Page 36 of Love Like Ours

Chapter Eleven

Sleeping next to Palmer with Loki snoring at their feet was the first time she’d really felt at home since returning to Pride. This was where she had wanted to be. Where she belonged. Next to him. Then Loki let out a loud fart, and she had to cover her nose.

“Yeah, I forgot to warn you about that.” Palmer chuckled and covered them both with the blanket.

“What do you feed him?” She laughed as she shifted to look at Palmer in the darkness.

His hand came up and brushed her hair away from her eyes.

“It doesn’t matter. Whatever I give him turns to gas.” He smiled. “I could kick him out of the bedroom but then he cries and scratches at the door.”

“No, he’s fine. My cats used to drop dead bugs in my hair in the middle of the night.” She chuckled.

“Why haven’t you gotten another cat?” he asked.

She thought about lying, but she answered truthfully.

“I wasn’t sure I was going to stick around.” She did manage to hold back the last part of her thought—until now.

His eyebrows shot up. “And now?”

She moved closer to him until their naked bodies were plastered skin to skin. “Now, I’m worried your dog will eat whatever cat I get.”

He let out a sound that was a mix of a sigh and a chuckle. “Fair. Loki does like cats and small dogs. Actually, he likes⁠—”

She stopped him by leaning in and kissing him. “Palmer?”

“Hm?” he said against her lips.

“Let’s not talk about your dog.”

He chuckled and then quickly rolled over, dislodging Loki from the end of the bed. The dog grunted and then lay in his own bed in the corner of the room.

Being here with Palmer, like this, with his hands slowly causing her skin to burn and heat, she forgot everything else. Time. Place. All of her worries, regrets, fears, everything faded into the background.

She woke to the sound of thunder and the dog whining.

“Loki?” she reached for the dog and lifted the blanket when the dog tried to crawl between them.

“He doesn’t like storms.” Palmer shifted so the dog could hide between them.

“My brother has a ThunderShirt for his dog,” she said. “He swears by it.”

“I know it’s strange but I usually just turn the television on loud and he settles down.” He glanced over at the clock. “But since it’s one in the morning, he’ll have to make do.”

“Here, try this.” She got up and retrieved the top she had worn under her shirt. “It might be small enough.” She sat down and put her shirt on the dog. Sure enough, it was a perfect fit, just a little snug. The dog immediately circled and curled into Palmer’s chest.

“That works great,” Palmer said, sounding surprised. “I’m definitely getting him his own shirt first thing in the morning.”

“First thing?” she teased.

Palmer chuckled and then sighed. “Okay, maybe after some breakfast.”

She lay back down and poked him in the shoulder and then snuggled as close as she could to the dog and the man.

The next time she woke it was to the sound of Palmer taking Loki outside. Before they came back in, she rushed to the bathroom to freshen up. When they did finally step inside from the rainy morning, she was making coffee for them.

Loki happily rushed to her for attention, then stopped and shook raindrops all over the floor.