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Lennon gave him a sceptical look. “Is it really? I’d say it was a little personal. But if you must know, I lock all the doors and windows and set up YouTube to run continuous videos of white-winged vampire bats that my bat loves to watch. I shift and let him do aerial displays. He likes to sing too, and he’ll rub himself over the TV.” He sounded a little defensive and the shrug he gave was more of a jerk while he put plates into a cupboard.

Kodi was fascinated. “Why does it rub itself against the TV?” His hands rested forgotten in the soapy water.

“It gets lost in the mating ritual and scents the TV because it wants to entice the other bat it can see on the screen,” Lennon explained, still not looking in Kodi’s direction.

“How does that work for you and… your needs?” Why was pushing the subject? What the hell is wrong with me?

Lennon turned this time, and his head tilted to the side, staring at Kodi. “Why are you asking? You never worried about it before, when…”

He left the sentence unfinished, and Kodi fidgeted at the sink, knowing exactly how selfish he was when he had caught the scent of arousal coming from Lennon. It was just when they were in the office, straight after they set to work. Maybe not straight after, sometimes it took a few minutes for Kodi to recover.

We’re not at work now, his wolf pointed out helpfully.

He’s also getting ready to go into heat.

Semantics, you’re just being selfish.

Now the thought was in his head, it had to come out. “Do you think I’m selfish?”

“About you getting off?” Kodi responded with a curt nod. “No. It’s a reaction to the release of endorphins that flood your body. Half the time, you don’t appear to know it’s happening. It’s a side benefit. And we’re not dating, so it would have been weird to ask you to reciprocate.”

Would it? Kodi wasn’t so sure about that when he realised he wouldn’t have said no.

“Do you… do you…” Christ, why was it so hard to ask if he got off on what they did?

“Do I take care of myself afterwards?”

Lennon’s voice held no amusement, and his serious expression had Kodi answer, “Yes.”

“You seem awfully interested suddenly in whether I spank the monkey,” Lennon chuckled, leaning against the counter, folding his arms across his chest.

“Spank the monkey?” Kodi snorted out a laugh. “Where did you hear that saying?”

Lennon’s grin widened. “It’s a British idiom. I watch British comedy programmes.”

Another tidbit of information Kodi stored away. It was an evening of discovery. He persisted. “Do you get off on what we do?”

Lennon held his gaze, and Kodi found it a struggle to breathe with the sudden increase in Lennon’s pheromones in the confines of the kitchen, blocking out all other smells.

“Occasionally.” The teasing tone and light of desire in those pretty eyes were far too tempting to resist.

Water splashed over the floor as he removed his hands from the sink. Before he realized what he was doing, he had Lennon’s mouth crushed against his. Wet hands slid into the silky strands of Lennon’s hair, angling his head to slant his mouth. Lennon’s lips parted on a gasp and Kodi tasted the spices from the burrito and an underlying sweetness that was all Lennon.

He wasn’t passive. Fingers trailed over Kodi’s shirt until they reached the belt, then slid over his ass and squeezed, giving Kodi a reminder of the spanking he’d had earlier. His blood pumped hotly through his veins when he inhaled Lennon’s intoxicating odour.

The kisses grew more heated, and Lennon lifted a leg and hooked it around Kodi’s hip, bringing his erection against Kodi’s thigh. The heat coming off him penetrated Kodi’s trousers. The hard length thrust in a rhythmic motion against Kodi’s leg, making it hard to think beyond what they were doing.

His lips trailed down Lennon’s cheek to his ear, stopping to nibble before moving on along the delicate curve of his throat. Listening to see what made Lennon gasp or moan that delightful sound.

He licked at Lennon’s pulse, feeling how it pounded against the skin. Kodi’s teeth elongated and sharpened at the heady scent of Lennon’s blood, his animal wanting a taste.

Lennon jerked back, his eyes wild. The pupils were blown so wide his eyes looked black. He was flushed and panting. “If we carry on…” he ran shaky hands through his wet hair, taking another step back.

Kodi’s wolf thought it was a game now he had Lennon’s scent and countered the move, blocking Lennon’s exit.

“Your wolf can’t take charge here,” Lennon warbled, his voice high pitched when he held his hands up as if to ward them off. “My animal side will see it as a true mating.”

Kodi right then could not find a thing wrong with that.