21. ANGUS
Chapter twenty-one
ANGUS
Eion went from not wanting to speak to me when I first visited the Sanctuary to being jealous weeks later, which was adorable.
Once he let me into his world, he had shown me how beautiful he was inside.
When my mother shared with him that I had stress issues and such bad self-esteem that I had become anorexic, he handled it by showing me how he felt about me. He offered me grace.
I knew he fought with his own issues because of his arm, but I didn’t even think about it.
With or without his prosthetic, he was everything I could ever want in a man.
I didn’t find his residual limb weird or gross, which he had admitted had happened in his past. If strangers that he worked around—not even got naked with—behaved that way, I understood why he was leery about sharing his emotions with someone.
As I checked IDs at the door of The Dapper Duck, I thought about my boyfriend.
I had spent the last five nights in his bed.
West had given me the time off to get to know him better, and it had worked.
We had established the beginning of a relationship.
Sitting in the break room, I ate my taco carefully.
It was obvious to me that I was treating food inappropriately.
One taco for someone my size wasn’t enough, and I was picking at it.
I needed to make an appointment with my therapist, and I already knew the reason I was stressed.
This was the first real relationship I’d had, and my insecurities made me start thinking I needed to be perfect.
When I pulled out my phone, I found a message.
EION
I miss my boyfriend.
It made me feel wanted. All of it felt strange to me, but I liked it, and what surprised me most was that I missed him, too.
ANGUS
I miss you too. Did you have a good night? Did everyone get fed? Are all the babies good?
EION
Yeah. Brittany Bear will give birth soon. Her wounds are healing well.
I can’t wait until we have a proper nursery for these animals.
ANGUS
Soon. What are you wearing?
EION
You dirty man. Sweatpants, no shirt.
ANGUS
I’d love to lick every inch of that skin.
West sat down and smirked at me
ANGUS
The boss is here. I need to run.
“Look at that smile. Did you make good use of your days off?” West smirked as he said the words.
I knew I blushed even though West was one of my best friends. He had never seen me show interest in a guy before. “It appears I now have a boyfriend.”
“No shit. When do I get to meet him?”
“We’ll make it happen soon.”
“Since he makes you look so happy, I suspect I am going to like him.” I knew he would because Eion was a sweet, likable guy. “I’m happy for you, Angus. You deserve to be happy.”
I headed home after my shift and felt off-center.
What I wanted was to be going to Eion’s place instead of the cottage.
I had dropped Ramsey off when I drove to work, and he was glad I was with him, but he could be with me at the Sanctuary.
In my bedroom, I took the vest off and felt a sense of loss, as if this was now Eion’s job.
I wanted to text him, but it was 2:00 a.m., and I was afraid I would wake him up.
I’d talk to him when I visited the animals, even though I wouldn’t be up in time for morning feeding, but I could at least give the raccoons their breakfast. They were eating solid food in the evening now, so bottles only once a day for North and South.
The golden girls had a few more weeks before they were on once a day.
My bed felt lonely, but I was exhausted and fell asleep quickly.
Around 9:00 a.m., I headed downstairs, where Mom sat at the dining room table with tea and cookies. I snatched a cookie and kissed her cheek. “Well, I like this version of you.” She looked up and smiled. “It’s nice that you spent the night at home and I could see your pretty face this morning.”
“Don’t get used to it, Mom. I have it bad for him and will spend as much time as I can with him over there.
” I sat in the chair and stole another cookie.
Shit, I shouldn’t be eating these. Cookies would make me ugly.
I set it back on the plate, and my mom gave me the look she had mastered.
She handed it back, and I took another bite.
“I made an appointment with my therapist. Having Eion in my life is bringing up some habits,” I told her quietly.
I hated to admit that I still struggled after all these years.
This was a disorder that never went away—it got managed.
And my need for control, for perfection, and for approval surfaced when I was stressed.
Even though he is a good thing in my life, it still messed with my mind.
“You’re a good boy.” I rolled my eyes. “For the record, that man is crazy about you, too.” My mother was incredibly intuitive, and if she saw it, then there was real hope.
We talked a little longer about the upcoming event and how she had made an appointment for Eion and me with a tailor to get tuxedos made.
I couldn’t wait to see him in formal wear—my body revved at the thought.
I was further encouraged that Eion accepted that money was a part of my life, and didn’t get mad when something nice was done for him, and, better yet, he didn’t ask me to buy him things.
My mom had more than one man try to get her money, and it was pretty easy to see what they really wanted.
“I’m taking Ramsey and heading over to the Sanctuary, Mom,” I yelled as I went to the front door.
“Give that man a big hug from me, and take these. Make sure he knows that I made them. I expect to see you both for Sunday dinner. I still need to prove to him I am more than just a socialite.” I looked at the plastic container that had at least three types of cookies.
“Mom. He knows you aren’t.”
“Never too soon to impress my son-in-law.”
I swallowed hard, nearly choking myself.
“That’s. Mother. Fuck.” She grinned at me.
I didn’t want to tell her that it was impossible because it was most certainly something I could see in my future.
But saying anything like that now was way too soon.
We had only been dating for a little while, and even though my feelings were strong, we weren’t there yet.
When we pulled up to the Sanctuary, Ramsey was ready to get out of the car.
The minute the door was open, he went to the gate and danced.
When it was opened, he took off, and I assumed he was searching for Eion, maybe Barnaby, though he had taken to spending time with Orlando and Annabelle.
I left my clothes in the trailer and headed into the nursery to play with the raccoons before work
“Hey there, Sexy.” Goosebumps traveled over my skin, and my heart skipped a beat. He stood in the doorway, and I looked up at him. I knew I was way over the top with my enthusiasm to see him, but I couldn’t help how happy he made me.
“Look who’s talking. How are you, Baby?” He sat next to me, and I leaned against him.
Without any thought, he reached over and pulled my mouth to his.
There was a ton of passion and desire behind it, but even though our tongues danced and we were desperate for each other, there was something more there, too.
I also hadn’t missed how I casually called him Baby, and he didn’t even flinch.
“I missed you last night.”
“I missed you, too,” I said as I put my forehead against his.
“I saw Ramsey heading toward Orlando. Those three are best friends now. You can leave him here when you go to work if you want.” He smiled. “And—“
I could feel his body tense up like he was about to stand up. “Oh no you don’t. No running from me.” I grabbed his wrist. “And?”
“You can come back here any time you want. Like after work.”
“Oh. You want me in your bed so you can do dirty things to me?”
“No. No. I mean, yes, but no, it’s not about the sex.” He looked worried.
“Oh, Eion, no, I was teasing.”
“I want you near me. We don’t even have to have sex. I mean, I like it a lot, but I like you more.”
It was interesting to see Eion start to ramble since that was usually my thing. “I want to be near you, too. If you keep Ramsey, I will come here after work. Remember, I get home like 2:00 a.m. Will that be a problem?”
“Not at all.” He smiled at me like I had promised him the world.
“Okay then. If I am going to start spending more nights here, I will bring some clothes and leave them if that’s okay.”
He laughed. “Of course. And I am really glad we got the bigger trailer.”
I grinned against his lips. “Good. I am too.” After making sure the babies had all stayed out of trouble, we kissed more. The morning chores were all taken care of, which meant it was lunchtime.
“Have time for lunch? Maybe dessert first?” He helped me up and wiggled his eyebrows at me.
“Man, I really like dessert. And I like how you think.”
As soon as we entered the trailer, Eion pushed me up against the fridge and dropped to his knees.
The sound of my zipper seemed loud in the quiet trailer.
“I’ve been thinking about the weight of you on my tongue for the last twenty-four hours.
” He licked his lips. “I can’t wait.” When he looked up at me through his dark lashes, his pupils were already blown and lids hooded.
I was struck, as always, by how beautiful he was.
My heart was all in, and I knew I was in love, and it wasn’t because of the amazing things he did to my body.
I loved him because of the crazy things my heart did when he was near me.
As he slipped the crown of my cock into his mouth, he used his right hand to meet his mouth on the upstroke, and his left forearm was across my hips, holding me in place.
His tongue worked the underside, firm and slick against the taut skin.
I was painfully hard, and everything he did ramped up the ball of fire that had collected at the base of my spine.
I pushed the hair on his head back while I watched him devour me.
“Fucking gorgeous. So good, Eion. Yes. Baby. Yes.” I didn’t think about the words I was saying.
I wanted him to know how I was feeling. Having sex with Eion was a problem because I lost control of my body.
What I wanted was to linger and feel everything he did, but when he touched me, it was all over.
He played me however he wanted. I watched as this amazing man brought me exquisite pleasure, and it was too much.
“Eion. I.” That was all I could do to warn him before I released down his throat, and he swallowed everything I offered.
It felt like life itself was altered, my heart filled up, and my body sparkled.
I slid to the floor, sought his mouth, the taste of me still thick on his tongue.
“Let me have you.” I managed to croak out.
He stood up, and I pulled him out and took him in my mouth.
The feel of him brought my body back alive again, a shiver going from my head to my toes.
Using the flat of my tongue, I teased the glans around the crown, then focused on the most sensitive part of him, that tight skin on the underside just below the head.
I laved and sucked up and down until he moaned deeply.
“Oh, Jesus. Fuck. So good.” I was rewarded with his seed.
His body shuddered, and his cock pulsed into my mouth.
The sounds he made sent chills across my skin.
There was something special about us together.
The passion and desire between us were unlike anything I had ever experienced.
Did he feel the same way? Was I the only one catching all these complicated feels?
He recognized our amazing chemistry, didn’t he?
He pulled me to my feet and kissed me, our flavors combining to create something unique I couldn’t get enough of.
“You. We. Shit.” He guided us both to the small couch area, where he sat, then pulled me down on his lap. He was still catching his breath as he kissed my neck.
“Angus, there is something about you. I thought I was over wanting more when I was left behind, but you’ve brought back dormant feelings.
” It was impossible not to sigh contentedly in his arms. We had about an hour to eat and then get me ready for work.
It made me happy to know that I would come back here after my shift.
We spent another half an hour on the couch, cuddling and kissing.
We didn’t hurry, as our tongues were lazy and playful.
Getting up and dressed was the last thing I wanted to do.
Staying right here in his arms, watching a movie, or taking a nap would be perfect.
But I loved my job, and I had a commitment to fulfill.
Eion helped me get dressed. He laced me up tight while I enjoyed the way the vest held me.
I knew every moment I was away from him, I would be reminded that he was the one who made sure I was controlled.
I kissed him deeply before I headed to work.
“I’ll try not to wake you up when I get home,” I said as I stepped out.
He smiled against my lips. “Home. I like how that sounds.”
I did too. Maybe a little too much.