Page 13 of Bride of Choice

He was much closer now, so much closer, warm breath coasting over my lips.

“I’m- I’m-” I mutteringly sputtered, yet made no move to lean away from him as he slowly, as if cautiously waiting to be shot down, testing my reaction, leaned in. I’m sure it didn’t help that my heart was pounding so fast I felt faint.

“We… We- Uh- We…” I softly sputtered between gulps.

“Hey-o, Jojoknee?! Go’?!” Booger called out so loudly we both jumped and broke apart.

Gopher’s front door opened and Boog poked his head in not a minute later. Catching the looks on our faces, my cheeks heating tellingly as I tried to play it off, he eyed us for a long moment, far too long, cocking his head. One sniff, testing the air, and he gave a soft grunt.

Clapping my hands loudly, I shot up and darted towards Booger buns. “Would you look at the time?! Wow! Let’s get this show on the road! Huh? You’re snack bitch tonight, boogiewoogaloo. Hope you brought something tasty!”

Grunting noises issued from behind me as Gopher stood and followed me over to Boog. If I had to guess, I’d say someone was feeling a bit thwarted. Booger had the best damn timing.

Booger said something to Gopher in beast speak that had Gopher grumbling back curtly and baring his teeth at the best baker in beastdom ever in answer.

“Girls. Girls. Don’t make me separate you two,” I singsonged as I pushed my way past Boog and right out the door.

More grumbled beast speak was spoken, but I preferred to live in the delusion that they were absolutely not talking about me, nope, not even a little bit, and that I most certainly had not been, kinda, maybe, possibly, impulsively about to let the sweetest male in beastdom land one on these ruby painted lips and just muck all o’ this up. Nuh-huh. No way. No how.

That was my alternate universe and I was sticking to it.

I’d also not be fidgeting like a madwoman if Go’ took a seat next to me tonight, because, you know, no particular reason for that whatsoever! Nope!

???

Movie night was, in a word, distracting.

When everything had been nice and comfy once upon a time, right now? This day and night, my ass was squirmin’, seated between Boog and Gopher.

Either oblivious to the offness to this whole sitch or too distracted by the aliens decimating humans on that space rig on the screen to notice as Sigourney and that kitty cat did their thing, the Boogster stuffed another fistful of popped corn into his loudly chomping maw, nodding along and mumblingly commenting to the movie like one does when they’ve seen it dozens of times before.

Was it just me? Was I the only one so affected? It was like I was painfully aware of everything now. The way Goph smelled, just how freaking warm he was mashed up into my side. Yowza. The guy gave off body heat like nobody’s business for a skinny twerp of a Lo denaii— you know, in comparison to the behemoths we were surrounded by on the daily.

Wriggling a little closer to Boog in an attempt to save my sanity and the growing feelings starting to force feed warmth into my cold, dead lump of coal of a heart, Boog grunted at my nearness, lifting an arm to peer down at me.

“It’s chilly,” I mumblingly replied at his questioning glance, but he’d already slid over to offer me more room.

Goph, reaching over to grab a handful of popcorn from the bowl Boog was hogging, scooted in closer.

“If you slid in anymore you’ll be on my lap,” I pretended to huff and puff.

“Chilly,” was all the squish-it-in male said, curving an arm around what passed for the Lo denaii version of a sofa in our happy little hideaway, until there wasn’t an inch of him that wasn’t mashed up into me.

My palms felt sweaty. In fact, I’d bet all of me was covered in a fine sheen of sweat. Why was I so damn nervous?!

I was letting him get under my skin! This simply would not do.

Debating on whether to squish myself right back in against him or say something I might regret to drive him away and risk hurting his feelings, I was saved by the end credits starting to roll.

“All done,” Boog announced, reaching for one last handful of his beloved popcorn to frown as his claws scraped the bottom of the bowl.

“On all fronts, it would appear,” I quipped on a laugh.

Boog shrugged his large shoulders, standing and plucking up my tablet from the shelf he’d made to set it on to turn our movie off.

Long, pale fingers brushed my cheek, causing me to jerk, then let out an ungodly squeak.

“Jo pink,” Gopher said with concern.

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