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T he first thing I saw when Reece let me in that night was the tiny black kitten curled up next to the duck on a pile of clothes. I gasped and covered my mouth with my hands.

“Is that…”

Reece chuckled and gently pushed me forward. “With those ears, you should be able to recognize him anywhere.”

The kitten yawned, then blinked up at me. His nose twitched as he sniffed the air, and I knelt next to him.

“Hey there, buddy,” I crooned.

He perked up and walked toward me, trying to stretch all four legs at once. Sunny didn’t seem to care she’d lost her napping partner.

“What’s he doing here?” I whispered as he rubbed his head against my knee.

“I adopted him, but really I’m just fostering him until you’re ready for full custody. I couldn’t let someone else go home with your soulmate.”

“Thank you.”

Tears burned in my eyes, and I pressed my lips together, worried about the emotional mess threatening to come out of my mouth. Reece crouched down to rub his finger over the cat’s sleek back. He immediately started purring so loudly I thought his whole body should be vibrating.

“What are you going to name him?”

“I don’t know. I wasn’t expecting anything like this. What do you think?”

“No, this one’s on you. He’s your cat. You get to name him.”

I picked him up, and he head-butted my chin. “How about Boo?”

Reece stood, pulling me up with him. “Sounds good.”

“Are you sure you can keep him here?”

He pulled me close and kissed my temple. “As long as you need.”

This affectionate, doting version of Reece wasn’t exactly new, but since last night—since his big reveal—he’d been… different. As if he’d stopped holding himself back.

I cuddled Boo until he squeaked, then sent Reece a sly look. “A tiny cat in a house full of giant hockey players. How much crap did the team give you during the game?”

“So much. Cole can’t keep a secret to save his life, but we did get in some quality comedy. Seriously, I’m slowly dying inside keeping the pussy jokes to myself now. We won, by the way.”

“Oh yeah?” I teased, as if I didn’t have the score up on my phone the whole time. “Did Rafe save the game again?”

Reece mockingly growled at me. “Rafe played great, and I got a goal along with Vanhauten.”

I knew he’d been working with Rafe—and I’d already seen Reece’s goal—but I loved the fact that Reece would let me tease him about hockey. He took the game and his responsibilities seriously, but he was happy to play the rest of the time.

“You mean when the puck bounced off the ref’s butt before you tapped it into the net?”

“As long as it didn’t go directly in, which it didn’t because I touched it first. How was your group project meeting?”

The reminder canceled out some of my fuzzy happy feelings. “It went as expected. Only three out of the five of us showed up, and only two of us had done any work yet. At least the presentation isn’t until the end of the semester, but the meeting was a waste of my time. One of my partners actually had the gall to ask me which hockey player I’d pick next. Jerks.”

“Sometimes notoriety sucks, but at least you have a pussy to play with tonight.”

I shook my head. “Couldn’t help yourself, could you?”

He held out his hands. “It’s been at least five minutes since you walked in.”

I gave his bicep a patronizing pat. “You did great.”

Reece caught my wrist and spun me back to face him, dropping a kiss on my nose. “Not to sound needy, but you’re staying, right? Boo would be devastated if you left. It’s his first night in a new home.”

“Well, we can’t have Boo devastated. Yeah, my bag’s outside.”

“Yesss,” he said.

He popped outside to retrieve it, then ushered me upstairs to his room. I’d been there a few times before, but for some reason, we always ended up at my place for sleepovers. Talk about a hostile environment.

Tonight was different. Reece was different. I dropped Boo on the massive bed to let him explore the master suite and watched Reece pace between the bathroom and his dresser. He was giving off weird nervous energy he hadn’t had downstairs.

“We’re on our own tonight, so if you’re hungry, our choices are either PB&J or takeout?—”

“Reece.” I stopped him with a hand on his chest. “Are you okay?”

His gaze zeroed in on me, and his shoulders relaxed. “Sorry. I had a come to Jesus talk with Cole and Mase earlier. I told them the truth, by the way. But it made me start thinking about what we’re doing.”

“What are we doing? We agreed neither of us wanted to be in a relationship, which made the whole fake dating thing work, but this doesn’t feel like a relationship for show. Most of the time, we’re not even around other people.” I gestured at the empty house surrounding us.

He lifted my hand and kissed it. “I don’t know, but I like it. I freely admit I have no idea how to be in a real relationship. This thing between us hasn’t been fake in a long time. Maybe it never was. Neither of us wants to admit it, but I know you feel it too.”

I did, yet I couldn’t deny there was a tiny part of me terrified I’d let a relationship rule my life again.

Reece must have seen the growing panic on my face because he rubbed up and down my arms. “Nothing has to change. The world at large can keep believing we’re dating, and you and I can figure it out as we go. No pressure. You can back out at any time, but I hope you won’t.”

His calm explanation eased the tightness taking over my chest. I didn’t want another Toby. Another perfect match approved by my family, who ignored me at best. Another opportunity to take a back seat in my own life.

Reece was offering me a different path. He’d never ignored me or belittled me, and my obsession with him was starting to feel like yet another thing I wasn’t supposed to have. Screw supposed to.

I wanted Reece, and I wanted to see what would happen if I gave him a chance to prove my fears wrong.

“Okay, but I’m not agreeing to only one night.”

“Kenzie, I’ve been breaking that rule since I rescued your panties from Deacon’s floor.”

“Stole,” I corrected.

He grinned, and I took a step back from the mischief in his eyes. Not fast enough. I squealed as Reece grabbed me around the waist and hauled me onto the bed under him.

“First, I’m going to feed you because you’re going to need your strength. Then we’re going to pull up the cop show on your list and watch at least four episodes. Then it’s orgasms until dawn. Feel free to scream my name as many times as you need.”

I smacked his shoulder and tried to wiggle out from under him. “I’m hearing a lot of promises and not seeing a lot of pizza.”

Reece pushed himself up off me into a plank, and I squirmed my way free like a baby cow. Completely uncoordinated, knees trembling, and wondering how I’d gotten onto the floor. When I blew my hair out of my face and glanced at the bed, Reece winked and slowly lowered himself back to the mattress.

“Show off,” I muttered as I hopped up to grab my sleep tank from my bag.

If we were staying in his room—which I preferred, just to be clear—I was doing it in comfort if not style. Boo took the opportunity to claim my bag as his new bed. He curled up in the black tote, disappearing into the void with everything except his eyes.

A couple of hours later, after binging several episodes and eating way too much pizza, I grabbed my toothbrush from my bag and started toward the bathroom to wash up for bed. The whole evening felt surreal in that I’d had fun, but there’d also been a slow burn simmering under everything we did.

Sharing Reece’s bathroom while we brushed our teeth felt positively homey. I rinsed my mouth then leaned my hip against the counter to watch him.

“You know, this is another thing I’ve never done. Shared bathroom time with a guy. Maybe I should put it on my list.”

He raised a brow. “Vetoed. Your list is meant to be things you’ve always wanted to do.”

I shrugged one shoulder. “Maybe I didn’t realize how nice it was until now.”

Reece put his stuff away and waved me ahead of him out of the bathroom. “Well, you can’t put it on there now because you just experienced it with me.”

The bedroom was dim, with only the light from the bathroom illuminating the space. I expected Reece to plunge us into darkness, but he left the light on. The thump of clothes hitting the floor came from behind me, and I smiled.

Naked Reece was a sight to behold.

Before I could turn, he sidled up behind me with his hands on my hips. Sliding up my waist and ribs, he lifted my arms, taking my tank top with him.

Reece slowly pulled the material over my head, leaving me in only my underwear. He tossed the tank to the side, spreading his fingers over my stomach to pull me back against him. I shivered in the cool air, then again when I felt his warm breath on my shoulder.

“This isn’t on your list. This isn’t a new adventure or a random encounter. This is two messed up people taking a chance on each other. I know it’s hard for you to trust, but Kenzie, I will never do anything to hurt you.”

His promise lodged in my chest, rooting deep. I already trusted him not to hurt me, but the words solidified my faith.

Reece trailed soft kisses up my neck, and I tilted to give him better access. “On your knees, hands on the headboard.”

I obeyed eagerly, ready for anything Reece wanted to do with me. He opened a drawer in the bedside table, and by the time I glanced back, he’d already rolled on the condom. Good man.

Normally, I was a foreplay kind of girl, but I was already soaked, which Reece found out when he eased my underwear down. I pushed on the headboard to lift my knees, and once again, I was naked in front of him.

In a breath, he was back, pressed against me with his hands shaping my hips, my thighs, exploring my wet folds. His thumb casually brushed my clit, sending electric shocks through my system and making me tremble.

“You’re so wet for me. Do you like it when I tell you what to do?”

“Yes,” I huffed out, rolling my hips in a desperate search for more pressure.

“Open your mouth.” He inserted two of his fingers, wet with my juices. “Suck.”

Like I had with his cock, I used my tongue and licked his fingers clean. Reece mimicked the motion on my neck

“Spread your knees and lean back.”

I gasped as he pushed inside, then whimpered when he waited, letting me adjust to his size. My clit throbbed, and I needed him to move. Widening my legs a little, I sank lower with a moan.

Reece let out a hiss of pleasure. “That’s a good girl, just like that.”

Upright, with my legs barely touching the mattress on either side of his, he supported my weight and drove into me. My nails dug into his thighs, urging him on.

His mouth on my neck, fingers squeezing and pulling my nipple, brought me to the brink. I rubbed my clit with my palm, and all my inner muscles tightened on Reece sliding in and out of me.

“Yes,” he growled in my ear, bottoming out with a grunt as I came all over him.

A few more uncontrolled thrusts and Reece joined me.

I might have passed out because I didn’t remember him laying me on my stomach. At least I didn’t faceplant into the headboard.

“Be right back,” he said, lightly smacking my butt before rolling off the bed.

Reece came back from the bathroom with a warm, damp washcloth and cleaned me up. I didn’t have the strength to do more than make happy noises.

Once some oxygen returned to my brain, I rolled my head to look at him. “I thought you said orgasms… plural?”

He chuckled, low and dark. “Oh, I’m not done yet, little thief. Hope you didn’t plan to sleep tonight.”

Reece lived up to his word. No wonder all those women forgot their promise after a night with him. I was exhausted, my body was limp, and I’d probably had the best night of my life.

My eyes were heavy, but my mind wouldn’t stop running. With Reece holding me tight and Boo curled up by my feet, a warm happiness settled over me. Was this what relationships were supposed to be like? Comfortable and fun and easy?

Except it wasn’t easy, was it?

This relationship wasn’t real, but the trust was. An interesting juxtaposition from my last attempt at dating. I wasn’t ready to throw myself back into the girlfriend trenches, but exclusive friends with benefits sounded like a great place to land.

“Are you asleep?” I whispered.

“No.” His thumb drifted in lazy circles over my stomach.

“I’m glad you were the person I ran into.”

“Me too.”

A quiet mechanical noise started in the bathroom, and I looked over my shoulder at him. “What is that?”

He chuckled. “Boo found the litter box. I was getting worried he’d shit on the floor and Mase would murder me.”

“Why does the litter box sound like a robot vacuum?”

“Because it’s a robot litter box.” He pulled me back down next to him. “I’ll show you tomorrow.”

“Can’t wait,” I deadpanned, but I couldn’t.

I was genuinely excited to wake up tomorrow next to Reece, knowing he wasn’t faking anything. Without pressure. Without a hidden set of rules. Without worrying about the future. I could get used to this casual lifestyle. As long as it was with Reece.