Sealed With A Kiss: Boys of the Bayou Gone Wild, page 6
“I’m still naked,” she said, her voice almost sleepy. But she curled into him as his arms wrapped around her.
“Yep.” He toyed with the end of one of her braids that lay on her shoulder.
“I should get some clothes.”
“You being naked will save us time after I catch my breath.”
She looked up at him, one brow arched. “Oh, yeah?”
He stroked his hand down her arm. “Now that I’ve got you here? Unless you tell me you’re done, I’m going to enjoy every damned minute until this storm blows over.”
She seemed unsure what to say to that. For just a second his chest tightened. Maybe she was going to tell him she was done. Maybe she’d just needed an itch scratched and now she was good.
But she reached up, cupped the back of his head, and brought him down for a long, deep kiss.
He had just let his hands start wandering, intent on exploring every inch of her, when he heard his phone start ringing.
Then the sound of a phone chiming with a text joined it. He assumed that was her phone.
He lifted his head and met her eyes.
“They’re wondering about us,” she said.
“They” could be any number of people, but it would certainly be someone who would be very interested in Donovan and Naomi being naked together.
“Yeah. Can we ignore them?” he asked, dragged the tip of his finger along her collarbone, watching the goosebumps break out and her nipples tighten.
She gave a little shiver. “If we do, they’ll worry and possibly come down here.”
Yeah, they knew a lot of really great people who would be concerned and willing to brave the weather to check on them. Assholes.
“But if we answer they might try to talk us into coming up there. Or tell us the storm is letting up.”
She smiled. “Yeah, they might.”
He ran his hand up and down her arm again. “And I’m not sure I’m ready to be done with this.”
“The storm will blow over eventually.”
Did that mean she thought whatever this was between them would blow over too? He supposed that was possible. “Yeah, I guess.”
It was strange. When he’d walked into this building, he hadn’t expected any of this to happen and now here he was, wanting it to never end.
His phone started ringing again. Another text message came across Naomi’s.
She sighed. “We should at least see who it is.”
“Impatient bastards. I told them that we got up here fine and that we were going to stay with the bears.”
She nodded. “I told them the same.”
They looked at one another. Naomi was the first to frown.
“Do you think it’s actually a problem?”
It really could be. Everyone they loved was hunkering down for a storm. Yeah, they were just up the road but they didn’t know what was happening outside these walls.
“Shit,” was all Donovan could say.
Naomi pushed off his lap and grabbed the t-shirt she’d been wearing before, pulling it on over her head and covering up. Donovan took a moment to appreciate that he’d seen that body naked and to mourn having it clothed again. Then they both went for their phones.
“Mine’s Michael,” Naomi said. “He’s with the family at Ellie’s but he’s heading out to Mobile soon.” Naomi’s thumbs started moving over the phone screen, typing in her answer to her brother.
“Mobile?” Donovan asked.
“Yeah. They must have gotten hit hard. He often goes out to help with clean-ups and recoveries after hurricanes and other disasters.” She was still typing.
“That’s cool.” Donovan checked his missed calls. “Fiona is calling me.”
Naomi looked up. “Really? She’s not in Autre, is she?”
“I don’t think so. I wasn’t aware she had plans to be here anyway.”
Donovan had met Fiona Grady through Griffin. Fiona and Griffin had spent time together in Zambia before Griffin had returned to the States after their parents’ death.
Fiona now ran an animal park in Florida, but she had been visiting Autre regularly since Griffin had moved here. She was the one who had been bringing a variety of animals to the ever-growing animal park. All of the animals she brought were from rescue situations or were otherwise unable to be kept in a typical zoo or returned to the wild. They had lemurs, a sloth, porcupines, flamingos, and even donkeys and camels, thanks to Fiona.
Her animal park in Florida was actually more of an animal sanctuary. They did have some animals on display, including her most popular exhibit—a herd of five giraffes—but many of her animals were there because of past abusive or traumatic situations and were not for the public to interact with.
Donovan liked Fiona immensely. Everyone seemed to like Fiona immensely. She hardly gave you an option. She was pushy as hell—and energetic as hell—but she had a way about her that wrapped around you like a hug and caught you up in whatever she was excited about at the time. And before you knew it, you were in on any plan or scheme she had going. The best thing about Fiona, though, was her huge heart. Because even after you figured out that she had talked you into something you normally would’ve said no to, you realized it was a fantastic idea and you were happy she’d brought you along.
Of course, Donovan never had trouble with regrets when it came to animals. Fiona never had to talk him into anything. In fact, they were a fantastic team.
He tapped his phone to open the voicemail and listened to Fiona’s messages.
“What’s going on?” Naomi asked after he disconnected.
“Fiona wants me to come to Alabama too. The hurricane is hitting one area in particular especially hard and she’s getting people together to do some animal rescues.”
“What kind of animal rescues?”
“After natural disasters, there are always animals displaced who have been separated from their families or left behind when people have evacuated.”
Naomi frowned. “Pets? Like cats and dogs?”
Donovan nodded. “Yes, in part. Of course, wild animals can be displaced during natural disasters as well. Their habitats are turned upside down and they can have trouble finding shelter and food. There are often babies separated from mothers or sometimes orphaned after a big storm like this. Fiona spent some time in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria helping rescue cats and dogs, as well as looking out for wild animals in the area. She’s told me some amazing stories.”
Naomi was taking all of this in. “So she wants you to meet her down there and help with the rescue and recovery efforts for the animals?”
Donovan shrugged. “Yeah. Sounds like it.”
“What about the bears and the other animals here?”
“The wolf and beaver are doing well. And Griffin, and Tori and Jill can easily handle keeping an eye on them. The bears aren’t injured. They need monitoring with their feeding and general health status over the next few days, but Griffin can handle that.”
“Will Griffin bottle feed the one cub?” Naomi asked.
Donovan grinned. “He will. He’ll pretend to be all put out by it, but he’ll love it.”
“How long do you think you’ll be gone?”
Donovan finally focused on Naomi rather than letting his mind spin about all of the animals that were possibly suffering at the moment because of Hurricane Clare. Naomi looked worried and a little anxious. He took a step closer to her and reached up to cup her cheek. “Think you’ll miss me?”
She nodded. “Even before what you just did to me. And after that? Absolutely.”
Heat raced through him and he grinned. “Very glad to hear I made an impression.”
“I’m very glad you finally made that impression too.”
He leaned in and kissed her. “I’ll be back. This is just a quick trip to Alabama. I’m not staying down there.”
She nodded and took a breath.
He studied her face. “But you’re worried about me.”
She sighed. “Donovan, I’m always worried about you. Add in flood waters, downed power lines and trees, people in trouble, animals in trouble… yeah, I’m worried.”
He thought about his next question for a couple of seconds, but it didn’t take him long to decide that he definitely wanted to ask. “Want to go with me?”
Her eyes widened. “Really?”
“Well, it’s up to you. I don’t know if you feel like you can be gone for a few days, maybe a week. But if you want to come to Alabama with me and help me rescue animals, I’d love to have you.”
The expression he’d been hoping to see crossed her face—wary excitement.
When she was out with him filming his rescue activities for Boys of the Bayou Gone Wild, it seemed Naomi was always trying to find a balance between being careful and thoughtful about what they were doing and her obvious excitement. She really had a huge heart for the animals and it never took her long to get on board with whatever was going on. She always jumped in to help however she could and he knew that, even though she took far more precautions than he did, she felt the jolt of adrenaline when they were in the thick of things.
Finally, she nodded. “I hate the idea of pets out there lost and scared and alone.”
He grinned. He knew she also hated the idea of him out there without a babysitter. “Exactly. We’ll go down and help them reunite with their families.”
She nodded. “That sounds great. When do we leave?”
He gave a soft chuckle. “As soon as things blow past, I suppose.”
She glanced down at her phone. “Michael said it’s already lightening up.”
Donovan sighed. “Damn.”
She looked up. “What?”
“I was hoping for a little more time with you in here. This might be the first time I’ve ever been less than one thousand percent excited to get right on the road to a rescue mission.”
She gave him a smile that was part hot and part incredibly pleased. She put her hand against his cheek. “I think that’s the highest compliment you could possibly pay me, Donovan Foster.”
He turned his face and kissed the center of her palm. “Well, I have no idea what our accommodations might be in Alabama. There won’t be hotel rooms available. We might be putting an air mattress on the floor at somebody’s house or at an animal shelter or we might have to just put it in the truck bed, but I’m very happy to snuggle up with you. This just might not be the most romantic trip I could take you on.”
“Just promise that you’ll keep all your fingers attached so you can use them on me when we get back here and I’ll be fine.”
He kissed each of her fingertips before letting go of her. “Deal.”
“Maybe we have another minute,” she said, lifting up on tiptoe.
He pulled her in close and their lips met. It only took a second for the kiss to turn hot and dirty and he started walking her back toward his desk. Bending her over it had been her idea after all…
The lights flickered on just then.
And both of their phones started ringing.
They froze. Then groaned. Then pulled apart.
She looked up at him. “Dammit,” she said softly.
“Yeah.” He kissed her again, but quickly and softly. “I think our time is up.” He’d never regretted six words more.
She nodded. “I guess so.”
He wanted to assure her it wasn’t for good. But he wasn’t sure what this was. He’d love to keep seeing her. He’d very much love to keep doing what they’d just done. But did he want to date her? More? He needed to make a decision about that because this was Naomi. She was important to everyone who was important to him.
And the things that made them total opposites were still true. They were a very good fit sexually, obviously, and he was more than thrilled to have learned that, but that didn’t mean she would put up with him when his pants were on.
Still, the idea of having her with him in Alabama was nice. This was the kind of work that he wanted to do. He knew that the rescues he’d done in the past mattered. His TV show had mattered. He’d educated a lot of people and he’d definitely brought awareness to multiple endangered species as well as natural disasters and environmental and ecologic issues that people needed to know more about. He was proud of the work he’d done. But he felt a nagging desire to do more.
The typical human didn’t run into koalas that needed rescued from wildfires. Typical human beings did, however, encounter things that affected the environment around them every single day. He knew there was a way for him to use his platform in a bigger, more impactful way. He just didn’t know exactly what that looked like yet.
But going to Alabama and getting his hands dirty helping find animals and reconnect them with their families, felt like something direct and important that he could do right now and having Naomi with him while he did it, seemed like an amazing way to combine two of his biggest passions.
As much as he wanted to strip her down, he resisted and instead placed a quick kiss on her lips and they stepped apart.
Naomi looked at her phone again and, with a sigh, Donovan pulled on his shirt, and rounded his desk to settle in at his computer.
While Donovan video chatted with Fiona on his laptop, Naomi started the dryer again to finish their clothes and then showered. Donovan showered after she did and within the hour they were ready to leave the building. They decided to take their separate trucks and headed for Ellie’s.
The rain had let up and the wind had died down some, but there was water running everywhere and they had to maneuver around tree branches and other rubble. At one point, a large branch and two lawn chairs were blocking all but the narrowest of paths along the one muddy edge of the road.
Donovan stopped and dragged the branch out of the way and tossed the chairs into the ditch. People would start venturing out and there would be chainsaws and more trucks to help remove debris, but at least that would open up the roadway for now.
When they arrived at Ellie’s, they had to park down the street. Dozens of people had gathered to ride out the storm and clearly not many had left yet.
Donovan knew the urge to hold her hand as they walked toward the building was weird. Yes, they’d had sex, but that didn’t necessarily change anything, except now he had more fuel for his late-night fantasies when he was alone. At least they had this trip to Alabama to figure out how things were going to be between them from here.
It was a two-hour drive and then they’d have several days there together. They’d be busy, of course, but spending time doing that kind of disaster relief work had a way of bringing people closer and there would be at least a little time alone here and there. He intended to take advantage of that.
It only took three minutes inside Ellie’s to realize none of this was going to go according to plan.
4
It was weird that she had the urge to hold Donovan’s hand while they walked from their trucks up to Ellie’s. Yes, they’d had sex, but they weren’t dating now. He wasn’t her boyfriend. Nothing had really changed. Except that now, she had more fuel for her late-night fantasies when she was alone with her vibrator.
They were, apparently, going to spend the next several days together on a rescue and cleanup mission in Alabama, which might have meant that they could figure out what came next for them.
But she knew better than to think that was how this was going to go.
Kennedy, one of the Landry granddaughters—who also happened to be the mayor of Autre—was standing on a chair with a clipboard, clearly leading the meeting.
She was wearing her typical fitted black t-shirt with black shorts and black combat boots. The short-sleeved shirt and short shorts showed off her pale skin and the tattoos that swirled up the outside of her entire left leg and left arm. Naomi had known Kennedy all through high school as she was leaving beauty pageants and getting into her goth look so she knew that the tattoo actually extended up the side of her torso as well.
Her long black hair was pulled up into a high ponytail, so the dark red tips brushed her shoulders. Her eyes were made-up with dark liner and shadow and her lips were a deep crimson. The piercings that lined the entire curve of one ear, her nose, and the newest one in her right eyebrow all glinted in the light as she moved.
“There you guys are.” Michael met them partway across the room, a few feet from where the majority of the group was clustered around the big tables at the back of Ellie’s. It was where the Landry family gathered for meals and for any kind of big family meeting. “We’re right in the middle of planning. Need to know where you fit in.”
“I’m going to Alabama with Donovan,” Naomi told her brother. “Fiona called for his help with finding and rescuing displaced animals.”
“Fiona called you?”
This came from Knox. He was the city manager and Kennedy’s right hand man. He was also a good friend of the Landrys. Though the animal park had been giving him progressively more severe headaches as it grew and the crowds of people coming to see the animal park got bigger. Some of his headaches also seemed to come from the bubbly, petite brunette who brought the exotic animals to the animal park though.
Donovan nodded. “She often goes to the sites of natural disasters and works on locating and rescuing displaced animals. She’s recruiting volunteers for this effort and called me just a little bit ago.”
Knox frowned. “She often goes to these things?”
“Very often.” This answer came from Griffin, who joined them. “She was in Houston after Harvey and Puerto Rico after Maria.”
Knox suddenly pivoted on his heel, pulling his phone from his pocket, leaving them without even a muttered excuse.
Naomi wondered if he was calling Fiona. Everyone else that he might need to talk to at the moment was in this room. But there was something going on with him and the animal activist. No one knew what it was, exactly—they seemed to alternate between flirting and annoying the hell out of each other—but Jill, Zeke’s fiancée, had said the last time Fiona was in town delivering the flamingos, donkeys, and camels, Fiona and Knox had decided to go out for ice cream. Just the two of them.
