He laughed. “I think I’d rather talk about more of yours.”
And because it was what he wanted, that was what we did. As we talked, his frown disappeared, to be replaced by a brilliant smile that spoke to my heart.
Chapter Thirteen
Kip
Not everythingin the garden was rosy, and our life wasn’t perfect.
The town was still struggling financially, although the population of wolves was growing, thanks to Mase. But the financial problems meant they could only afford to pay me so much without breaking the bank. I understood that, I really did. Even John apologized to me, and kept promising he was keeping track of what I’d been doing so he could pay me extra later.
Mase, however, seemed happy to be near his parents even if he wasn’t living with them, and I didn’t want to drag him off to another town where he’d be alone. I also didn’t want to take the Omega away from the town, especially since Mason’s presence was making an impact, according to John.
It didn’t mean I always enjoyed it.
Then there was my work.
I had to cut back a bunch of trees, and my help called out. My boss said it could wait, but I wasn’t willing to put off getting the job done, throwing us behind on other projects, soI figured I could do it myself. By the time I was finished, I was completely drained and all I wanted to do was go home.
When I trudged through the door, my only real thought was to flop on the couch and nap.
“Kip!” Mase called as he rushed to the living room. He grabbed my arm and dragged me to the sofa. I was too tired to protest.
“Hey, how are you?” I asked, and even I heard the strain in my voice.
“Shut up,” he snapped. “Take off that filthy shirt and lie down. Get comfortable, because you’ll be there for a bit.”
Then he went to work on my muscles with his slender but surprisingly powerful hands. It felt heavenly. When I finally got a good look at him, I could see the traces of dirt on his face, then noticed it under his nails. He’d obviously been hard at work in his garden and had to be every bit as tired as I was.
“What do you think about dinner at the Applejack?” I asked him.
“I can cook. You rest here until it’s done.”
But he’d worked all day, and it wasn’t hard to see how tired he was. When he stood, his legs were wobbly and he seemed ready to pass out. I grabbed his wrist and held him where he was. “The Applejack has those biscuits you like,” I reminded him, talking about their honey-glazed balls of dough that were baked to perfection. “And we could spring for a couple orders of those chipotle chicken strips that make our mouths water.”
His stomach rumbled and he flushed. “It sounds good, but do we have the money?”
Because of the town’s financial straits, my job couldn’t pay a ton. We were grateful the house was free, but sadly the utilities weren’t, and neither was my truck. We did okay. I mean, it wasn’t as though we were in imminent danger of losing anything, but it also meant we weren’t able to save up for something if we wanted it.
I never told him Mom and Dad had given us some money to help during gaps where my paycheck wasn’t quite enough to pay our bills. And yes, I know how it sounds that I had yet another secret I was keeping from him, but I knew Mase, balls to bones. If he found out we were having issues, even minor ones, he’d insist he could get a job.
As far as I was concerned, he had a job already—growing his garden to make us some amazing tea when everything was in bloom.
“We can afford it,” I assured him, even though I’d be skipping lunch at work for the week.
“If you’re sure.”
“Go wash up and get ready,” I said, smacking him on the ass and enjoying the jiggle of those muscles.
“Keep that up and we’ll be in the bedroom,” he said, a twinkle in his eye.
“Fine, I’ll stop,” I said grudgingly, because it truly was a spectacular ass.
“You can do more when we get home.”
“I’m going to hold you to that,” I teased. “I’m all kinds of horny.”
He turned and came back to where I was, then knelt in front of me.
