Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 10

Damian whispered back, letting other changes take place, scales on his arms, the razor-sharp battle fin at his elbow, the canines he repeatedly sank into the mating mark on Kyle's shoulder when he mounted him. He changed for only a few seconds, just enough to prove his words, that Damian really wasn't human.
    "Oh, my god," Kyle murmured. "What are you?"
    "I told you, Kyle," he replied softly, returning his features back to look human. "I'm a Briny Nix, a water spirit, and you are my Adelfi Psychi , my soul mate." He smiled slightly. At least Kyle was listening now, and he hadn't shoved him away. They stood toe-to-toe, hip to hip, chest to chest. "Think back when we met, love," he pleaded. "You told me yourself that you'd never fucked on the first date before, but you couldn't help yourself with me. That's because your soul felt the draw to mine. Something in you recognized that we were meant to be together."
    Kyle was nodding, but his eyes were a bit glazed. Not wanting to overload his mate, he pecked a kiss to his lips and then grinned. "You always give me a hard time about swimming in the bayou all year long. Now you know why it doesn't bother me," he teased.
    His mate finally truly focused on him, his gaze searching his face. "Right, that makes sense," he whispered after a second. Damian grinned, pleased they were making headway, but then Kyle's eyes rolled to the back of his head and if Damian hadn't been pressed against him, his limp body would have dropped like a stone.
    ****
    "Gods, you really suck at this. No wonder you never told him."
    "Shut the hell up, Darius. I trusted you to keep father off my back. You know I never wanted to be his heir," Damian snapped back.
    "Then you shouldn't have gone to Baton Rouge. I told you Victor was living there now," his husband's brother countered.
    Damian groaned. "Ugh. I forgot you told me that."
    Kyle stayed still, letting the two voices roll through his mind as he slowly returned to consciousness. What the hell happened? He searched his memory, trying to remember why he was lying on the bed, still clothed except for his shoes, with a throw blanket tucked around him. Then he remembered, and he had to force his body to take several long deep breaths to keep his brain from panicking all over again.
    The bed dipped next to him and fingers ruffled through his hair in a familiar soothing way. Except now everything was different. Kyle jerked away and scrambled up to press his back against the headboard. The hurt look on his husband's face, like he'd just kicked his favorite puppy, nearly had Kyle crawling into Damian's lap. Instead, he held up a hand and softly said, "I'm still assimilating. Please, just give me a little more time."
    "Are you going to reject me?" Damian whispered the question, hardly able to meet Kyle's eyes.
    He immediately shook his head, and Kyle realized the unconscious decision was completely accurate. Unless … "Do you act different around me than anyone else?"
    Damian frowned. "I … I don't think I understand the question," he admitted.
    Kyle nibbled his bottom lip for a second, brows scrunching as he tried to figure out exactly what he wanted to know as well. Letting out a sigh, he leaned forward and touched Damian's cheek. He watched Damian nuzzle into his palm for a second, then Kyle asked, "Your personality, I guess. Are you different when you're with your… people? Would you treat me different? Is that why you've kept us separate?"
    "I will always treat you with love and compassion, my heart," Damian answered quickly. "Even if we were in my people's court, it would be no different, and you would be treated with the same respect deemed appropriate for my station."
    Shaking his head, Kyle grimaced. "I have no idea what that means. Why didn't you trust me enough to tell me about this?" That was really the crux of the problem, wasn't it? "I feel like you didn't trust me," he repeated.
    He watched Damian's face fall, a grimace crossing the handsome man's features. "It's not that I didn't trust you, Kyle," Damian murmured. "I had planned to tell you."
    "When?" he asked incredulously. "We've been married over two and a half years. We've lived together for over three. How you talked me into moving in with you after only knowing you for two weeks is still a mystery to me," he admitted. Once upon a time, Kyle hadn't believed in love at first sight, but Damian had made him believe it. Now he wondered if that faith had been misplaced.
    Damian reached out