“This is beautiful,” I say, stepping closer to the edge of the water pool. A smooth boulder sits close to the water, and I climb on it, standing to stretch my arm forward just enough for the tip of my middle finger to graze the frigid water.
The tranquil hush of water gurgling is lulling. Occasionally the softcrackof a branch interrupts the calm, or Max rustling in the plethora of ferns outlining this small pocket of stillness.
Finally, when Max spends over a minute lapping up the fresh water, Noah chuckles. “Well, itcanbe peaceful.”
I squat to sit on the boulder. “How did you find this place?”
“I didn’t really. Was on a routine patrol and drove by to see a red car sitting where we parked. Curious, I pulled off tofind a couple who shared someone else had posted about it in a social media group for hikers.” He shifts on his feet, boots leaving prints in the spongy dirt and sighs. “Now I come out here whenever I need a break from it all or when I can’t fathom my mom not being here. Max and I will make the hike, and I usually sit right where you’re sitting.”
I tilt my head, studying him. Out of uniform he looks so down to earth, unintimidating. The solid muscles of his biceps flex as he crosses his arms, and I sigh. Those powerful arms are where I feel the most comfortable.
“Think she’s giving the nurse a hard time?” I ask.
He laughs and gives Max’s snout a lazy scratch. “She’s run everyone off besides you. I’ll be shocked if the nurse doesn’t call in the next hour and say she’s had enough. I’m not sure how you do it. She’s taken with you.”
“I think in another lifetime I was a grumpy old woman. Must be why I can keep up with her.” I shrug.
Noah moves toward me, looking down while I stare up at him. He tucks a loose strand of hair behind my ear. His hand feathers along my jaw. “Your eyes—I can’t get enough.”
He grips the side of my face a little tighter and leans down to brush a tender kiss to my lips. They’re warm and slightly salty, but when his tongue caresses the seam of my mouth, fresh mint sweeps in as I open for him. He nips my bottom lip, and I sigh, nudging myself closer. My thighs spread wider to accommodate his body and he presses into me, sending a shock of mouthwatering desire pulsing through me.
Stable against him, I remove my hands from the rock to fist his shirt, the fabric damp with sweat, but I don’t care. He’s sexy—desirable, even.
He kisses me deeply, our tongues battling to taste more of each other.
There’s a bark in the echoes of my mind, but Noah reacts faster than I do and he pulls away to crane his neck in Max’s direction.
I, however, lose my balance.
One moment, I’m steady, trying to writhe against Noah’s solid form. The next, the world is yanked out from under me, and suddenly there is nothing but empty air where he was standing.
A startled screech barely has time to leave my lips before I tumble, limbs flailing, toward the shallow pool. There’s a blur of greenery and gray stone as I attempt to break my fall with my hands. All I’m met with is the shock of the icy water as my right hand collides with something sharp. Pain lances through my palm as I land on all fours, the water spilling up and over my back. It’s not deep enough for me to plunge down into the water, but I still gasp and cough from the water splashing up into my face and in my nose.
“Lily!” Noah grits out, jumping down into the water. He fumbles for my arm and hauls me up.
My heart slams against my ribs while my hand throbs. The cold wind wraps around my now wet clothes, and I shiver, glancing down at the cut across the center of my palm. It’s an angry jagged line and blood wells up, pooling in the creases. It spills over the side and drips down my wrist.
“Damn it, Lily.” Noah tears through his white undershirt, ripping off a strip and carefully tying it over my cut. The fabric soaks through instantly. “Damn it,” he says again.
“I’m fine.”
Max barks somewhere through the trees, out of sight.
“Is he okay?”
“Something has his attention. Listen, we should go get this cleaned up. My cabin isn’t too far from here, unless you’d rather I take you home. Max,Heir.”
“The cabin is fine, but really, Noah, I’m fine. It’s just a simple cut.”
He gives me a look and helps me out of the water. My boots are soaked, and with each step back toward the path, my socks squish between my toes—disgusting.
“Max,Heir!” he yells.
Noah’s grip doesn’t let up as he drags me by my good hand back onto the path. It’s faint, but his hand shakes, and when I glance up at him, his eyes are focused and narrowed intently in the direction of the cars.
Max barrels through the brush, heeling to my side, and whines when he catches the whiff of blood from my hand.
“It’s okay,” I say to Max.
