Page 128 of Wildest Dreams

Tanner strokes his thumb up my jaw, eyes too striking, too penetrative.

“But it’s your thing,” he rumbles. “And there is some money in it.”

“Not the kind of money that they’re after,” I explain.

“But it’s a market that they may as well be involved in, because if they aren’t providing the properties then someone else will.”

It’s a good point, even though I can’t be sure my parents will care.

I hum quietly down at my sparkly toes.

Tanner’s fingers push gently beneath my chin, tilting my face up to his as he presses his body against mine.

“It’s perfect,” he tells me. “You did so fuckin’ good.”

I swallow and force myself to maintain his intimidating eye-contact.

“Thank you,” I breathe shakily.

“You’re welcome,” he replies, his voice confident and hard.

A thought flashes through his eyes and he glances back at the shower before looking down at me again. His palms squeeze around my waist as I caress my hands over his chest.

“Did I tell you that, uh… did I tell you that the hockey team that I signed to is this one? The one in Larch Peak?”

I blink up at him in surprise. “No, I don’t think that you told me that,” I whisper.

He links his fingers through mine, eyes on our hands as he nods his head.

“Well, this is where I’m gonna be. In Larch Peak. Playing hockey.”

“Okay,” I whisper, my thoughts so loud that I swear he’ll be able to hear them. “So, have you… bought a place here yet, or are you still looking around?”

“Still looking around,” he answers immediately, eyes shooting back to mine. “What about you? Do you know where you’re gonna move to?”

I shake my head, the tension in the room almost too much to handle.

Maybe I’ll move back home to where my parents are, or maybe I could move to be close to Connell. But the fact of the matter is that there’s nowhere I need to be.

If my parents let me take up my dream role in their company then the majority of the job is going to be in individual small towns, my home base permanently in flux.

But it would be pretty nice to have a place to call home.

Tanner looks down at me, eyes burning, and then nods once – silently letting me know that he’ll drop the subject… for now.

Suddenly we catch movement over to the side and Tanner quickly turns to his left, brow lifting in surprise. When he sees our reflections looking back at us in the vanity mirror above the sink, his handsome smile meets mine, mouth lifting into a smirk.

I breathe out a giggle when he pushes his broad chest against my face and I shove at his pecs, the height difference giving me butterflies.

He quickly wraps his forearms around my middle and hauls me even closer, growling when my pinch-happy fingers hover dangerously close to his nipple.

“Do it, I fucking dare you,” he rumbles, a barely veiled threat, and then he’s stumbling forward, groaning as I pinch him hard and tight.

“Aisling,” he rasps, heaving me up by my ass, and kissing me long and deep before turning us back to face the mirror.

“Look at how pretty you are,” he murmurs deeply, as I stroke gently over his stubble. “Way too pretty to take pipe from a brute like me.”

“Tanner!” I exclaim in surprise, giggling as he presses a rough kiss against my lips.

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