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BRYNNE
“Holy shit, the man actually sleeps!”
We came home well into the next evening, after the boys treated me to a late lunch in the heart of the strip. The food was delicious. The company, too. I knew, because I’d been devouring them with my eyes all morning. Just as I’d been replaying the events of last night over and over in my heart and mind.
But now…
“Just look at him,” Cody quipped. “He’s snoring like a baby.”
Santiago wasn’t just napping on the couch, he was deeply and spectacularly asleep. As his lovely bare chest rose and fell in a slow, even rhythm, I wondered what kinds of things he’d encountered — or even discovered — while we were gone.
“Sebastian?”
My head cocked curiously at the sight of my brother’s dog, curled up happily — and almost invisibly — in Santiago’s lap.
“He must’ve picked him up early from the kennel,” Silas reasoned. He shrugged and chuckled. “Probably got lonely.”
The sight of the little fluff-ball yawning sleepily in Santiago’s lap was cute enough. But the thought of the big Green Beret being lonely enough to jailbreak him early, just to gain a companion?
Well, I have to say that melted my little heart.
After carrying our stuff inside we parted ways, with Silas and Cody slipping off to check up on the gym. There hadn’t been any trouble we knew of, which of course was good. But I suspected the guys just wanted to get back to sweating or weightlifting or even just beating the crap out of each other in one of the boxing rings. So I kissed them both and bid them a happy workout.
That left me at one end of the couch, unwinding and contemplating life as Santiago slept blissfully at my feet. I was two or three episodes into one of those murder-crime shows when he finally snored himself awake.
“Wait… wha?”
He blinked a few times, as if to determine whether I was really there.
“You’rehome?”
Home. I was and I wasn’t.
“Yes,” I smiled gently. “The guys are at the Garage, but I’m here with you.”
He sat up. With his hair all tousled and sleepers in his eyes, he looked downright adorable.
“Did they find—”
“Yes,” I cut him off. “And we’ll tell you all about it tomorrow. When we’re all together.”
I rose from the couch, extending an arm.
“Right now it’s past midnight,” I yawned. “Let’s go to bed.”
It took him another few moments, but eventually he reached up and took my hand. Moving silently I led him into the shadows of his own bedroom. As we slid beneath the sheets together, I slipped an arm past his shoulders and pulled him comfortingly against my body.
“I really missed you.”
The words sort of spilled out, but they were also the unapologetic truth. Sifting my hands through his hair, I planted a soft kiss on his forehead.
“A lot.”
It took a minute, but eventually Santiago’s body responded to mine. His palms glided forth, grabbing me in places that were both strategic and exhilarating. His lips sought mine as well.
“Thank you for taking care of Sebastian.”
Face to face, nose to nose, we continued grazing each other lazily. We weren’t exactly kissing, we were nuzzling. Cuddling.
