Page 57 of Chasing the Sun

The cat twined herself around Cal’s legs again, rubbing her face against his pant leg.

Callum didn’t kick her away or shove her off. Instead, he reached down and scratched behind her ears as I fought a smile.

I wonder if he named her.

When he looked up, his eyes were softer, but intense. A lump formed in my throat, but before I could escape, Cal was already off the front porch and walking right toward me.

SIXTEEN

CALLUM

I stalkedtoward Elodie without any real objective in mind. All I knew was that I had spent the last two hours keenly aware of her every movement. The dampness in the night air added a slight chill, and my brain kept wondering whether her jeans were enough to keep her warm. Her little T-shirt, knotted at her belly button and revealing a sliver of toned, tanned skin, certainly wasn’t doing fuck all.

I had no idea what I planned to say to her once I reached her cottage. All I knew was that I was pissed off, keyed up, and downright irritated.

A trilling meow sounded at my feet, and I looked down to see the cat trotting alongside me.

I paused. “Scratch.”

Fine. Yes, I had caved and named her.

I turned and pointed toward the Drifted Spirit Inn. “Go home.”

She glared at me with one golden eye and plunked down onto her furry bottom next to my boot.

I lowered my voice so she understood just how serious I was. “Go.”

I never knew a cat could harrumph, but that was exactly the sound that came from her tiny furry body, but she did listen.

At least someone around here does.

Satisfied I was entering this battle alone, I continued on my warpath toward Elodie Darling. In one easy stride, I hooked a leg over the cedar fence that separated our properties and vaulted myself over. Elodie stood at the base of her porch steps with her arms crossed and her chin lifted in the air.

Her exaggerated eye roll only ticked my heart rate higher. “What now?” she grumbled as I got within earshot. Her piercing emerald eyes held mine, but even in the low lighting, I could see they held no malice.

No, this was just what we did—poked and prodded at each other for sport. I complained about whatever new idea for the farm she came up with, stomping my feet and acting like a baby. She pretended to listen and take my concerns into consideration before smiling that sultry, devastating smile and doing whatever the fuck she wanted anyway.

I had come to live for those little back-and-forth moments when I could volley petty insults and low-level complaints simply so I could watch her pout that pretty little mouth and call me an insufferable ape.

With her arms crossed like that, Elodie’s tits swelled higher, stretching the limits of the cotton fabric of her shirt. My hand twitched at my side, desperately wanting to feel the shape and weight of her. I curled it into a fist as my cock raged against the zipper of my jeans.

Somewhere along the lines, our bitter banter had become my twisted version of foreplay, and I had missed it.

Part of me wondered whether I argued with her for thesole excuse of using the image of those flushed cheeks and pouty lips to jack off to every night.

I bit down on my molars as frustration rippled through me.

“What is it now, Mr. Blackwood?”

Oh, that was a new one.

I couldn’t say I hated it—the formal sound of my name rolling off her pouty lips.

The tip of my tongue pressed against my teeth as I suppressed a smile. “Just making sure you made it home safely. I saw you were awfully scared out there tonight. So scared you had to grab my arm.” I brushed a dismissive hand across the skin on my forearm, where I could still feel the branding heat of her touch. “You know in some places, that’s assault.”

A disgusted scoff rattled in the back of her throat. “You are theworst.” She dragged out the last word for emphasis. “Besides, I didn’t even know it wasyounext to me.” A mischievous grin hooked at the corner of her mouth as she blinked innocently. “I thought it was Austin.”

My nostrils flared. I knew she was lying, poking at me just to get me riled up, and I hated that it worked so easily.