"Last question. May I kiss you now?"
My heart is thumping so loudly in my chest he must surely be able to hear the vibrations. All I can do is nod, my lips falling open.
This is crazy. Itcannotbe happening.
It is.
This gorgeous mountain man leans in to brush my mouth with his, sending electrical pulses sparking through my veins. Just as I start to feel like I'm falling, his strong arm encircles me, pulling us together. I reach out, caressing the center of his firm chest, slipping my hands into the back of his thick, dark hair. One of his hands is already caressing my hip, the other pressing against the middle of my shoulders.
In a flash, I imagine what it would feel like if we were alone, in bed, with him possessing me so naturally. Our kiss deepens, his hot mouth exploring mine?—
"Ahem."
We jump apart as the server sets two glasses of water down on our table.
"Sorry, Betty," Kellan mutters sheepishly.
She laughs. "Let's try to keep it PG here, shall we, kids? I'll give you another minute with the menus, but I'm keeping my eye on you." She squints significantly at Kellan, then flashes me a wink before turning on her heel and sashaying away.
I’m relieved that she’s not actually angry. "Let's try not to get kicked out, yeah?" I whisper.
His arm slides around me, pulling me close again, his lips brushing the top of my hair.
"No promises there, gorgeous."
3
KELLAN
“Do you ever get used to the forest?” Jenna asks as we start to drive back to Old Hemlock Valley. “It’s beautiful.”
“Maybe some people do. I don't. I’ll never take it for granted, either.”
I reach over to give her knee a gentle squeeze, and her right hand rests over mine for a moment, just long enough to continue this amazing connection we've been experiencing.
On the surface, this has been a casual lunch date while running a birthday errand. No tension, just laughing and life stories and frequent breaks for Jenna to take photos of my hands on various things.
Which of course makes me think where I would really like to be putting my hands...all over her inviting curves.
The heat of that kiss back on the patio was completely over the top for a first date. It tells me what I've suspected from the moment our eyes first met: Jenna and I have a real connection.
Jenna’s head jerks up as we pass a sign. "I hate to ask, but would it be much of a detour to check out a town called Pinesley?"
"Not much of a detour at all, but why would you want to go there?"
"Apparently there's an abandoned church there that’s supposed to be beautiful. And one of the requests on my photo list was for old churches."
My foot eases off the gas, slowing down considerably to take a bumpy turn from the highway onto a smaller road. "Sure, we can swing by and still make it back before four. But please don’t ever go there alone. The town has some…problems. Several years ago, a whole bunch of people lost their jobs at once and a rough crowd moved in."
We hit a pothole hard, and my hand lashes out to press against the top of Jenna’s shoulders so she doesn't fly forward. "I'm so sorry. That one’s new. The shadow of that tree was right across it, so I didn't notice it."
"Yeah, what's with the roads around here?"
"Temperatures shift really fast here due to the wind around the mountain. Asphalt doesn't last as long as it would in a city."
"Makes sense," Jenna shrugs. "But shouldn't the town be looking into it?"
"Yeah, I guess. Maybe—" I stare off into space, thinking.
