Chapter 14
14
W hen Nathan doesn’t come back to my cabin, my curiosity leads me to the house.
Nathan isn’t hard to find.
The Blackshaws stick their heads out of the kitchen, den, and living room to say hi as I enter the house. For a place I haven’t been in long, it’s surprising how fast it’s starting to feel like home.
Following my nose upstairs, I push open a closed door and smile at Nathan sitting with his back to a wall between matching white cribs. Two toddlers are snoring. Angel is cuddling a stuffed white unicorn, and Patrick is flat on his back with his thumb in his mouth.
And Nathan?
He has an open book about farmyard animals resting on his belly, his head tilted back, eyes closed, and he’s snoring even louder than the kids are.
He is utterly adorable.
Still smiling, I turn to leave.
“Clara?”
I twist around. He’s blinking bleary eyes open as he sets the book aside and lifts his arm. “There’s space for two.”
“Nathan…”
“Just for a bit.”
I briefly hesitate before I cross over to join him on the floor. I couldn’t tell you why I do it until he wraps his arm around my shoulder and tucks me against his side. The second he does, I know exactly why I joined him on the floor. It’s starting to feel like the only place I want to be.
“I meant to come back.” His voice is husky with sleep. “Between all the driving to Dawley and mooing the toddlers to sleep, I must have been more tired than I thought.”
And me. I’m to blame for his tiredness as well. We’ve barely gotten much sleep lately.
“It’s okay.” I smile. “Savannah said you were the best at getting Angel down for her nap.”
Nathan looks from Angel to Patrick and drops a kiss on the top of my head. “Guess so.”
I relax as the soft snores of the sleeping toddlers lulls me into an unexpected nap. It’s only when I hear muffled voices from the door that I realize I fell asleep.
I blink my eyes open.
Nathan is talking quietly to Talis and Dayne, who are standing just inside the bedroom. I feel more tired than rested, so I can’t have been asleep for long.
“Sorry for waking you,” Talis apologizes when I lift my cheek from Nathan’s chest. “And sorry our little ones ruined your date.”
“My date?” I rub the sleep from my eyes as Dayne points his chin at Nathan.
“Nate was filling us in.” His smile is wry. “He said he had plans which I ruined. Sorry about that.”
My eyes widen in surprise. “You’re sorry .”
He nods. “Nate works wonders at getting them to sleep. Angel in particular. We probably take advantage more than we should.”
“I like the kiddos.” Nathan gets to his feet and snags my hand, pulling me to mine. “Always happy to help. But now I gotta go.”
“Where?” I frown as he leads me from the room and out onto the back porch. Laughter and muffled conversation drift from the kitchen and the den as we leave. I must have slept for longer than I thought, because it’s fully dark now.
At the foot of the porch staircase, I grind to a halt. “Uh, I’m actually kind of tired. I didn’t realize it was so late.”
He looks at me. “So you want to go to your cabin?”
I pull on my hand so he knows I want him to let go. “Yeah. But...”
“But what?” he prompts.
Jeremy said Nathan had a soft heart, and the longer I’m with him, the more I see it. I have to be careful because I could do some real damage with my tendency to lash out.
“I like you,” I tell him quietly.
His shoulders relax. “And that’s a bad thing?”
I gesture toward the house. Someone is watching a TV show in the den. Laughter drifts from the kitchen, as does the scent of cooking food. Upstairs, a baby giggles, the sweet sound followed by Talis laughingly telling Dayne not to throw Patrick too high.
“This is your home. Your life. Not mine.”
“There’s no reason it can’t be yours as well.” He gently tugs me toward him.
I resist, keeping my distance. “There is.”
Even if I can’t remember what that reason is.
He brushes a kiss across my knuckles and releases me. “Okay. Dayne was saying we’re having a pack run later tonight. Marshall and Jenna have opted to watch a movie instead. Come. It’ll be fun.”
“Maybe.” I turn to walk away.
I don’t make it two steps before Nathan is spinning me around. “Ah, I forgot something.”
“That thing was?”
He slides an arm around my waist, dips his head, and kisses me. “That. In case you don’t come to the run later.”
“You’re fond of taking liberties, Blackshaw,” I say, fighting to contain my smile.
His eyes dip to my mouth. “You don’t look like you have a problem with it, peach.”
I turn around before he can see my smile because he’s right. I don’t seem to have a problem with it. “Enjoy your run tonight,” I call out.
“I’ll come see you after.”
“No, you won’t.” I back up, seeing the tired lines on his face. “You’ll be having that run with your packmates then catching up on sleep.”
“An order.” He looks delighted. “Have any more for me?”
I laugh when he waggles his eyebrows suggestively. “Goodnight, Blackshaw. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Goodnight, peach.”
Back in my cabin, I don’t know what to do with myself.
I’ve always been with Martha. Now I’m in a pack, alone in a cabin in the woods.
Since my cabin is a mess, as usual, I spend the next hour cleaning, followed by a long, hot shower. I still have Nathan’s cell phone, which he forgot to take back, so I send Martha a quick text goodnight. Her lack of response means she’s busy hanging out with the rest of the pack, or she’s up to extra-curricular activities with Ty. Probably the latter.
I make pasta and vodka sauce from a jar, get ready for bed, and curl up on the bed with a book I randomly grab from a bookcase.
I fall asleep before I finish one page, waking at a small sound just outside my cabin. I close my book and set it aside as I get to my feet. Despite the fancy nightdress that Nathan bought for me, I have taken to sleeping in one of his shirts.
I pull open my cabin door to find Nathan, completely naked, leaning on the wall just outside.
When he notes what I’m wearing, one corner of his mouth lifts in a crooked smile. “I wondered what happened to that.”
I cross my arms. “You can’t have it back.”
“Didn’t say I wanted it back, peach.” He gives me another longer, approving look. “You look good in my shirt.”
“Is that why I get to keep it?”
“Anything you want is yours. That’s why.”
This man is making it really hard to remember I have itchy feet, because when he’s around I don’t seem to want to go anywhere.
“You’re supposed to be on a run,” I remind him.
“Dayne moved it to tomorrow. Everyone wanted to watch a movie instead.”
My eyes dart to his naked body. “And the reason for you to come to my cabin naked?”
“I’m trying to tempt you to let me inside. Is it working?” His gaze is hungry when he focuses on my bare legs.
“No. It didn’t work.”
“I promise to behave.”
I snort. “No, you won’t.”
“Then I promise not to behave.” He takes a step closer.
“And how would you do that?”
His lip twitches. “I have a couple of ways you might like.”
I uncross my arms, my belly tightening in anticipation as he closes the distance between us. “And those ways are?”
He follows me in, pushing the door closed as he tracks me across the room, with one destination in mind from the heat in his gaze. “Thorough.”
“How thorough?” The backs of my thighs hit the edge of the bed and I tip.
He clasps my hips, catching me before I can fall. But that isn’t all he does. He eases the T-shirt over my head, tosses it aside and as his gaze lowers, so does he. Slowly, he kisses his way down my body, taking his time on my right breast and then my left. “Extremely.”
“I can see that.” I grip his hair, sensing I’m about to need something to hold on to.
I’m breathless by the time he’s on his knees in front of me.
“Blackshaw?” I whisper.
He presses my thighs open and looks up at me. “Peach?”
“What are you doing?” I ask as my fingers tighten in his hair.
“Giving you a reason to invite me into your bed.” One firm swipe of his tongue makes me strangle a moan. “How am I doing?”
I pull him up to his feet and shove him onto my bed.
“That good, huh?” He grins at me, then tugs me down on top of him.