9. ANGUS
Chapter nine
ANGUS
I didn’t want to stop holding Eion’s hand, but he had to carry the cooler.
The day was about as perfect as you could get.
One of the best parts was seeing him in his element, which was the glorious icing on this date.
As we headed back to the main buildings, I didn’t want the afternoon to end.
We’d been together for four hours, but it felt like twenty minutes. I wanted more.
As we walked back toward the nursery, I started walking next to him on his left.
He slowed and rearranged, so I was on his right.
This wasn’t the first time he had done this type of move.
I wondered why he never had me on his left side, but assumed he had a vision or hearing problem.
It didn’t matter if he had some sort of disability, because I liked him a lot, a lot.
The important part about today was that we had held hands and touched each other several times.
I could still feel the sparks that were under my skin every time we made contact.
There was a special energy between us, and I craved more.
“I had a wonderful afternoon. I can’t remember when I’ve had so much fun.”
He looked at me. “Really?” I hoped he wouldn’t slip back into anxiety, where he would respond with only one word.
It was kind of adorable when he’d get flustered and have to walk away, but having him talk to me was much better.
There were so many things I wanted to know about him, like how he ended up with Annabelle in the first place.
He said he would tell me, and I trusted that.
“Really. I’ve always loved animals. I have a labradoodle at home named Ramsey, and he is my best buddy. I’d have more, but I don’t have the land at the cottage. So I have Ramsey, and now the kits.” I hoped that would make him like me more.
“Well, you can come spend time with any of the animals when you want. Don’t go into any of the enclosures where the animal could eat you. I’d hate to clean that mess up.”
I laughed. It was a terrible joke, but he just gave me an open invitation to spend time at the Sanctuary, which was obviously a big thing.
It was easy to see how important this place was to him.
Internally, I did a whole dance routine at his offer.
My body buzzed, and my heart raced because the offer was intimate, and I knew it.
There were quite a few signs on the gates and buildings that stated guests were not welcome. But Eion welcomed me.
“So no cuddles with Bethany?”
“I would avoid it. She looks fluffy but could kill you, and other than the mess, I’d prefer to get to know you better before I feed you to a bear.”
We’d been flirting all afternoon, holding hands, touching each other, while we learned limits.
I knew that I wanted to spend more time with him.
We got to the front of the building and entered the nursery.
“I’ve had such a great day.” I knew I repeated myself, but I really wanted him to get how I felt.
He turned toward me, our faces close, and I looked at his lips.
We stared for a moment, our eyes darted around, neither of us brave enough to close the distance.
He ran his right hand up and down my arm, and I loved how it felt.
The heat of his palm through my shirt aroused me—I should have kissed him.
“Do you want to hold Atlas?”
“Yes. I’ll hold, pet, snuggle, or kiss anybody at this Sanctuary.
Anybody.” I hoped he would get the hint.
When he looked at me and smiled, I knew he got it.
When the opportunity comes up again, I would take my shot.
This was a date, and a little kiss wouldn’t be outside what would be expected, right?
It had been a long time since I kissed someone, even longer since I dated, but I felt like we knew each other enough for a little smooch.
“It’s really good to hear that. Why don’t you hop up on the examination table, and she can sit on your lap?”
With Atlas on my knees, I couldn’t decide which of them to look at. While I held her, Eion examined her surgery site, his face a little scrunched up. “Everything okay with her?”
“I think it’s time we stretch out this leg a little.”
“Is it going to hurt her?” I knew I sounded panicked.
Barnaby jogged in and pushed against my leg.
The dog must have sensed my distress. Eion moved his hand up to the side of my face, and his thumb moved over my lips.
“Shhhhh. She will be fine. You are so sweet.” He moved his thumb back and forth a few times.
I was tempted to touch the pad with the tip of my tongue, but instead I looked at him and hoped he could sense what I felt.
His hand ran down my neck, then he looked down at Atlas.
“If I did my job right, she will be stiff, but there will be no pain.”
I watched as he stretched the leg out, moved the joints, and rubbed his fingers over the long scar. The fact that he was a veterinarian kept slipping my mind. Instead of working in a clinic, he was here in his sanctuary, caring for those who needed a champion. He looked up and grinned at me.
“What do you think, Doc?”
“It’s good. She is going to be fine. A few weeks in the nursery, and she can join the skulk of foxes.
Currently, there are twelve of them.” Knowing there was a troop of raccoons out there, and the foxes too.
He had such a wonderful facility here, and it made me want to be more involved.
It wasn’t only spending time with Eion, as he cared for everyone here.
It was growing the Sanctuary because it was such a worthy cause.
Something told me, though, that Eion wouldn’t want me to throw money at him, so I would have to be creative in how I helped, or he would be breaking ground on the new large-animal nursery tomorrow.
“She can go in with the raccoons now?”
He smiled at me. “Yes. Let’s move her.”
Carefully, I got off the table with Atlas tight against my chest. The three of us went down the hall to the nursery.
Unsure which cage to put her in, I sat down to wait.
“You’re a good girl, aren’t you?” I told the little fox.
She stretched her neck out and licked my nose.
I laughed. “You are very pretty too. I bet all the boy foxes will want your attention. You make sure they treat you nicely.”
I had no idea how long I had been in my own world, but when I looked up, Eion watched me from the doorway.
He looked radiant, a smile on his face, as he stood there relaxed.
The look he gave me was way past friendly.
There was a heat there that I liked very much, and seeing his eyes dark made my cock take notice.
This wasn’t the first time I got aroused while I looked at him, but it was the first time I wasn’t shy about it because, based on the look he gave me, he wanted the same thing I did.
He walked over and sat next to me. “You’re amazing with the animals. Do you know how—“
I looked at him and waited for him to finish. He blinked at me several times. “Never mind.”
“Oh no, sir. You can’t start a sentence and then stop.”
“Ugh. This is embarrassing. Okay. Okay. Do you know how sexy you are because of that?”
I couldn’t help but wiggle when I heard him say something so direct.
“Being sweet to animals is sexy to you? That’s going to make this friendship a whole lot more interesting.
” I really wanted this to be more than a friendship, but I wasn’t going to push my luck.
He looked at me, then at the entryway. Eion practically bolted for the door while I sat there with a fox on my lap.
I knew he would be back, so I calmly petted Atlas.
Barnaby left the room, and I assumed he would follow Eion.
I understood that we all had things to work through, and when he got nervous, he walked away. It was okay, because I could wait.
While I sat there and mused over Eion, I realized I was quite smitten with the man and found myself invested in his happiness.
I worried that he was out here alone on his property, with nobody around.
It was one more reason I wanted him to meet my friends.
I wasn’t exactly a social butterfly, but I had a few great people who cared about me.
Did Eion have that? Did he want that? I knew the people in my life would welcome him.
Barnaby returned to the room and lay on the couch next to me.
He nuzzled the fox, who started to move around and nip at the dog.
Barnaby was gentle and licked Atlas a few times.
I looked up when Eion walked back into the room. Without saying anything, he walked over, shooed Barnaby, and sat on the small couch, our bodies touching.
“Welcome ba—“
He wrapped his hand around the back of my head and pulled me close, our lips almost touching.
Half a beat later, I closed the gap, giving him the assurance that I wanted this too.
This was way better than the verbal welcome I was about to give him.
His lips were warm and soft, parted slightly, which allowed me to suck on his upper lip lightly until I felt the warmth of his tongue and opened enough for him to tease.
We pulled apart to go right back in, kissing again; my body hummed with the sensation of the contact.
As we pulled apart again and he looked at me, his eyes were dark, but there was a lovely smile that I wanted to remember forever. He looked happy and at peace. “That was great. Really great.” He said, then leaned forward for another sweet peck.
“I liked it. A lot.” We grinned foolishly at each other, then laughed.
He continued to smile at me. “So you feel this, too? Something between us?”
It comforted me knowing he wasn’t afraid to talk to me about what was happening.
I couldn’t help myself and went in for another kiss.
This time, my hand weaved into his hair, pulling his mouth to mine.
I was more aggressive with my kiss; only the tips of our tongues teased, but there was passion there.
My cock throbbed, and we both breathed unevenly.
“Yeah, I feel it too. I’m on board for exploring it. ”
We kissed more, and I loved the soft moans from him.
He opened for me, and I got my first real taste of him.
Immediately, I was addicted, as I felt his tongue battle with mine, warm and hot.
A deep moan bubbled up from inside me. Already, he did things to my body no other man ever had.
I liked him, and I wanted him. Now wasn’t the time, but this make-out session was a fantastic start to what might happen in the future.
He slipped his hand inside the collar of my shirt, and the warmth of his palm on my skin was welcome. I didn’t know what it was about Eion, but he did things to me that were new and wonderful. “Yeah. I’d like that.”
We sat back, and he took my hand. There were no words for a bit.
We sat there, my head on his shoulder. I knew I was thinking through what to say, what I wanted, and where to go from here.
“I don’t have a lot of people in my life who are important, but as I said, I want you to meet them.
” That seemed like a good place to start.
“You want me to meet your people?” He sounded scared and in awe at the same time.
“Yeah. I like you, Eion.”
“I see.” He leaned in and kissed me again.
“I’ve had an amazing day with you. I need to give everyone their dinner, and I am sure Ramsey is wondering where you are.
” I narrowed my eyes, and Barnaby cocked his head at him.
Both of us were clearly confused, but I had already learned that Eion’s defense mechanism was to run.
I liked him enough to take the win. This time, he didn’t run away.
He was trying to wrap things up, probably because he needed time, and I was willing to give it to him.
“You are right.” He looked at me, relieved. “I’ve had the perfect day, and it was an incredible date. Thank you.” We kissed leisurely but became rather enthusiastic after a minute. When we finally pulled apart, his hand was cupped around my jaw.
“You are amazing. Today was great. I’m going to call you.
I need a minute, okay?” His comment was unexpected, but I was glad I had read the situation correctly.
We would figure things out for sure, but he was nervous.
It would also give me a little bit of time to figure out how to explain my past to him.
There was damage behind the exterior that everyone saw.
“Absolutely okay.” I headed home happy. There was some worry, but I felt confident I would hear from him soon. It was nice to have clear communication and to figure out how to work around our issues together—at least that’s what I hoped.