The confession sends a rush of heat through me.
"I'm not asking you to pull back."
His breath leaves him in a slow, quiet exhale. He looks at me for several long seconds, as if he's deciding whether he's strong enough to keep resisting or too far gone to try.
"We should sleep before I do something I can't take back," he finally says.
I nod, because my heart is pounding too hard to trust my voice.
He steps away toward the couch. I take a slow step backward toward the bedroom. The distance between us grows, but the air still feels charged.
I reach the door before turning to look at him one more time.
Goodnighthangs in my throat, but I don't say it.
He doesn't either.
We don't need the word.
The tension says enough on its own.
I slip back into the bedroom and close the door, knowing sleep won't come easily.
And knowing he's still out there on the other side, trying just as hard not to think about the moment we almost couldn't stop.
Chapter 6
Pike
Sleeprefusestocome.I've been lying on this couch for what feels like hours, staring at the ceiling and listening to every quiet shift of sound in the cabin.
The storm has started again, tapping gently at the windows. The fire has burned low, casting restless shadows.
But none of that is what keeps me awake.
It'sher.
It's the way she looked at me earlier. The softness in her voice.
The way she whispered that she didn't want me to stop.
I sit up before I've even decided to. My body acts first, my mind chasing behind.
This isn't going away.
I push a hand through my hair, take a slow breath, and stand. The motion is quiet, but not quiet enough. The bedroom door opens almost the instant I move toward it.
Emory steps out, wrapped in one of my flannel shirts. It hangs loose on her, brushing mid-thigh. The sight stops me cold. She looks soft and warm and…mine, even though I have no right to claim that.
Her voice is barely above a whisper. "You couldn't sleep either."
"No," I say. "I couldn't."
She walks toward me, slow but sure. The light from the dying fire touches her face, turning her eyes into something soft and bright.
"I kept thinking about earlier," she says.
"So did I."
