“Tell me more about that,” I said.
“My Granddad loved the zoo,” Arlo replied immediately, then frowned at his quick reply. He rolled his eyes, seemingly at himself, but kept talking. “It’s free to come, there are places to sit or to walk, entertainment. We would come here nearly every weekend.”
The way he spoke about the man was nearly catching. I imagined what it would be like, strolling through here as a child with my father.
My father would have been drunk and passed out on a bench before noon, zoo or no zoo. It was hardly a fair comparison, his father figure to mine.
“Tell me something about you now,” he said, giving me a quick glance before turning his gaze.
I considered carefully.
There was a small part of me, a little root that was growing strength with every passing second, that knew I was still walking in dangerous territory. Even if Arlo forgave me for the comments I had said the other night, there was the small fact that we were in a legal battle that he didn’t even know about.
Certainly, that was something to keep in mind. Anything I told him could lead him to that—and, as much as I hated to admit it, I didn’t want Arlo to know about it, for more reasons than one.
A small jolt of something shot through me.
It wasn’t like he’d even mentioned his shop today, not in any real way. It wasn’t like I was gleaning information to use against him.
But you would, a small part of me whispered.
I ignored it and the subsequent guilt, focusing instead on his question.
There was the fact that we hadn’t met in either of our cafes or the grocery store. We had met through The Club. Privacy was of the utmost imperative, which was why I even went to a place like that. I wanted Arlo to have a good time, to sign the contract with me, but until he did, things were—in the air, so to speak.
I considered so carefully that too much time passed and Arlo huffed out an annoyed breath.
“Are you a CIA agent?”
My lips twitched. “No.”
“FBI?”
“No,” I said.
His eyes narrowed. “If you were, would you tell me?”
“At least not until we agreed on a contract,” I said softly, taking a step to close the space between us.
His lips pursed. “Hmm.”
“It’s—difficult,” I said slowly. Arlo watched me, head tilting slightly to the side. “There’s a reason we were both there, Arlo, and while in time, I’m sure those reasons will come out, certainly a level of trust must be built first.”
Arlo batted his eyelashes at me, a small smile on his face. “You don’t trust me?”
I hadn’t realized we had swayed closer until suddenly, only a small few inches separated us. “I think you’ve got all sorts of secrets underneath that baseball cap.”
His cheeks were flushed but he still kept a flirty smile on his face. “And what secrets are underneath your clothes?” His eyes widened as the words spilled out of his lips.
I grinned. The question might have been accidentally phrased in such a delicious way, but that didn’t mean I had to ignore it. I leaned closer, my lips brushing the curve of his ear. “Ah. All the best ones, of course.”
He shivered, his whole body trembling as my breath casted over his skin.
My heart felt lighter in chest, my pulse racing as his body shook against mine, just the barest of our bodies touching—my lips on his ear, lightly, my hand raising to curl delightfully around his elbow.
Arlo was facing straight, staring out though his eyes seemed glazed over, attention nowhere near the exhibit he was looking at. I watched as a myriad of emotions flickered across his face—he was so expressive.
I couldn’t help but wonder what he would express in a different situation—one where he lay across my bed, hands fisted into sheets and legs spread, wide and wanton. Would his eyes be scrunched closed, mouth open in a round, silent cry? Would his gaze, hard and dark, follow me as I traced every centimeter of his body with my fingers and tongue?
Hot heat pulsed through me. More than I could ever remember wanting anything, I wanted Arlo.
I had to have him.
My hand still curled around his arm, I tugged gently and watched as his head snapped to mine.
His eyes were darker, a shade covered by his trembling and—if I was as bold to hope—want for me. A thrill went sharply through me and I grinned, watching as his gaze narrowed onto my lips.
I strode away, head filling with blind joy as Arlo quickly kept pace behind me.
There was a small alcove a few feet away, where you could dip past to go through a scenic walk to the bird sanctuary. There was no one around, the bright sun keeping most people far away from the shady and dark corner. I walked as far as it would allow me.
Between the trees, brush, and fences, only a sliver of the rest of the zoo was visible in the alcove—likewise, only those standing exactly at the mouth of the path would be able to see us.
I bit down on the inside of my cheek to dampen my excitement.
Arlo walked straight to me, his eyes betraying his hesitance even as he walked straight to me.
“What’s over here?” he asked, glancing around. I was leaning against the hard bark of a tree, completely surrounded by the dark greens and browns, hardly any light beating in between the leaves.
“Nothing,” I said, quiet enough that he swayed toward me, trying to hear the words spilling from my lips. “There’s nothing and no one around, except for you. And me.”
His eyes were hard on my mouth before flickering up to catch my gaze. “Why are we over here?”
“Hmm,” I hummed as if contemplating, barely able to keep the smirk off my face. “Would you rather not be so close?” I reached out, snaking an arm around his waist and tugging him forward. His hands shot out, palms resting against my chest, as he let out a gasping breath.
“I didn’t say that,” Arlo murmured. He tilted his head, his eyes fluttering for just a second.
Arlo wanted a kiss.
A part of me—larger than I would have cared to admit—wanted to give it to him.
The other part of me knew that giving in so easily would rob us both in the long run.
I spun him around, delighting in his grunt of surprised protest, and placed both of my hands around his hip bones, tugging him until the soft push of him was pressed against my front. “Arlo,” I tsked, clicking my tongue at him. “We’re in public. Don’t be so—”
“Hey!” he interrupted me.
I shushed him, swallowing a laugh at his indignant squeak. “Now, be good.”
He shuddered. Heat flashed through my veins, watching the way he tilted his head to look out to the mouth of the alcove. The passing people were barely making sounds, they were far enough away, but they were close enough that we could hear their quiet shuffling and muted conversations.
Arlo’s pulse hammered in his neck. I could see the beating of it, the thrill of it.
Now that he couldn’t see me, I let my grin cover my face. Now this was the opposite of boredom.
I ducked my head, lips going back to that sensitive spot near his ear. I wanted so badly to bite down on the skin, suck the little soft spot of skin into my mouth, leave a glorious, dark bruise just under the side of his ear.
He would look so pretty wearing my marks.
My fingers tightened around his hips in response to the thought and I took a long, bated moment to gather my senses back to me before gently breathing out. Arlo shivered but didn’t say anything, just held still in my grasp, even as he trembled.