“Mama says no snakes,” she announces with a pout, looking up hopefully at Rory.
“Don’t look at me, kiddo.” He grins down at her. “Your mom’s house, her rules. And she hates snakes.”
“But they’re cool,” Piper insists. She looks up at me, and I smile quickly, nodding in agreement.
“They are cool. Probably hard to take care of, though. Your mom’s right.”
That doesn’t stop her from getting as close to the glass as Rory will let her, and I laugh as I watch them.
When my tongue darts out to lick my lips, I realize I can still taste him there.
11
It’s well into mid-afternoon when Piper finally gets tired of looking at animals and says she’s ready to go home. By then, my feet hurt a bit from all the walking, but Rory seems only too happy to keep up with his daughter’s little kid energy.
He lets her ride on his shoulders as we make our way back to the car, munching on big soft pretzels that spill salt and cinnamon sugar everywhere. Piper gets buckled in again, and we head back to Jen’s house to drop her off.
She’s waiting for us so she can take Piper to visit a friend, and Rory and I don’t stay long.
Piper eagerly tells her mom all about our time at the zoo and the penguins and the snakes, and Jen listens patiently, although there’s a noticeable shudder when her daughter gets to that last part.
“See you soon,” she says to Rory, hugging him before we head out. “And thanks for your help with her, Mercy. Feel free to come with him whenever you like.”
I smile and wave and then follow Rory back to the car.
“I think I got sugar all over your seat,” I say once I’m settled in, dusting cinnamon sugar down to the floor.
“It’s fine.” He chuckles. “There’s no way you could make as big a mess as Piper does sometimes. I’ve got a hand vac just for stuff like this.”
I nod, and we both fall silent as he drives.
It’s weird, actually. Usually Rory is so talkative that getting him to shut up is the real trick, but now he has both hands on the steering wheel, eyes focused on the road, even though he glances at me every once in a while.
He still doesn’t say anything though, and it feels like there’s this huge cloud of tension hanging over us. I wonder if his mind is still on that kiss back at the zoo.
I can still feel his hands on me, warm and sturdy on my stomach and lower. It’s not even the wildest thing I’ve ever done. Not by a long shot. If any of the parents had turned around, they would have been scandalized on principle, but it wasn’t enough to get us kicked out or anything. It’s not like he finger-fucked me right there. It wasn’t even as raunchy as what Sloan and I did in that alley just yesterday.
But even those small touches from Rory were enough to have me right there on the edge. If his hand had dipped even a little bit lower, I would’ve been so close to coming.
Fuck. Shit.
I want him so bad.
I can’t deny that. Things have always been the easiest with Rory, and that hasn’t changed. The banter and teasing slips in and out of flirting so quickly, and just sitting here next to him makes me aware of how frustratingly attractive he is.
Those tattoos, his thick, muscled arms and defined chest, the playful expression that’s always on his face. Even the way he is with his daughter is just another thing that makes him desirable, and I can’t help the way my body reacts to him. The way it’s reacting right fucking now.
My nipples are tight, and my pussy throbs again, the phantom feeling of his hands on me making everything worse.
Or better. I haven’t decided yet.
Luckily, we get to the house quickly enough. I undo my seatbelt before he’s even cut the engine and open the car door, ready to escape the tension. I just need to get to my room and have some space to breathe, and it will be fine. I can touch myself in the shower and get off, and then things will go back to normal.
But Rory’s out of the car just as fast, moving around the hood to grab my wrist before I can head for the door that leads to the house. He pulls me back toward him, and I don’t resist. No one else is around, and it’s quiet in the garage, just the two of us.
Rory lifts me easily enough and puts me right up on the hood of the car, still warm from the drive. I spread my legs, and he moves between them, fitting in perfectly. That tension that’s been building since the zoo finally boils over, and Rory gives in to it, leaning in to kiss me again.
I can feel the hunger behind it, and I kiss him back, our mouths clashing but not in a chaotic way. There’s no fighting for dominance here, just like before at the zoo. We’re just kissing because we want to be kissing.