Long Time Gone (Rough Riders #16.5)(21)
Author: Lorelei James

The pup bounded up to her, licking her until Kimi laughed. “All right, all right. I’ll pet you. Let me take the gloves off.”

Cal couldn’t help but return Kimi’s grin. “She’ll probably get you dirty since she’s been runnin’ through the muck all mornin’.” He knew it was stupid to be jealous of the way she petted and cooed at his dog.

“She’s sweet. I’d like to steal you, Gigi girl.”

“I imagine a dog ain’t welcome on a cross-country bus.”

Her hand stopped mid-pet and she blurted out, “Were you serious?”

“About?”

“About letting me stay here a few days if I needed to.”

His pulse raced and he fought to stay calm. “Yeah, I was serious.”

“Good. Because these flowerbeds have been sorely neglected and are in need of tending.”

So am I, sweetheart.

Christ, he sounded like a needy pussy.

He refrained from asking if the sad state of his flowerbeds was the only reason she’d decided to stick around. “I’d welcome your help. Only thing I’ve done since you were here last year was fix the irrigation system.”

“You should’ve cleaned out the deadfall.” She pushed to her feet. “Are you hungry?”

“Starved.”

“I made you a couple of sandwiches.”

“You did?”

“Don’t get your hopes up that it’s as good as what Carolyn makes.”

“Lord, woman. I’d never compare you. So get that outta your head right now. I’m just happy there’s food that I don’t gotta cook myself.”

Kimi stopped in front of him. “You left so fast this morning that I didn’t get a chance to say thanks for…everything yesterday.”

Cal curled his hand around the side of her face, using his thumb to wipe a smudge of dirt from her cheek. “You don’t have to thank me.”

“Because that’s what friends do, right?”

Fuck that. Enough of this politeness. This awkwardness.

He slid his hand around the back of her neck. “That’s what we are? Friends? Because to be honest, darlin’, I don’t wanna be your friend.”

“What do you want to be?”

“This.” He lowered his head and took her mouth in a commanding kiss.

She fisted her hand in his shirt, pulling him closer.

God. He hadn’t imagined this passion. He hadn’t forgotten the heady taste of her. His cock went rock hard. His common sense took a hike.

And Kimi kissing him back with equal ferocity just fueled the fire that’d been on a slow burn for far too long.

He wanted to clamp his hands on her ass, wrap her legs around his hips and carry her straight into his bedroom.

She ripped her mouth free and jumped back. “Ouch!”

“What?”

“Gigi bit me!”

Cal glanced down at his dog, who barked happily as if she’d done a good thing. “Gigi!” He crouched down and wrapped his hand around her nose, forcing her to look at him. “Bad. No bitin’.”

The dog cowered, whimpered and peed. But she got the point that he was the alpha.

“Lay. Down,” he said tersely.

Gigi dropped to the grass and tried to bury her nose in it, away from him and his reprimands.

Cal slid his hand up the inside of Kimi’s calf. “Show me where she got you. Wait. I see it.” A raised white mark circled by red.

He ran his thumb across it and Kimi snapped, “Don’t. It hurts.”

“That’s because Gigi didn’t bite you. Something stung you and the stingers still in there.”

“Oh. That’d explain why it burns.” She looked at Gigi. “Sorry I doubted you, girl.”

Gigi’s tail thumped.

“Hold on to my shoulder. I’m gonna scrape it off with my fingernail.” He pinched the skin and then ran his nail down the bump, knocking the stinger out. “Done. I’ll doctor you up to keep it from swelling. Hang on.”

She gasped when he picked her up and headed for the house. “You’re such a show-off, McKay.”

“What?” He whistled for Gigi.

“Proving that you can pick me up and carry me around whenever you please.”

“I don’t see you tryin’ to get away.”

“I’m not stupid.”

“That means you like bein’ carted around?”

“By you? Yes. You are just so…big and strong.” She squeezed his biceps. “Are you all hard muscles everywhere?”

Cal waggled his eyebrows. “If we’da kept kissin’ like that? One muscle in particular would’ve gotten really hard.”