But she didn’t get a chance to decide which because Finn stepped forward, hand outstretched—
The next thing she knew, Ollie was between them. The beast crowded at her feet, front paws spread wide. The little thing tucked her head down and bared her teeth. A protective growl worthy of a creature five times her size rattled at Finn.
He pulled his hand back immediately. “Easy girl. Just saying hello.” He glanced at Josiah. “You never said she was an attack rat.”
The third man in the room laughed softly, tipping his head at Lisa, his amusement clear. He kept his eyes firmly focused on her face as she offered him a quick wave.
Considering the possessive hold Josiah had on her, this newcomer obviously had good survival skills. “So you’re Lisa Coleman. I’ve heard a lot about you. I’m Zach. Finn and I are staying with Josiah. Which means we might be seeing a lot of you. Ahem.”
Her cheeks flashed at the second tease in under a minute, but she grinned back. “Nice one. If you don’t mind, though, I’ll take those.” She plucked her borrowed sweatpants from Finn’s hand, easing toward the hallway even as she shook a finger at him. “Don’t even think about running away before I get a chance to interrogate you.”
“We’ll be a minute,” Josiah added. Then his hand was on her lower back, and he was escorting her from the kitchen, down the hallway to the master bedroom.
He waited until the door closed behind them before whirling on her. “You know Finn?”
She was undoing shirt buttons as she headed back to the drawer to grab another one of his T-shirts. “He and his brothers came out to Whiskey Creek to help one summer. He was a pain in the ass, but a good-natured, good-intentioned one. What’s he doing in Heart Falls?”
Josiah was at her back, hands on her shoulders and turning her to face him before she could strip off his shirt and make an exchange. “We’ll figure that out in a minute, but first—”
He slid a hand along her cheek to the back of her neck, and an instant later he was kissing her intensely. Not a “we’re starting something” type of kiss, but a sweet, spicy, “thank you and I can’t wait until the next time”kind of deal.
She gasped for air when he opened space between them, just far enough to look in her eyes, tipping their foreheads together as he spoke quietly. “I didn’t get nearly enough time to play but thank you.”
Lisa’s lips twitched. “You’re saying thank you for giving me an orgasm? You’re welcome. Anytime, honestly.”
Josiah’s smile was sincere, the heat in his eyes unmistakable. “I had fun, and I will take you up on that offer. But also, thank you for not freaking the hell out when we got invaded.”
“You reacted a lot faster than I did,” Lisa admitted. She eyed him. “Do we really need to go out there?”
“Don’t tempt me.” He aimed her back toward the cupboard, slipping his shirt from her shoulders and pressing a kiss to the top of her shoulder. “Grab a T-shirt and sweats. Then put this back on.”
“Your house isn’t that cold,” she said, even as she followed his instructions.
He rummaged in the closet. “I don’t want them to be able to see through the T-shirt that you don’t have a bra on,” he admitted.
“No panty lines, either,” she teased, jerking on another set of clothes as she smiled at his tortured groan. She twisted to find he’d pulled on a flannel shirt, this one with faint red lines crossing the black.
He gave her a dirty look. “Careful or I’ll make you wear a pair of mine.”
Lisa grinned and offered her hand. She glanced over at the side of the room where Ollie had settled after following them. The pup had curled up, but was watching both of them intently. “Seems strange she decided to defend me like that.”
“Protective breed. Obviously thinks you need looking after,” he taunted.
“Says the man who had me laid out on the island like a smorgasbord without remembering his roommates would be arriving any minute,” she murmured softly as they walked down the hall. Ollie trotted after them, right on their heels.
Josiah glared at her as he spoke quietly. “Behave.”
“You don’t mean that,” she teased again.
He shook his head. “No, you’re probably right. Come on. I’ll let you cross-examine him first.”
Lisa tangled her fingers with Josiah’s as they returned to the kitchen, the connection very right.
What felt weird, though, was seeing Finn Marlette. It was like slipping back in time to when he and his brothers, Levi and Duncan, had come out to the Whiskey Creek ranch.
Catching up on what had happened since the last time they’d met was not a conversation she’d ever imagined having sans underwear.
Ollie walked underfoot, close enough to defend, far enough away to not be tripped over. She got along amazingly well for limping on three legs. Only once Lisa was sitting on a stool at the island did Ollie go back to her blanket and settle with another of those enormous sighs.
