Page 22 of Dauntless

I winked at him.“So let’s not waste any more time, huh?”

That won me a huff of laughter and, more importantly, spurred him into action.He pulled off his woollen jumper and T-shirt in one movement, revealing a broad chest and a patch of ginger hair between his pecs that narrowed into a trail that darkened as it disappeared into the waistband of his pants.I was going to blaze that trail.

I pulled my jumper and shirt off too, in a much less smooth sequence.Then, because this was a race I was going to win, I shucked my pants down and stepped out of them.Rocked that jocks-and-socks aesthetic while I readjusted my glasses, which I’d almost lost in the shirt-removal operation.Joe, to his credit—or possibly to really underscore his point that it had been a while and therefore he had lowered his standards a lot—didn’t look at me like a man gazing upon impending disaster.He looked at me like he thought I was the hot one.

Crazy, but my ego would take it.

We kissed again, heat rising, and his hands slid up my sides.I grabbed his arse and pulled him flush with my body, and we both groaned as our erections met.God.This was not how I’d imagined my research trip to Dauntless Island turning out, but it wasn’t as though I was going to complain about it.Joe’s breath was hot on my lips as he broke the kiss so that he could nuzzle along my jaw and throat, making goosebumps prickle all over me.I wasn’t going to complain about that either—I shoved one hand behind his head to pull him even closer.

He dodged it and leaned back.“I don’t have anything.”

“Okay, but I have a policy of trust but verify.”

He blinked.“What?”

“What?”

“I meant I don’t have any condoms.”He made a face.“What did you—oh.I also don’t have any STDs.”

I widened my eyes in the uncomfortable silence.“I’m so glad that wasn’t awkward.”

He snorted, and suddenly itwasn’t.“Right?”

“Okay, so we can work with no condoms,” I said.

“Yeah,” he agreed, backing me towards the bed.The mattress hit the backs of my knees, and Joe grinned as he pushed me down onto my back.“We can work with that.”

He followed me down onto the bed, bracketing me with his arms.God, he was in good shape.He was big all over, tall and broad andstrong.He gave the impression he could snap me like a twig, and honestly, I was here for that.In comparison, I was scrawny as hell.I’d never lifted anything heavier than a page, and it showed.The only part of me that wasn’t scrawny was my gut.I didn’t have abs.I had pudge.Joe didn’t seem to mind it though—he worked his way down my body, his beard tickling the hell out of my skin, and paid particular attention to my nipples before kissing a trail down to my belly button.Then, just when I hoped he’d go even lower, the teasing bastard grinned and worked his way up again.

He stood, his body shades of gold and red in the lamplight.I drank in every moment.He unbuttoned his fly, and it was all I could do not to applaud when he peeled the denim down his thighs.He stepped out of his jeans, then hooked his thumbs in the waistband of his underpants.

“Count of three?”I suggested, doing the same to mine.

“Three,” he said, raising an eyebrow.

I laughed, lifting my hips to shove my jocks down, and then he had one knee on the mattress and was looming over me again.I welcomed him with open arms.

We kissed, and he nudged my thighs apart with his knee, slotting our bodies even closer together.He wedged a hand between us and held our dicks together, and suddenly I got what he was planning.I was totally on board.The air tickling my shoulders felt suddenly colder as the heat grew between us.I tilted my hips up, and Joe groaned as I thrust against him.Everything was amazing and warm and slick.I curled my free hand around the back of his neck and pulled him down for a kiss.It took us a moment to discover a decent rhythm, but soon the room was filled with the creaking of the bed and our breathy moans.

It was so good.

The universe narrowed to just the two of us, just our kisses and the way we rocked against each other.There was no room for awkwardness or embarrassment—just heat and motion and pleasure that built like a rising tide, coiling tighter and tighter until it broke in waves and carried us to the shore.

Joe wasn’t the sort of guy who rolled over and started snoring once he was done.He kissed me instead—a soft, gentle kiss that was like the sexual equivalent of a cool down after a workout—and said, “Wait here.”

Please.He’d have to lever me out of his bed with a crowbar at this point.My muscles had melted.

But I murmured a sound of agreement, and watched as he left the bedroom.He was back moments later with a damp washer, and he tossed it at me with a smile.I cleaned up, and then unfortunately had to get up and hunt for my pants.He took the washer off me and vanished again.

I climbed back into bed and pulled the doona up.I could hear Joe rattling around somewhere at the other end of the house, and Hiccup’s claws clicking on the floor.Joe said something in a low voice.Moments later, Hiccup appeared in the bedroom and wandered up to the bed, her tail wagging.I scratched her snout, and she rested her head on the mattress and sighed happily.

“I said stay on the couch, Hiccup.”Joe leaned in the doorway, two steaming mugs in his hands, and something wedged under his arm.

“She’s fine,” I said.“What have you got there?”

“Hot cocoa,” he said.“And the book you were reading.”

“Are you kidding me?Sex and hot cocoaanda book?Red Joe Nesmith,howare you still single?”

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