Page 3 of His Little Pumpkin (Alphas Fall Hard Collection #2)

ELDON

W eird.

There’s light coming in only from my bedroom window. Usually, there’s also some coming in from the living room. What?—

Right. Laura is in the guest room, so I shut my door.

The poor girl was clearly exhausted when I brought her home last night.

After dinner and a long, hot shower, she went straight to bed – well, to the foldout couch in my spare room.

While she was showering, I made it up with my softest blankets and nicest pillows, trying to distract myself from the knowledge that she was just a few feet away.

Naked. With water droplets dancing all over those luscious breasts and inviting hips.

Does she hum in the shower? Does she enjoy running my soap all over her body?

I roll over with a groan. This isn’t just normal morning wood. This is Laura-specific lust. I thought I’d taken care of that when I showered late last night, picturing her beautiful blue eyes while I…took care of urgent business.

The invigorating scent of coffee hits me as I’m sitting up. By the time I blunder into the kitchen, there’s a mug poured and waiting for me on the table.

Laura looks up at me with the purest, most beautiful smile I’ve ever seen, and it’s physically difficult to keep from kissing her. “Smells amazing, thank you.” I sit beside her and take a sip.

“I was going to start cleaning but I didn’t want to wake you.” Her voice is soft, just like the rest of her.

“You really don’t have to worry about that.” My hand lands on top of hers on the table before my brain can stop it. “Why don’t you rest, and just take a day off? I’ll bring you lunch around one. Until then, make yourself whatever you feel like for breakfast. Sound good?”

She nods. “Sure.” Her hand twists to grab mine. “Thank you, Eldon. This is such a relief, you have no idea.”

“If you felt like telling me about your situation, I’d love to hear all about it this afternoon. For now, I have to run.”

“I understand.”

For the first time ever, I stroll into work with a giant smile on my face as well as a coffee in my hand.

We all refer to the large building beside the ranch house as the mess hall. It contains my kitchen, a huge dining area and some restrooms where the guys can wash up before meals.

Breakfasts are always served buffet style and I get right to work, preparing a huge urn of coffee, followed by hearty muffins, trays of scrambled eggs and bacon, and thick-sliced homemade bread for toast.

Nobody talks very much in the mornings other than about the weather and the day’s chores. As I walk back and forth from the kitchen, I return a few nods.

Then I hear a snort of laughter erupt from the steady murmur of voices. “The days are getting shorter and Eldon is busting out the pumpkin bread. Must be fall!”

There’s a roar of laughter from the other men. They clear their plates, stacking them in the bin, then leave for their morning’s work.

The time passes quickly. I set out a fruit tray and homemade protein bars for quick coffee break snacks, then turn my attention to my prep list for lunch and dinner.

It’s usually quiet, meditative work, but today is different. My eyes are constantly flicking to the clock, eager to get back to Laura.

For the first time ever, I half-ass the post-lunch cleanup, knowing I can get to it properly during the dinner prep. At one o’clock on the dot, I’m strolling into my house with large containers of lunch.

After I kick off my boots, I pause and look around a second time. Everything is slightly different. Laura comes out of the kitchen with her hands raised in appeal. “Please just look at it all with an open mind.”

I slowly walk through the living and dining room.

Everything is…better. Not just spotlessly clean, but tweaked, somehow.

The couch has been moved a few feet. It’s off-center now, and better arranged for the TV and the easy chair…

which now has a small bright green blanket draped across it for a pop of color.

Every book and knickknack has been dusted and arranged much more nicely than before.

In the kitchen, she’s polished a few things I’ve been meaning to get to and switched out the dish towels for the fancier ones. Other than that, she’s left the room alone. Smart woman.

I plate up her lunch quickly while it’s still hot.

Then I wave her over to the dining room table and set her food in front of her, together with some utensils.

“The house looks amazing.” My hand falls to her shoulder as she sits, and I squeeze it gently.

“Part of me wants to give you shit for not resting when you obviously need it. But it all looks great. Thank you.”

Her eyes shine as I drop into a chair beside her. “It’s not just earning my keep. You have a really nice home, and I just wanted to make everything sing.” Her eyes drop, a bit of pink coloring her pale cheeks. “Plus, I was hoping that if I make things nice…”

My hand darts out to take hers again, my thumb brushing back and forth lightly across her soft skin. “Please don’t think the clock is ticking. You need a break, Laura. I don’t know what your situation is, but you need to rest. Please, stay here as long as you like.”

Her sigh of relief is so deep it breaks my heart. “Thank you.” She jumps up to grab her water glass from the kitchen counter, and my eyes gravitate to her sexy round ass. As she turns back, she catches me staring.

“Sorry,” I say softly as she sits again. “I couldn’t help noticing that your pants are a little baggy in the back.”

Laura’s bottom lip twitches for a second. “Yeah. One of the benefits of being without a home is that you drop twenty pounds like that .”

My hand falls to her knee and squeezes it gently. “Hm. I don’t like that. Your ass, however… that , I like very much.” I stop myself, shaking my head. “I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I’ll never stare again.”

There’s a light in her eyes and her pupils are dilated. She’s not offended. She’s… Is that arousal? Her leg shifts subtly, encouraging me to squeeze her knee again. We’re both leaning closer.

“I don’t mind if you stare a bit,” she whispers. “It’s just…nobody ever has before.”

I forcibly restrain a growl. “Nobody’s ever noticed how beautiful and sexy and sweet you are?

” I release her knee to tangle my fingers in the back of her hair.

“The world has gone insane if nobody has noticed you. On the other hand, I’m glad.

Because in that case…” My voice trails off. I honestly have no idea what it means.

Laura moves closer, bringing our lips within an inch of each other.

“Aren’t you hungry?” I rasp.

She just leans in even more.

It’s a perfect moment, suspended in time. The last few seconds of my life that I don’t know what it feels like to kiss this breathtaking girl.

When our lips meet, the kisses are gentle at first, then a force takes over my body, making me push the chair back and pull her into my lap. The feeling of her arms circling my shoulders is just as satisfying as the sensation of my hands roaming over her hips and her hot ass resting on my thigh.

Our kiss turns feral, our moans combining as we breathe into each other. Her soft lips feel just as delicate as the rest of her. By the time I finally manage to pull away, my entire body is humming with electricity.

Laura’s eyes glow, her breath shallow as her fingers come to rest on my shoulders. I’m glad that this wild connection flows both ways, but I need to remember my primary goal is to care for her.

“I’m sorry,” I murmur with a smile, settling her back in her chair. “You need lunch. You need three square meals a day until your system rebalances.”

Her bottom lip wobbles. I grasp her hand. “What is it?”

She exhales slowly. “Nobody has ever been so concerned that I’m eating. It’s… I don’t know… It feels really nice.”

I kiss Laura’s forehead gently, then stand up. “Good. Because it feels really nice for me to take care of you, pumpkin.” I busy myself in the kitchen to give her some space to eat.

Pumpkin . I’ve never called any woman by a term of endearment before. Just another of the many signs that have been bombarding my mind.

I already know I need Laura to be my woman. Forever.