We sat there for several moments, his fingertips biting into my hips, the sound of our labored breathing filling the truck. Reaching around, he palmed my breasts and eased my upper body back to rest against his chest. The scruff on his jaw tickled my shoulder.
“If I tell you I love you now, I risk it coming off as a product of desperation. If I don’t, I’m a lying fool.”
I smiled, my stomach dipping in the best possible way. Putting my chin to my shoulder, I peered back at him. “Then I won’t tell you I love you too and we’ll be even.”
He blew out a ragged breath and kissed my shoulder.
Hitting the light above the rearview mirror, I blinded us both. When I was finally able to see again, I glanced around the truck, my clothes strewn everywhere. “You know I haven’t had car sex since—”
“Ever,” he finished. “My cock is still inside you, babe. The answer is you haven’t had car sex ever.”
I giggled. “Well, obviously, that’s what I was going to say.”
“Perfect,” he rumbled, giving me a tight hug.
“Hey, Bowen?”
“Right here.”
“You know we’re going to have to talk about earlier, right?”
He drew in a deep breath and then held it for several seconds. “Yeah, I know. Let’s get you inside and cleaned up first.”
Remi
“Remi,” Bowen called from his bedroom, his bare feet padding toward me. “What are you doing? I thought you were getting some water.”
I lifted the full glass in his direction but continued to stare down at the crack at the bottom of his guest room door, two little black paws sticking out.
We still hadn’t had our talk. When we’d come in from the garage, he’d joined me in the shower, his hands washing every inch of my body, including my hair. It wasn’t sexual, but it was intimate all the same.
I returned the favor, lathering his chest with soap while peppering kisses across his collarbone. Every so often, my name would flow from his lips on a pained whisper, but he never followed it up with anything more, so each time, I simply replied with a reassuring, “I’m right here.”
We once again skipped his elusive burgers, opting for a pizza I’d found in his freezer. Side by side on the stools at his bar, we split a bottle of wine, and even as we ate and drank our dinner, his hand never left my thigh. The wine lightened the mood a fraction. He’d managed a smile when I’d pinched his ass, and a few minutes after I’d pulled on one of his T-shirts to sleep in, he’d waggled his eyebrows, following it up with an ass grab of his own.
As I stood in the hall staring down at his pup’s feet under the door, he walked up behind me, pressing his front to my back, and slid his arms around my waist. “He’s not stuck. He’s at the door because he can hear you out here.”
“He is kinda stuck though. They sleep in your room when I’m not here, right?” I couldn’t see his face, but he kissed the top of my head.
“They’re fine, babe. I took them outside while you were brushing your teeth. Gave them both treats. Even fluffed their dog beds. Not that Sugar will use his, but I put extra pillows on the guest bed for his majesty.”
The little feet shuffled from under the door, and guilt slashed through me. “First, I stole their dad, then their bed. My future step-dogs are going to hate me.”
Bowen’s chest shook with a chuckle. “Those two aren’t capable of hating anyone. One piece of lunch meat and all grievances are forgiven.”
Like he was suddenly fluent in English, Sugar let out the cutest bark, going crazy as if he could dig his way out.
Bowen had been great about keeping them put away while I was at his house, but if I was to be a permanent fixture in his life the way I so hoped, I would have to get used to them sooner rather than later. “Do you think I could meet the little one? Maybe ease into things?”
Bowen slid around in front of me. A grin twitched his lips. “Now?”
“Yeah. Why not? Poor guy obviously isn’t ready for bed yet.”
His mouth stretched into a full-blown smile. “You sure? He’s a wild child. But he won’t hurt you. He’ll jump on you. Tap-dance. Cover you with kisses, maybe even sneak a few on your lips if you aren’t careful, but I swear to you he’s the sweetest dog you’ll ever meet.”
“I believe you, but can we maybe do the lunch meat thing too? Just in case he’s holding a grudge about the recent sleeping arrangements.”
He laughed, but the happiness sparkling in his eyes made me feel even worse for not doing it earlier.
“Be right back.” In less than a minute, he returned from the kitchen with two slices of ham.
