Tall as a van, bulky, with a long mane, and hair around its hoofs, the draft horse whinnied in warning, and Adam rushed off the road just before the animal could have smashed into him. He let out a strangled cry when his shoe slipped, and he rolled into a ditch filled with moss and wet ferns. But at least he was safe.
Adam’s teeth clattered when he dragged himself out of the mud, but he stopped breathing when, against the perfect blackness of the trees, he saw the horse make a U-turn, as if it no longer charged into some imaginary war it was fighting with the fog. Lightning cracked the sky again, at a distance this time, but its white glow painted the perfect gothic picture when it illuminated the massive steed as it reared uncomfortably close to Adam.
He took air in sharp gasps, watching the animal return its front legs to the asphalt. Its beady eyes focused on Adam as if it took him for a predator to be cautious of, but it wasn’t running. It just watched.
The weather didn’t seem to have much effect on the giant, though when the wind blew from behind it, the water clinging to the equine’s mane sprinkled Adam’s face.
He remained motionless, in case something about his behavior would trigger yet more aggression in the animal, but when the horse leaned closer, inhaling Adam’s smell, tension slowly left his body and soaked into the moss.
“Uh… hi there,” he said, unsure how to proceed, but when the baby-soft skin of the horse’s muzzle rubbed his cheek, Adam touched the firm neck. “Good boy.”
“Jinx! Jinx, you bastard, come back here!” a man yelled somewhere from beyond the fog, hammering heavy boots on the asphalt at a frantic pace.
Adam was so thoroughly drenched that any chances of making a good first impression on the pastor lay in the chocolates, but at least there was someone he could ask whether he hadn’t taken the wrong turn somewhere after all.
A flashlight shone into his face the moment he stepped from behind the animal, forcing him to shut his eyes. “Um… Is this horse yours?” he asked, peeling his lids apart when the bright ray pointed at his ruined shoes instead.
The stranger shook his head, his silhouette still a blur when he approached in fast strides. “The fuck you doing here at night? Sitting in ditches to scare people like some drowner? Damn…”
Adam lost his voice at the onslaught of swearing, but when he saw the stranger’s face, it became impossible to say anything even when he tried.
Eyes framed by long lashes pinned him in place so firmly, it felt as if the ferns had curled around his feet like tentacles and kept him in place. If this man said the word, Adam would have been ready to make love to him here and now. In the rain, in a ditch, with wind howling above them and lightning striking each time either of them thrust their hips seeking illicit pleasure. And for no reason at all, he was sure their kisses would taste of raspberries and blood.
The man’s combat boots were tied halfway up, and he wore an all-black outfit of sweatpants and a T-shirt, which featured the word BEHEMOTH and an upside-down cross. And while Adam at first assumed he had long sleeves, he quickly realized the black and white patterns covering his entire arms were in fact tattoos. His hair was as long as the horse’s mane, and the wind tossed it back and forth, slapping it against the man’s face like black tentacles, only to peel the damp locks back and uncover the devastating beauty of his features. It was difficult to tell how old he was, but thirty was Adam’s wild guess.
“I slipped,” Adam said in a small voice, briefly hunching over when another lightning bolt cut through the dark sky, reflecting in the stranger’s green eyes.
The man placed the flashlight between his thighs and swiftly put a halter on the horse’s large head before pulling on the attached reins, so they faced one another. “What the hell were you thinking, Jinx? You’re all wet,” he said but patted the beast’s neck and took hold of the flashlight again before glancing Adam’s way.
The cool glow revealed a scar that ran through the man’s left eyebrow, parting the hair, and a small bump in the middle of his nose, as if it had been broken in the past. But as Adam’s gaze slid lower, he noticed a silver ring piercing the stranger’s septum, with a small ball hanging in the tempting dip above the lips. He was as magnificent as his animal. Tall. Broad in the shoulders, his eyes equally wild, and moves—just as graceful. And as man and beast stood side by side, Adam had no doubt those two were brothers in spirit too.
“Are you okay? The fucker burst out of the barn as if it was on fire.”
The question startled Adam out of his trance, and he crossed his arms over his chest, no longer even attempting to protect himself from the rain. “I think so,” he said, unsure how to deal with the insistent pull in his muscles. It was as if every fibre in his body longed to wrap around the stranger, and panic was already settling in. “Could you show me the way to the church?”
“It’ll be twenty minutes in this crazy weather. I can take you there. Least I can do to apologize for this monster scaring the shit out of you. I’m Emil.” He held out his hand, a roguish smile pulling on his handsome face, and Adam stalled, mortified that he’d be inviting the devil into his heart if he squeezed it.
But rejecting the offered hand would have been a slight that might forever damage his relationship with the locals, so he took a step forward and squeezed it, staring back for a bit too long when he sensed fresh meat in the air. The hand was supple yet firm, and so hot under that cold skin it might just be what was cooking for his pleasure. His mouth watered, and when Emil took away his fingers at last, Adam stood still like Lot’s wife once she got turned into salt and stared at him in disbelief.
“A-Adam.”
Emil smiled and entwined his fingers, creating a basket. Adam didn’t understand what that was about until Emil leaned down and urged him, “hop on.”
Jinx huffed, shook his head, and pressed his muzzle against the side of Adam’s head.
“What… on the horse?” But before Adam could have made a decision, Emil grabbed his foot and provided him with a stepping stool of hands. Adam went with it, and despite the awkwardness of it all, managed to drag one of his legs across Jinx’s hindquarters and straddle the animal. He didn’t think Emil needed to touch his ass when helping him up, but… maybe there had been a reason? Adam didn’t know anything about horses.
It was dark, but the moment he straightened on the saddleless back, height fright hit him like a baseball bat. “I—maybe this isn’t such a good idea.”
Emil pushed his sopping wet hair back and passed Adam his duffel bag. “Where’s your sense of adventure?” When he clicked his tongue, the horse leaned forward, making Adam fear for his life, but he managed to keep his balance until Emil hopped on in front of him.
After seconds of silence, Emil cleared his throat. “There’s no saddle, Adam. You have to hold on to me.”
Adam struggled to breathe. Arousal was no longer just an afterthought. It crawled up his thighs and tugged at his balls, as unwelcome as an itchy rash, but he stuffed his duffel bag in front of his crotch to reduce the potential for social death in the village of Dybukowo to a minimum. He hovered his hands close to Emil’s shoulders, because he wanted to touch them a bit too much, but when the man looked back and met his gaze with a roguish smile, Adam had no choice but to feel his firm muscle.