My eyes darted around as I rubbed my free hand over the back of my neck, since Coye held my other one.
When he cupped the sides of my face, I closed my eyes. A second later, I felt his lips on mine, and momentarily, I forgot where we were.
“If you spend at least fifteen minutes in there, I’ll spend thirty minutes eating your pussy,” he whispered once he broke the kiss.
Flames rushed through my body. I looked at him, then back at the otters. A woman stood nearby, I guess waiting to give us instructions. I prayed she didn’t hear what he said, even though she wasn’t that close.
“Fine.” Against my better judgment, I agreed.
Coye told the lady we were ready, and she came over and gave us instructions and the rules. She spent time giving us information about the particular otters there, as well as otters in general.
I was surprised by all the good things she said about them. Like how they helped maintain the ecosystem and helped climate change by supporting kelp forests. The good things she told us outweighed the bad.
“Do you want to feed them?” the girl asked with her hand out full of food.
I looked at her like she was crazy, then looked at Coye. He nodded his head, encouraging me, so I did it.
“I guess.” I held my hand out for the food, then got on the ground.
I screamed and jumped a little when some of them came near me. For a few minutes, I watched in awe as they ate. I almost got up when one got closer to me, but when it rolled over on its back like a dog, the girl told me to rub its belly.
I was hesitant at first, but then I went for it. The fur was so soft and luxurious. I rubbed its belly for a little while, then another one came over, and I did the same.
I peeked at Coye, and the smile on his face made my heart flutter as he took pictures of me. We stayed in that enclosure for an hour before we left and saw more animals.
When we were done, we left and went to Coye’s house, where we showered, and he made good on his promise of eating my pussy for half an hour. And as we had sex, he told me how proud of me he was for facing my fears. Hell, I was proud of myself, but it felt good hearing it from him.
“Didyou feel obligated to take over the shop, or do you really like it?” I asked River as I rolled out some cookie dough.
“Honestly, a little bit of both. I knew there was nobody else that could run it like my grandmother. She used to tell me stories about wanting to open her own cookie shop and how she got started, all the while showing me how to bake them. We would spend hours in her kitchen trying new recipes and just talking. It meant so much to her, so it was only right that I took over. I pray I have at least one child I can pass the torch to.”
The sun hadn’t risen yet, but River had me in the shop, baking cookies. It had been a couple of weeks since we spent real time together because she had been busy, and I had gone outof town for business. We talked every day, and even FaceTimed, but it wasn’t the same.
“I think it’s dope that you took on this task, and you are doing a great job. I’m sure Amelia’s will be around for years to come, regardless of who’s in charge. You have great, reliable staff here. Too many people have too much respect for your grandmother to let it fail.”
River’s grandma, Amelia, was one of the sweetest people I’d ever met. She treated me the same way she treated River and Jordan. I didn’t spend as much time with her as they did, but she never hesitated to call me her grandson.
“Thanks. I don’t see myself leaving any time soon, but I will take a step back when it’s time to start a family.” She put the pans of cookies in the oven that we had prepared already, then got some more dough from the industrial-sized fridge.
“And when is that going to be?” I asked as I kneaded the dough she passed me.
Her arms were working overtime, stretching out the ball of dough and then shaping it into cookies.
“I don’t have a specific timeframe, but I would like to be married first.”
Out of nowhere, the thought of marrying River popped into my head. She was more than capable of being wifey material; I just needed to get past her brother. I wanted to make sure he was good with it before we got to that point, but with her wanting to keep it a secret, who knew when that would happen.
“Would you be upset if you got pregnant before you got married?”
“Not upset, but it would bother me a little. I know a marriage doesn’t guarantee a lasting relationship, but I just feel like it’s more stable when bringing a child into the world.”
I was glad that she still had a positive outlook on marriage, even though her parents didn’t work out. I guessed it helped that they remained friends over the years.
“I can see that. Do you think you have any toxic traits?”
She glanced at me and giggled. “Yeah. I feel like every time I get upset, I have to buy myself something.”
“Something like what, River?”
