Page 14 of Wild Bred

Reid studies me, his eyes intensely serious. “Should I not have?”

“No, it was wonderful. You should do it again.”

Reid gives me an unbearably sexy smile. He’s about to kiss me again when something in my periphery catches my attention.

“Wait,” I say, taking his hand and turning him away with me. “Not here. There are cameras.”

Reid glances up, seeing what I mean. “Let me guess. Justin monitors those?”

“It’s part of his job.” I pull him from the fox enclosure and start to lead him toward the one area of the sanctuary grounds that I didn’t cover in the tour. “Come on. I’ll show you my tiny house.”

I’m not sure whether it’s nerves or giddiness, but I’m extra chatty as we walk toward the small structure that I call home. I tell him all about the process of choosing a house layout and making my customizations, and the innumerable hiccups that happened along the way. I’m probably boring him with all my talk, and making him second-guess his decision to kiss me, but it all just kind of spills out.

“Here she is,” I say, sweeping an arm out in front of me as we reach our destination. “This is Ellie.”

A beat passes before Reid speaks. “You named your house?”

“Is there something wrong with that?”

“No. I’ve just never met anyone who’s done that.”

“Well, now you have.”

Reid looks at me with amused eyes. “Yeah. Now I have. Do I get to see inside?”

“Of course. Come on in.”

I never have company, so the inside is a little bit of a mess, but I don’t feel self-conscious about it. I like that Reid is seeing me exactly how I am. I don’t know what exactly is happening between us, but if this is the start of something, I don’t want him to have any false impressions of me. I’m far from perfect. There’s always dirty dishes in my sink and a pile of laundry on my couch.

“It’s nice in here,” Reid says, looking around. He can basically see everything from where he’s standing. “It’s cozy. I like it.”

I hop up onto my kitchen counter, all smiles. “Could you see yourself living in a place like this?”

“Me? Nah. My head’s almost touching the ceiling.” He moves between my legs and rests a hand on either side of me on the counter, which sends a delightful shiver of anticipation up my spine. “I can see how it suits you well, though, shorty.”

I scoff. “I’m not that short. And I’m definitely not petite.”

“No. You aren’t. I like that about you.” His eyes drop to my lips, and he wets his own. “Are we out of range from the cameras now?”

My heart is going a million beats a minute. “Yes.”

“So it’s okay if I do this, right?” he asks, and brushes his lips across mine.

“Yes,” I sigh. “Very okay.”

“And this?” he murmurs before kissing me. I moan my response against his mouth. As he deepens our kiss, my thighs reflexively squeeze around him, urging him closer to me.

I cup his strong, chiseled jaw in my hands, his rough stubble bristling against my fingers. His hands slowly slide up the outside of my hips, like he’s memorizing my curves.

I’m utterly lost in his kisses and aching for more. Which isn’t a feeling I’m used to. Or, to be honest, know anything about. My love life is non-existent. It’s always been that way.

Reid’s hands grip my thighs and pull me forward, kissing our lower halves together at the edge of the counter. I whimper when I feel his massive hard-on throb between my legs. Desperately, I grind against him, a motion that makes his fingers dig into my thighs.

“Don’t,” he growls against my mouth. “You’ll make me come.”

I give a feverish laugh. “That easily, huh?”

“It’s been a long time.”

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