Her head hadn’t ached for a few hours, and come hell or high water, she was going to have sex tonight. All she needed to make that happen was the man walking across the street with his dogs at his heels and a plate of something in one hand. He stopped at her mailbox and collected some envelopes.
“Have you ever in any of your nine lives seen anything hotter?” she asked her cats, the three of them perched on the windowsill, watching along with her. When Cody and friends approached, Pelli took off for the bedroom. Merlin yawned. Arthur leapt down and parked himself at the door, his tail twitching with what Riley interpreted as excitement. She totally got it. If she had a tail, it would definitely be twitching.
“Hey,” she said, opening the door. “Let me take something.”
Her mail was thrust into her hand. When he stepped past her, she smelled soap and the spicy aroma of aftershave, making her mouth water. His face was lacking that scruffy bad boy look that melted her bones, but the smooth skin was just as tempting. Before the night was over, she was going to rub her face all over his. That she promised herself.
When he headed for her kitchen, his dogs staying with him, she followed and was almost tripped by Arthur, who hurried to catch up with Sally and Pretty Girl. “My cat’s in love,” she said.
A body made up of all bones and muscles turned. “And?”
His eyes raked over her, then lifted to hers, and the heat shimmering in them made her stomach flip. Just stick a fork in her right now and call her done. “And just this.”
As if he’d fully expected her to come at him like a missile locked on target, he reached behind him, set the plate on the counter, and opened his arms, wrapping them around her when she snuggled into him.
He leaned back and peered down at her, a slow smile forming on his face. “Hello.”
She grinned, feeling like a giddy teenager. “Hello back.”
When he slid his hands down her spine to the curve of her butt, he stilled. “If I’m not mistaken, you’re not wearing any panties.”
“You’re observant, Mr. Roberts.”
“And you’re a naughty girl, Dr. Austin, but I like that about you.”
She rubbed against him, going all tingly inside when she felt the hard length of him against her stomach. He lowered his mouth to hers. Mother Mary, the man could kiss. The envelopes she held drifted to the floor as she let go of them to free her hands for the exploring she’d been dying to do. She slipped them under his T-shirt, and trailed her fingertips up his sides, feeling the indentation between each rib. His skin rippled against her palms. She flattened her hand over his heart and felt the fast beats, and a thrill shot through her that she could make his blood pound.
“Darlin’,” he said, pulling his mouth away, chuckling when she tried to follow. “We’re not doing this until the doctor says you’re okay.”
“Yes, we are.” She took his hand and tried to drag him toward the bedroom and promptly bounced back against him. He hadn’t moved an inch.
“Tell you what. Let’s get the animals fed, eat a little dinner ourselves, and then we’ll talk.”
“About having sex? We don’t need to talk, we just need to do it.”
Laughter poured out of him, and he hugged her. “You’re good for me, Riley.”
That warmed her more than anything he could have said, and she hugged him back. “I’m glad. Let’s get to it. The faster we get it done, the faster we can christen my bed.”
He let go of her. “You just get a new one?”
“Nope. Been too busy this past year getting my practice set up to think about doing the dirty deed.” Something flashed in his eyes, and she thought he was both surprised and pleased.
“Dayum, girl, we need to fix that.”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you.” She bent and picked up the envelopes, carrying them to the counter.
“You have a seat while I take care of feeding these creatures, and then we’ll eat.” He opened the pantry door.
“The cat food—”
“I know where everything is.”
Riley slid onto a stool, liking how at home he was in her kitchen. She watched him for a few minutes, enjoying the view. He had a way with the animals. Pelli slinked into the room and tried to climb up his legs. Cody pried him off and held the kitten in front of his face.
“You need to learn some manners, my little friend,” Cody said. He set Pelli on the floor and tapped his pink nose. “Stay.”
While Cody was giving her cat a lesson on manners, Riley flipped through the envelopes, set two bills aside, and grinned when she saw one with her last foster mother’s name in the corner. Pat’s letters were usually long and chatty, and she’d read it later. Eyeing the last envelope, she flipped it over to see if there was a return address on the back. There wasn’t. Opening it, she pulled out a single sheet of paper.