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He didn’t bother to correct her terminology because they had been dating over the past month. They’d admitted it privately and to each other, but what exactly did that mean? Rory softened his gaze, and the world around him blurred as his eyes lost focus.
The sex was still off the charts but not as frantic as it had been when they’d first stopped fighting their mutual attraction for one another. They took their time, making sure every kiss and caress counted and savoring each embrace like it could be the last. The expiration date on their romance had once been a source of comfort, but now it felt like a curse. At least it did for Rory, and he was pretty sure Ivan felt the same way, but that was something neither of them had brought up. It wasn’t as if they didn’t talk. They spent most of their evenings chatting about everything and nothing at the same time. Ivan often whittled away at a block of wood, turning it into a piece of art. It might shock some people that Ivan’s enormous hands could craft such intricate designs, but it didn’t surprise Rory. Those same fingers skillfully brought him the most pleasure and comfort he’d ever known. As for Rory, he was relearning how to play his grandfather’s guitar thanks to some YouTube videos he’d discovered. He’d play chords throughout his day and even in his dreams. More than once, he’d practiced on Ivan’s bare skin, and Ivan’s reaction each time had tugged on Rory’s heartstrings. They’d acknowledged early on, even jokingly, that they were headed toward trouble, and Rory couldn’t shake the feeling that the reckoning was closer than he liked. And fuck, he wasn’t ready for it.
“Rory.” Harry’s voice nudged him from his thoughts.
He glanced over and studied her profile. Harry’s brow was furrowed and her lips pinched instead of curving into her perpetual smile. “Sorry. I tuned out there for a second. What did you say?”
“I wanted to know how your date went at the drive-in since I haven’t been to one of those in ages. Hell, I didn’t even know there were any around here.”
It wasn’t exactly close, but that hadn’t been the point of Rory’s online search for a drive-in. Ivan’s friends had gotten to take their dates to one in Kansas when he was in high school, but he never had. He’d always been the awkward third wheel who didn’t know what to do when everyone around him started making out. Rory thought about cuddling with Ivan while the movie played out on the big screen. He’d learned Ivan was terrified of tornadoes but not until after they’d bought their tickets for a double screening of disaster movies. And, of course,Twisterwas the first film. Rory had always loved the movie, but Ivan had never seen it. Tornadoes and the devastation they caused hit differently when you grew up in Kansas.
“You’re not in Kansas anymore,” Rory had teased to lighten the mood. It had worked until the movie opened with a tornado that sucked a farmer out of the cellar in front of his family. He’d suggested they leave, but Ivan insisted they stay. Rory deployed distraction techniques later in the movie that involved a different type of sucking. Damn, he loved turning the prowling lion of a man into a purring, spoiled house cat. He could still see Ivan’s eyes glittering with lust and feel his fingers digging into his scalp.Swoon.His next exhale came out as a long sigh.
“Wow,” Harry teased. “That good, huh?”
“Scary good.” And he hadn’t meant the hand job Ivan had given him after he’d tucked his spent dick away.
“Why scary?”
“Well,” Rory said, “this thing with Ivan is so damn good.”
“You’re right. That is awful.”
Rory snorted. “It can’t be real.”
“Why not?” Harry asked.
“Just can’t.”
Harry snorted. “I call BS. What else do you have?”
Rory chuckled. “I need more reasons?”
She glanced over at him with a quirked brow. “So many more.”
Rory practiced the breathing techniques he’d learned from Hope during his weekly session. He now attended her classes faithfully, but this Saturday would be an exception. It was all hands on deck at the Redemption Ridge dog adoption day at the feed mill. The ranch hosted the event once a month at various venues in Last Chance Creek, but this time they’d deployed Rory’s new community outreach tactics. The crew would serve free burgers and hot dogs and give demonstrations on pet grooming and obedience training. Rory wanted it to be a smashing success, and he honestly could’ve used a little yoga before the event. They’d made multiple trips over with food and other items someone had forgotten. The last journey back to the ranch was to get cleaned up.
Once he felt calmer, Rory said, “Ivan is the first thing on my mind each morning. My eyes open, and I immediately start thinking of ways to make him smile and loosen up.”
“You’ve almost dislodged the stick.”
Rory chuckled and fought off a blush. He was intimately familiar with Ivan’s ass, and he knew the big man didn’t have a stick lodged up there, though Rory had thought that was the case when he’d arrived. “I’ve never really thought about anyone but myself before meeting Ivan. And…it’s downright scary how much he’s come to mean to me.”
Harry reached over and placed her hand over Rory’s. “Have you told Ivan any of this?”
Rory shook his head. “No way.” The thought alone terrified him. “That isn’t what he’s looking for with me. We agreed to no strings.” Rory sighed again. “This isn’t what I was looking for either.”
“Maybe what you wanted isn’t what you needed. Ever consider the universe has bigger plans for you than you realize?”
Rory narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “Since when do you believe?” Hope frequently lamented her children’s lack of spirituality.
“I’m more spiritual than I let on. I just like to irk Mama,” Harry said. “Sometimes it’s hard to recognize those miracles for yourself because you’re too close to the situation. I’ve seen it with others—first with Kieran and Finley and now with you and Ivan.” She glanced over at Rory and placed a finger over her lips. “Don’t tell Mama. She’ll never stop hounding me about it.”
“Your secret is safe with me…as long as you promise not to hoodwink me into yoga or anything else again.”
She extended her pinky toward him. “I promise.”
Rory hooked his pinky around hers, and they shook on it. Harry returned her hand to the steering wheel, which only made him feel moderately safer because her lead foot was the real problem.
