Paws off the Boss - Casey Griffin (best books under 200 pages .TXT) 📗

Piper’s legs forgot how to move, and Aiden had to steer her through the door. Once inside, she froze at the sight. It was a fully equipped veterinary clinic. No. Not just a clinic, she thought, scanning the pieces of diagnostic and surgical equipment, a mini hospital. It had everything a veterinarian could ask for. She could even perform surgery.

“Aiden,” she breathed. “This is…”

“Do you like it?”

Turning toward him, she flung her arms around his neck. “It’s perfect.”

“I may have been planning the new rescue center all along, but all this…” He waved a hand at the clinic. “I built this entirely for you. It was an addition that I added after we met. You’ll have everything you need to help the animals that come in now.”

He’d been planning this all along. Every time he kept his “business” to himself, tried to hide phone calls and meetings from her, every time she wondered about his advanced deadline—which was no doubt because of the fire—he’d been working on the center, the new home for her friends. And this gift to her.

Guilt took another nip at her, and she knew of only one way to pacify it. Rising on her toes, she leaned into Aiden’s embrace and pressed her lips against his, slowly, firmly, longingly.

He drew back just enough so that he could look into her eyes. “In case it wasn’t obvious by now,” he said. “I love you.”

The morpho butterflies were back, filling every square inch of that gaping hole, banishing the angry Tasmanian devil. Ever since her father had died, Piper had never needed or wanted to rely on anyone, but before Aiden had come along, she’d never thought it could feel so good.

“I love you too.”

He pulled her in for another kiss, his face beautiful and worry-free once again. She reached up to his collar, and, one by one, undid the buttons on his Hawaiian shirt.

“What do you say, Mr. Caldwell? You ready to mix business with pleasure?”

He pulled back, scandalized. “Miss Summers. Are you suggesting what I think you’re suggesting?”

“Oh, please,” she purred in his ear. “I’ve seen you eyeing me. I know you’ve wanted me since you hired me.” She removed her sweatshirt and pressed up against him.

“This is highly inappropriate.” Keeping a straight face, Aiden reached up and straightened his shirt, playing along. “What would human resources say?”

Reaching down, Piper worked his belt, then his button, his zipper. “No one has to know. It will be our little secret.”

“This is sexual harassment in the workplace,” he said, looking around like someone might see, but not exactly fighting her off.

She reached her hand down his pants, searching. “It’s only harassment if you don’t want it. Don’t you want it?” She found what she was looking for and grasped it.

It took him a moment to answer, and when he did, it was a breathless moan. “Oh, yes.”

“You’re not going to take me to HR, are you?”

He suddenly lifted her onto the stainless-steel exam table. “I have a better idea.”

Piper ran her hands across the back of his shorts that had fallen halfway, enjoying the feel and curve of his butt. Then she pushed his shorts down the rest of the way. “And what’s that?”

He grinned against her mouth. “You’re fired.”

Her groping hands froze with surprise, and she laughed. “That’s okay. I still have my telegram job. Come to think of it, I’ve got a few costumes packed up in the car. Maybe we could play cops and robbers.”

He hooked a thumb under the hem of her tank top and lifted it, exposing her bra. “I think I’ve had just about enough of cops.”

She leaned back on her elbows. He drew his mouth across her stomach, from her bra to her low-riding jeans. Her hips moved on their own, encouraging him to keep going. She sucked in a breath as he undid her pants.

“How about a sexy Swiss yodeler?”

His hand froze at the top of her jeans. “You yodel?”

“I’ve been known to yodel.”

“Give me a minute, and I’ll make you yodel without the costume.” His hand slid into her pants, and she gripped the edge of the metal table beneath her.

A soft moan escaped her lips. “Marilyn Monroe, then?”

Aiden hesitated for a second before shaking his head. “No.”

“Who do you want then?” she panted. “Tell me.”

He hopped onto the table, his half-naked body hovering over hers. Lowering himself, he kissed her deeply. “I want you. Just you.” He swept a stray hair off her cheek. “My Piper.”

And once he pulled the privacy curtain closed around the exam table, they both got exactly what they wanted.