6. Mackenna

6

MACKENNA

W hen Reid kisses me, the rest of the world melts away. The trees, the sky, the leaf-scattered ground beneath my feet: it's all gone, leaving me feeling like I'm floating. It feels too good to be true, like I might be dreaming this moment instead of actually living it.

He's a shockingly good kisser. One slow, unhurried kiss from him sends a burst of achy desire coursing through my entire body. When he pulls his lips from mine, I sigh at the loss, blinking up at him in dazed astonishment.

"You kissed me," I mumble, my mind full of static.

Reid studies me, his eyes intensely serious. "Should I not have?"

"No, it was wonderful. You should do it again."

Reid gives me an unbearably sexy smile. He's about to kiss me again when something in my periphery catches my attention.

"Wait," I say, taking his hand and turning him away with me. "Not here. There are cameras."

Reid glances up, seeing what I mean. "Let me guess. Justin monitors those?"

"It's part of his job." I pull him from the fox enclosure and start to lead him toward the one area of the sanctuary grounds that I didn't cover in the tour. "Come on. I'll show you my tiny house."

I'm not sure whether it's nerves or giddiness, but I'm extra chatty as we walk toward the small structure that I call home. I tell him all about the process of choosing a house layout and making my customizations, and the innumerable hiccups that happened along the way. I'm probably boring him with all my talk, and making him second-guess his decision to kiss me, but it all just kind of spills out.

"Here she is," I say, sweeping an arm out in front of me as we reach our destination. "This is Ellie."

A beat passes before Reid speaks. "You named your house?"

"Is there something wrong with that?"

"No. I've just never met anyone who's done that."

"Well, now you have."

Reid looks at me with amused eyes. "Yeah. Now I have. Do I get to see inside?"

"Of course. Come on in."

I never have company, so the inside is a little bit of a mess, but I don't feel self-conscious about it. I like that Reid is seeing me exactly how I am. I don't know what exactly is happening between us, but if this is the start of something, I don't want him to have any false impressions of me. I'm far from perfect. There's always dirty dishes in my sink and a pile of laundry on my couch.

"It's nice in here," Reid says, looking around. He can basically see everything from where he's standing. "It's cozy. I like it."

I hop up onto my kitchen counter, all smiles. "Could you see yourself living in a place like this?"

"Me? Nah. My head's almost touching the ceiling." He moves between my legs and rests a hand on either side of me on the counter, which sends a delightful shiver of anticipation up my spine. "I can see how it suits you well, though, shorty."

I scoff. "I'm not that short. And I'm definitely not petite."

"No. You aren't. I like that about you." His eyes drop to my lips, and he wets his own. "Are we out of range from the cameras now?"

My heart is going a million beats a minute. "Yes."

"So it's okay if I do this, right?" he asks, and brushes his lips across mine.

"Yes," I sigh. "Very okay."

"And this?" he murmurs before kissing me. I moan my response against his mouth. As he deepens our kiss, my thighs reflexively squeeze around him, urging him closer to me.

I cup his strong, chiseled jaw in my hands, his rough stubble bristling against my fingers. His hands slowly slide up the outside of my hips, like he's memorizing my curves.

I'm utterly lost in his kisses and aching for more. Which isn't a feeling I'm used to. Or, to be honest, know anything about. My love life is non-existent. It's always been that way.

Reid's hands grip my thighs and pull me forward, kissing our lower halves together at the edge of the counter. I whimper when I feel his massive hard-on throb between my legs. Desperately, I grind against him, a motion that makes his fingers dig into my thighs.

"Don't," he growls against my mouth. "You'll make me come."

I give a feverish laugh. "That easily, huh?"

"It's been a long time."

I pull back a little, panting as I look him in the eyes. "I should probably tell you that I've never been with anyone."

"Yeah? That so?" He slowly strokes my hip. "You touch yourself, though, right? You know what makes you feel good?"

"Not really. Is that awful?"

"Course not." He leans in for another kiss. "We'll find out together."

His hand slides to the inside of my thighs, and the ache inside me surges. But before his fingers can touch between my legs, my walkie-talkie shrilly beeps from a few feet away.

"Fuck," I mutter, begrudgingly leaning away from Reid to grab it. I jab the button on the side with my thumb and speak into the mic. "Yeah? What is it?"

Justin's voice comes through. "We've got a situation, Mackenna. Daisy just escaped."

I groan and push the button again. "Okay. I'm on my way."

Reid steps back, giving me space to hop down from the counter. "And here I was starting to warm up to that damn monkey."

I laugh as we both regain our composure. "I'm so sorry about this."

"It's not your fault. Come on, let's go. I'll help."

We leave the tiny house and rush across the property together to Daisy's enclosure, where we find Justin looking helplessly up at the nearest trees.

"I think she might be hiding up there," he says, giving me a worried look and ignoring Reid altogether. "I'm pretty sure I heard her."

"How did she even escape again?" I say as I scan the leafy branches above us. "Did she get out when you were going in to change the bowls?"

"No," Justin says, irritation in his voice. "There must be a weak spot in the new fence."

"There's not any weak spots," Reid mutters under his breath. Then, suddenly, he points into the trees. "There she is."

I follow his gaze and see Daisy perched high in a tree, watching us with teasing eyes.

"Hey, Daisy," I say gently, extending a hand. "Come here, sweetie."

Daisy inches toward me, but then changes her mind and leaps off the branch to a neighboring tree. Reid is closest to her now. For a second, he hesitates, but then he does as I just did, extending a hand toward our little escaped friend.

"Come 'ere, Daisy," he says, his voice low and soothing. "That's it. It's all right."

I watch in amazement as Daisy moves toward him. She edges closer and closer, and then, when she's just a few inches away from his outstretched hand, she springs off the branch and leaps onto his shoulder.

I gasp, covering my mouth in surprise. I can tell from Reid's eyes that he's caught off guard, too, but he keeps his composure and doesn't make any sudden movements.

"All right," he says. "Guess this is how it's gonna go."

With Daisy perched on his shoulder, and her arms wrapped affectionately around his neck, Reid walks over to her enclosure. Once inside, he lifts her off his shoulder and she rushes off to investigate her food bowl.

I glance over at Justin, who's watching the scene unfold with an expression of dismay. That one look tells me all I need to know. Daisy didn't escape on her own. Justin set all of this up to disrupt my time with Reid. For fuck's sake . Why does he have to be like this?

"I can't believe you, Justin," I say tightly as I walk past him.

He tries to put on a confused face. "What are you talking about?"

I don't bother answering him. Instead, I focus on making sure Daisy is settled and that the door is fully secured after Reid steps out of the enclosure.

"Want me to stick around?" Reid asks me. The protective concern in his eyes makes it tempting to say yes, but I shake my head.

"No, you should go," I say. "Thanks so much for helping with Daisy. Let's hang out again sometime soon?"

He nods. "You should come see the house. It looks a lot different than the last time you saw it."

I smile, the warmth in me overshadowing the irritation I feel about the interruption. "Sounds like a plan."