Page 6 of Foxer Upper (Harmony Glen #8)
“And probably a win for me too. I foresee you making lots of trips to the hardware store for tools and supplies.”
Bix reappears to take our dessert order: Maggie wants some sort of fudge cake, while I opt for classic New York cheesecake.
Knowing Vienne, both desserts probably came out of the freezer aisle of some warehouse store, but I won’t complain.
It’s hard to screw up cheesecake, and Hip Hops’ food menu is pretty impressive when you consider Vienne only cares about making and serving drinks. I think the food is Gilly’s influence.
“So,” Maggie says as we wait on cakes, “will you tell me about vulpine culture? I don’t know anything about it. Are you more similar to humans or foxes? Or equally different from both?”
I sip the dregs of my second beer and think about how to answer. “That’s a complex question. Physiologically, we’re more like foxes than humans, though we have qualities of both, of course. For instance, we can obviously speak, and we live in houses rather than outdoor dens.
“But it’s not unusual for a vulpine couple to have multiples at birth, which is more foxlike. I don’t want to use the word litters, but twins and triplets are common if both parents are vulpine. Sometimes even quads. My brothers and I are triplets.”
Her eyes go big. “Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever met a triplet. I mean, I know humans have them, but outside of IVF, they’re pretty rare. Wild that they’re common to your species.”
I fiddle with my fork. “Maybe. But it seems normal to me.” Talking about my brothers is not my favorite thing in the world. Theo is fine, but Marc…what a dick.
“Let’s see, what else…we do have our own language that’s unique to our species, because it requires our specific anatomy to make the sounds. But we obviously learn and speak human languages as well. Everyone in my immediate family speaks both English and French.
“I can’t really speak to human romantic relationships, as I’m not human myself, but from what I’ve observed, vulpine relationships tend to be more intense. We have more mating rituals, like bonding and scent marking, than humans do.”
It’s hard to tell in the dim glow of the twinkle lights, but I think Maggie might be blushing. She takes a large gulp of water.
“That’s fascinating,” she finally says.
“Tell me more about you,” I encourage. “You haven’t mentioned much about your own family or hobbies.”
“Okay, that’s fair. I’m an only child, but I have tons of cousins.
My mom is one of five kids, and my dad is one of seven.
So I have relatives coming out of my ears.
I’m 28 and I’ve been best friends with Laney Wong since about fourth grade.
Even when I didn’t live here, we stayed in touch and got together whenever we could.
“Um…when I’m not destroying my house, I like to read and take bubble baths, and I like hiking when the weather is cool.
I love mysteries and puzzles, whether it’s a jigsaw or an escape room—I get a kick out of solving things.
And of course, I love to make stuff. Whether it’s sewing, crafting, thrift flipping, painting…
it doesn’t matter if I’m good at it. I love the process of creation.
And if I can save something from a landfill by repurposing it, all the better. ”
Bix chooses that moment to drop off the desserts and Maggie dives in with gusto. When we’re finished, she leans back with a sigh. “That’s the most I’ve eaten in ages. It was delicious, but I’m stuffed.”
“Me too,” I say. “Did you drive or walk here tonight?”
“Walked. Wanted the exercise and didn’t want to deal with a car if I was drinking.”
“Perfect,” I say. “I walked too. Let me walk you home. It will help settle the meal.”
She gives me a shy smile and stands, pulling a credit card out of her wallet. “Thanks, that would be nice. And let me pay for dinner, okay? Since the whole reason for you coming was to discuss helping me.”
“No,” I say, shaking my head. “That’s not necessary. I’m happy to pay.”
“Nope.”
“Maggie, don’t be stubborn. You told me today that your budget is small. Let me treat you to this.”
“No, but if we’re going to butt heads, how about we split it?”
“Fine,” I say. “We can compromise.”
We pay, and once everything is settled, I walk her to her house. Spending time with her, seeing her inside, making sure she’s safe for the night…it feels surprisingly natural. Like something I want to keep doing.
And I have no idea what to make of that.
MAGGIE
I can’t stop thinking about Gabe. Before tonight’s dinner, I knew he was friendly and helpful and I was admittedly intrigued by him.
After all, I’ve seen Disney’s Robin Hood.
I know a hot fox when I see one. He looked different tonight, too.
Instead of coveralls, he was wearing tail-accommodating jeans and a button-down shirt.
The twinkle lights highlighted all the red tones in his fur, and I realized that he’s even more good-looking than I originally thought.
All the same, I didn’t expect to be attracted to him. Like…really attracted.
But then he offered to help me for free, talked openly about his life, and then…he made those comments about vulpine mating rituals. About how they’re intense and involve bonding and marking. I don’t really even know what that means, but the idea of it has me tossing and turning as I try to sleep.
I can’t stop imagining what it might be like to kiss him. How different it would be from kissing a human man, given the shape of his face and the sharp teeth and the fur. I can’t help imagining what else might be different from a human man.
The ache between my thighs tells me I’ve already got it bad, and with a groan, I smash my pillow over my face.