He waggled his hand from side to side. “That’s not so far from the truth. There are a lot of power dynamics amongshiftenthat would seem weird to humans. But yeah, the guys – they’re like my brothers.”
“And you squabble a lot, like any family,” she guessed.
“Like you wouldn’t believe,” he confirmed. “Which is why one of these days Ben is going to find himself made into an elegant fur hat and a matching pair of gloves.” He bit viciously into another slice of pizza, leaving a smear of tomato sauce at the corner of his mouth.
Ivytsked and leaned across with a napkin, wiping it away. “Who would have thought my dream guy would be such a messy eater?” she said.
They both froze.
Rory stared at her for a long moment.
Then, without a word, he rose from the table. He threw a few notes onto the table, took Ivy’s hand in his, and led her out of the restaurant and onto the street.
“Rory…” she began, but he shook his head and backed her up against a wall between two storefronts, cradling her face between his big hands. She was trapped between the brickwork and his body, and her heart was thrumming madly in her chest.
Before she could speak again – make some excuse for the words that had slipped out of her mouth – he dipped his head and kissed her.
It was sweet, and gentle, and slow, and it sent arousal cascading all the way down her body until her toes curled.
She opened to him. She couldn’t help it. He was so strong and he smelled so good – musky and wild like in her vision, but sogood. She locked her arms around his waist, and he trailed his hand down her neck, then down to the curve at the side of her breast. He tucked his other thumb into the belt loop of her jeans, splaying his fingers over her hip, and tugged her lower body against his, letting her feel the solid length of his erection.
An ache of longing started between her thighs, and she moaned against his mouth. He took the opportunity to slide his tongue against hers, then drew away, too soon.
“We have to stop,” he said breathlessly as she chased his mouth, trying to draw him back into the kiss. She knew she shouldn’t, but she wanted him so badly it hurt.
“Why?” she murmured against his mouth, and he groaned and stole another kiss, pressing his hips against hers. She could feel how hard he was for her, and her pussy answered with a trickle of slick heat.
“There’s no privacy at the firehouse,” he said desperately, trying to untangle her arms from around his body. “And as much as I’d like to fuck you right here in the street…”
If any part of her had still been hesitating, those words snatched the last shreds of her resistance away on a thrill of arousal.
“We can go back to my place,” she said.
