seven stories of superheroes and their not-so-super relationships.

Follow
http://www.kyellgold.com/wpblog
for further updates on upcoming publications.