Page 142 of Lotus

Wait, no, that was an internal thought.

“Dinosaurs,” the neighbor replies, his chuckle gruff. “That fuckin’ baby was a riot.”

My nerves begin to dissipate just as my cat sneaks out from beneath the vehicle, slithering around each ankle and begging for forgiveness.Not today, Satan.I scoop her up and traipse over to Oliver, who is standing at the edge of the garage looking like a deer in headlights. My cheeks fill with air and I blow out a breath. “Ready?”

Oliver purses his lips with a short nod. “Thoroughly.”

We collect our zoo and make our way across the street and back home, me with my ass hanging out and Oliver looking like he participated in the pig races and lost. Athena and Alexis both squirm in our respective embraces, and I swear they are attempting to high-five each other for a job well done.

“Fun morning,” I deadpan as we break the threshold and release the animals. Alexis and Athena chase each other up the stairs, pulling a grin from my lips. Despite the chaos, I can’t help but feel enamored by the bond they have created over the past six months. I never thought Alexis would warm up to the mischievous raccoon, but somehow, they have found a friend within each other.

Raising my eyes to Oliver, I realize that sometimes the most beautiful friendships come from the most unlikely pair.

Oliver slides a palm down his face, smearing the mud as he hefts out a frazzled sigh. His gaze shifts to me, settling on my very unclothed legs. “Syd, you’re nearly naked. That ruffian was most certainly having impure visualizations.”

There is no mistaking the little frown that appears between his eyebrows, causing an audible swoon to escape me. “Oliver Lynch, are you getting all territorial on me?”

So hot.

“Yes, a bit.” His arms extend, hands clasping my hips and pulling me flush against him. They slip beneath the hem of my t-shirt, cupping my backside. “I don’t enjoy when other men put their eyes on you. It gives me violent thoughts.”

“Mmm.” He smells like sweat and cedar, mingling with a trace of Miracle Grow. Ours groins collide as my fingers disappear underneath his running tank and skim the planks of his deliciously defined abs. “You’re extra sexy when you’re jealous.”

Inching up on the tips of my toes, I crush our mouths together, my tongue instantly seeking his. He grips me tighter from behind, his arousal digging into my belly and triggering a frisson of heat to shoot south.

Holy hell, I can’t get enough of this man.

We can’t get enough ofeach other.

Oliver moved in with me after the renovations were completed on my bedroom, leaving zero trace of the damage that was caused that fateful Christmas night. Of course, the damage to the plaster walls was an easy fix—the damage that still lingers in our bones will never fully heal.

Travis Wellington survived the fire. After multiple skin grafts and extensive surgeries, he was eventually arrested and charged with arson, attempted murder, murder-for-hire, and the sexual assaults to my sister. There’s always a spark of elation that tickles me when I think about his fate. Not only is he physically marred, nearly beyond recognition, but he’ll likely spend the rest of his pathetic days behind bars… and we all know what happens to pedophiles in prison.

The events of that evening changed us, irrevocably, but our insatiable lust for life and each other is the greatest gift we pulled from the ashes and we count our blessings daily.

We also have a lot of sex.

Oliver’s mouth finds the sensitive stretch of skin along my neck, the place where he gives me “Milky Way kisses”, and my knees turn to jelly as I collapse against him. “Need you inside me…” I whimper into his shoulder, breathing in the earthy scent of him.

“Right here?”Nibble. “By the front door?”Nip.“All sweaty and dirty?”Lick.

“God, yes.”

Fingers curling around the waistline of his jogging shorts, I tug them down his thighs until his erection is free and my palm is wrapped around him, stroking and tugging.

Oliver’s moan caresses my ear, sending a shockwave of shivers through my poor, sex-starved body. It’s only been five hours, but I’m ravenous.

I fall to my knees in front of him just as the front door whips open behind me.

“Holy fuckin’ hell no, Jesus, God,fuck.”

The spew of profanities comes from Gabe, and I jump back up, barking at him. “Dammit, Gabe!” Helping Oliver pull his shorts up, I growl through the flush of humiliation staining my cheeks. “Can’t you knock for once? God!”

Gabe stands there, pale and frozen. “I have never resented my twenty-twenty vision more than I do in this moment.”

Oliver fumbles for his cell phone, frantically pressing buttons as he holds it upside-down. “Goodness, I have a great deal of notifications to sort through. I’ll be right back.”

A snigger slips through my exasperation as Oliver makes a hurried retreat out of the room. “What the hell is going on today?”

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