Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 97724 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 489(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 326(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97724 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 489(@200wpm)___ 391(@250wpm)___ 326(@300wpm)
“Looks like he’s off duty,” Beckett says.
“He’s always on duty. If I have a nightmare, he knows to turn the lights on for me. It’s one of the things he was trained to do.”
He takes my chin in his fingers and turns me to look at him. His eyes are narrowed and intense, and I swallow hard.
“It’s probably not sexy to be afraid of the dark, is it?”
“Every single thing about you is sexy, Irish.”
“Should I get out of your lap?”
“Not on my account.” His mouth tips up in a half smile. “But if you don’t want me to kiss you, you might want to move.”
Oh, I want him to kiss me. I’ve dreamed about him kissing me for a while now.
When I don’t move, his eyes dip to my mouth, and I lick my lips. He cups my neck and jaw, his thumb brushes over my cheek, and he closes the gap between us and takes my mouth with his.
It’s so much more than I imagined.
His whiskers rasp against my skin, and he licks my bottom lip, making my stomach quiver. When my mouth opens to him, he sinks in.
This man kisses me like he was born for it, and it’s everything I never knew I needed.
But it’s over too quickly, and when he pulls away, we’re both breathing hard and fast.
“Wow,” I whisper.
“There are two things I’m not going to do tonight,” he tells me and swallows hard.
“Okay, what are they, then?”
“One, I’m not going to fuck you. Even though I want to with every goddamn fiber of my body, I’m not going to take it any further tonight.”
Well, that’s a shame.
“And the second?”
“I’m also not going home. I’m going to stay here, and we’re going to talk, and I’m going to hold you until we fall asleep. Unless you kick me out because you’re the boss, Irish.”
“I’m not for kicking you out, Beckett.”
He presses his lips to mine again, but this kiss is softer. Gentler. And then he pulls back and settles me against him so my head rests on his chest, under his chin, and he’s holding me close.
This feels so right.
He could have run away, thinking that I came with too much baggage. Yet he kissed me and promised me a night of comfort and friendship. And even though I’m feeling a little raw from speaking about him, I also feel content. At peace somehow.
I know some things about the Blackwell family because of Bee and Dani, but I want to know more from Beck’s perspective. Now feels like the time to ask him.
“Where are your parents?”
“Florida,” he replies and kisses the top of my head. “They moved down there when they retired, but they come up often. They don’t want to miss too much of Birdie’s life. They just hate the snow.”
“I love the snow.” I also love the sound of Beckett’s heartbeat against my ear. “Are you the eldest sibling?”
“No, that’s Brooks.”
“That’s right, he told me that when I met you all at the pub. Where do you fall in line?”
“I’m actually the second youngest, just before Billie. But there’s a bit of a gap between us. She’s twenty-seven, and I’m thirty-one. Billie was a happy surprise.”
“I like that. A happy surprise. Connor is almost forty, and I’m nearly twenty-eight. I was also a surprise. Ma and Da didn’t think they could have more children.”
“You are absolutely a happy surprise, sweetheart.” He kisses the top of my head, and I melt further into him.
So are you, Beckett Blackwell. So are you.
Chapter Nine
BECKETT
Something wet pressing against my face pulls me out of a dead sleep, and when I crack open an eye, I find Riley staring back at me.
I’m lying flat on my back on the couch, and Skyla, the woman I can’t get enough of, is draped over me, her head on my chest and arms wrapped around me, sleeping sweetly.
Riley lets out a little whine, telling me that he needs to go outside, so I gently roll the beauty in my arms to the side and prop a throw pillow against her chest. She immediately wraps herself around the pillow, and I stand and head for the kitchen.
Opening the back door, I let Riley slip outside, then I get to work making coffee. I can tell it’s still early since the sky is just starting to lighten, but the sun isn’t up yet.
It’s probably not quite six, and I’ve usually been up and working for an hour by now.
Does Riley always get his human up this early?
Just as I get the water in the coffee maker, Riley’s back at the door, so I let him in and stand at the sink, staring out the window to the backyard with my arms crossed as I wait for the coffee to brew.
“He’s always on duty. If I have a nightmare, he knows to turn the lights on for me. It’s one of the things he was trained for.”