“I like it,” she said brightly.
The dragon inside him stirred, breathing a slow, satisfied heat into his lungs.
“Great,” he replied shortly. “Then that’s settled.” He stepped back before he did something he absolutely shouldn’t, like hauling her against his chest and keeping her there. “I’ve got work to do.”
“Yes—actually.” She stepped forward, closing the distance he’d created. “That’s why I’m here.”
He paused.
She gestured toward the coop behind him. “I wanted to ask if you’d supply eggs for my bakery.”
Rhavor blinked. “If you keep driving like that,” he said dryly, “I won’t have any chickens left to lay them.”
The corner of her mouth twitched. “I didn’t mean to scare them.”
A baby goat wandered over, bleating softly as it nudged against Rhavor’s tail.
“Oh—you have goats.” She crouched.
The neckline of her dress shifted.
Rhavor’s pulse thundered in his throat.
Silky blue lace peeked against lush cleavage as she stroked the kid’s head, smiling softly.
“He’s adorable.”
“Careful,” he said gruffly, his eyes tracking the dip of her neckline before he forced them back up. “He’s a menace. He’ll follow you home if you keep that up.”
“That would be terrible,” she said solemnly, though the smirk ruined the effect.
“Do you make goat cheese?” she asked, straightening and brushing her hair back.
“Yes.”
“I love it.” She smiled. “Do you… do tastings?”
“No.”
The only thing he wanted to taste was her mouth.
“My cheese is the best in the county,” he added. “I don’t need tastings.”
“Well,” she said lightly, “I hope I get to try it someday.”
He was so thrown off balance by the look in her eyes that he didn’t notice the mother goat, agitated by a stranger around her kid, until it was already charging.
“Move,” he snapped.
He didn’t think.
He grabbed Sylvie by the waist—his fingers sinking into warm, soft curves—and hauled her against him. He spun, placinghis own massive frame squarely between her and the lunging animal.
Her face buried in his chest. Her breasts pressed warm and soft against him. His cock jerked, traitorous and immediate.
Her hands clutched his forearms, her nails biting into his muscle, and the contact sent a sharp, electric heat straight up his spine.
He looked down. She was small, the top of her head barely reaching his chest. When she looked up at him, the rest of the world vanished. Her cheeks were flushed, her green eyes wide and searching. Rhavor forgot how to breathe.
