become home the last four years, and he felt a rightness that he’d only ever felt at home in the South before. Or maybe it was the people that made him think that. Either way, he was glad to be home, knowing more people had his, and now Callie’s, back was a relief.
The night was drawing in as they pulled into Eidolon’s secure compound. As the car stopped, he saw Callie sit forward and rub her eyes. She looked cute and rumpled, and his skin went tight with the desire to see that rumpled look as she looked up at him from a warm bed—the hazy look of lust on her face. Reid almost groaned when she stretched, and the silky expanse of skin at her midriff was exposed, his mouth watered for the sweet taste of her.
He heard a chuckle as Liam slipped from the car and knew his friend had seen it too. The man was a menace with his correct assumptions.
“I need to check in with Jack and the others real quick. Would you rather wait for me in the conference room, or I can see if one of the guys are around to keep you company?”
Callie looked up at him; her head tipped to the side as if she was unsure before she shrugged. “Whichever is easier for you.”
“No, Callie, I asked you a question, and that was which you’d prefer. I see you do that a lot. Put other’s feelings and wellbeing ahead of your own, and it pisses me off.”
Callie glared at him as she put her hands on her hips and thrust out her chin. “I do not!”
Reid tried not to smile as a flare of desire rushed through him. She was so fucking cute when she stood up to him. Callie thrusting her tits and chin at him wasn’t helping either. It was taking everything he had not to throw her over his shoulder and take her to the closest bed so they could finish what they’d started earlier.
He folded his arms across his chest, rocking back on his heels, deciding to have some fun with this for a second. “In New York, when they asked if you wanted the black swimsuit or the red, you said you didn’t care. That was a lie. You did care. You hated the red one but still let them choose because you didn’t want to cause a problem. In Ibiza, when the manager of the hotel asked if your room was okay, you said yes. That was a lie. You’re allergic to the duck down pillows and they make your sinuses hurt, but again you didn’t want to make a fuss.”
“How?” Callie looked shocked and flustered, her mouth agape.
Reid leaned in closer to her, so they were almost touching. “Because, sunshine, it’s my job to see things others don’t and also because it pisses me the fuck off that you do it. You don’t value yourself, and that stops right now.”
Callie’s eyes flashed fire at his admittedly arrogant command. He knew he had no right to tell her how to conduct herself, but he wasn’t lying when he said it pissed him off. Callie deserved the moon on a stick, but she didn’t think so, and he hated that.
“Listen to me, you arrogant jerk. I get that you might be used to bossing people around, and normally sane women drop at your feet and lick your boots on command, but I’m not one of those women, and I don’t take orders from you.”
Reid held back the grin on the edges of his mouth, knowing she wouldn’t find it amusing but he couldn’t resist baiting her little more. She was so fucking hot when she was mad, his dick throbbed with the need to be inside her.
He watched as the pulse in her neck pounded, her breaths became shallow as he moved closer until he could feel her breath on his neck. He pointedly looked at her tight nipples, just begging to be sucked. “You may not like taking orders from me, Callie, but your body sure does.”
Heat hit her cheeks, but she didn’t deny his words. He watched her a beat, fighting the desire to kiss her but loving this game too much to give in. He stepped back and walked two steps away before turning back to her. “And, sunshine, just for the record, that feisty side you’ve been hiding makes me hard as nails.”
He watched her eyes widen and drop to his hard