Page 33 of Ronan

“You don’t have to do that around me, you know.” He glances at me in question as I gesture at his face. “Pretend you’re an emotionless robot that doesn’t care.”

“I don’tpretend—” he argues, but I interrupt with a laugh.

“So, you are an emotionless robot? Good to know. I’ll adjust my expectations accordingly.”

“That’s not what I said,” he grumbles, kicking at the rocks under his feet in an adorable act of rebellion.

I gesture at the giant sacks beside the car. “So, that’s a lot of stuff.” His foot kicks again, and I’mthrilledwhen a dark mauve blush tints his cheeks. “Like, a lot of stuff… almost as if you expect me to stay here for a long time…?”

“You don’t have to keep everything,” he mutters, “but I’d rather be over-prepared.”

“Alright, big guy, let’s take this haul inside and we can talk.” He nods and reaches for all three bags, but I knock his hand out of the way. “I’m not helpless, you know.” His gaze slides down my torso as I toss a bag over my shoulder, that blush staining his face darker. I glance down to find the tiny shirt he’d brought me riding up, exposing my stomach.

Pupils blown, his eyes find mine again, tongue darting between his lips as his throat bobs in a swallow. I can’t help myself as my gaze drops, tracking the movement, and I think for a moment he’s going to come closer, but instead he turns towards the house.

“When your supplies weren’t inside, I assumed you’d left.” His voice is soft as he drops the two bags on the floor of the kitchen, and I plop mine less gracefully beside them.

“I never keep my stuff in plain sight,” I explain, then gesture to the trees, “and I’m washing my clothes in the creek.”

His gaze blindly follows my hand, staring at the wall. “I just thought…”

“I know what you thought,” I say, taking a step closer and waiting for his eyes to find mine again. “And I saw how it bothered you.”

“I came back,” he whispers, and a weak smile pulls at my lips as I try to ignore the thundering of my heart. It doesn’t prove anything, not yet… but it’s something.

It’s a start.

“You did.” He doesn’t respond, but his breathing speeds up as I reach out and squeeze his fingers. “You came back, and I didn’t leave, Ronan.”

“No, you didn’t.” His gaze dances across my face. “You didn’t leave… but did youstay?”

“I…” The words catch in my throat, and I can’t force them out. The moment is suddenly too intimate, and we’re standing too close, and I’m touching him too much, so I take a step back and drop his hand, gesturing towards the supplies. “What’s in the bags?”

Ronan clears his throat, as if the closeness was affecting him as well. “Probably more clothes than you need, but I snagged a leather jacket that should fit you. It will serve as good protection, even if it’s hot this time of year. Blankets and packs, a few knives…”

“Any more books?” Fuck, I love how that color deepens on his cheeks.

“A few,” he mumbles, glancing at me then doing a double take as another smile spreads over my face. He licks his lips and darts his eyes away, clearly uncomfortable withthe attention. “Theres, um, more water and dried foods… lots of rice and grain. I know it isn’t fancy, but it’s filling, and you need to put on some weight.”

A loud laugh explodes out of my mouth, and he jumps, startled by my outburst. “I’m sorry,” I say through my laughter, “did you seriously just come in here and announce you’ve brought me rib-sticking food because I’m too skinny?”

He scoffs, obviously flustered, and I’m enjoying his discomfort way too much as I stand and lift my arms in a stretch. His eyes fall to my stomach again and a low noise rumbles from the back of his throat, a growl that doesn’t fully form. “What’s wrong, Ronan?” I ask, unable to help my grin. “Thought I was too skinny for a big, muscular warrior like yourself.”

He stands and moves in front of me so fast it’s a blur, leaving only a tiny gap between us as his eyes roam my body. It’s like a rope winds around us both, pulling tighter and tighter, and demanding we get closer. His hand lifts, hesitating, before he places it on the bare skin of my stomach, and I jolt at the spark of electricity that passes between us.

“Do not put words in my mouth.” His other hand joins the first, and they’re so large they can nearly circle my waist. That heaviness in my gut sinks lower, my cock trying to run the show as it thickens inside my pants.

“I could put other things in your mouth,” I whisper, staring at his lips with a boldness that’s completely unlike me. A boldness I haven’t had since the last time I got close enough to someone else to let them rip my heart out.

He could do it all over again if you let him.

Indecision wars inside me as Ronan forms another of those quiet growls. The hauntings of my past disappear as his thigh pushes between my knees, and I can’t hold back the pitiful sound I make at the friction. “Something tells me we’d both enjoy that,” I say, my voice a rasping mess, and Ronan lunges forward, lifting me as though I weigh nothing at all as he sits me on the countertop.

We’re face-to-face now, with his breath ghosting over my lips, eyes burning into my skin as they rake over my body. “Do not tease me, Cameron.” His voice is husky as his tails flare out from his armor, fanning behind him. “Unless you want to back up those words with action.”

“I can’t stop thinking about you,” I whisper, and his eyes close as his nose nudges mine, his lips parting. “Why can’t I stop thinking about you?”

His palm settles on my neck, thumb tracing over my bottom lip as his eyes open again. He drags it down until it releases, popping back up against the upper one, and his eyes land on mine again. “It’s not just me? I can’t fuckingfocus, Cameron.”

---