hem of his T-shirt, hungrily awaiting the moment my bare skin would meet the warmth of his.
The Yorkie at our feet escalated her efforts to a steady bark.
As we broke the kiss, daring to glance the tiny dog’s way, she ran toward the door. She put her paws up on the plywood and began scratching and whining.
“Are you serious?” Archer asked. “Surely you can wait to pee.”
Her yowl increased in volume. To ensure we got the message, she padded over and circled our legs, caterwauling in a high-pitched octave I sorta wished only dogs could hear.
Frustration wafted off Archer, his tightly coiled muscles vibrating with the need to pounce, and as badly as I wanted him to aim that pouncing at me, a giggle slipped out.
His responding glower called me a traitor. “Good thing I’ve got a healthy ego. Although, if you’re laughing instead of experiencing blue balls, I must’ve lost my touch.”
“Well, I’m afraid you have if you were just that intimate with that part of my anatomy and didn’t notice the lack of balls. Although my metaphorical balls are huge, for the record. Like you wouldn’t be able to fit your hand into my pants—”
I clamped my lips as his expression darkened. He looked at me like I was his prey, and I’d never wanted to be devoured so badly in my life.
The spot between my thighs flared anew, weeping with need and demanding satisfaction. I wound my arms around his neck, tipped onto my toes, and kissed him hard on the mouth. “Not that your ego needs to be fed, but my panties are soaked through, and I’m literally aching from how badly I want you.”
He snaked his arm around my lower back, drawing me tighter against him as the puppy at our feet continued to make an unholy racket. She raced to the door, bounced off it, and came back again so we wouldn’t forget about her in the two seconds she wasn’t pawing at us.
“Let’s take her out for a quick walk.” I moved my mouth to Archer’s jaw and kissed the flexed muscles. I added a light nip and then sucked at the skin. Then, despite it being the last thing I wanted to do, I pulled free and scooped up my shirt. “The sooner she relieves herself, the sooner we get to do the same.”
21
Archer
The breeze carried a light ocean scent from the San Diego Bay that often got lost in the noise of downtown.
For a dog who’d insisted the potty situation was dire, Kali didn’t so much as pause near the first tree. She sniffed the next skinny white trunk without lifting her leg.
As she started down the sidewalk toward the next slightly taller tree, I tugged on the leash. “Kali, for the love of God, just go already. You acted like it was an emergency, so now’s not the time to be picky about where you pee.”
Penelope nudged me with her elbow and smirked. “Try invoking Buddha’s name instead.” As we’d leashed the dog and ridden the elevator, I’d explained a little about my mom, what she did, where she currently was, the ridiculous meaning behind the dog’s name…
All so Penelope could have a field day making jokes while my libido roared.
Kali whimpered and tugged hard on the leash.
“Fine,” I said. “One more tree, but then you do your business, or you hold it another hour.” I ran my gaze up and down Penelope and reevaluated how long it’d take to fuck my fill. “Make that two.”
Penelope hooked her hand in the crook of my arm. “It’s a beautiful night. The weather’s perfect, too.”
I grumbled, “It was. Until Princess Puppy demanded she be walked.”
The woman at my side clucked her tongue. “The thing about mediation is it teaches you to enjoy the moment. Soak it in, Archer York. Not everything has to be about winning or losing or rushing to the finish line.”
Right as I was about to assure her that I’d be taking my time, she said, “I think it’s amazing that your mom went to India with her new husband to study yoga.”
“New is all too fitting when you consider his age compared to hers,” I automatically retorted.
Kali headed toward the giant bushes adorning one of the doors to a building, and as much as I wanted her to do her business already, I steered her farther down Island Avenue. With my luck, someone would burst out and yell about my dog defiling their plants.
“If she’s happy and following