Loving Lachlyn (Ashland Pride Two) by R.E. Butler Read Free Book Online Page A

glad he did.  He pulled the covers back further and she said, “You’re not going to sleep in jeans, are you?”
    His face flushed.  “I’m not wearing anything underneath them.”
    This time she couldn’t hide the laugh.  “I promise not to molest you while you sleep.  Come on, Jericho.  Nothing has changed.  I’m still the same girl, and you’re still the same guy.”
    The side table lamp clicked off, and she heard him remove his jeans.  The bed dipped as he joined her, his arm sliding around her back and pulling her gently to his chest.  With a low sigh, he pressed his lips to the top of her head.  “You’re wrong, Sunshine.  Everything’s changed.”
     
     

 
     
     
     
    Chapter 5
     
     
    Alek stared out the passenger window of his dad’s sedan as they drove to Don Pope’s home Sunday evening.  Alek had tried, unsuccessfully, to find ways to be too busy to go, but his father had been firm in making sure that their entire family was there.  Which meant that not only were his brothers and sister-in-law and their three children following in their SUV, but his three uncles, aunt, and six kids were coming along as well.  His Uncle John, who was also a police officer, had a fourteen-year-old son named Henry.  Both rode in the car with them, John in the front talking quietly with Alek’s dad and Henry in the back seat next to him, busily texting someone.
    Don Pope’s home was a modest house in Bracks, where he lived with his wife, Gwen.  The bear den in Bracks had twenty-seven members, but Alek had only ever met Don, his wife, and his sister, Sarah.  There was a time, when he first moved to Ashland and met Sarah, that the lions all assumed something would start between them.  She’d seemed interested in him, but he didn’t really see the point of dating just for the sake of dating, when he knew very well that she wasn’t his mate.
    His dad stopped the car and opened his door, and Alek got out, stretching slightly and re-tucking his dress shirt.  Don and his family were a casual bunch, and so were the lions, but the once-a-month Sunday dinner was a special occasion, and he dressed in a button-down and slacks so that he didn’t stick out like an under-dressed sore thumb around his family.
    Two of his cousins, Ben and Brian, each grabbed one of his hands, and he smiled down at them in their cute dress shirts and pants, complete with clip-on ties.  They didn’t say anything, simply smiled up at him and walked with him to the front porch.  He loved his little cousins.  They were the best kids in the world.
    Ethan, holding the hand of his son Elliott, knocked on the front door.  After a long moment, Gwen swung the door open and said, “I keep telling you to just come on in, Ethan!”
    Ethan kissed her cheek.  “Sorry, Gwen.  It’s all those good manners my dad forced on me as a kid.”
    She chuckled and hugged Callie who was standing next to Ethan.  “Well, I’ll forgive you this time, but next time, you better just walk right in, you hear?”
    “Yes ma’am,” Ethan said as he grinned and walked into the house with his family close behind.  There were times when Alek envied his brothers and their family, and this was one of those times.
    “Good to see you, Alek,” Gwen said.  He brushed his lips across her cheek and returned the sentiment.
    Stepping into the foyer, he caught the scent of something sweet and inhaled deeply.  The scent was like nothing he’d ever smelled before and made his cat sit up and purr in his mind.
    “Wow, something smells good, Gwen,” he said over his shoulder as he walked towards where the scent seemed to grow stronger.
    “Oh, aren’t you sweet!  I tried out a new dessert recipe for tonight, so I hope you all like it.”
    Alek thought it was strange that his body warmed so much at the scent of a dessert.  In fact, he was fairly certain that what smelled so good to him wasn’t actually food at all, but when he walked into the big kitchen,