The next morning,I woke up with my face smashed against Lachlan’s chest. We were both lying on our sides, face to face. His arms were tight around me, one beneath my head and the other circling my ribs. His right leg was between mine, his thigh nudging my center.
Though my body stirred, I rolled away, moving to the edge of the bed. Despite his words the night before, Lachlan hadn’t woken me up again. Getting to my feet, I lifted my arms above my head, arching my back, and stretched my muscles.
I heard a low growl behind me and glanced over my shoulder to find Lach lying back on the pillow, his eyes roving over my body.
“Good morning,” he rumbled, his voice rough. He sounded sleepy and extremely sexy.
“Good morning,” I replied, turning to face him. Once again, when his eyes moved over me, I was intensely aware of the fact that I was naked. However, this time I liked that he was looking. I wanted him to see what his attention did to my body.
Another growl sounded, but this one came from my stomach. Lachlan laughed and bounded to his feet. “I guess you worked up an appetite last night,” he teased, his eyes sparkling with humor in the morning light.
My breath caught in my chest at the sight of him. He looked younger and carefree. I’d never seen him smile like that or laugh with such openness.
I covered my reaction by teasing him back. “Since it’s your fault I’m in this state, I think you should do the cooking.”
His grin widened. “In the mood for pancakes?” he asked.
“I’m always in the mood for pancakes,” I retorted.
Lach’s smile grew positively wicked. “Good. Then you can eat them naked.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’ve seen me naked plenty of times, Lach,” I scoffed.
“Yeah, but I didn’t have all these ideas about syrup then.”
Unbelievably, I blushed, which only made him laugh again. “Maybe I should go take a shower,” I mumbled.
He shook his head. “No, no. You’ll just have to take another one later.”
For a moment, I was confused then I remembered what he said about syrup and shivered. A playful Lachlan definitely had some interesting ideas.
“Fine, I’ll make coffee,” I conceded, ignoring the way his eyes locked onto my tight nipples.
When he went to his bag and pulled out a pair of loose shorts like the ones he’d worn to bed last night, I sputtered, “Hey! If I can’t wear anything, neither can you.”
He lifted his brows at me. “That’s different. I’m going to be cooking bacon and pancakes. My delicate areas need to be protected.”
I laughed at his comment, but didn’t say anything else. I wouldn’t want to fry bacon in the nude either. Shifter or not, grease splatters hurt, even if they healed within seconds.
While Lachlan put the bacon in a pan and mixed the pancake batter, I brewed a pot of coffee. Once I’d made us each a cup, he grabbed me around my waist and sat me on top of the counter, far enough away from the stove that I wouldn’t get hit with grease as the bacon spat and sizzled. I inhaled sharply at the coolness of the laminate under my butt.
“Ian, seriously. I’m bare-assed naked, sitting on this counter, and we prepare food in this kitchen. It’s not sanitary,” I protested.
He roared with laughter then. “Just stay there. I’ll let you disinfect the kitchen later.” He winked at me. “But you should know I have plans for the table too.”
Unwilling to ruin his good mood, I stopped arguing and sat on the cool countertop, drinking my coffee as I watched him make me breakfast. He was done quickly, flipping bacon and pancakes with skill that spoke of experience in the kitchen.
When I hesitated by the chair at the table, he chuckled again and pulled me into his lap. I ignored his teasing and forked up my first bite, the sugary syrup melting on my tongue, followed by the buttery, rich flavor of light, fluffy pancake. I couldn’t hold back the moan of appreciation. Pancakes were my absolute favorite meal at breakfast so I hadn’t been lying to Lachlan when I said I was always in the mood for them.
I ate a few more bites, savoring each one, before I shifted on his lap to look at him. “These are amazing, Lach.” My tongue darted out to sweep up a drop of syrup on the corner of my mouth.
His eyes focused on the movement and I realized they were hot and a little wild. Then I felt the hard length of his cock against my ass.
Without a word, he shoved our dishes to the side and lifted me up so that I sat on the table in front of him, his chest between my thighs. Based on his expression, I expected him to fuck me then and there.
Instead he reached out and grabbed my fork, cutting off another chunk of pancakes. Then he lifted it to my lips. I opened my mouth and took the bite, my eyes never leaving his as I chewed.
He fed me, one bite at a time, until the food was nearly gone. Then, as he lifted the fork again, a small stream of syrup dripped onto my skin, running down my chest and following the slope of my breast. Hot blue eyes followed the path of the sweet liquid as it clung to my nipple.
