Page 78 of Just A Little Magic

Rory

“Bear, I’m home.”

I’d been machine-focused and productive all dayat work, besides the group chat, and had made it back to Barrett’s house at a reasonable time.

“In the kitchen, babe.”

Something delicious was simmering on the stove, but Bear was sitting at the island reading some kind of report. When I crossed the threshold, Bear looked up and grinned. I returned it.

Damn, this man made my insides go floaty. I’d been at Bear’s house for about three weeks, and it felt more like home every day. Our stuff was now wholly mixed in the closet. My potions covered the bathroom vanity. Our shoes were a shared jumble next to the door. He’d brought in a desk and rearranged the office to be shared between us, and I didn’t have to use the dining room table for my stuff anymore.

We’d planned to test this out for a month, and somewhere along the way, he’d convinced me he could be the Da I needed. More than that, he’d shown me there was nothing wrong with my self-imposed limits, but it was also all right to stretch them.

As far I could tell, he didn’t mind that I wasn’t interested in smexy times when in little mode or that I wasn’t overly submissive outside of it. Even when I became more comfortable with his caretaking, he didn’t push that one. I’d asked about it, but he said it wasn’t worth the worry. Then he promptly rearranged my guts, which crossed that off the list of things to worry about.

I loved him. I always had as my best friend, but it was more now. I knew exactly how he would care for me because he already was. That elusive thing he’d kept telling me existed had appeared when I’d let my guard down enough to let him in.

I knew Bear better—about most things—than I knew myself, and I knew he was happy. If being his best friend had been amazing, then being his lover was off the chain. I hadn’t known how incredible it would feel to be the center of his world when I was both his boyfriend and best friend.

Levi had asked if I was ashamed of my kink, and I’d thought I wasn’t. Maybe I was wrong, though, because fearing rejection over my kink wasn’t exactly projecting confidence in it. When Bear was taking care of me, it didn’t feel wrong at all. It felt like your favorite ice cream on the best day.

We’d fallen into the routine of a bottle in the morning to start the day and a bath with snuggles to end it. When I’d done little time solo, it had been all or nothing, but Bear had shown me I could have that beautiful in-between. The in-between was where real life happened, and all I had to do was grab it.

“Are you going to come in or stare at me from the door?” Bear asked without looking up from his papers.

“Stare at you from the door.”

“Do you, boo, but I’d rather have you over here with me.”

“Yeah, why’s that?” I asked when I moved closer to him.

“If you’re over there, I can’t do this.” Bear’s hand shot out and grabbed one of my wrists. He yanked me closer, buried his face in my neck, and wrapped his arms around me.

They were like warm steel bands, but I only snuggled closer. I wiggled my arm free and wrapped it around his neck. For good measure, I kissed one cheek, his nose, and then his other.

“Babe, you got plans tonight?” Barrett asked.

“Just working on some design concepts. Since the lodge was finalized and you got your funding squared away…yay you…I want to make sure I have so—Oh! Whatcha doing there, big guy?”

Bear’s tongue striped a path along my throat column. Before he could answer, or I asked another question, he captured my mouth and plunged his tongue inside.

He kissed me like we had all the time in the world because I had started to realize over the last few weeks that we did. Bearhad made it abundantly clear that he’d be perfectly happy if I never left, and I was beginning to feel like I never wanted to go.

It was hard not to imagine a future with him. I’d spent so many years refusing to consider it that I was scared to grab it when the possibility was dangled. Every day, though, was a little clue that maybe it was more like a foregone conclusion. He’d promised to show me he was all in and had done it in spades.

Elizabeth ruled his house like she owned the place. She and Bear had started their own conversations. I hadn’t had a pet in years, and I’d never had one who seemed like she could read the room. When I was sad, she snuggled in. When I needed to talk to Bear about something, she’d smack me with her paw until I got up. I’d caught her doing the same with Bear. In the mornings, he joined her on the catio, and they had deep talks about their daily plans.

I didn’t want to think about any of that, though, because right now, his tongue was mapping my mouth and his hand was cupping my ass. The combination of it was forcing breathy moans from me, and I’d much rather think about that. He thrust his tongue into my mouth in the rhythm I wished he was fucking me in. My cock swelled, and I ground myself against him.

“Bear, fuuuuuck, can dinner wait?”

“Yep.”

Bear deftly unhooked my pants and made quick work of my button-down. He shoved my shirt off and captured my mouth again in a searing kiss that sent sparks shooting through my veins. My choppy breaths were barely enough to drag air into my lungs but damned if I cared so long as he kept his hands on me.

I couldn’t stand not tasting him, so I grabbed his hair and dragged his mouth back to mine. Now my tongue plunged intothe wet heat of his mouth. His moan vibrated around the room. I wished there was a way I could crawl inside his skin. I wanted to feel him in every damn cell.

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