Page 71 of Reckless Devotion

Kathy:The otter has left the cave.

Rosie:Otter? I thought we settled on bat?

Kathy:Otter/bat = same thing.

Pepper:Actually, one is an aquatic mammal and the other one flies.

Kathy:Yes, thank you, National Geographic.

Maura:Can you all reshare the Facebook post I just shared? Someone’s lost their dog in Florida.

Kathy:How the fuck is us sharing a lost dog post in another state going to help?

Maura:Just in case someone we know has seen her.

Kathy:What is this, Toto the magic flying dog? It would take a Shih Tzu six months to travel to NYC.

PEPPER

I’m freaking the fuck out.

There is a full-set factory alarm system blaring. The sprinklers are on, and all of the little green emergency signs light up near the exits, urging me to flee.

Sex with Chase was impossibly good. The type that I just know I will be comparing every successor to—the expert curl of his fingers, the way he angled my hips at just the right spot to send me wild. It’s hard to forget when every step I take draws attention to the bruised ache between my legs.

Most of all, I feel embarrassed. Leaving myself vulnerable to a man like him is something I promised never to do, let alone to like it while it happens. I never expected him to be so generous in bed, or so collectively concerned with my enjoyment of such matters. And that filthy mouth, holy moly…

“Night babe, I’ll see you in the morning,” I whisper as I close Sunny’s door, earning myself a soft, sleepy grunt in return as the series we had been watching on her iPad plays quietly propped against a pillow on the bed.

The door slides into its frame and the latch bolt clicks softly into the striker plate. Even the doors in this place are the fancy kind that you couldn’t slam if your life depended on it, all fitted with some kind of hidden soft-close mechanism.

It’s time to put on my big girl pants, because Chase and I have business to attend to. The kind that involves my panties staying firmly on. I pad down the dark, empty hallway, soft pile carpet swallowing up any noise. The slit under his bedroom door is dark, but I peek around the corner and out of the window that overlooks the small balcony leading off his room. A broad figure sits in a chair, hunched over something I can’t see, the sea breeze licking at his hair.

Deciding that I need some protection before I go and talk to him, I slip past his room and into my own, removing my dress and donning chunky sweats, sawing the zipper all the way up tomy chin. The coastal nights are mild enough that I shouldn’t get hot.

I check that he’s still on the balcony and then let myself quietly in, deciding against knocking. The faint masculine scent of him swirls in my nostrils as I shut the door, heading for the open French doors that lead to the balconette.

He still sits in the same position, spinning around a rectangular piece of paper in his hands.

“Hey.” I softly draw his attention and stand sheepishly at the door with my hands clasped behind my back.

Far-away umber eyes trace a slow path up my body, causing my cheeks to turn into freshly baked buns.Gah,I feel stripped bare when he looks at me like that, like I may as well be as naked as the day I was born. He folds the glossy paper in his hand and tucks it away in his shorts pocket, his thick bicep straining at the hem of his white T-shirt while he does.

“We need to talk,” I say decisively, still loitering like a school child waiting for permission.

“I agree.” He nods his head at the spare wrought iron chair opposite him.

I open my mouth to query his agreement, but then decide against it and take a seat. Folding my hands in my lap, I prepare to deliver the bad news.

“I don’t want us to be at odds because we had sex,” Chase starts before I can speak.

My stomach plummets and I rush to clarify. “That’s not what I wanted to talk about.”

It’s his turn to pause this time, his dark brows knitting together. “Then what is it?”

“Bert.”

“Bert?” He quirks one eyebrow at me, leaning back in his seat and doing that thing guys do where they take up aton of room with spread legs. Moonlight bleaches his tan skin, highlighting the shadows beneath his sharp cheekbones and jaw.