***

Humans were shorter as a general rule, so it was easy for Ryder to look over the heads of almost everyone else. Although Danny had denied that there were any dangers on his way to work, he needed to remain in a state of loose alert. The smells were not as offensive, or he was just getting used to them. It helped that Danny stood so close to him. Ryder was holding the bar above them with both his hands.

“You can hold on to me,” he told Danny when the carriage moved, making him sway for a moment.

“Are you sure?” The candid brown eyes looked up at him, like two question marks.

“I’m taking up a lot of room, and I need to escort you, which means that I must keep you under my eyes at all times. That is the easiest way.”

Danny smiled cutely and unsure and then wrapped one arm around Ryder. The pleasant smell that made this human so compatible with a wolf’s sensitive nose spread calmness throughout Ryder’s body. He stared directly at the crown of Danny’s head. For a moment, he felt an inexplicable need to lean over and place a small kiss on the neatly combed hair.

Those were impossible thoughts. His mate was close. This human offered his kindness and nothing else; Ryder needed to remain aware of their situation. He hoped a dangerous situation would occur so he could prove his worth by protecting his human host. Repaying him with so little didn’t sit well with Ryder.

***

Danny was no longer walking on solid ground. He walked on clouds, and while maybe they weren’t in the lucky number nine category, they were pretty fluffy and good. Without his having to say anything, Ryder had protectively wrapped one arm around him, and that was how he was taking Danny to work.

Through the glass doors, Danny could spot Kat and Jeff behind the counter, chirping happily and folding t-shirts that didn’t need that much folding. The two guys were both cuter than him, and that meant they scored more points with the gay male clientele than Danny. They never forgot to rub it in whenever they got the chance, which was one of the reasons why Danny didn’t like his work that much.

Would they be able to spot him? Danny blushed as he realized – again – that he was using Ryder in a strange way. Not all was lost. He could quickly sneak out from under Ryder’s strong arm and scurry inside before Kat and Jeff noticed him.

“This is where I work. I finish at six. Do you have a phone?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“I need to give you my number.”

“I assume you know what to do.”

Danny observed the old smartphone Ryder was holding but said nothing. Maybe the big surprise wasn’t that such a model was still sold – and used – but that Ryder had one at all. He took it from Ryder and quickly saved his number in the phone’s contact list. The few names he noticed made him understand more and more where Ryder was coming from. A world without so much dependence on technology – go figure – did exist.

“Danny?” Kat’s obnoxious voice interrupted his musings about his guest and newly acquired friend. “Who’s this?”

Danny watched with chagrin as Kat sashayed his way toward Ryder, one hand extended as if he expected it to be kissed. Kat was tall, blond, pretty, and had the poutiest lips ever. It was too late to regret his mistake. Since Ryder didn’t appear opposed to sex with men, Kat was likely to charm him off his feet.

“I am Danny’s guardian,” Ryder replied promptly, taking everyone by surprise.

“Guardian?” Kat asked, forgetting to play cute and pretty for a moment, his blue eyes growing wide behind his thin-rimmed glasses.

Danny grabbed Ryder’s arm and wrapped himself around it. He didn’t want his pretentious colleagues to laugh at Ryder’s simplicity. It didn’t make the man a simpleton, and these two divas had no right to mock it.

“He’s a friend,” he said right away. “By the way, hello, Kat.”

It was completely lost on his colleague that his response was a jab at his lack of manners. Danny had given up on hoping to make Kat and Jeff mend their ways a long time ago, but he didn’t want to look like a terrible pushover in Ryder’s eyes.

“Friend? What sort of friend?” Kat narrowed his eyes. “Ah, are you two sleeping together?”

“Yes,” Ryder replied.

“No,” Danny said at the same time, earning a dumbfounded look from Kat.

“Ah, is it that sort of sleeping?” Ryder asked, completely unfazed and incapable of reading the room, which no longer took Danny by surprise.

“One of you is lying,” Kat accused, stabbing the air with a long index finger. He shook his head and then touched Ryder’s shoulder. “Is Danny a wet blanket like usual? What’s your name, sugar?”

Danny was close enough to see Ryder’s nostrils flaring. He staggered slightly when Ryder shrugged his shoulder to get rid of Kat’s touch. It was only for a moment because Ryder caught him by his waist right away.

“It is definitely not sugar,” Ryder said. “Your scent is offensive.”

Danny thought he’d have to find a replacement for his jaw. Kat stared at Ryder in disbelief and even took a step back.

“Danny,” he squealed, “your boyfriend was rude to me!”

“Yeah, yes, I mean sorry,” Danny rambled, “he has a condition… a very sensitive nose… and you know, Kat, that your cologne can sometimes be too much--”

“Excuse you?!” Kat raised his voice.

Damn, he was trying to correct one thing and ended up taking another wrong step. He waved helplessly. “I mean, it’s amazing, you know it is, but it’s not for everyone. I mean, not everyone can wear it with the same confidence you do.”

Kat humphed and squared his shoulders. He turned on his heel and threw at Danny over his shoulder, “You’re late.”

Danny knew he wasn’t, but Kat could report him to their manager for imaginary faults. It wouldn’t be the first time.

“I have to go,” he said to Ryder. “If you need anything, call me on the phone, okay?”

“Are you in trouble because of me? Tell the man with the offensive smell that I apologize.”

“No, no, no trouble at all.”

“If it is dangerous, allow me to guard you while you’re at work.”

“No,” Danny replied, feeling rightfully horrified by the idea. And stimulated in all the wrong ways at the same time. Ryder was too sweet to offer his assistance like that. “Please, go about your day, and don’t worry. See you at six, bye.”

***

Ryder watched Danny disappear behind the glass doors. That man had treated Danny as if Danny was his inferior. Such relationships were often encountered in the human world, which meant that Danny had a bad time at work. He was most likely exploited too.

But all those things weren’t his problem. He needed to find his mate.

TBC