Chapter 61 Good Boy #2
I scratch the back of my neck as my eyes drop to the bed. It doesn’t look safe. An ancient wooden frame, its paint chipped and peeling as if it had been through one too many storms.
Two leashes sit coil neatly on the edge of a quilt that looks like moths have eaten through it. Perhaps we’ll end up calling Dean for help.
Jade stands by the far wall. Barefoot. Calm. Smiling. She’s gorgeous. Fully dressed. I expected naked.
“Hi,” I say.
“Hi.” She doesn’t move.
She knows I have no idea what the fuck to do.
I wrap a collar around my neck and fumble with the buckle. “Is this what you want?”
She says nothing, just stares at me with her gorgeous hazel eyes.
I step toward the bed and pick up the leash, hooking it on the collar. I swing the end of the leash like I’m ready to lasso her.
Not a word.
I give her the dumbest, crookedest grin, “I’m ready for whatever this is. Probably. Sort of. Ninety percent ready, but seriously freaking out inside.”
She bites her lower lip, and I’m ready to claim that mouth as my own.
Instead of the kinky affair I expect, she opens a side door I hadn’t noticed. Two dogs came barreling out like living cannonballs. But not any two dogs, Hershey and Godiva.
Hershey tackles my legs, while Godiva launches straight into my chest, licking my face with pure chaotic joy.
I stumble backward and let go of the leash, still dangling from my neck, to scrub my hands over the animals.
My knees drop to the dusty wooden floor, and the dogs attack me with love. Godiva plants wet, eager kisses on my cheek and licks my ear. Hershey nudges his head into my lap, eyes bright and pleading for attention.
Jade joins me. “Meet our new family members.”
“You adopted them.” I catch her hand, but Godiva shoves her way through, hitting my face with her tail.
Jade laughs. “Yes.”
“I tried to adopt them, but I was too late.” Godiva licks my nose and face.
“I wanted to surprise you.”
“I’m surprised.”
She tries to kiss me, but Godiva beats her.
I laugh, full-body, can’t-breathe kind of laugh.
Jade grabs the rubber ball and tosses it across the room. The dogs explode into action, claws scraping the old floorboards as they chase after it.
Barks echo off the cracked walls. Dust kicks up. Tails wag. We enjoy serious rounds of catch. Every time the ball bounces back, the dogs are on it, quicker than the last. Godiva almost takes out the rickety bookshelf in the corner. Hershey has the area rug bunched up.
“They missed you, but I missed you more.” Somehow, Jade manages to straddle my lap as she kisses me.
The dogs circle us, tails wagging like little metronomes of happiness.
“I just saw you this morning before I left your cabin.”
“It was too long ago.” The floor creaks under us, and I pray we don’t fall through. “What are we doing here?”
Her hands snake around my neck as she leans back. “This is the property your brothers said you want, so I wanted to show you, I’m all in.” The floor creaks again, and I see her eye flicker nervously. “It’s going to need a lot of work.”
She’d live in this shithole for me. I grab the back of her neck and drag her into another kiss, longer and deeper this time. When we part, we’re both breathing heavy.
“When do we move in?” I ask. “I don’t mind boiling water from the well, and there’s an outhouse.”
The horrified look on her face is priceless.
She shakes her head. “I’m bringing the RV. I’ll live in that until this place is fixed up.”
“You think it’s salvageable?” My hands settle on her hips.
She slowly shakes her head.
I laugh, my thumbs brushing over the curve of her waist. “We’d have to rebuild.”
“Maybe not two floors.” Her hands rest on my chest, warm and steady.
“Ranch style?”
She leans into me just enough to make my pulse quicken. “With fewer rooms.”
“Enough for just us?” I tighten my hold around her, feeling the truth of our decision settle deep within me.
We’ve been through enough noise. Now it’s time for peace. For focus. For us.
“To build something that’s only ours.”
She smiles, pressing her forehead to mine.
“Attached to a small barn.”
“To watch our horse while drinking coffee.”
“Sounds perfect,” she whispers, her lips brushing my lips.
“Every day with you is perfect.”
Jade’s eyes sparkle with mischief as she leans back and traces the collar.
“Maybe those rumors I spread weren’t as wrong as I thought.” She twists her finger around the leash. “You thought we were going to do something kinky like dogs?”
My face goes solemn when she says it with such surprise and judgment.
She laughs. “I’m teasing. I will always get in all fours for you.”
I growl.
“That’s a good boy,” she whispers, her lips brushing against my ear. “You’re mine to command.”
I stand, scooping her up, and I carry her to the bed. “I want to please you.”
“Beg for it.” Her voice is sharp. “Beg like the filthy little mutt you are.”
I choke.
She laughs and tosses my Stetson off. “Make love to me, Hart.” Her voice is soft. “No kinks. No fetishes. Just you and me.”
“Okay.” I kiss her as I set her on the bed.
The old springs barely bounce. A billow of smoke sends us into a coughing spell. Then a snap from above cuts through the quiet.
We both look up as the ceiling light fixture swings off a cord above us.
I grab her arm and roll us just as the cord snaps with a harsh pop, and the heavy fixture crashes down beside us. I use my body as a shield, covering her as metal and glass smash where we’d just been lying.
We lie there for a minute, breathing hard, then burst into another round of laughter. I haven’t laughed this much in years, and it feels great.
“We should get out of here.” She unclips the collar around my neck. “Our dogs need these.”
Our dogs.
I love how that sounds.
I cup her face. “I have somewhere I want to show you.”