Chapter 16
Joe lay tangled with Kaden. The light was fading and Kaden’s fingers were tracing idle patterns on Joe’s arm.
Joe was feeling…stunned. Not in a bad way.
In a did I really just do that? way. He’d thought he’d never fly again and he just had.
That brilliant and blinding burst of energy that had once made his hearts soar with delight, something he’d thought he’d lost forever, had been superseded by this.
The rush, then the release had been all-consuming.
It was exactly like climbing high with his wings beating hard until the air thinned, then plunging back toward the ground, waiting until the last possible second to pull out of the dive.
Exactly like that, but better because Kaden had shared it with him.
So that was mating. Or part of it. He couldn’t wait to try the rest.
“Hungry?” Kaden asked.
“No.”
“I should make us something.”
Joe clutched him tighter. “Not yet.”
Kaden, traitorously, fell asleep and Joe smiled.
The sort of instant, peaceful sleep of a man who did not overthink, catastrophise, or spiral as Joe had been doing since before the ship crashed.
He lay awake, thoughts ricocheting. He was lucky.
Incredibly lucky. When his wings had been ripped off and eaten, he’d thought he was close to the end of his existence.
But the lack of wings and the different way he had linked to the culture medium had meant he could climb up the side of the tank faster and more easily than the others.
He liked to think that those like him had hoped he did escape.
But they probably hadn’t. Then Kaden had seen him and saved him.
Joe wanted, above all things, to make Kaden happy.
He didn’t want to be a burden, didn’t want Kaden quietly resenting him while insisting everything was fine.
Joe couldn’t work, couldn’t contribute yet.
But there had to be other ways to make money.
Not stealing. Absolutely not that. But winning?
That was different. He was good at chess.
Very good. There must be other things he could quickly excel at.
There had to be some advantages in having a part-alien brain.
Eventually, he slipped out of bed, showered, and sat naked at the desk with Kaden’s laptop. He knew the password.
NightHorse45.
He logged in and googled.
By the time Kaden woke up, Joe was cooking pasta. He’d conducted a thorough investigation of the fridge, cross-referenced it with a recipe online, and felt quietly triumphant. Kaden only had two rings and a small oven, nothing like his dad’s kitchen, so what Joe had been able to do was limited.
Kaden groaned and pushed himself upright. “You’re cooking?”
“Yes.”
“Do I have time to shower?”
“Yes.”
“Are you…going to put clothes on?”
Joe glanced down at himself. “Should I?”
“Well, if we want to eat dinner instead of immediately abandoning it.”
“Ah.” Joe put on boxers, unsure whether it was a genuine request or a tragic misunderstanding.
They sat side by side on the bed to eat. Kaden had put underwear on too.
“I don’t want to be a burden,” Joe said quietly.
“You’re not.”
“I thought you’d say that,” Joe replied. “But I need to know it for myself too.”
“What are you thinking?”
“About a way to make some money. Legally. I could use my…ability.” He’d struggled for the right word.
Kaden squinted. “That already sounds shady. What ability?”
“I’m clever. Quick. I could win money.”
“Ah.”
“What did you think I was going to say?”
“Nothing. Win money how?”
“Gambling.”
“Oh God.” Kaden shoved pasta into his mouth as if he was trying to stop himself saying something.
“Have you ever gambled?” Joe asked.
Kaden chewed, swallowed and sighed. “I’ve never bet on a horse, never bought a lottery ticket, or a ticket to win one of those impressive houses they show on TV.
I have been to a casino with my friends.
We had a fifty-pound limit. Three out of five of us lost all their money.
One came out with fifty pounds. That was me, because I only bet twenty-five and told myself if I got back to fifty, I’d stop.
Euan came out twenty ahead. We had fun, but it wasn’t an evening we repeated.
There’s a small, systematic statistical advantage built into every casino game, which means the house wins in the long run. ”
“But…”
“It’s not a way to earn money.”
They went back and forth. Joe was earnest and logical, Kaden increasingly incredulous. Casinos. Statistics. Skill versus luck. Addiction. Rules. Limits. Kaden objected. Joe persisted. He understood all the points Kaden was making, but that was because he didn’t know what Joe could do.
“I understand that roulette and slot machines are governed by chance but poker and blackjack need skill and strategy,” Joe said.
“And luck! Can you play poker or blackjack?”
“It doesn’t seem difficult.”
Kaden laughed. “Right.”
“I can’t see any other way to make money. I’m good at chess, but I can’t play in a tournament until I’ve been here for a year. I can’t play poker online because I need a credit card and I’m not allowed to use the card that’s coming in the post to gamble online.”
“You can’t go into a casino without ID.”
“Which is coming.”
“And you need money.”
“Yes, but I’ll make more money. There’s no rule against me gambling. And if I’m careful, I can beat the house at the right games. Not always. But enough.”
“I don’t have money I can afford to lose.”
“I won’t lose. Not overall.”
Kaden sighed. “That’s what everyone thinks.
” Kaden studied him for a moment, then nodded slowly.
“Okay. I’ll ask if the others want to go again.
You can see what it’s like, what the games are like and the people who play.
Maybe you need to see how easy it is to lose.
Gambling’s addictive. It destroys lives.
I don’t want that to happen to you …or me. ”
“I won’t let it.”
But Joe could tell that Kaden wasn’t convinced.
“Tell you what,” Kaden said. “Why don’t I set up an account in my name and you can play online? Just promise me you won’t go over the limit I set.”
“I won’t.”
“One hour and you stop. Then I want the account closed and the cookies deleted, because I don’t need gambling ads haunting me for the rest of my life.”
“Okay. I won’t let you down.”
“That’s what everyone says right before they do something stupid,” Kaden muttered, setting it up anyway.
“This site offers a fifty-pound signing bonus, which sounds good but just shows how much they expect you to lose, and I’ll give you a hundred pounds.
While you’re doing that, I’ll make notes for a fossil hunting article.
And I know which of us is the most likely to make money. ”
Exactly one hour later, Joe closed the laptop and crossed his arms behind his head.
Kaden looked up from his phone. “Got it out of your system?”
Joe was working very hard not to smile.
“Did you lose it all?”
Joe pressed his lips together.
“I won’t be mad. I just don’t want you to do it again.”
“I transferred the money back into your account. Then I closed the account with the casino. And deleted the cookies.”
Kaden narrowed his eyes. “So…there was some money left.”
“Check Apple Pay.”
Kaden froze. Then stared. Then swore. “Fucking hell. Seven hundred and fifty pounds. You won six hundred pounds?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“Skill,” Joe said. “Strategy. Luck. And I played the maximum number of tables at the same time that they’d allow. Eighteen.”
Kaden looked at him for a long moment, then rubbed his palm over his chin. “Are there limits to what you can do, or should I just assume you’re amazing at everything?”
“I have no idea how to fly a plane. Or ride a horse. Or speak Chinese. Assuming I’m amazing at everything might be dangerous.”
“Talking of dangerous. I’ve booked axe throwing for tomorrow.” He stood and pulled Joe up and into his arms, laughing despite himself. “You better not be dangerous at that. But just how smart are you?”
“Pretty smart.”
Kaden snorted.
“Smart enough to know axe throwing is going to end badly.”
“For you?”
“For the targets,” Joe said. “Possibly for your pride.”
“Is that a challenge?”
“No, a fact.”
Kaden’s eyes sparkled.
Joe was beginning to realise how shit yet another part of his previous existence had been.
He assumed those who were chosen to mate on his planet not only felt honoured but enjoyed the experience, but then no one ever talked about it so maybe they didn’t enjoy it.
Maybe nobody enjoyed anything. They had no idea how much they were missing.
He fell asleep wrapped around Kaden and woke with his hand slung over Kaden’s waist. Kaden lay on his back with his arm thrown over his head.
My cock is hard.
Joe hadn’t had that happen in the morning until now.
A spontaneous erection. Wow. He squeezed his cock gently and bit back his moan of pleasure.
Oh, that’s nice. For a moment, he was tempted to make it even nicer but instead he leaned over and slowly trailed his tongue from the hollow at the centre of Kaden’s throat down his sternum to the point where the bone ended.
He felt Kaden’s heart jump as he woke up.
“What are you doing?” Kaden said with a groan.
“Licking your xiphoid.”
Kaden laughed.
“What’s funny?”
“That you know that word.”
“Am I doing something wrong? Isn’t this how I’m supposed to wake you?”