19
CANDICE
Nathan is late.
I texted him thirty minutes ago, telling him to meet me in ten minutes. Beau is gone for the next few hours, and I’m sitting on my ass in the barn office, doing paperwork like a loser who has nothing better to do with her time. I showered, washed my hair, shaved, and put on makeup, all for Nathan to stand me up. I even wore a nice bra, damn him.
I sigh and turn back to the paper in front of me. It’s Nathan’s weekly community service log that he uses to track his hours volunteering. He’s been working his ass off and the hours are adding up. At this rate, he’ll be done at the rescue in another couple of weeks. I ignore the weird twinge in my chest at that thought, and hastily scribble my initials in the box.
“It’s probably about time to head home,” I say quietly to Tabitha as I cap my pen. She’s curled up on the desk, purring loudly. She’s easy to please. All she needs is a warm office and someone to stroke her occasionally.
I stand up and start putting my coat and scarf back on. The house is only a minute’s walk away, but it’s below freezing outside and the world is covered in snow and ice. We got thewater trough heaters set up today so that the horses can still drink water while they’re outside.
I give Tab a parting scratch, and then Nathan bursts through the office door, out of breath and wearing only a denim jacket. Tabitha startles and bolts out the door.
“Oh good,” he says, still catching his breath, “You just got here. Sorry I’m late.”
I don’t correct for some reason—probably because I don’t like the idea of him knowing that I’ve been sitting on my ass waiting for him for twenty minutes. The Viper wouldn’t wait for any man.
“It’s okay,” I say. “How did Beau take it when you told him you couldn’t come?”
“He told me not to breathe in his direction so that he wouldn’t get sick too.”
“Sounds like Beau,” I say. “He’s such a curmudgeon already.”
“Thirty isn’t that old, Viper,” Nathan says. “I’m the same age as your brother.”
“I know,” I say. “That’s why you’ll be a good teacher. Plenty of experience.”
We’re both quiet for a moment, just standing there in the dim and dusty barn office, unsure what to say.
“I’ve never planned to hook up with someone like this,” I admit.
“Me neither,” Nathan says. “It’s awkward, I guess, but we just need to think of ways to ease into it.”
Nathan shrugs his coat off and then comes over behind me and pulls my hair free from my scarf.
“What are you doing?” I ask. The action seems intimate—more intimate, in some ways, than sex would.
“I’m helping you out of your coat,” he says.
“Oh.”
His hands are gentle as he unwinds my scarf and then undoes the buttons on my jacket. He sets them down on a chair, and then tugs my hat off of my head.
“You have the most beautiful hair, Candice,” he says softly, gathering it up into one of his hands. He tugs my head back a bit, exposing my neck. I expect him to lean in and kiss me there, but he doesn’t. He just leans in and breathes me in. I feel my breath hitch, and my hands find the hem of his shirt and tug.
“Nathan. Kiss me,” I tell him.
It’s like my words snap the last tether on his control. He backs me up into the desk, and then boosts me up onto it, coming to stand between my thighs.
“Ask me to kiss you again,” he says. “I need to know how much you want this.” His voice is strained, like he’s unsure of himself, and I want to rid him of all his worries, and give him the permission to enjoy this.
“Please kiss me, Nathan.”
He lets out a groan and then his lips claim mine, teasing and gentle, soft and warm. But still, one kiss from Nathan has pleasure sparking in my core, and I use my legs to draw him in even closer. He presses his lips against mine once more, and his tongue sweeps into my mouth, drawing a moan from me as he pushes into me and then out again.
Nathan’s taste fills me and consumes me, and I’m left breathless and reeling when he pulls away.
