Page 104 of Sinful

I went to my snake’s habitat and pulled him out gently. Sirena backed away, her eyes wide.

“It’s OK,” I murmured, going to the bed and sitting on the edge. “I promise.”

Nervously, she took a careful step toward me, then another and another until she was near enough that I could touch her if I reached for her.

“Sit,” I instructed softly. “We can go slow.”

She did as she was told and sat next to me. Not nearly as close as I knew she would have had I not been holding the snake, but near enough to satisfy me. Mostly.

“He’s a little bigger than my last one,” I started, watching him curl around my arm and stick his tongue out. The care card that came with him said he’d eaten a rat just a few days ago, so I knew he wasn’t hungry.

She watched, visibly swallowing, as the snake darted out its tongue.

“Touch his head,” I said. “He won’t hurt you. I have him.”

Carefully and with a shaky hand, she reached forward and slowly rubbed the top of his head before jerking her hand away and shivering. I smiled at her innocence. Knowing the snake was unnerving her, I got up and put him back into his habitat before coming back to her.

She visibly relaxed, and I pulled out the notebook. She took it from me and wrote me a note.

That was scary.

I smiled at her words.

You were safe. And brave. I’m proud of you for petting him.

It was her turn to smile.

I was still scared.

I chuckled and wrote back.

You did great. I didn’t doubt you for a moment.

She wiggled in her seat before taking her boots, hat, and jacket off, then getting cozy in my bed and lying back against my pillow.

I swallowed hard and stared at her for a minute, watching as she patted the spot next to her.

I’d already taken my jacket off, so I pushed off my boots and scooted in beside her. The bed wasn’t the biggest, so we were body to body on it. I bent my knees, and she mimicked the movement, her dress not covering nearly enough leg. She didn’t seem to be doing it on purpose, though, but my dick wasn’t listening.

I cleared my throat and placed the notebook on our thighs between us.

What name do you think now that you’ve met him?I asked with my pen.

She tapped her lips with her pen for a moment before answering.

Hisstopher?

I chuckled at that.

Not bad. What do you think about Danger Noodle?

A soft laugh left her, sending my heart soaring for what had to be the millionth time that night. We spiraled into listing ridiculous names after that. We probably had a hundred names by the end of it, both of us laughing. I’d never heard her laugh that way before. It was music to my fucking ears. I wondered if the guys had ever heard her before.

William Snakespeare.

I snorted at the new name she wrote.

I like that. It’s settled. His name is now William Snakespeare.

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