Page 25 of Reclaimed

“That’s Chevy.”

“Who’s Chevy?”

“My cat.”

“You brought your cat?”

“Yeah.” Aiden kneels down and unzips the black bag. Two orange legs poke out in a long stretch before a ball of fluff follows. “Couldn’t leave him alone by himself.”

Aiden rises with his furry companion held tight against his chest. His rumbling purr is audible.

“Isn’t it a requirement of the family to be a dog person?”

“What, like we’re a mafia or something?” he lets out a small chuckle. “We’re animal people, Isla. As long as it has fur, it’s welcome.”

I reach out and scratch Chevy between his ears. Or what’s left of them. The tops are flattened almost like someone cut them off. The cat leaps from Aiden’s arms, giving a long stretch on the floor before prowling across my living room as if he’s making himself at home.

Not only are his ears damaged, but he’s missing tufts of fur, his tail is docked, and he only has three legs.

“What happened to him?”

“I found him in the engine compartment of Silas’s truck after we had a night out at The Rocks. He was trying to keep warm. He lost his ears and tail from frostbite and his leg was amputated due to an injury.”

“That poor baby!”

That explains the name.

“Well, I’m much more inclined to let him stay than you.”

“I’m sorry to inform you that we’re a package deal.” He walks over to Chevy on the couch and picks him up.

I study the two of them as I work over the proposed solution.

“What’s in it for you?”

Aiden clenches his teeth and holds a neutral, unreadable expression.

“Because if you think I’m going to just fall into your lap and sleep with you in exchange—”

“I don’t want that.”

My chin jerks back at his rapid response. “You don’t?”

He looks at the ceiling, his shoulders rising with a deep breath. Chevy leaps from Aiden’s arms, freeing them, and he settles his palms on his narrow hips. Those startling blue eyes meet mine.

“Woman, what do you want?” he rasps, running his tongue over his lower lip. “Because you’ve backed me up into quite the tight corner here with your mixed messages.”

“I didn’t mean to.”

“Do you want me to admit that the mere idea of you squirming beneath me makes me really fucking hard or would you rather I keep that to myself? Your choice. But choose wisely, because if I say I don’t want to sleep with you to protect us both and you respond again like I just kicked your dog, I’ll have to fuck you just to prove a point.” He lets that moment linger for a second before adding with a smirk, “with your consent of course.”

Oh.

“I’ll make it enjoyable for the both of us.”

Oh.My thighs clench.

“I had my fingers buried inside of you because I find you highly desirable. Just to clear things up.”

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