Page 44 of Love It or List It
Joe cackled.“Wow, okay, I see how it is.You invite someone into your bed out of the goodness of your heart—”
“Is that what this is?I thought you were just a control freak.”
“—and they impugn your honor and malign your character—”
Austin pressed his toes to Joe’s bare leg.
“—Jesus Christ, and then they try to give you a heart attack with their ice-cube feet, what the fuck, Austin?You wanna put some socks on, maybe?”
Ew.“I can’t sleep with socks on.That’s gross.”
“Well, you can’t sleep with your feet on my leg either.”
“What kind of host are you?”
“I’m not your host.This is your house too, dumbass.”Under the covers, Joe poked Austin’s stomach.“Now go to sleep.You’re disturbing the kittens, and they need their beauty rest.”
Chapter Ten
JOE WOKEto predawn light and to the stomach-wrenching, blood-warming sight of Austin in his bed.
Austin lay curled on his side, tucked into the fetal position, the blankets snug around his shoulders.He lay facing Joe, his hair spilling enticingly across the pillow.
Joe wanted to crawl into that cocoon, kiss Austin awake, and then really mess up those curls.Or maybe crawl under the blankets and see if he couldn’t use his mouth to get Austin to unbend from that protective pose.
Joe knew a sleep pose could just be a sleep pose, but somehow it felt meaningful that Austin was curled up in his sleep, as if protecting his vulnerable parts or trying to take up less space.
Of course, Joe couldn’t do any of those sexy things, and not just because Ozzy had migrated to settle into the space between Austin’s neck, chest, and arms.At least they’d both definitely been warm last night.
His blood pumping with thoughts of the company in his bed, Joe gave up on getting any more sleep, eased his way out from under his comforter, and tiptoed out of the room.
He couldn’t claim surprise when Pepa didn’t follow—their girl liked her sleep and had a clear favorite—or when Walker perked up with a soft mew and padded eagerly after Joe.
Once in the kitchen, Walker sank his claws into Joe’s sweats in an attempt to climb—a trick that only really worked with jeans—and Joe sighed and bent to rescue his calves and his kitten.
“You are pure trouble,” he said softly.“Don’t think I haven’t noticed what a nosy busybody you are.Your name is totally apt.Wandering around sticking your nose in everyone else’s business.God, you’ll probably be the boss once you’re all grown.”Already there were signs that all mischief could be sourced back to Walker, no matter which cat was actually caught mid-mess.
Unperturbed by Joe’s aspersions on his character, Walker snuggled in and purred in Joe’s ear.Soon he’d be too big for this, and Joe would miss having the soft warm weight pressed in close.
With his preferred energy outlet off the table—or bed—Joe channeled his restlessness into something more productive and started prepping the dining room to paint.This wasn’t the first time he’d had an inconvenient crush, or a dry spell for that matter, since he’d never been fond of one-nighters.He could ignore the pressure from his libido.It wasn’t as if Austin would keep sleeping in his bed.Joe would be able to work out some of his frustrations solo later, and they could go back to their easy platonic cohabitation.
Well, maybe not fully easy.But they’d done an acceptable job of ignoring the sexual tension so far.They could keep it up, Joe was sure.
But he was also pretty sure he wasn’t alone—that Austin felt it too.He’d caught Austin looking once or twice.
But looking wasn’t touching, and touching was definitely a bad thing right now.It would make everything even more messy.Joe had learned his lesson about getting involved with someone when you had business entanglements.Therefore no mess.Right?
Joe put a second coat of paint on the dining room walls.At least that kind of mess, he could clean up.
Then, figuring it was late enough that he no longer had to worry about disturbing Austin’s beauty sleep, he headed to the kitchen for coffee and pancakes, a perfectly normal,notmorning-after, breakfast choice.
Whether it was the hour, the smell of coffee, or the sound of Joe in the kitchen, Pepa hopped into the room as the skillet was warming, Dallas riding on her back and Ozzy following a pace behind, uttering anxious mews like his mom might leave him behind or forget to feed him.
“Good morning,” Joe murmured.
Pepa answered with a happy rumble and a press of her face into his leg.
“Are you hungry, sweet girl?”
