Turned out, that wasn’t what I needed to be concerned about. What I really should have been doing was shoring up my defenses because I certainly wasn’t properly prepared to handle the sight I walked in on.
What I saw the moment I pushed the door open and stepped into my office had me instantly feeling weak in the knees, and I could have sworn I heard my ovaries giving the sight a standing ovation. Puppy and man were both stretched out on my couch, snoozing like they didn’t have a care in the world. I took two steps in, unable to ignore the part of myself that was desperate to get a better look. The light scuff of my shoes against the floor woke up the dog and he lifted his head from where he had been curled up on Raylan’s broad chest. One of his ears was sticking straight up in the doggy version of bedhead, and his eyes were bleary with sleep.
“Well, you sure look comfortable,” I whispered, not wanting to wake Raylan up. The puppy stretched out long and opened his mouth on a huge yawn, his pink tongue uncurling and flopping out. The whole thing was cuteness overload. I wasn’t sure my lady parts could handle much more.
“Hey,” I said softly, crouching down and reaching out toward Raylan. My hand drifted as though it had a mind of its own. I forced myself to stop just before I did something epically stupid, like brush back the hair that had fallen across his forehead in his sleep. He just looked so peaceful in a way I’d never seen him before. It made him look younger, despite his natural ruggedness. His face was slack, the lines that normally pinched between his brows smoothed in his sleep. Enviably long lashes lay in a fan along his cheekbones, and I could see his eyes darting side to side beneath his eyelids, as though he was dreaming.
God, it was unfair how handsome he was.
I let out a sigh and placed my hand on his shoulder instead, giving it a gentle shake. “Hey, sleepyhead. Time to wake up.” A short, muffled snore vibrated his lips and made me laugh. “Come on, Cowboy. Wakey, wakey.”
Raylan’s eyelids fluttered before rising to half-mast, a sleepy grin tugging at his lips. “Mm, hey, baby.” I froze in place ashis hand came up, his large, rough palm coming to rest on the side of my neck. He dragged his thumb along my chin, the tip gently whispering across my bottom lip and eliciting a full-body shiver from me. “So goddamn beautiful,” he muttered, still mostly hovering in the land of unconsciousness. That had to be the only reason why he’d touch me like that and say the things he was saying. But that didn’t mean those words weren’t a major blow to the solar plexus, stealing my breath and making it nearly impossible to breathe.
Luckily, the little nameless pup had enough of being ignored and let out a high-pitched bark before leaping into the air and doing a cannonball on Raylan’s flat stomach. That sure woke him up fast and stuck a pin in the little moment that was just about to happen. I pushed to standing and backed away as Raylan grunted and sat up, curling the puppy up in the crook of his elbow. I needed the space if I wanted to have a clear head.
“Christ, you really are a gremlin,” he scolded in that deep rasp of his. “I thought we came to an agreement. We had a good thing goin’.”
I folded my arms over my chest and leaned my hips back against the edge of my desk. “Seems like you two have become fast friends.” As if to prove my point, the little monster started attacking Raylan’s chin with nips and kisses.
One corner of his mouth quirked up. “I’ll tell you what, this damn dog was meant to find you. Two peas in a pod. If you’re Chaos, he’s havoc.”
I tilted my head to the side and watched as Raylan tried the wrangle the little ball of mischief. It was a fitting moniker, that was for sure. “I think you just came up with the perfect name.”
“Yeah?” As if to prove exactly how spot-on the name was, Havoc caught his finger and took a chomp out of it. “Ah, shit!”
“Well, it’s either Havoc, or Razor Fang. But that doesn’t roll off the tongue quite as well.”
He shook his injured finger with a scowl. “Jesus, he really is a menace.”
The giggle I let out quickly morphed into a huge, jaw-cracking yawn. “Oh, wow. Sorry about that. It’s been a really long night.”
Raylan pushed to standing, tucking Havoc against his chest as he started in my direction. “You’re exhausted,” he said low and gentle, concern laced through his words. “Come on, let’s get you out of here.”
“Oh, you can go on ahead. I just have to?—”
His hand came up again, this time to cup my chin, his thumb pressing against my lips and adding the slightest amount of pressure, effectively silencing my argument. He’d never been an overly tactile guy, so I wasn’t sure where all this touchiness had come from, but I did know I liked it way too damn much.
“Anything you got left can wait until tomorrow.” He glanced down at his watch. “Well, later today. But you catch my drift. Things aren’t going to fall to hell if you let yourself sleep.”
His hand had officially been on my face too long to be ignored or excused away. Doing so would have made everything even more awkward. The air around us felt thick and humid with tension. The electricity arcing between us was strong enough I was surprised it hadn’t knocked me on my ass yet.
“Raylan.” I said his name on a shaky breath. “What are you doing?” My words were riddled with uncertainty, and I hated how vulnerable I sounded.
“Well, right now I’m takin’ you home, sweetheart.” He was screwing with me. I could tell by the all-too-pleased-with-himself smile on his face. He knew my body was reacting to him in ways I willed it not to, and I could have sworn he seemed prepared to take full advantage. Well, I would be damned before I let that happen.
My mouth pulled into a tight line and I cut my eyes at him, moving away. “I’m perfectly capable of getting myself home, thank you very much.” I reached out to take Havoc, but the walking, talking pain in the ass twisted, keeping the puppy nestled against him and out of my reach.
I looked at him in bewilderment. “What are you doing? Give me my dog.”
His grin turned cheeky. “Ah, ah, ah. I believe you meanourdog. And I wouldn’t be doing my duty as a dog dad if I let him in a car where the driver was impaired.”
My jaw dropped with affront. “I’m not impaired!”
His grin fell, his expression turning admonishing. “You’re exhausted.”
I rolled my eyes, his overprotective big brother routine grating at my nerves. “I’m not even that ti—” The words got tangled up in the massive yawn, my body proving I was a liar.
The stupid jerk smirked down at me victoriously. “Uh-huh. Move your ass, Chaos. No more work for you.”
