Page 16 of Refurbished

I laughed. “Perfect.” Angus cuddled against my shoulder while we played with the five raccoons. I could stay there all day with this sweet man. I relaxed and enjoyed the moment. Barnaby came wandering into the room.

“How long have you had Barnaby?” My buddy put his head on my leg, and Angus put his hand on my thigh. I choked, and Angus looked at me, concerned. “I got him on my birthday, so I’ve had him for four years. I can’t imagine life without him.” Barnaby licked one of the kits, which made us laugh. All the tension I had carried for years started to drain out of me, and a sense of peace that I hadn’t felt since I was a kid flowed through me like a river.

There was something about Angus, and I wanted more of it.

Chapter eight

EION

Angus slipped under my arm, and his hand found its way back to my thigh. I was impressed that he was comfortable being physical with me. His confidence was sexy, and I was settling into the feeling of him there with me.

“Barnaby has been through a lot with me. I wouldn’t be here without him.”

“Obviously, there is a story there. Do you want to share it with me?”

“Not tonight, but I will. Angus, I want to share so many stories with you.” What made me say such a thing is beyond me. I’d lost my fucking mind. I went from not being able to talk to having no filter at all. “I’m sorry, Angus, I shouldn’t have said that.”

He cocked his head and squeezed my thigh. “Why?”

Great, he would hit me with logic and expect me to answer his very sensible question. Now, how would I answer it? “Because. I. Well.” Come to find out, I didn’t have a great answer for him. He bailed me out by continuing.

“I’d like to know more about you. It feels like there might be some interest between us since you did invite me here to feed bears and eat with some deer.”

I really liked this man. “I’d like to know more about you, too. How bout we put these guys away and go feed some baby bears?” This time it was me with the big smile.

My chest was against his back as I helped hold the cub, and Angus held the bottle of milk. Alan tried to climb up his leg while his sister Amanda chowed down on her lunch. We were down to three meals a day, but even with more solid food, they were hungry.

My entire body quivered while Angus giggled against my chest. “Eion. Eion. I am feeding a baby bear.” Then there were more giggles.

“Yes, you are.” The giggles didn’t stop, and it warmed everything inside of me.

“Eion. They are so cute. Can I do this every day? Do you do this every day? How can you be grumpy at all when you feed cubs every day?”

Apparently, the babbling applied even when he was happy. It struck me that nobody would ever know he was such a gentle soul by looking at him, but his enthusiasm was infectious, and I grinned behind him. Every day, I fed these sweet cubs and forgot how incredible it was. Angus had just reminded me that what I do is a gift. The urge to kiss the side of his head and tell him he could have anything he wanted from me was bubbling at the surface. The way we were sitting, I could smell his shampoo, his body wash, and whatever made him a man. It aroused me to a point that took me back to high school when a stiff breeze would get me hard.

“You can feed them whenever you want for the next six months, then they get to go into the big enclosure with Bethany.” I looked over his shoulder, and he looked up at me. Something passed between us. That was definitely a spark, and I wanted more of them.

“Shit. Ouch.” Alan had bitten his knee, undoubtedly breaking the skin. The moment between us vanished, but not the feelings it stirred.

“Alan, you naughty boy.” I took Amanda from Angus and set her over in the bedding where they slept. “I really wish we had a better nursery for these larger animals.” Amanda rolled on her back, her belly clearly full. I had never shared my animals with anybody like this, but I wanted Angus to meet all of them. “She’s even more adorable with a full belly.”

I handed him Alan, getting him settled. He was easier to hold, but they were getting big, and I was going to have to start sitting on the ground while they ate. “You ready to feed another one?”

“Yes. Yes. Best date ever.”

I chuckled and placed my hand on his shoulder while I got him situated. After a minute, I realized my hand was still on his shoulder. It felt like a magnet had me locked there, and an electric current ran between us—it was pleasant. When I had the opportunity to lean over his shoulders to help, I did. When the bottle was gone, I took the sleepy bear and placed him next to his sister. “You did well. They are happy and full.”

“I want to do it again. Can I take a picture of them?”

I couldn’t blame him for wanting to document this moment. Feeding bear cubs was amazing, and it was something I wouldn’t take for granted anymore. “Of course.” He stood up, took pictures of the sleeping bears, then took about six more.

“Okay. Now you get down there with them.”

“What?” I looked at him.

“I want pictures of you with the bears.” He blinked at me and smiled sweetly. “Please?” Fucking hell. He already had me wrapped up in him. I squatted down next to the bears and smiled. Then he came over and took some selfies with both of the bears and us.

“Okay. I’ll remember this forever. Thank you for letting me feed them. I will be taking you up on your offer to let me feed them again.”