Free Yield by Cyndi Goodgame

“ At your service.”
    So much for flying under the radar.  I was getting the realm ’s full attention.  The same gaspers went all out again with a full on performance of lifted hands and murmured gossip. 
    “I let that one slide, but a lady shouldn ’t use such language.”
    “ I don’t usually.”
    His brow furrowed. 
    Caydon and I made our way through the line receiving many stares, greetings, and gasps at the oddity he was presenting them with.  I didn’t cause it, so I didn’t care.  He seemed to enjoy it more than me anyway.
    At the table again, he tried to make small talk.  Mostly favorite colors and books and stuff.  I didn ’t mind, but it wouldn’t make me less leery of the guy.  He seemed much more at ease with me than I was with him.
    At last, we were heading to my parent ’s room and the pertinent, if even possibly insignificant, information I sought.
    Inside the four walls, Caydon closed me in with him.  I counted the steps he paced behind me on the way to the room just to see how far in he would invade my personal space in front of others, but here he held no holds barred.
    “I can’t do this if you’re going to watch over my shoulder the entire time,” I tried to say politely.  I stood by the table he pointed to when entering the room.  He followed less than a footstep behind me.
    “ I won’t crowd you.”
    I lowered my eyes, “What do you call this?”  I waved my hands to show the little space between us.
    “Friendly distance.”
    “We ’re not friends.  I met you yesterday.”
    “But I ’d like to be.”
    “FYI , Caydon.  You may have been trapped down in this rabbit hole of a home, but where I come from guys don’t move this fast on a girl.  I don’t know you and you’re making me uncomfortable. Besides, I already know why you’re being nice.”
    He pouted.  A seriously hot guy a foot taller and built like a rock, pouted and ducked his head.  I felt like a heel.
    “Um, I just want you to lay off on the overdone like beefsteak move making.  For now, let’s just meet and greet.  I’m not one of your closed in the pin kind of girls.”
    He was weirded out by my words.  I might have even overdone it a bit to push him away, but it worked.
    “Like the shirt,” He stared a little too long.  Considering where the words are written, it made me squirm.
    “Thanks.  It was a birthday gift.”
    With that, he frowned big-time, but I smiled.
    “Can a new friend give you something as well?” he pushed the frown away, but not entirely.
    “ I don’t need anything, Caydon.” Now I felt bad.
    “Humor me.”
    Without much movement, he held out a box.  A small box.  A jewelry box. 
    “ I don’t want that.”
    “Just look first.  Then decide.”
    Ugh!  I opened it fast and slid out the prize.  It was a bracelet, but not new.               
    “It was your mother ’s.”
    Something better than excitement bubbled in my chest.  I jumped up and hugged Caydon around the middle.  “Oh, thank you.  I can ’t thank you enough for this.  Wow!  Thank you.”
    I reached back and looked up at him.  He looked down at my eyes, but it was a look full of pride.  He was excited for me.
    “I’m glad you like it.”
    A thought surfaced. “Is there more?”
    His eyes darted to a table and back to me.  “Yes, but I don’t advice you indulge until things pan out here at our realm.”
    My hands dropped down and it was then I realized that my hug didn ’t create the same reaction as it does with Ames.  Caydon didn’t tense up and go stiff.  Nor did he lose the power of speech or try to back away from me. 
    Caydon was warm and caring despite his outer rude guy appearance, but he didn ’t create the heat in me the way Ames did.  And from the hug, he didn’t feel that way about me either.
    He lugged his huge self over to the plush antique chairs across the room from the bed.  I looked at the book lying on the table he ’d indicated for me to