He hadn’t seen the guys from Hope Valley since last December, when he’d taken Simone to the ranch. It’d be good to touch base with them. Maybe he could head out there with Tracey after the holidays. An uncomfortable feeling trampled through him. He hadn’t brought anyone into the house he’d shared with his mother since she’d passed away, but he knew his uneasiness was about more than that. For the record, I don’t like when people go behind my back.

He put his hands on the tile wall, letting the water rain down the back of his neck, hoping he hadn’t fucked things up. He heard a noise and opened the shower curtain just as Tracey stepped out of her jeans and walked into the shower, her sweet smile calming his discombobulation. He swept his arm around her, tugging her in for a kiss. She tasted like sugar, gingerbread, and her own unique taste, the taste that had become a part of him. “I fucking missed you,” he growled against her lips.

“You did?”

“Hell yes.” His hands skimmed down her body, and he palmed her ass, kissing her again, deeper, more passionately.

“Tell me again,” she whispered.

It took him a second to understand what she was asking. “I missed you, baby girl.” As he said it, he realized he’d never said those words aloud to her before this, which was fucking insane since he’d felt them a hundred times when they were apart. Her smile was like a vise to his heart as she went up on her toes, meeting him in another scorching kiss. She rubbed his back as their tongues danced. Those loving touches turned him inside out.

“Your muscles are so tight. Hard day?”

“It was a hell of a day, but it’s better now.”

“Let me get some body wash and I’ll massage your back.” She turned to get the bottle, and he began kissing the back of her neck.

“I don’t need you to rub my back, baby. I need to touch you.”

He slid his arms around her, one hand moving between her legs, the other to her breast, and lowered his mouth to the base of her neck, giving it a hard suck. She moaned, and her head fell back against his chest. He teased her nipple, sliding his fingers into her tight heat and using his thumb where she needed it most. His cock ached to get in on the action. She pressed her hands to the tiles, riding his fingers, sinful noises sailing from her lips. So damn beautiful. So damn his. “Give me your mouth, baby.”