Page 10 of The Wounded Mountain Man

"Just being lazy."

His smile grows, his fingers tracing across the space between my lower lip and chin. "Hope you're not lazy abouteverything."

A deep growl rumbles from my chest, and I pull him in even closer, his hardness pressing against my thigh, mine against his belly. We'll talk later about all the shit we need to discuss. For now, I'm more than happy to let our bodies do the talking.

I cup his cheek in my hand and lean in. His face comes closer, and the last thing I clearly see is his eyes fluttering to a close as our lips meet. The faint taste of coffee mingles with something citrusy. He lets out a tiny moan, and it's the cutest sound he's ever made.

I bend lower, saving him from having to lift on his toes, as my tongue slides deeper into his mouth. A sudden jolt of possessiveness tears through me. All those years spent waiting, wanting, fantasizing, but being too afraid to do anything aboutit. All of that suppressed energy pours out of me and into this kiss.

My hands charge through his curls as his land on my ass, kneading my cheeks roughly. He keeps letting out a series of little moans that make my balls tingle, and I could have kept kissing him forever if a certain furball hadn't shown up and started weaving around our legs, meowing loudly.

Logan leans back slowly, his eyes locked on mine. I hold his gaze, only briefly looking down and smiling when I notice the newly red skin around his lips.

"Thanks for cockblocking me, Rufus," I say, and Logan finally draws his eyes away from me and down toward his cat.

Rufus meows even more insistently. "He's hungry. Suppose I should feed him. And you?"

"Am I your personal pet now?"

Logan smirks, hooking a finger down the dip of my V-neck. "I don't know. Are you?"

And with a sparkling gleam in his eyes, he gives me a quick peck on the lips and scurries inside to feed Rufus.

6

Logan

I race inside. Who the fuck was that person on the patio? Any game I had with Wade a few seconds ago is gone, replaced by a burning feeling from head to toe. Apleasurableburning feeling, but still.

I don't do stuff like that. I don't make flirty small talk. I don't play handsies. I don'tkiss my best friend!I've never been that guy. Until about two minutes ago, that is.

I turn the tap to run some cold water over my hands, but nothing comes out. Oh, that's right. Wade hasn't had a chance to turn the water back on. Okay, okay. I fan my face with one hand as I prepare the kibble with the other.

Rufus starts munching away as soon as the bowl hits the ground. I straighten and look out the window, watching as Wade makes his way back from the well. He's in the same clothes he was in before, jeans and a red flannel shirt unbuttoned over a black T-shirt, but he looks different somehow. He looks up and catches me staring at him. He smiles, and eventhatseems different.

I spin around. "Okay, I need to get a grip. It was just a kiss. It doesn't change anything," I mutter under my breath, finishing my mini pep talk just before Wade steps into the house.

"I'll, uh…" He points toward the hall. "Go check if the tap is good."

"Okay. Um…"

He stops in place. "Yes?"

I scratch my arm awkwardly, caught in a weird space between losing my nerve while desperately trying to recapture some of the courage I had only a few short minutes ago. A surge of adrenaline shoots through me as I push off the counter. "Doyou need a hand with that? I mean, I can't in good conscience allow you to risk your life alone."

The corner of his mouth tips up. "No. Only a terrible person would do that."

"Exactly. And I'm not terrible."

"No." He licks his lips and shoots me a look across the kitchen that sends my already thudding heart racing even more. "You most definitely are not."

I grab his hand and lead him down the hall, remembering in the nick of time he can't run or move quickly, so I suppress my impulse to just drag him into my bedroom. We get there in decent time, though.

He smirks. "This isn't the bathroom."

"That's right. Consider this your safety orientation." I lead him to the bed and wave a hand in front of my body. "This is your safety… Now orient yourself."

He lets out a loud, unguarded laugh. "You're…" He inhales, his eyes sparkling. "Incredible."

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