Well, also because he’d told off the guys in Omaha. She had no doubt that they’d deserved it.
“That’s because you’re a troublemaker,” Griffin told her. “Most people know that I shouldn’t have reacted like that.”
“Sometimes, when you’re dealing with selfish bastards, the only thing to do is call them out.”
He looked at her for several beats before asking, “You think I was right?”
“Of course.”
“You don’t know how the whole conversation went or any of the details of the situation.”
“No, but I’ve been around you for five days now.”
“Exactly. You’ve only been around me for five days.”
She leaned in, rested her elbows on her thighs, mimicking his posture. She met his eyes directly. “Griffin, it only takes a few hours with you around animals to see what kind of guy you are and what matters to you.”
Again, several ticks passed with him simply watching her before he said, “And there you go, being irresistible again.”
She laughed lightly. “I’m not sure you’re using the word irresistible correctly. You seem to be doing a fine job of resisting me.”
“I don’t think that’s going to last.”
Her stomach swooped, and heat shot through her belly straight between her legs. “You probably shouldn’t have admitted that.”
He nodded. “Probably not.”
“Tell me what happened in D.C.” She swallowed hard as tingles raced through her bloodstream. “Quickly, though.”
“There’s a timeline?”
She nodded. “There is. I’m about three minutes away from kissing you. And once I start, I’m really not going to want to stop. Even to talk about tigers.” She leaned in a little closer, her voice dropping a bit as she said, “And I don’t think you’ll want to either.”
His eyes were hot on hers as he said, “We finally got the tiger pregnant. She had a cub that was perfectly healthy. We decided to have an event to celebrate and invited all of our mega-donors to the propagation program to come see the cub before we introduced him to the public. A donor’s wife climbed into the nursery pen and picked him up for a photo.”
For a moment, Charlie was distracted from her delight over how quickly he was talking, clearly to get the story over with so the kissing could commence. “She got into a tiger pen?”
“The mother wasn’t in there. It was only the cub. But yes, even after being told that no one could touch the cub. Her husband was our biggest donor, and she obviously thought the rules didn’t apply to her. And I lost my shit.”
“Was she okay?”
“Yes. But honestly, that was not my first concern. If baby tigers are handled too much by humans, it’s possible that their mother will reject them. We had just successfully had a tiger cub born after multiple tries, and to think that the mother might not take care of him made me see red.”
“My God, I can totally understand that.” Charlie felt herself frowning and her heart pounding, but now her heart rate had nothing to do with Griffin. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Her heart rate was always a little elevated when Griffin was around, and when he was growly and protective of animals, it especially made her hormones rush. But now, she was sharing his frustration and anger. At a woman she had never met.
“What did you do?” Charlie asked. For some reason, she knew this went beyond raising his voice and calling people names.
Griffin blew out a breath. “I grabbed the cub away from her, put it down, then took her arm and started to escort her out of the building. When she resisted and started yelling, I wrapped an arm around her waist, picked her up, and carried her out.”
Charlie felt her mouth drop open. Okay, that was a relationship-with-a-donor nightmare as well as a horrible publicity situation. She still wanted to kiss him. “And you were fired right on the spot,” she guessed.
Griffin nodded. “You got it. But, I would’ve quit the next day if the director had tried to side with the donor.”
Charlie nodded. That was totally in character. “And then you came here?”
“A mutual friend called Tori, and she called me.”
Charlie stood from the bucket and took a step forward. Griffin didn’t change his posture at all except to tip his head slightly to look up at her.
“Is Autre going to be enough for you?”
“My goal now is simplicity. I want things uncomplicated and straightforward. I don’t have to deal with politics here, or mega-donors thinking they have rights that they don’t, and—” He sighed. “I don’t have exotic, endangered animals here. That should keep me from losing my shit.”
She took another step, and now he spread his knees and straightened slightly. She stepped between his knees and put a hand on his face.
“I don’t think anything can actually take away a passion like yours.” She took a breath. “At least I hope not.”
With a resigned groan, Griffin’s hands went to her hips, and he pulled her forward and into his lap.
She straddled his thighs, thrilled that they were on the same page here.
She slid her hand up the back of his neck and into his hair, cradling his head and looking into his eyes.
He ran his hands from her hips up her back, pressing her close as he took a big, deep breath.
“You are a really good man, Griffin Foster.”
He shook his head. “And you are absolutely irresistible.”
“I’m very happy to hear you say that.”
Chapter 12
Griffin felt an intense mix of desire and relief as Charlie’s body melted into his.
He’d been trying to stay away from her for days. The five days that she’d been in Autre felt like five weeks. And like five minutes.
He’d enjoyed all of it, except for the part where he’d tried to keep his hands to himself. That had been getting progressively more difficult the more they worked together at the clinic and the more delightful ideas she implemented. It was everything—her voice, her smile, her ideas, her enthusiasm, her warmth—that had come together to make him realize that his life had become very small. And dim. And a little boring.
Of course, that had all been his intention. Clearly, his plan to lay low in a small town and take care of cats and dogs had worked.
But dammit, now that Charlie was here, his heart was beating again. His own mind was spinning with ideas. He was getting excited about things.
And all it had taken was kettle corn and hedgehogs—actually, just the idea of kettle corn and hedgehogs—to break through his nothing-works-out-so-I’m-destined-to-just-be-miserable thoughts and his sullen attitude.
Well, and a gorgeous, happy, optimistic, won’t-take-no-for-an-answer blonde who thought “why not?” and had the best mouth—for talking, teasing, and tasting—he’d ever encountered.
He couldn’t imagine what it would be like around here without her now.
And it had been five days. Five.
He’d had a strong inkling from the start—and a pretty big shot of trepidation—that she was going to become even more irresistible, but tonight had cinched it.
Seeing her with her family had caused a huge crack in the wall that he’d tried to erect. Just as he’d known it would. He had especially tried to avoid seeing her with the rest of the Landrys.
As of tonight, he was done resisting all of the Landrys.
Dammit.
He liked them and enjoyed being around them, and respected them. However, he hadn’t realized just how strong his affection for them was until he’d seen Charlie with them.
But he’d been expecting that to be the final nail in the you-can’t-keep-fighting-your-feelings-for-her coffin. He’d told himself that he should eat quickly and try to get out before she showed up, but for some reason, his spoon had not moved any faster. For the past few days, he’d been coming into Ellie’s earlier than usual and had eaten at home twice, just to avoid the big family reunion.
And sure enough, when Charlie
came through the swinging doors from the kitchen, his heart had beat especially hard in his chest.
And, as expected, the Landrys were as fucking charming as always, and adding Charlie to the mix made his gut tighten with want.
Her story about how she’d been fired and the way they all backed her up and assured her she’d done the right thing had made him realize that he wanted to be a part of this group.
And then, hearing that she’d been fired because of a passionate, emotional reaction to something unjust had made his blood pound, and everything in him crave her.
He hadn’t seen that coming. Now that he knew she had taken a man by the balls, literally, when he was being an asshole and was someone who would defend another person even at risk to herself, he could admit he was gone for her.
Charlie Landry was amazing.
And now, she was in his lap, kissing him, clearly wanting him as well. Even after he’d tried to keep his distance and had shot down a number of her ideas and had told her about his failures as an employee and as a brother.
He hadn’t expected being accepted and supported for who and how he was to be such a turn-on. Though he probably should have. Those were two things he wanted more than anything.
The third thing he wanted desperately was to touch every inch of her.
He wanted to hear every sound and feel every bit of her. And judging by the way she was already working his shirt up his torso, her hot hands sliding over his ribs, it seemed she felt the same.
He pulled his mouth away from hers, staring into her eyes. The look he gave her was intense enough to stop her hands for several seconds. She paused with her hands on his sides, where his jagged breathing moved them in and out. Then she gave him a soft smile and continued moving the still-damp cotton up his body. He lifted his arms, letting her peel it off.
That was an amazing idea. His hands slid under the hem of her purple t-shirt and quickly stripped it up and off, tossing it on top of his on the floor beside them. Griffin immediately unhooked her bra and tossed it in the same direction.
He filled his hands with her breasts, rubbing his thumbs over the hard tips and relishing her moan. He bent forward as she lifted herself off his thighs to get closer to his mouth. He swirled his tongue around the tip and then sucked hard. Her fingers curled into his scalp.
“Oh, yes, Griffin.” She urged him on, arching closer.
He sucked and licked and nipped at that breast before moving to the other.
Charlie shifted on his lap, clearly growing restless. Her fingers went to the button and zipper of his fly, opening them and running her hand down along his length. But in their position, it was hard for her to get as much skin on skin contact as they both wanted.
He nudged her back, and she got to her feet. She was breathing hard, her jaw had slight whisker burn, and her lips and nipples were both darker pink from his mouth on them.
“Strip,” he ordered, his own hands going to his jeans.
She toed off her tennis shoes, and her fingers worked on the button and zipper of her own jeans. The whole time, her eyes were locked on what he was doing.
He bent to untie and remove his boots, then stretched to his feet, shucking out of his jeans and boxers.
As he watched her shimmy out of her thong, he fisted his cock, needing the pressure.
Her eyes were hot as she watched, her thong dangling from her fingers.
“Please tell me you have a condom this time.”
Without a word, Griffin reached for his jeans and pulled a foil packet out of his back pocket.
Both of her brows rose. “And please tell me you’ve been carrying that around for me.”
He should say something funny and flirty. Maybe he should make her guess a little bit.
Instead, all he could say was, “Since the day you got back.”
She sucked in a little breath and dropped her thong, then reached for the condom in his fingers.
“You keep doing what you were doing. I got this.”
He wrapped his fingers around his cock again, stroking up and down. She licked her lips as she tore open the foil packet. She liked watching him do this? Hell, she should’ve been with him in the shower every morning for the past four days. Of course, if she had been in his shower with him, he wouldn’t have needed his hand.
She pulled the condom from the wrapper and stepped forward, nudging his hand out of the way and rolling the condom down his length.
Her touch was enough to send a shudder of need through him, and Griffin gritted his teeth. He wanted to make this last more than two minutes, but that was about where he was already.
She stroked again and then again.
Griffin caught her by the wrists and pulled her hands away. “As much as I appreciate that, I’m pretty on edge here, and I have a much better idea about what could be milking me right now.”
Her eyes jumped from his cock to his face.
“Absolutely,” she said breathlessly.
Griffin grabbed his shirt and spread it over the hay bale, then sat back down—bare ass on hay was not particularly pleasant—then he pulled her back into his lap.
“While I would love to take a few hours with you, or even all night, for now, I can’t wait, and we’ll have to be quick. Never know when someone might come out to check on things.”
Her eyes flew to the barn door. “Maybe not in a downpour,” she said.
She clearly wasn’t bothered by the idea that someone might come out and catch them. There were a couple of open stall doors and two wooden barrels between them and the door that would block enough for them to grab clothes or at least duck into Hermione’s stall again to avoid being completely exposed.
Griffin didn’t really care at the moment, however, about what anyone else was doing, including plans for coming to the barn. All he cared about was Charlie. He ran a hand down her side to her hip and then slipped between her legs to cup her.
She was hot and wet, and he wanted every inch of her. He stroked over her clit, causing her to shiver.
“God, Griffin, that feels so much better when you do it than when I do.”
“Have you been touching yourself while you’ve been back? Thinking of me?”
She nodded. “I was touching myself before I got back here thinking about you.”
He circled her clit again and then slipped his finger into her tight heat. He leaned in and kissed her, long and deep, and he felt her pussy clench around his finger. He stroked her gently, making sure she was wet and ready, then added a second finger. He curled his fingers, finding her G-spot—validated by her, “Oh my God, Griffin, yes, there,” as she gripped his shoulders. He rubbed lazily over the sweet spot, gradually increasing the pressure and rhythm until her fingers digging into his shoulders became nearly painful, and she threw her head back, moving against his fingers, seeking release.
“Griffin, Griffin, Griffin,” she chanted breathlessly. Her eyes were closed, her hair was swinging, her breasts bouncing.
His name on her lips was so fucking sweet.
“Charlie,” he groaned in response.
He was never going to recover from this.
And then she was there, clamping down and calling his name.
“Charlie, you are—”
She leaned in and covered his mouth in a hot kiss before he could finish the thought. He slipped his hand from her body and gripped her hips, bringing her against his aching cock. She held his face and kissed him deep and hot. Then she sat back, breathing hard. And grinning.
“You ready for me?” she asked.
No. No way. “I’ve been ready for you for two months,” he told her.
That was true if they were talking about sex.
Not if they were talking about falling in love with her.
But he’d deal with that later.
Especially after she wrapped her hand around his cock and lifted her ass, moved forward, and then lowered herself onto him.
He slid in easily. They both moaned. She took his fac
e in her hands again and kissed him, their bodies fully joined. He cupped the back of her head, holding her still as he stroked her tongue, tasting her, drinking her in.
Finally, they broke apart. She rested her forehead on his. They both just breathed. Hard.
“This is… this feels… better than… anything.”
She was having trouble finding her words. Damn. He felt downright proud about that.
And that was all it took for him to fall face-first the rest of the way into infatuation.
He’d made Charlotte Landry stumble over expressing herself. That was a trophy-worthy accomplishment right there.
“It sure fucking does,” he agreed, squeezing her hip.
“Is it… the hay?” She lifted her head and gave him a mischievous smile. “Because I might just replace all my furniture with hay bales.”
And he was grinning. Like a dumbass. While balls deep inside of her.
What the hell did this woman do to him?
“It’s the hay,” he said. “But only this hay bale. You want to feel like this”—He lifted her and then lowered her on his cock, slowly, relishing every inch as he sank deep— “you have to keep coming here.”
Dang, he was flirting. And telling her that he’d really like her to stick around. Or at least come back after she left.
But all of those thoughts were obliterated when she rewarded him with another lift and lower, taking him fully. She was tight, but it was like a glove around him. A hot, wet glove.
“Well, Dr. Foster, you have very nice hay.”
He was saved from having to flirt any further, thank God, by her picking up the pace.
He was right there with her. This he understood. This he could handle.
He gripped her hips, she gripped his shoulders, and they moved together.
Until… a loud bleat interrupted them.
They both froze.
No. No. Damn goats. He looked over to find Sugar watching them.
She bleated at them again.
This was not okay. How the fuck had he forgotten about the animals?
Of course, that needed no actual thought. Charlie. Charlie was how he’d forgotten about the animals. And forgotten not to get attached and to protect his heart.
Fall in Love Book Bundle: Small Town Romance Box Set Page 242
