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Keaton?
    Keaton was everything he’d ever wanted in a mate. More actually, Bit had extra…well, bits. Chay’s lips twitched, but he gained control quickly.
    Somehow, under the circumstances, he didn’t think Keaton would share his amusement. “When I was little I used to dream about you.”
    “Me?” Bit’s voice squeaked.
    Chay nodded. “I knew my mate would have blue eyes and blond hair.” He smiled fondly. “My mom used to tell me no way, no how was I getting a white mate. She insisted my mate would be one of us, Apache or maybe Lakota like her. But I knew. I wasn’t a bit surprised when I walked into that exam room and saw that pale blond fur.”
    “You are so lying through your teeth.” Bit chuckled.
    “No I’m not. I used to dream of my mate. Hair like sunshine, eyes like the sky…that’s what I used to tell my mother.”
    “Not that. I believe that. I can’t say I’ve ever dreamed of you, but I’ve always had a preference for men that look like you. I meant lying about www.samhainpublishing.com 37
    J.L. Langley
    not being surprised. I bet you freaked. I mean I know damned well I’d have freaked if I rescued my mate and it turned out to be a woman.”
    Chay grinned. “Yeah, okay, fine I was a little startled at that, I kept trying to figure out how there were female wolves and I’d never heard of any. But I wasn’t surprised that you had blond hair.”
    “I would have left,” Bit whispered.
    “Huh?”
    “I mean if my mate was a girl. I’d have left. Well, maybe not left, I’d have made sure she was okay, but I’d never have told her I was her mate.”
    Chay raised an eyebrow. He had considered it briefly, but he knew he never could have walked away. He didn’t think Keaton could either, the attraction was just too strong. “Are you sure about that?”
    Bit nodded. “Yeah, I…think so.”
    He grinned. “This your way of telling me if I were a girl you’d kick me to the curb, Bit?”
    Keaton shook his head, smiling. “You don’t believe me? You’re a guy and I’m trying to kick you to the curb.”
    “Touché. But guess what? You aren’t going to. I won’t allow it.”
    Bit got pretty quiet after that, but he didn’t argue. Chay took that as a good sign. It gave him hope that Bit would eventually realize this was the real deal.
    As they drove onto the Reservation, Keaton started asking questions.
    The man had a real interest in tribal history, not all that surprising since he had a doctorate in history.
    “Do you have shovel-shaped incisors?”
    “Huh?” Chay blinked. How had they gone from the history of his tribe to his teeth?
    “Your teeth. Run your tongue over the back of your incisors and see if they curve in, like a shovel.”
    “I know what incisors are. I meant why?”
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    “It’s a trait of indigenous people, that’s why.”
    He ran his tongue over his teeth. Oh, hey, he did have incisors that dipped in, didn’t everyone? “Yeah, they do.”
    “Cool.” Keaton practically bounced.
    Chay liked how excited Bit got. He filed it away in his memory.
    Keaton plus history equaled excited, happy, bouncy Keaton.
    After that, Bit rattled off all sorts of questions. Did he speak the Apache language? Did he ever participate in any of the tribal dances and ceremonies? On and on it went. By the time they got to Chay’s parents’
    house he feared being dissected and put under a microscope.
    They pulled to a stop in front of his parents’ house and Bit got quiet again. Chay turned off the truck and pocketed his keys. “‘Sup, Bit?”
    “What if they hate me?”
    “They won’t. Come on.” God, he hoped he was right. His mom could be a real bitch at times. She had a real prejudice against whites. He opened his door and exited. Out of habit he walked around and reached for the handle of Bit’s door.
    Bit frowned at him and opened the door himself. “I can open my own door, Chay.”
    Chay chuckled, half-expecting