Page 77 of Nikolai (Kansas City Reapers)

“Well, it smells amazing. How can we help?” Maddy asked.

“By going and getting cleaned up. By the looks of you, Niko took you out for a hike, and I’m sure you both need a shower,” Sully said. “But before you go, taste this.” Heheld the spoon out for her to take a bite. I watched, enraptured, as her lips wrapped around the metal spoon, sliding the bite off the utensil and into her mouth. Her eyes rolled back in her head, a low groan that sounded too familiar, and far too sexual for my liking, erupting from her lips.

“It’s so good! You’re a genius in the kitchen, Sully,” she praised him, leaning up on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

“You two run along now. Dinner will be ready in thirty minutes,” he said with a huge grin.

We made our way upstairs, chasing each other like small children.

“You can shower first if you want,” Maddy said breathlessly as we both stood in the hallway near her door. Her earlier sass and snark had diminished slightly. We were both worn out after all the physical exertion.

Grabbing hold of her arm, I tugged her to me sharply, laughing as she tumbled into my arms.

“Or we could kill two birds with one stone,” I replied, letting my smirk say it all.

Her eyes danced with mischief, and I knew I was in trouble.

“What’d you have in mind, buddy?” That fucking word falling from her lips immediately pushed the button that drew my ire and inflamed my desire in equal measure.

“Oh, you like playing with fire, don’t you?” I chuckled darkly, brushing a strand of hair back behind her ear.

“I’m a thrill seeker. It’s in my blood,” she teased as I leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. “Plus, you have a better shower than the one in the hall.”

“Exactly.”

“Granted…” she almost drawled, drawing out the word hesitantly. “I could just take your shower for myself.”

With that, she slipped out of my arms with a loud giggle and made a mad dash off towards my room.

I was after her in a flash, nearly tripping over my own two feet in my haste. But I would not have traded the playful nature of our banter for anything. It fueled me.

Down the hall and into my room, I gave chase, just barely missing her as she retreated into the bathroom with a squeal. She slammed the door in my face, and I heard the sound of the lock clicking just as my hand wrapped around the doorknob.

“Maddy…” I growled, the warning reverberating deep in my chest. Still, that playfulness remained ever present, evident in her tittering giggle of response from behind the door.

“Niko…” she replied, trying to mimic my own tone by lowering her voice as far as she could — a feat not at all possible. I was a deep bass on a good day and she — well, she most certainly was not.

I growled once more, delighting in her giggle before she relented, finally unlocking the door and opening it for me.

“Good girl,” I murmured, pulling her in for a kiss. “It would not have gone well for you if I had been forced to break down my own bathroom door.”

She giggled again. “Well, maybe next time you should ask nicely.”

I chuckled and swatted her butt gently as she moved away to begin undressing.

Wasting no time, I turned the shower on full blast, letting it warm up as we removed our clothing and stepped inside the steamy shower stall.

There was something deep and intimate about showering with someone. As I poured shampoo into my hand, urging her to turn around so I could lather it in her hair, I let myself revel in the quiet comfort this kind of intimacy brought. The shower seemed to tame her brattiness somewhat as well, as she settled into a more thoughtful, quiet mood.

“Where are you from, Niko?” she asked, out of the blue, as my hands worked the lather down her long strands.

“What?” I asked, surprised by her question.

“Where are you from?” she repeated with a small giggle, a subdued echo of our earlier fun.

“I grew up in a suburb of Chicago,” I answered, almost without thinking. It was a trained response, if not a completely honest one.

“You were born there?”

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