Flirty and Red

Yeah, there were a few in here he knew didn’t need to get a concealed weapons license, much less own a gun, but he wasn’t going to worry about them. Instead, he needed to get this done, get to the gym, check on the shipment, and call his father. His father and his fear of the current Ilios was the reason he was here, after all. Why would the Ilios, their clan leader, think capturing Red like a pawn on a chessboard would be the right thing to do?

They were griffins, children of the sun. It was their duty to protect knowledge and to guide humankind. But instead of being guided by the light, their Ilios had driven Red’s family into darkness.

Get your license. Protect yourself. Our people are coming, and you need to be ready. This Ilios is different. He doesn’t abide by our laws. You’re not safe.

A gun, though, had not been his choice. Red knew how to fight, had trained just like his younger brother Jacobi and their father before them. But there were those unlike him who’d discarded the rules, choosing the weaker alternative instead.

Where was the Atkina, the ray of the Ilios, in all of this? Shouldn’t she help Laith Baher see all of this was wrong? The Ilios was supposed to choose someone strong enough to challenge them, someone who would act as a just extension of the Ilios’s power. A person who directed the Stemma, the Ilios’s corona. Under the right leader, the Atkina and the soldiers, known as the Stemma, shined a light on the world, giving aid to those who needed it and protecting the weak. Under Laith, they were destructive and fearsome, forcing their people to run and hide.

It didn’t matter what course the Ilios had chosen. Red would do what would make his father happy and take the path that would keep his family safe.

Looking over the room, he picked a spot near enough to the front to hear but close enough to the edge he could leave if he needed. Setting his things down, he took a seat.

Settling back, he stretched out his long legs, his steel toe boots pointing upward. At least he was at the front. He was a big guy, and having to squeeze in the back like a few of the other participants would have killed him.

“Hi, I’m Sebastian,” his table partner said with his hand sticking out.

Red didn’t care what the guy’s name was. He wanted to get this training finished. A getting-to-know-you session wasn’t on that list.

But his mama hadn’t raised him to be disrespectful.

He shook the man’s hand. “Red.”

“Oh, but the instructor said your name was Gentry Redmond when he went through the list at the check-in. I guess you prefer Red.”

Whiskey brown eyes that Red wasn’t noticing at all gazed at him expectantly, and without fail, Red followed through.

“I do.”

There, two words. That ought to end it.

“Well, I bet until people learn your last name, they probably think the reason is because of that gorgeous red hair of yours.” Sebastian laughed

The sound slid down Red’s spine and raced over his nerve endings. The effect touched his beast, and it stirred.

What the hell?

“Huh,” was Red’s stellar response.

Was the flirty guy wearing lip gloss? His lips were wet and plump.

Kissable, if a body liked kissing a man.

“Well, my name is Sebastian Del Marco. I’m a traveling nurse. What about you?”

“Architect,” Red answered.

When exactly was this training supposed to start?

“Okay, you build. I heal. It could almost rhyme if you stretched it out a bit.” The man almost danced, gesturing along with his observation.

“So, where you from?” Sebastian asked.

What the hell kind of name is that anyway? Who willingly names their son Sebastian? Should have called him Flirty.

The guy had been talking non-stop so far, chatting Red up. The room wasn’t a club, and Red wasn’t interested in men, human or not, no matter what his griffin thought. He was barely interested in women.

Hell, Red didn’t have the time, with his business increasing. People were interested in building houses. He was interested in getting paid to create them. Being an architect provided a roof over his head and gave him his new truck. His main focus was to be there for his family, help out on the farm, and give his dad solid peace of mind.

Having sex with anyone is the furthest thing from my mind right now. Hang out with the guys? Yes. Do one? No.

He was surprised to learn Flirty was a nurse. The guy would make a hell of a reporter. Maybe one of those entertainment news people the way the questions kept peppering him, seasoning him up with his who, what, when, and where’s.

He had to admit that Flirty was a nice-looking guy if someone were checking him out—dark-haired, dark brown eyes, and fit. Seemed to love color and things that sparkle