Page 65 of Clean Finish

“Guess we better avoid Taylor’s office today, then.”

“What if this place starts going to shit because boss man is too busy getting dicked down in the office every day to actually run it?” He sighed heavily. “I’m gonna have to pick up the slack.”

I gave him an affectionate smile, letting my shoulder rest briefly against his. “I have total faith in you, Lark.”

Chapter Eighteen

The Act of Uncovering Something New (9 Letters)

Seb

At seven minutes to eight that evening, my doorbell rang.

I scrubbed a hand nervously through my still-damp hair as I made my way to the front door. After my shower, I’d decided to just pull on a pair of loose shorts and nothing else. Larkin made no effort to conceal how much he liked my body, openly staring whenever he could, and besides, we’d hopefully be getting naked soon anyway.

When I opened the door, I realised he’d showered after work too, because his long pink hair was still damp and tied back in an elegant braid. He was dressed in jeans and an oversized sweater that was almost slipping off one shoulder. It simultaneously sent lust shooting through my gut and made me want to lie back on the couch and pull him on top of me just to feel him nestle in close, warm and comfortable and relaxed.

“Hey.” He grinned at me, his hands tucked into his sleeves and his pulse already hammering in his throat as his eyes darted down to my chest. I hadn’t told him what we’d be doing in tonight’s “lesson,” and I could tell he was nervous and excited all at once.

“Hi.” I made sure to give him a big grin back, because that always seemed to put him at ease.

It worked. He stopped fiddling with his sleeves and stepped forward to come inside while I held the door open, shifting into his fae form once it was closed.

“What’ve you been up to since work?” he asked as he toed off his unlaced boots.

“Just made dinner and took a shower.”

“What did you have?” he asked with interest.

“Chicken and rice.” I gave him a wry grin. “Not just plain boiled, though. It was seasoned, I promise.”

He laughed, hesitating in place until I headed for the kitchen and he followed. “My dad made this ‘green goddess’ salad he’s seen going viral online. It had about a million ingredients. He said he was chopping veggies for it all afternoon.”

I chuckled. “Bet it was good, though. Does your dad grow vegetables himself?”

Larkin stopped at the island and set down his phone and keys as he rolled his eyes. “Oh yeah, he grows everything. And he kept letting us know that he’d only had to buy some of the ingredients for the dressing while we were eating. He was so proud.”

My smile widened. Larkin’s family sounded great. Sometimes it was hard being away from my own, even though they weren’t far. I’d lived alone for ten years now, and most werewolves didn’t really like being on their own so much.

No. Don’t start thinking about stuff like that. Just enjoy having him here with you now.

“Want a drink?” I asked, pulling open the fridge. Then I glanced back at him with a tiny smile. “Got cream soda.”

His eyes brightened. “You do? Yeah, I’d love one. Thanks.”

“So what’ve you been up to since work?” I grabbed two cans from the fridge and turned to slide one across the island to him. “Just having dinner with your family?”

“Yeah, and laundry.” His cheeks flushed as he slipped onto a stool and shot me a teasingly stern look. “I keep ending up with splooge on stuff after I hang out with you, dude.”

My mouth slowly stretched into a wide, slightly devious smile that made his breath catch. “Well, we can’t have that, can we? We’ll have to make sure that doesn’t happen tonight.”

Which, incidentally, I knew for a fact it wouldn’t. Larkin’s cum wouldn’t be ending up on any of his clothes this time. It wouldn’t have a chance to.

“So…” His voice wavered a little as he clutched his can tight. “What, um, what are we… practising this time?”

“Well, that depends.” I cracked open my can and leaned my elbows on the island. “You started mentioning something you wanted to practise more of earlier. Do you want to tell me?”

“Oh.” His face deepened to a dark blue as he chuckled nervously, his long fingers fumbling to open his can. “Yeah. I was just… I was thinking that maybe… more kissing practice might be good. A good idea,” he rushed to add. “You know… practice makes perfect.”