Page 21

WINNOW

I hadn’t intended on calling him Daddy, even if only in the third person and in reference to his dog, but I can’t bring myself to regret it.

The way his giant body had gone still and his gaze fucking scalded me made me realize that chemistry like this exists.

That such visceral connections are not merely the stuff of fiction because while it wasn’t the first time I’ve witnessed a male’s burning desire, it was absolutely the first time it sparked something within me.

Although, to my dismay, it seemed to have lit a fire under him to leave the room.

Leaving the bedroom door open a crack, Gideon pads down the hall on bare feet, at which point Trigger turns back toward me, tail thrashing like he’s excited his daddy is letting him have a sleepover.

He gives me a few more licks before settling down, and it’s with my fingertips touching his silky neck that I fall asleep, consumed in moments from sheer exhaustion.

The sound of Trigger’s claws clicking against the wood floor wakes me some hours later, and I open my eyes to see Gideon’s imposing silhouette filling the doorway.

My heart skips a beat before it begins to race—as if it can run straight into the solid wall of his body.

I train my eyes to sleepy slits to give the illusion he hasn’t woken me, even though I expect him to turn away and take Trigger with him.

Instead, I can feel the weight of his gaze on me. Raking over the sight of my body, now hidden only by his oversized t-shirt that’s ridden up my waist, and no undergarments because I normally sleep in the nude. I also say a silent prayer that it’s too dark for him to see the scars on my back.

Lying stomach-down, diagonally on his bed with one leg hitched up on one of the pillows I’m clutching—pillows that are infused with his glorious scent of evergreen and leather—incidentally gives him a full view of my ass and pussy.

Arousal pounds through me as his gaze lingers, and before I can stop myself, my pussy clenches and my hips give a tiny, mindless thrust as a soft sigh escapes me even if I’m mentally shaking my head at myself.

You are such a slut for this man. And how in Akash’s name is it that I am more turned on by him sneaking a look at my bare pussy than I’ve ever been with any other male.

Gideon goes so still that I can’t help but wonder if he’s even breathing. A little pang of disappointment rings through me when he grabs his work clothes, closes the door, leaving only my lingering arousal and the sound of his retreating footsteps in his wake.