Page 79 of Wild Card

He’s not supposed to be that agile.

The one time I watched them at the indoor rink, I felt frumpy in comparison and refused to try. Some of my fear was because there was an audience of people we didn’t know, but I’m actually moderately excited to see if I can figure it out.

As long as I don’t fall flat on my face, I’ll live.

Thorne smirks, prowling closer with my coat tossed over his forearm. “You’re so fucking cute. Trust me, you’ll be fine.”

“I know,” I fib as he tosses my coat over the arm of the couch.

“You’re a terrible liar. How is it you can spin around ten feet off the ground in your silks, but ice skating scares the hell out of you?” He bends over my seat, burying his fingers in my hair at the base of my skull.

“Hey, you’ll mess up my ponytail.”

“I’ll be happy to redden your ass if you don’t give me a proper kiss.” He licks his lips as I try to determine exactly how I got so lucky.

I must take too long, because Thorne shrugs and tosses himself down on the couch at my side.

“Oh no,” I whisper, scrambling to twist to climb into his lap.

I know from experience Thorne and Bear have no problem smacking my ass when the situation calls for it. Even sometimes when it doesn’t, but we all enjoy it, so I’m not complaining.

I get situated, kneeling over my alpha, and Thorne chuckles as I dive for his mouth.

I’m obsessed with the way his happiness floods the bond. The connection truly is like nothing else in the world.

“I love you, kitten,” he murmurs as he pulls back.

“I know,” I assure him. “I love you too.”

Something pulses in the bond that I can’t quite decipher, and I nuzzle my cheek to Thorne’s scratchy stubble even though it burns a little.

He squeezes my hips tenderly. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about something.”

My chest gets tight.

I’ve felt like the other shoe was going to drop at some point. Only I expected this conversation to come from Rush. He’s the only one who seemed undecided about kids.

Bear has made it perfectly clear he’s fine with directing all his caregiver vibes toward me.

And I shamelessly soak them up.

My stance on kids hasn’t changed, but I guess I’d try to at least have a conversation about it if it’s important to one of them.

“Ned is really getting up there,” Thorne says, referencing the Chief of Police. “He hasn’t had any qualified bites on the job listing, but there’s no guarantee they’d even hire me. It’s not like my former superiors are going to give me a glowing recommendation or anything.”

“You should apply.” My hands land on his cheeks, running my thumbs over the smooth skin just above where his beard ends. “They’d be silly not to choose you, but even if you can’t enter at that position maybe you could apply for one of the others and once you’ve been there for a while…” I shrug. “Who knows.”

Thorne studies my face. “I told you before that if you took me back, I wouldn’t leave your side.”

I snort, shaking my head. “I didn’t take that literally, you goofball. Thorne, I love you to pieces, but I know you’re bored at Dry Dock.” I swear he looks for any excuse to toss someone out for misbehaving. “I know it. You know it. We all know it. I think it would be healthy to have something just for you.”

He exhales heavily and nods. “And you’ll be happy working with Rush and Bear?”

I nod, moving to brush my lips against his. “I really will be as long as you crawl in bed next to me every night.”

He smirks. “Like you could keep me away from your sexy little ass.”

“I’m going to die,” I squeal, holding onto Rush’s forearms for dear life.

---