Page 109 of Cruel Tides

Sprout’s mouth opened up in an adorable yawn that showed off all his tiny, sharp-tipped teeth.“Try it and see.”

“Yeah, better not,” I said, coming around the bed to pull Kai away before he experienced his first cat claw to the face. “Let’s wait until Barren’s done with his shower and see what he says. Maybe he knows the owner.”

My stomach twisted because,ugh, that meant I would actually have to look at and speak to Barren. Well, this was important, wasn’t it? Maybe this was the best thing that could have happened, and Kai letting a cat into Barren’s bedroom would be the perfect distraction from acknowledging the scene he’d walked in on earlier.

Before I dragged Kai out of the bedroom, I planted a firm kiss on his lips.

“What was that for?” he asked, panting a breath when I pulled away.

I grinned as I led him back to the living room. “Just for being you.”

Kai must have liked that answer, because laughter bubbled freely from his throat. As I stood near the bathroom door, Leander approached from behind, throwing his arms around me. And yep—he had still neglected to retrieve his pants.

“What’s this?” Leander asked, his voice going smooth as his arms closed around me. “Are we planning to pounce on Barren as soon as he’s done with his shower?”

The way his length stiffened against me had me wondering if a hurricane was imminent. He was clearly still sexually frustrated.

“Am I going to have to have you drag me out into the middle of the ocean just so you can get some relief?” I muttered, and his cock pulsed against my back. “Seriously, Lee, let’s not sink the island.”

“I think I like that idea… The dragging you into the ocean part,” he murmured, his voice deepening just as the bathroom door pulled open.

Steam emerged along with Barren, and he was still tightening his brace over his shoulder when he noticed all of us standing there at the door.

A million thoughts poured through my head in a panic. Did coming home to find us all naked in his living room really not bother him at all? Was he not bothered by the sight of Leander holding me now? As his eyes slid over to me, his face was as unreadable as ever.

“Barren—hi,” I blurted, and Leander chuckled in my ear as I fought to free myself from his grip. “Sorry to bother you.”

Barren’s jaw tensed, and I swallowed back a gulp. Was he upset? Disappointed? Did he feel anything at all? “We heard scratching and, well…” My voice tailed just as Kai chimed in.

“Dude. You won’t believe it—there’s a raccoon in your bedroom,” he said, causing Barren’s stoic demeanor to break with a rise of his eyebrows.

Uh, what?

I swerved to look at Kai. “No, no, not a raccoon.”

“I thought you called it a raccoon?” he said, bouncing on his toes like he already wanted to go back and see it. “A pretty kitty raccoon, I think, is what you said.”

“Acat,” I corrected, then focused back on Barren. “We let a cat inside by mistake, and it jumped on your bed.”

Without a word, Barren headed straight to his bedroom.

“Have you really never seen a cat before?” I whispered as soon as Barren was out of earshot. “Or a raccoon?”

As Kai shook his head, I realized how much these guys had been missing out on land. “You’ve seen a dog, though, right?”

His face brightened. “Oh, yeah! Back in California, humans hang out with dogs on the beach all the time.”

Barren came back into the living room, and it surprised me to see him cradling the gray tabby in his arm. The cat rubbed his head against the leather strap of his brace like it had been coated in catnip.

“Is this… your cat?” I asked, blinking at the two of them. Was the cat purring?

Barren nodded, and I couldn’t help but feel relieved. At least we hadn’t let a stranger’s cat into the house. “He missed you,” I said, eyeing the cat and resisting the urge to pet him. Now that he was in Barren’s arm, he seemed so much friendlier. “Didn’t you, Sprout?”

Barren shifted on his feet, looking suddenly uncomfortable. “Who told you his name?” he said stiffly while Sprout continued to purr and rub against his chest.

“Uh, he did, of course.” I blinked. “I think he was upset when he came inside and you weren’t there, because he also sent over a taste of how much he missed you.” I rubbed at my chest, where remnants of loneliness still lingered.

Barren’s only reaction was silence, his gaze steadily fixed on me. With the exception of Sprout, the entire room seemed eerily tense.

---