Since I Saw You (Because You Are Mine #4)(109)
“Surprise,” she said, holding up the kitten.
He focused on the wriggling, gray fur ball. Lin waited anxiously. She wasn’t entirely sure he’d like her gift. His smile slowly spread all the way to his eyes. Without speaking, he walked over to her and took her into his arms. She pressed against his warm, hard body, the kitten and the carton of milk between them. He caught her mouth with his in a kiss that made her feel like a knot had just been tugged tight at her core. She blinked up at him dazedly when he lifted his head a moment later.
“We are not going to be apart for this many days again, I don’t care how important the business is,” he declared with a dark scowl, kneading her shoulders. “Six days, tops.” She leaned down and pressed her face to his chest, inhaling his delicious scent running her lips over his hard muscle and crisp hair.
“I love you, too,” she whispered against his skin.
“No. Five,” Kam continued. “Four at the absolute most, and then only three or four times a year.” She licked at him delicately, starved for his taste. His grip tightened on her shoulders. “Two times a year, if that.”
She met his stare and smiled. “I missed you, too.”
“Agree to it,” he insisted fiercely.
“I agree,” she said without hesitation.
His frown faded, that appreciative gleam she cherished so much entering his eyes as his gaze ran over her face. “Business just isn’t that important. Never as important as this,” he said gruffly, brushing her jaw with his fingertip.
“I told you I agree,” she said, going up on her toes and pressing her lips to his. She coaxed them into softening. “I’m a reformed woman these days when it comes to work, you know that.”
The kitten meowed loudly. Kam glanced down. His smile dawned to full radiance, brilliant and sexy as hell. He took the squirming kitten from her.
“Do you like him?” she asked hopefully.
Kam held up the little feline in front of his face, examining it intently. He was so big and rugged, and the kitten was so tiny and delicate. The sight caused her heart to squeeze tight in her chest. He lowered the wiggling kitten and cradled it against his broad chest, petting it with two large fingers.
“I do. It’s a him?” he asked.
Lin nodded. “I’m sorry I couldn’t find a chocolate-colored one, but the good news is that Angus already approves of this little guy,” she said, stepping forward to join him in petting and admiring the kitten. She explained how before she had left for Japan, she’d taken the golden retriever for a viewing of the litter at a residence in town. Angus had seemed especially patient with this one, and so she’d based her decision on that.
Kam caught her eye. “You always think of everything, don’t you?”
She shrugged.
“Thank you,” he said quietly, his gratitude clear. He knew she’d hated what he’d revealed to her about his childhood pet and his father’s cruelty. He knew she wished more than anything that she could make it better, even if she couldn’t ever erase those hurtful memories completely. This was their home now. Not Trevor Gaines’s. Lin would make it so.
“We’ll call him Marque,” Kam said, reaching for the milk she still clutched in the crook of her arm. “It means ‘hallmark’ in French, and he’s a hallmark of a special night. For several reasons, I hope,” she heard him say under his breath.
Lin followed him when he walked over to the sitting area before the lazily crackling fire and picked up a shallow, decorative porcelain bowl sitting on the coffee table. When he placed it on the mantel, she helped him open the carton. He poured the milk into it and bent, placing it several feet away from the hearth. Marque immediately began lapping at it when Kam set him gently down next to the bowl. He straightened, his side pressing against hers.
“I thought we could keep him in the back room until he’s trained,” Lin said quietly as they watched the kitten drink eagerly. “It’s nice and warm in there, and it’s not carpeted, so cleanups wouldn’t be too bad.”
“All right. Just leave him to his dinner for now, though,” Kam said, standing and taking her hand. “You and I have an overdue appointment over here,” he said, leading Lin to the bed.
• • •
They made love not once, but twice, in quick succession, their need for one another sharp and swelling after being apart for so many days. Afterward, Lin nestled contentedly in the curve of Kam’s encircling arm, her cheek resting on his shoulder, his fingers furrowing through her hair.
“Marque is fast asleep,” she murmured after a moment. She could see across the suite in this position. The kitten had curled up at the outer edge of the marble hearth, undoubtedly made drowsy by his milk and the warmth of the fire.
“Are you tired?” he asked, his roughened, quiet voice like a gentle, arousing scratch on her nape. “You’ve been traveling for twenty-plus hours.”
“I’m okay,” she said, stroking his strong biceps and squeezing it lightly, enjoying the dense texture. “I don’t want to sleep. Not now. I want to be with you.”
He kissed the top of her head and scooted into a sitting position. Dislodged from her resting place, Lin flopped back against the pillows. “Good,” he said. “Because we’ve got champagne.” Lin stared up at the ceiling dreamily, feeling ridiculously happy to be home. With Kam. He had turned and was opening the bottle of champagne. She sat up in bed, holding the sheet over her breasts, and accepted the filled flute from him several seconds later.