Page 13 of Rattler
“They’re imagining us as secret lovers who can’t wait to get our hands on each other’s naked bodies.”
“Oh.”
Was she actually blushing?I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen a woman blush.Damn it.The woman was killing me.She was way too young for the thoughts running through my mind.I wanted to throw her over my shoulder and take her to my room like some kind of fucking caveman.I’d strip her out of those clothes and bury my head between her legs.I bet she tasted as sweet as she looked.
“That is funny.We just met.”Her smile wavered as she met my gaze.
I shrugged.“They seem to think people meet and fall instantly in love.Their father kind of reinforced that when he brought Piper home.”
“How come?”
“They had a one-night stand.”I detailed the story of Beast and Piper, leaving out the parts where Riptide bent the law when it came to making sure justice was done.
“That is so romantic!”Lily sighed.
“I suppose.”I was still picturing her spread out on my bed like a pagan offering.“They sure seem happy enough with each other.”
“What about the couple that are about to get married?”
“Thor and Janet?What about them?”
“Did they fall instantly in love?”
I snorted.“Instantly in lust is more like it.Took Thor forever to get her to agree to marry him.Janet just wanted to be fuck buddies.”
She frowned, and I could tell the answer disappointed her, so I explained the whole mess, again glossing over anything Riptide did that wasn’t real legal and all.
She stifled a yawn before she replied.“Nice that they managed to work everything out.”
I realized how tired she looked, not that she’d complained at all.She’d spent all night on buses, then I’d dragged her straight from the bakery into a fucking backyard cupcake party with a bunch of people she didn’t know.“You want to go have a nap or something?You look tired.”I wasn’t sure what was going to go down with rooms and all, but she could rest up in mine until Ace got things sorted out.
She nodded.“That would be great.”
I took her hand and helped her to her feet, picking up the backpack from the ground.“Mom still have Scrapper?”
“Yeah.She said she was going to feed him.She hasn’t come back yet.”
“She’ll take good care of him, unless you want us to go find him?”
Turned out we didn’t have to go looking.We passed through the kitchen on our way to the stairs, and Mom was sitting with the kitten on her lap and Willow at her feet.It looked like one of those sappy pictures you see on Christmas cards.She looked up as we trooped in.
I paused in the doorway, Lily at my side.“You okay with Scrapper for a while?I’m taking Lily upstairs so she can grab a nap.”
Mom nodded, scratching the little feline behind the ears and earning herself a loud purr.“No problem.You coming right back down once you get her settled in?”
I raised my eyebrows.Was she asking whether we had something other than sleep in mind?
She shook her head as if reading my thoughts.“Ace wanted to talk to you about things.”
I took that to mean he wanted to talk about Lily.Nice of her not to come right out and say that.“I’ll be down as soon as she’s settled.Ace in his office?”
“Yeah.”
Lily walked over and dropped a kiss on Scrapper’s head.“Be good, little guy.I’ll be back for you.”Pivoting, she looked at me expectantly.
“This way.”I led her up the stairs and down the long hallway with doors on both sides.Most of the bedrooms had their own bathrooms, which was a pleasant touch.My room was at the far end.Being the VP, I had one of the larger ones with room for a desk in it.I opened the door and let Lily enter in front of me.
She stopped and looked around.“This is… nice!”
