Page 32 of Charming But Reckless

“Orion,” I called out to get his attention.

He turned my way, that same smile in place from when he’d been talking to someone else. “Yes, Arick?”

“Did you need something?”

“Not really. Just wanted you to know we should probably head back to the city today. I want to get you two settled before the big snowstorm rolls through.”

Sean clapped his hands from where he sat across from us. “It’s going to be gorgeous! I can’t wait to see it all white outside.”

There was a round of agreement, which made me wonder why we couldn’t stay. Atticus must have been watching me because he spoke up to explain.

“Weather is going to be nasty for several days. If you don’t head out before the storm, you’ll likely be stuck here two to three more weeks.”

My eyes went wide at the knowledge of how bad it was going to be. “We need to pack.”

So that’s what we did.

After breakfast, I took Sol up to his room and helped him gather his stuff. Beau and Jackson had gifted him some things that previously belonged to Dakota. Sol also told me how each of the other ranch hands had also given him gifts during his stay. There was a mix of functional things like a coat and gloves, along with the more fun stuff, like toys and games.

When he was done, I let him run off to play with his friend one more time so I could gather my few items. It didn’t take me long, which left me far too much time to think of what was coming.

We were moving in with Orion. My long-lost friend Orion. The Orion I was currently fighting not to take to bed each day.

This was a disaster in the making. How could we do this without it getting messy?

And what was it about him that made me feel like I couldn’t separate myself from my desires? Every touch, every look set me off. My cock had never been as hard as it had this past week.

“You ready?”

I nearly groaned at the sound of Orion’s voice. Did he know I was thinking of him? Could he sense when my body craved him?

The worst part of all this was that I wasn’t sure what to do about it. I could ignore it, obviously. Pretend like he didn’t affect me.

Except, my cock couldn’t seem to get that memo. Even now it was fighting against my zipper to come out and play.

“What’s bothering you? Did something happen with Sol?” Orion asked as he moved further into the room.

I shook my head. “No, he’s fine. I’m just a bit out of sorts. Big changes and all that.”

“Lots of them. It can be daunting, I’m sure. Good news is that I’m here to help anyway I can. All you have to do is let me know what you need.”

“I can’t ask that of you. You’ve already done enough. Offering your home, working to keep Sol safe, and heavens knows what else you did that I don’t know about.”

Orion sat beside me on the bed, his thigh pressed right against mine. It was far closer than I expected him to sit, and I didn’t know if I should move back or not.

“You need to listen to what I’m about to say because I don’t want to repeat myself.”

My mouth went dry at the tone of his voice. He was all kinds of intense.

“Ok,” I replied, voice soft.

He stared in my eyes as he spoke, making sure I felt the sincerity of his words. “You do not have anything to thank me for. I wanted to help Sol. I wanted to find you. None of that was a burden.”

I wanted to believe him. Fuck, did I want to.

But a part of me still questioned how a short friendship over two decades ago could lead a man to bending over backwards to help. It wasn’t something I was used to.

“As for staying with me, it’s really more selfish than you think. I want the two of you with me. It’s partly about your safety, and partly because I can’t imagine losing you again,” Orion admitted. “I don’t want to scare you with how I’m feeling right now, Arick.”

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