Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 128260 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 641(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128260 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 641(@200wpm)___ 513(@250wpm)___ 428(@300wpm)
“Maybe because your skin is satiny like a flower petal.” And he trailed his fingers up my arm, tickling me lightly. I laughed and shook my head.
We ate and drank and then got back on the trail. We stopped again in another hour, and after we drank more water, he leaned against a rock and pulled me against him, kissing the side of my neck. “Mmmm…I love the way you smell even more when you sweat. It’s irresistible.”
I laughed at the tickly feeling of his lips trailing lightly down my neck. “Is this where you turn into a desert hyena?”
“Probably. I feel him coming out. He’s strong, baby. He’s hard to contain. Ah!” He contorted his head in at an awkward angle and brought one arm out stiffly. “Run, Grace! Run!”
I laughed as he grabbed me around the waist and brought me against him hard, growling into my face. “Too late, baby. You had your chance.”
He nipped at my neck and ground up against me while I laughed and writhed in his arms.
After a few minutes, he turned serious, his gaze meeting mine as he leaned closer. He kissed me slowly and deeply, our tongues tangling, our breath mingling. I gasped, my eyes opening , when he took my bottom lip into his mouth and sucked on it gently. His eyes were open too and our gazes locked. A coil of heat unwound in my belly.
Finally, he broke away, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear that had come loose from my ponytail. “It feels good to be up here with you. I didn’t know if I’d like company while hiking. Who knew it could be even better with the right person?” He smiled at me gently.
I smiled back and then cocked my head to the side. “Do you go hiking alone a lot?”
“Any chance I get, yeah. I love being outdoors.”
“I can tell. Hiking, snowboarding, surfing. What don’t you do?”
“There’s nothing I won’t do, buttercup. But you already know that.” He gave me an exaggerated wink.
I rolled my eyes. “Seriously, though, what do you love so much about it all?”
“Adventure sports?”
“Yeah.”
He looked over my shoulder and was quiet for a minute. “I love the physical challenge. I love the fact that if you do something enough, you can become great at it. With enough practice, you can master things that, at first, seem impossible. It has nothing to do with who you are, how you look, nothing superficial. It’s just about not quitting. And then, you get to take credit for it, because it’s something you accomplished.” He was quiet for another minute, his brow furrowed. I could practically see the wheels turning in his head. “Huh. I never actually thought about it until I just put it into words for you.” His smile was startling in its intensity, that dimple doing its worst.
Hi, dimple. I grinned right back.
He pulled me closer. “Know what else I really like?”
“What?”
“You.”
“Yeah? And what exactly do you like about me?”
He gave me a considering look. “I like, no I love, the look on your face when you’re seeing or doing something new—almost like it’s a religious experience.”
I’d realized that over dinner the night before and I loved hearing him say it.
“And I like how you let me see beneath that perfect exterior because it turns out that what you were hiding is even more stunning, Fraggle Rock hair and all.”
I laughed. He grinned back and kept looking into my eyes. My heart constricted.
“And I really, really like how you make me feel—like if you looked at me every day the way you’re looking at me right now, I could do anything, be anything, be more.” He ended on a whisper, the laughter leaving his expression.
I reached up and touched his cheek. No one had ever complimented me quite like that. I wasn’t sure how to respond except by saying, “I like you too, Carson.”
“Yeah? What do you like about me?” he asked. He gave me a boyish smile. I saw the vulnerability in it. My answer meant something to him.
“I like how you make me want to be brave like you, to listen to my own desires and make my own happiness.” I kissed his nose. “I like how you let me see beneath your sex-on-a-stick exterior because as unbelievably amazing as you are in that respect, as it turns out, that’s the least of what you have to offer.”
Our eyes held for several moments and I wasn’t sure what I saw on his face. That same vulnerability, yes, but also a hint of disbelief. I’d meant what I said, though. And I wondered… I wondered if he’d think about… choosing another life path.
That’s dangerous thinking, Grace, and not part of the arrangement. No, it wasn’t. And so I pushed it aside as he pulled me in to an embrace, kissing the top of my head.