STORY EXCERPT

“Long morning,” Grayson said, pulling out the chair across from Ryan.

“You’re telling me.” Ryan unscrewed the cap of his water bottle and took a long drink. The cold felt good going down. “Those dogs are lucky you found them when you did.”

Grayson looked into his coffee cup. “We try to get to them as fast as we can. Sometimes we’re too late.”

“But not today.”

“Not today,” Grayson agreed.

Ryan set his water bottle on the table and leaned back in his chair. The fluorescent light above them flickered slightly, the way it always did. He should probably report it to building maintenance, but he never remembered until he was sitting underneath it.

“So you do this often?” Ryan asked. “The rescue thing?”

“Often enough.” Grayson took another sip of coffee. “There's a network of us. We get tips, follow leads, try to shut down the operations when we can.”

“Sounds dangerous.”

“It can be.”

Ryan traced his finger along a scratch in the table's surface. Someone had carved initials into the laminate years ago, before he’d started working here. “What was it like? Where you found them?”

Grayson’s expression changed. Something closed off in his face, though his voice stayed even. “Not somewhere you'd ever want to visit. Trust me on that.”

The weight of those words settled between them. Ryan didn’t push. He could imagine enough from the condition of the dogs, from the scars and the fear in their eyes. Some things didn’t need to be spelled out.

“Well,” he said, trying to lighten the mood, “at least they’re safe now. That’s what matters.”

“Because of people like you.” Grayson looked at him across the table. “The rescue is only half of it. They need someone who knows what they’re doing after. Someone who cares.”

Ryan felt heat creep up from his collar. He twisted the cap back onto his water bottle, just to have something to do with his hands. “I’m just doing my job.”

“You’re good at it.”

“You said that already.”

“Because it’s true.”

The coffee maker gurgled behind them. The fluorescent light continued its unsteady flickering. Ryan became aware of how quiet the break room was, how the sounds from the rest of the clinic seemed distant and muffled.

Grayson set down his coffee cup. His fingers stayed wrapped around it, like he needed something to hold on to. “Can I ask you something?”

Ryan’s stomach flipped. “Sure.”

“Would you want to get coffee sometime? Actual coffee, not whatever this is.” Grayson gestured at his cup. “Maybe somewhere that doesn’t smell like antiseptic?”

Oh. Oh. Ryan’s brain stuttered over the question, trying to process it. Grayson was asking him out. This man with the amber eyes and amazing forearms and the gentle way he’d handled those traumatized dogs was asking him out for coffee.

“I’d like that,” Ryan said. The words came out quieter than he meant them to, but they came out, and that was what mattered.

Something shifted in Grayson’s expression. Relief maybe or satisfaction? “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Ryan felt himself smile, the kind of smile he couldn’t control even if he wanted to. “That sounds really nice.”

“Good.” Grayson pulled his phone from his pocket. “What’s your number?”

Ryan rattled it off and watched Grayson type it into his phone. Those hands, which had been so careful with the dogs, moved across the screen with surprising deftness. A second later, Ryan’s own phone buzzed in his pocket.

“That’s me,” Grayson said.

Ryan pulled out his phone and saw the text. Just a simple “hi” with a coffee cup emoji. He saved the contact, typing in “Grayson” and then, after a moment's hesitation, adding the emoji next to his name. Stupid, maybe, but it made him happy.

“So I’ll text you?” Grayson asked. “When I figure out my schedule?”

“Yeah. Yes. Definitely.”

They sat there for another moment. The coffee maker dripped. The light flickered. Ryan became aware that he was still smiling, that his face was probably doing something ridiculous and obvious, but he didn’t particularly care.

Grayson stood up, taking his coffee cup to the sink. He rinsed it out and set it in the dish rack. “I should get going. The others are probably wondering where I disappeared to.”

“Right. Yeah.” Ryan stood, too, though he wasn't ready for this conversation to end. “Thanks again. For bringing them in.”

“Thank you for taking care of them.” Grayson moved toward the door then paused. He turned back, and his eyes met Ryan’s. “I meant it, by the way. About the coffee.”

“I know.”

“Okay. Good.”

Grayson left. Ryan heard his footsteps moving down the hallway, heard the distant chime of the front door opening and closing. He stood alone in the break room, his phone warm in his hand, and felt something buoyant and fluttering take up residence in his stomach.

He looked at his phone again. Opened the text message. Stared at that stupid coffee cup emoji like it held secrets.

“Get it together,” he muttered to himself, but he was still smiling.

ADULT EXCERPT

Grayson moved his mouth to Ryan’s jaw, trailing kisses along the line of it. Ryan’s head fell back, exposing his throat. The trust in that gesture made something fierce and protective rise in Grayson’s gut. His mate, offering his throat. The lion wanted to mark him there, wanted to make sure everyone knew Ryan belonged to him.

“You’re making sounds,” Ryan said. His voice came out breathless. “Like growling sounds. That’s really hot. Is it weird that I find that hot?”

Grayson scraped his teeth along Ryan’s throat, not hard enough to mark, just enough to make him gasp. “Not weird.”

“Good. Because I’m into it.” Ryan’s hands moved down Grayson’s back, fingers tracing the muscles there. “You’re very built. I noticed that before, but now I’m really noticing it. This is a lot of muscle. Do you live at the gym, or is this a genetics thing?”

“Genetics.” Grayson moved lower, kissing along Ryan’s collarbone. The T-shirt was in the way. He grabbed the hem and pulled it up. Ryan lifted his arms to help, and then the shirt was gone, tossed somewhere into the darkness.

Grayson looked down at him. Ryan’s skin was pale, scattered with a few freckles across his shoulders. His ribs moved with each breath, the muscles of his stomach taut. Grayson traced his fingers down Ryan’s sternum, watching goosebumps rise in the wake of his touch.

“Still good?” Grayson asked.

“Yeah.” Ryan’s hands came up to frame Grayson’s face. “Really good. Excellent, even. Top-tier good.”

Grayson kissed him again, swallowing the nervous rambling. Ryan melted into it, his body going pliant. Grayson mapped the planes of Ryan’s torso with his hands, learning the dips and curves. Ryan’s skin was hot under his palms, his pulse jumping where Grayson’s fingers pressed against his throat.

“You’re really good at this,” Ryan said against his mouth. “Like concerningly good. Should I be worried about how much practice you've had?”

“No.” Grayson moved lower, kissing down Ryan’s neck. The taste of his skin made the lion rumble with satisfaction. Salt and something sweet, uniquely Ryan. Grayson wanted to memorize it, catalog every flavor.

Ryan’s hands tangled in Grayson’s hair again. His hips rolled up, seeking friction. Grayson could feel Ryan’s erection through the sweatpants, could smell his arousal mixing with the lingering fear. The combination made something possessive coil in his gut.

“Tell me what you want,” Grayson said against Ryan’s collarbone.

“I don't know.” Ryan’s laugh came out breathless. “Everything? That’s probably too ambitious. My brain is not functioning at full capacity right now.”

Grayson kissed lower, following the line of muscle down Ryan’s stomach. Ryan’s breathing picked up, his fingers tightening in Grayson’s hair. When Grayson’s mouth reached the waistband of his sweatpants, Ryan made a sound that went straight to Grayson’s dick.

“Oh,” Ryan said. “Oh, that’s what you want to do. Okay. Yes. That’s a good plan.”

Grayson hooked his fingers in the waistband and pulled. Ryan lifted his hips to help, and then the sweatpants were gone. Ryan wasn't wearing anything underneath. His cock lay hard against his stomach, flushed and leaking at the tip.

“I should probably be embarrassed about how into this I am,” Ryan said. His voice had gone high and thready. “Given that we’re doing this because I was too scared to sleep alone. That’s probably not the sexiest origin story.”

“Stop thinking.” Grayson wrapped his hand around Ryan’s cock. The heat of it burned against his palm. Ryan’s whole body jerked, a gasp tearing from his throat.

“Not thinking,” Ryan managed. “Thinking has left the building.”

Grayson stroked slowly, watching Ryan’s face. His eyes had fallen closed, his mouth open. The tendons in his neck stood out. Beautiful. His mate was beautiful like this, coming apart under Grayson’s hands.

“Please,” Ryan said. “Please, I need—”

Grayson lowered his head and took Ryan into his mouth. The taste of him flooded Grayson’s senses, salt and musk and something that made the lion purr. Ryan’s hips bucked up involuntarily, pushing deeper. Grayson held him down with one hand splayed across his stomach, controlling the movement.

“Oh god.” Ryan’s hands scrabbled at the sheets. “Oh god, that’s… Your mouth is—”

Grayson worked him deeper, hollowing his mouth. Ryan’s cock was hard and hot against his tongue. Grayson could feel the pulse of blood through it, could hear Ryan’s heartbeat racing. His mate was falling apart, and Grayson was the one doing it to him.

“I’m not going to last,” Ryan warned. His voice cracked on the words. “I’m really not going to last. You’re too good at this and I’m too worked up and—”

Grayson pulled off long enough to speak. “Then don't.”

He took Ryan back in, deeper this time. His hand wrapped around the base, stroking what his mouth couldn’t reach. Ryan’s thighs trembled on either side of Grayson’s shoulders. The sounds he was making went straight to Grayson’s cock, made him grind against the mattress seeking friction.

“Grayson,” Ryan gasped. “I’m going to—I can’t—”

Grayson hummed around him. The vibration made Ryan cry out, his back arching off the bed. Grayson felt the tension coil through his mate's body and then felt the moment it snapped. Ryan came with a broken sound, spilling into Grayson’s mouth. Grayson swallowed it down, working him through it until Ryan was pushing at his shoulders with shaking hands.

“Too much,” Ryan panted. “Can’t… Too much.”