Orange Blossom

 Sienna

Life had found a balance. For the first time in a long time she had a home, she was safe, and when she looked into her future, she saw happiness with a mate that she was obsessed with and who crazily, was just as obsessed with her.

She’d found her place in the shifter part of the town, and now she wanted to mix with the rest of the village. She wanted to open her chocolate shop again.

She’d had to close it when she’d run from an over-eager hunter, and by over-eager, she meant one who kidnapped her and stalked her. Now, though, it was time to get back to her dream career, and her hand-made chocolates.

A shop was her goal, but that would take time, and so for now she had a website, and she took online orders.

Customers built their own boxes of chocolates by choosing from the selection or they could order premade boxes.

The collection she was building now was twelve white chocolates with floral and citrus flavors.

The house she shared with Adam was currently filled with the aroma of orange blossom.

When the kitchen door swung open, she glanced up from where she was piping the orange blossom syrup into truffles, expecting to see Adam. Instead, it was his cousin Calum.

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “What are you doing here?”

“Nothing.” He perched on the chair at the kitchen counter. “What are you making?”

“You know what I’m making,” she said. “I told you I had an order to fill today.”

“Oh, was that today?” He gazed down at her array of chocolates. “Which ones are the overspill.”

She didn’t answer, but he knew and he helped himself, popping a violet crème into his mouth.

“None of it is overspill. I still make them up into boxes of chocolates.”

“And now I’m saving you a job.” His next choice was a limoncello truffle. “You’re welcome.”

“You’re costing me money, is what you’re doing.”

“It’s the price for me keeping you company.”

“Even though I was fine on my own and didn’t ask you to.”

Calum grinned. “Exactly.”

Sienna rolled her eyes. Since moving in with Adam, somehow Calum had become her bestie. He came around every day, whether it was just to hang out with her or for dinner, he was as comfortable in the home she and Adam shared as he was in his own.

And she liked having him around. Between Adam, Calum, and their brothers, the four men had ensured she found her place in their pack.

Calum stayed with her, drinking coffee and eating chocolate until he got called into work at the hotel.

 

Adam

 How did I get so lucky?

Adam leaned in the doorway and watched his female sealing up a box. He was proud of what she was doing, building up her business, even though she wasn’t taking him up on his offer to help, which infuriated him.

He could sell her chocolates in his hotel, but every time he suggested it, she always replied with, “Not yet.”

What was she waiting for?

He was especially happy watching her when she wore those shorts. She had the most perfect butt he’d ever seen, and her shorts showcased the pert ass that he loved to get his hands on.

Sienna coming into his life had blown his world wide open and in the best possible way. Everything was better with her. Everything was fun.

He stalked up behind her but judging by the way she leaned back slightly, she knew he was there.

“Hey there, Angel,” he said, wrapping his arms around her waist.

“Hi, mate.” She smiled and then turned around in his embrace so that she faced him. “You look especially sexy this afternoon.”

Only she would say that when he was tired, and dressed in a crumpled shirt with his tie loosened around his neck. It had been a long, boring day of meetings with financiers and accountants, talking numbers.

He was relieved to be home.

Sienna gripped the end of his tie and tugged him down for a kiss which was exactly what he wanted. Her lips on his and her flavor in his mouth.

She tasted like fragrant orange and chocolate.

He couldn’t resist her, and he couldn’t stop kissing her.

She was the one who stopped, but she didn’t move away, mumbling against his lips, “If we keep this up, we’ll be having kitchen sex.”

“We’re good at kitchen sex,” he rumbled his reply. They were damn good at it.

“We are.” She grinned. “But I have to finish packing up these chocolates. So, hold that thought.” She whispered a last flirty kiss over his lips. “Unless you want to start removing your clothes while I do this and then we’ll be good to go.”

Adam laughed. “Firebird, I love it when you talk dirty.”

Flattening her hands on his chest, she said, “Go sit at the table before you cause me all kinds of food hygiene problems.”

He did as she commanded but not before getting a good squeeze of her butt, and she ramped up the temptation when, once she’d packaged the chocolates, she brought her laptop to the kitchen table and bent over right next to him to print a label.

He waited until he heard the whirring of the printer in the other room before he dragged her into his lap.

“Hey,” She scolded, but she wrapped her arms around him at the same time.

“Angel, why don’t you let me sell some boxes of your chocolates in the hotel.”

“Not yet,” She replied, and his frustrated growl was more panther than man. She leaned back, her luscious lips parted in surprise. "What?”

“Why do you always say that. ‘Not yet.’ What are you waiting for?”

“I don’t want to rush things. I don’t want to take on more than I can handle. That’s why I’m starting slowly.”

“That makes no sense. If you find a supplier for your product then use it.”

“When I did this job before, none of the risks were mine, but I’m on my own this time. I need to move at a pace I can control.”

“You’re not on your own. You have me. Let me help you.”

Her voice was small when she said, “But what if they don’t sell.” Her doubts slayed him.

“Luxury handmade chocolates... They’ll sell. But even if they didn’t the financial loss wouldn’t be yours. We’d buy the product from you.”

“Great.” She rolled her eyes. “So, I would just cost your business money. Sign me up.”

“Is that sarcasm, Firebird?”

She gripped his tie and held on as she kissed him. “I’m not ready for that step yet. I need more time.”

He gave a short, sharp growl. “How about we make a deal? A compromise?”

Sienna narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “What kind of compromise?”

“The summer fete in the village. We have a booth there for the hotel and Krista plans to test new cocktails. You join her with chocolate samples and if they go down well, we supply them in the hotel.”

She played the end op his tie between her fingers and peered up from beneath her lashes. “Isn’t this cheating? Nepotism, or something like that?”

“Angel, this is business. Trust me.”

“You know I always do.”

He smirked. “Smart girl.” Brushing her braid off her shoulder, he said, “Now tell me you agree so we can get back to the subject of kitchen sex.”

She laughed in a way that his cat pricking its ears up. Both man and animal were entranced by her happiness.

“You’re going to get my business shut down before it gets started,” she said, but at the same time she shifted to straddle his thighs.

“You could probably convince me to move this to the living room for sofa sex.” He rose to his full height still holding onto her.

The sofa was his goal, but with the way Sienna nuzzled in at his throat, he knew it was too far away. In the end, they settled on hallway sex where he loved Sienna so well, she offered him anything he wanted. The only thing he wanted though was for her to be happy and vice versa. Which was how he got her to agree to sample her chocolates at the upcoming summer fete.  

The End

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