She wanted to ask him why he’d chosen to run the ranch, but she didn’t know him well enough, and she didn’t want to push any buttons about his past addiction. Addiction talk often made her antsy, anyway.

“I think I know the house you mean. It’s not blue anymore, though. It’s green and white. That’s the one. Overlooking the river, right?”

She nodded. “Yep. It was that color originally, and when I saw the swatches, I knew I wanted it that way again.”

Ezra stayed long enough for her to know he wanted to check her out and be sure she was okay. It spoke volumes about the closeness of this family. But it sure was nice when he finally sent a grin to Paddy as he stood, patting his belly.

“That was awesome, kids. I’m off home.”

She rose, and he kissed her cheek before they followed him down the hall to the door.

“Make good choices.” Ezra winked, and Paddy rolled his eyes, opening the front door.

“Yeah, yeah. Thanks for bringing the food. See you later.”

CHAPTER EIGHT

“I THOUGHT HE’D never leave.” Paddy leaned back against the door, flipping the lock. “I’m sorry about that.”

“It was totally fine. I like Ezra and so do you. He checked me out because he wanted to be sure I wasn’t going to hurt you or your family in some way.”

He paused before he grabbed her hand and began to pull her down the hall. For all the smooth, supercontrolled way she acted, there were times she was utterly unvarnished. It kept him on his toes. “Nah. He knows you’re fine.”

“I was some chick you f**ked for a few weeks years ago who suddenly resurfaced in your life. For all he knew, I was a stalker out to try to con you.”

She was pretty perceptive. He hadn’t even realized that until she’d said it. Of course Ezra, being the oldest and yes, being the guy who caused no small amount of drama and harm to their family, would take it on as his responsibility to protect them all.

“Does that offend you or bother you?”

She tossed herself onto the big couch in the center of the media room. “What? That your big brother did what big brothers are supposed to do? I’m guessing I must have done okay, or he’d still be here.”

“If your family did that, I don’t know that I’d be that easygoing about it.”

“Well, that’s not going to be a worry for you, so you can put that out of your head. But let’s face it, you have a lot to lose. More than the average random woman who shows up in one of your lives. Not all of us are going to have big fat bank accounts and trust funds.”

“You’re going to tell me that story.” He moved to the projector.

“Maybe. Maybe not. But right now, I’m here for the movies and popcorn.”

“Is making out on the menu?”

“If you’re nice to me, and you’ve included some peanut M&M’s in the offerings, I might let you get to second base.”

He was very glad he’d grabbed snacks of all types when he’d gone grocery shopping earlier.

“As a matter of fact, I did. So sit back and let me get everything set up.”

She raised one brow and then shrugged, settling in and getting comfortable.

They chose a movie—the thriller—and he popped some corn and tossed her a bag of M&M’s before finally joining her on the couch.

She put her head on his shoulder as they watched, and once they’d finished the popcorn, he pulled her close, and she fit just right against his side.

The credits finally started to roll, and she shifted to her knees, getting in his lap astride his body.

“Well, now.”

She slid her hands through his hair and pulled him close, dropping her lips to his, claiming a kiss. He hummed, his hands sliding up her thighs to her hips, where he held on as she kissed the hell out of him.

Her skin where her shirt met her pants was warm and soft, and he didn’t stop himself from touching, caressing up her spine as she arched into him.

Higher and higher until he popped the catch on her bra, pausing for a moment to be sure she was on board.

She broke the kiss, leaned her upper body back, pulled her shirt up and off and tossed her bra aside, leaving him totally speechless and very pleased.

“Damn.”

He grabbed her back, pulling her close, her br**sts brushing against him, making him hiss as his hands roved all over her bare skin.

She arched into him like a cat before nipping his earlobe. “You take your shirt off, too.”

“I want to spend some time on you first.”

She made a sound and, grabbing his shirt at the hem, pulled it up and off.

“Man, oh, man.” She flicked the bar through his right nipple with her thumbnail.

It was his turn to arch just then. “What brought this on?” He moaned as she kissed across his cheeks to his ear.

“I wanted you, and here you were.”

“Well, that’s very true.”

“I like sex. I know already that I like sex with you. As long as things are private, I’m totally on board with this thing going wherever and for however long.”

He wanted to frown, even though her words were good ones. As far as he could tell, there were no good reasons not to do more than just f**k. He opened his mouth to press her, but she made a sound that tore at him.

With a groan, he skimmed his hands up her belly to cup her br**sts and drew his thumbs back and forth across her ni**les.

“Yes,” she breathed into his ear before she licked the outer shell and gave him the edge of her teeth against that very sensitive skin.