Riley's Downfall [Brac Pack 29] by Lynn Hagen Page B

village to the roaring fire. He saw Sterling’s eyes flicker up to him and then dart away, and he wished more than anything that he hadn’t put that hesitant look on his mate’s face. Sterling didn’t know what to expect from him, and it seemed that the gorgeous little man was too afraid to ask.
Riley sighed. He had done this. His standoffish ways had made his mate hesitant to ask for what he wanted. Sterling wasn’t asking for the world. He wasn’t even asking Riley to run around the village professing his love. He just wanted to be shown a little kindness and affection from his mate outside the bedroom.
You can do this, Riley told himself as he walked past the fire to sit on the log next to Sterling. He just had to figure out how to do it. Open displays of affection were not something Riley was used to, despite having grown up with his father and his brothers. He didn’t mind the occasional slap on the back, but he knew nothing about cuddling with his mate.
And that kind of sucked now that he needed that knowledge the most.
Especially since Sterling kept shooting him little looks under the fall of his hair as if waiting for something. As the minutes passed, Riley could see Sterling’s shoulders start to slump as if he realized that Riley wasn’t going to cuddle with him. Sterling drew in a deep breath and straightened his shoulders, hugging Bacon closer to his chest like a lifeline.
And then he smiled as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.
Riley glanced across the fire to where Eagle sat with Chey cradled between his legs. Chey was talking to Sterling, and Sterling was even replying. Eagle and Max just kept looking at Riley strangely.
Riley couldn’t stand it anymore. The inch or two between him and Sterling seemed a mile wide. He scooted over just a little and nudged Sterling’s shoulder with his thigh. Sterling glanced at him, his face flushing furiously before he looked away.
Riley grinned and scooted closer until their bodies were pressed together. Riley could feel every breath that Sterling took and they were increasing in speed. He even felt the hitch in Sterling’s breathing when he looped his arm around Sterling’s shoulder.
And then he tugged.
The air rushed out of Sterling’s lungs in a loud whoosh, and he almost dropped Bacon as he lost his balance. Riley quickly reached down and put his hand under Bacon’s rump and pushed him back up against Sterling’s chest.
“Careful, baby,” he murmured into Sterling’s ear. “Bacon could get hurt if you drop her.”
Sterling’s light-grey eyes were huge on his face as he tilted his head back and looked up at Riley. He seemed to have lost the ability to speak, which was stranger than shit. He just nodded. Riley liked that he could make his mate speechless. It felt kind of like winning the lottery.
He wanted to experience it again.
Riley scooped Sterling and Bacon up in his arms and placed them between his legs. He wrapped an arm around both of them and then slid down the log to sit on the ground, leaning back against the log. Sterling’s body was stiff when Riley pulled the man back against his body, but after a few moments, he slowly began to relax.
When Riley looked up, Eagle, Max, and Chey were all grinning at him. Riley kind of felt like the world’s biggest goober, but he wasn’t doing anything that they weren’t doing. And Sterling was smiling.
Did anything else matter?
Riley let his right arm dangle over Sterling’s shoulder, as he bent his right leg up, sitting back casually, letting his mate get as comfortable as needed. It felt good no longer being“the guy without a mate” when everyone else had theirs right next to them.
Although Riley wasn’t sure about all the kissy-face things he had seen his brothers do with their mates when they were out in the public eye. He wasn’t sure he was up for that yet.
One step at a time.
“Zeus tells me you’re the oldest of seven boys,” Max said conversationally. “That’s a lot of