He couldn’t do anything right now about the fact they were stuck in snowy Heart Falls with no chance to go exploring for a bit, but he could do something to make staying home more exciting.
Luckily, she’d agreed to pick up a few groceries without even blinking, giving him a chance to get home and set up her surprise.
Josiah had it all planned out, but at the last moment, instead of heading up the spiral staircase to the loft room at the top of the silo, he decided to arrange things in their bedroom. It was a little closer to the shower in case things got messy.
He was such an ass that the thought of getting messy with her only made him grin that much harder.
By the time the front door opened and Ollie rushed toward Lisa to offer a quick bark hello and as many kisses as she could slip in, Josiah was casually sitting in the recliner in the living room, pretending to poke through the latest Veterinarian Report.
Lisa caught his eye. “Hey. You beat me home.”
“I did.” He got to his feet and came to relieve her of the grocery bags in her hands. “Any more out there?”
“This is it. Are we having a cheese fondue tonight?” she asked eagerly. “Not that we have to, but I kind of noticed that you had a lot of the things that go into one on the list, just saying.”
He stood there, grocery bags dangling from his hands as he leaned forward and pressed their lips together, answering her right before they connected. “We’re doing all sorts of things tonight.”
The kiss was sweet and perfect. The taste of her settled every bit of the worry he’d had. When they pulled back, he offered a wink. “Let me put these things away. You go and slip into something—”
At the front door, Ollie bounced up and down as she barked loudly and enthusiastically, peering out the side window into the yard.
“Ollie. Hush,” Lisa scolded, stepping toward the door to see what was setting the dog off. “Holy shit.”
Not good. Josiah dropped the grocery bags to the floor and came to press against Lisa’s back, peering over her shoulder. “Who are you so disappointed to see?”
Standing on the front porch outside the door was most definitely not any of their friends or family. Instead, an enormous winged bird with a somewhat rectangular head and a triangular beak pecked on the glass at eye level.
“Is that an ostrich?” Lisa demanded.
“I think emu. Right now I’m more concerned with how the hell than what the hell,” Josiah admitted.
“Is it dangerous?”
“They’re mean and nasty, all right. It’s probably in more danger from freezing, though.” Josiah glanced down at their feet where Ollie was just about tripping him as she bounced her paws off the safety glass, still barking at a high volume and a furious rate.
“Ollie. Be quiet.” Lisa went to scoop the terrier up in her arms, cursing softly as Ollie wiggled to get free and return to keep an eye on the front door. “Stop it, or I’ll drop you.”
“I’ll shut her in the bathroom for now,” Josiah suggested, taking the squirming dog from Lisa’s arms. “She’s trying to defend us from the alien invasion.”
Lisa peeked out the window again. “Emus in Heart Falls. Wow.”
“Why don’t you put the groceries away then meet me back here, and we’ll see what we can do about wrangling up our visitor.”
It wasn’t exactly the start to the evening that he’d been hoping for, especially with Ollie continuing to carry on as if the only thing keeping her favourite people alive was her franticly yipping over and over again.
In the end, he and Lisa pulled on their winter coats and headed outside, cautiously working to herd the emu into a safe corner of the barn. “Obviously somebody local has been keeping exotic pets.”
Lisa stared into the pen where they’d put the tall creature. “Better than a cougar, I guess—my cousin in Rocky had to deal with that situation once. It was terrible.”
“Wild animals as pets is one of my least favourite things,” Josiah agreed. “Cougars are bad. The guy who had an entire pack of meercats, though, that was both messy and dangerous.”
“Get out,” she gasped.
He wrapped an arm around her and guided her back to the house. “Let me make a quick post to get the information about our guest out on the local veterinarian loop. While I do that, how about you get into that something comfy I mentioned?”
She glanced up from under her lashes. “Why, Mr. Ryder. You seem to have something nefarious on your mind.”
“Definitely. I put what I want you to wear on the bed.”
Her pupils dilated as she pressed against him, walking her fingers up the placket of his shirt. “Is it pretty? Is it soft? What if I don’t like it? Maybe I’ll put on whatever I want.”
Oh, really? Someone was feeling mischievous. Josiah wrapped a hand around the back of her neck. “Changed my mind. You’re staying right here.”
She hummed happily, sexual interest shining from her eyes.
He couldn’t wait. He’d never had a problem with control before, but it seemed no matter how elaborate the plans he came up with, a seemingly innocent touch of her lips against his was all it took to make him lose it. He wanted to toss everything out the window except wrapping himself around her and connecting them on an intimate level.
He tangled his fingers in her hair, tightening them into a fist firm enough to tilt her head back for him to ravish her mouth. Although, was it ravishing when she was as eager as he was? Lisa nipped and bit, catching hold of the fabric of his shirt and jerking it free of his jeans.
Dammit. He had so many ideas, but ninety percent of them vanished as her taste drilled through him. Excited gasps and moans escaped her lips as he stripped away her T-shirt and put his teeth to her neck. Undoing her bra, cupping her breasts in his hands so he could lean down and suck the tips hard.
“Yes,” Lisa breathed out before whimpering. She clutched his shoulders, nails digging in. When she lifted one leg and hooked her knee around his hip, it lined them up perfectly, and he rocked his erection against her soft, sweet center. “That feels so good.”
He’d put on music before she’d gotten home, and the tune changed to a heavy beat that pulsed in time with his heart. “Dammit, Lisa.”
She knew exactly what he was complaining about, because this wasn’t the first time one of their fun scenarios had gotten out of hand and gone faster than expected. “I want you now.”
Josiah groaned. Her hands were between them, undoing his belt buckle, scrambling at the button of his jeans. He had no intention of stopping her. He still wanted to give to her. Everything, all of it. “Lisa—”
She turned in his arms, shoving at her own jeans. An instant later her naked ass pressed against him, trapping his erect cock against heated skin. “Fuck me.”
Goddamn. The plans he’d made could wait. He slid his hand over her belly, fingers capturing her mound. Holding her. Controlling her as he tilted his hips until his cock slid between her thighs. “A little bit mouthy tonight. I like it. Only, you weren’t very specific.”
Her thighs were clamped tight around his cock, and working himself back and forth against her heated skin was enough to keep his body buzzing. It gave him time to slick his fingers through her folds and begin teasing at the entrance to her sex.