“Not sure about that,” Mårten mused.“But if she was in league with the eco-terrorists, it’d make sense how Tyrone knew you were the photographer.How he knew your name and where you lived.And when you didn’t forward the photos like you promised, maybe he took the matter into his own hands.”
“Exactly.”Summer nodded, her pretty eyes glittering in the sunshine.“But doesn’t that just make me look like a complete fool?”Summer stopped pacing and tilted her head.“Here I am worried about Paige, thinking she might even be dead, and maybe she’s been playing me all along.”
“You’re anything but a fool,” Mårten murmured.
“Yeah, well, even if I’m no fool, then perhaps I’m being a complete bitch.I mean, how could I think such terrible things about my friend?I’m jumping to conclusions and being just as distrustful and cold-hearted as the rest of you.I’m trying to justify something that just isn’t true, and I hate myself for doubting her.”
“Summer, you’re not an idiot.And you’re also not being disloyal to her by telling me this.”He stepped forward and put a hand on each of her shoulders, wanting to offer comfort.But as soon as he took hold of her, he caught a trace of the lavender-scented shampoo she’d used in the shower this afternoon.Then his mind imagined her in the shower—in his shower—and it made him forget why he was offering her comfort.Made him want to run his hands down her graceful shoulders instead, wrap around her slender waist and then run them over her supple buttocks.Pull her into him…
“But it can’t be both ways.”Her voice dragged him back to the present.“Either she betrayed me, or I’m betraying her, and whichever way lies the truth, it still stinks.I just want her to be safe.So part of me doesn’t even care which one it is.”She tipped her head back to stare at the sky, then closed her eyes.
Oh, shit, was she going to cry?
“Blast, I made a promise I would not break down in front of you again,” she mumbled, eyes still closed.
A shaft of guilt hit his stomach so hard he nearly doubled over.She’d made that promise to herself because last time she’d cried in front of him and he’d tried to comfort her, they’d ended up kissing and then he’d panicked and pushed her away like some teenage idiot.He would not reject her again.
“I hate it when you cry,” he said softly.
“Then I’ll stop.”But the tears continued to stream down her face, and so he pulled her to him, resting her face against his chest.Her breath hitched, and his heart clenched painfully.Now he really was going to have to hunt down this Tyrone King and take him apart piece by piece.Just to make sure she remained safe.And to stop her from ever crying again.
“Thank you,” she whispered, looking up at him.
Using a thumb, he wiped away her tears.“For what?”
“Looking out for me.Letting me live in your house so I can keep training.You didn’t need to do any of this.”
Those eyes.So dark and fascinating.Without thinking, he lowered his mouth to hers.As if surrendering, she went soft and malleable against his chest.Nope, this time he wasn’t going to reject her.It was too much to ask of a man.Not to be taken in by this vulnerable, beautiful woman.Not to need her.Not to want her.Professionalism be damned.Ethics be damned.
He turned them both so that her back was against the tree.This time he kissed her until the blood pounded so hard in his head, he couldn’t think straight.It was some kind of miracle she was even letting him touch her, but he was going to take it, regardless.His whole body throbbed, his cock aching to be released.He needed to claim her, to make her his.This woman who pretended she was made of steel, but who was so, so soft-hearted underneath.This woman who gave him a hard-on every time he thought about her.But there was more to it than that.He was also getting a clearer picture of who she was as a person, and he liked her more and more.
His hands slipped up and under her tank top to find her breasts covered by a slip of silk.He dropped his mouth to her collarbone, then lifted her top over her head in one swift move, his lips finding the lacy edge of her bra and pushing it down to reveal a pink, pert nipple.
Her fingers were at his belt, even as she whispered hoarsely against the top of his head, “Won’t somebody see us?”
“Hardly anyone uses this trail,” he groaned against her skin, which was as soft as velvet.It wasn’t strictly true, but Swedish people were renowned for minding their own business, and even if anyone happened by, Mårten couldn’t care less if they saw anything.He had eyes only for Summer.Together, they slid his jeans over his hips, setting his throbbing cock free at last, even as she yanked his T-shirt over his head, her eyes going wide at the sight of him.Naked in the forest.Standing there for her to see.
He picked her up in his arms, dropped to his knees and laid her gently on the flattened grass at the base of the tree.Now it felt as if they were in their own little cocoon, a nest of soft, fragrant grass, that would hide them from any prying eyes.He dropped a kiss on her belly, snaking his mouth up to the mound of her breasts beneath the fabric of her bra, and she arched up to meet him.
He began to undo the button of her shorts when a thought hit him.Were they really going to do this?Have sex in the middle of the forest?Perhaps he was being too presumptuous.
“Is this okay?”He asked.
Her answer was to drag his mouth down to meet hers, a low groan escaping between her lips as he tasted her, sucked at the corner of her mouth, a moan echoing in his own chest at the sweetness of it all.
“I’m tired of playing it safe,” she said.“I’m tired of always having to be in control.I want this.”
If she wanted to lose control, he was quite happy to help her achieve her goal.He craved to watch Summer finally give in and surrender to her desires.That would be a sight to see.With her eyes fixed on him, she arched her back and reached behind, and it took him a moment to understand what she was doing.Until her bra slipped sideways, revealing those glorious breasts, painted golden by the setting sun’s rays.He couldn’t help himself, he took one nipple in his mouth, and she uttered his name on a moan.
He wasn’t sure how it happened, but they were soon both naked, her shorts and panties cast off with the rest of her clothes.And now he was free to look his fill; she was even better than he’d imagined.Her hand came to rest on his chest, small fingers entwining in the hairs curling from his pecs.
“I like this,” she purred.“I’ve never had sex outside before, but with you… I like it,” she repeated.“And I like you.”Her hand curled as she dug her nails lightly into his skin, sending ripples of heat flashing through him, heading straight for his cock.Then her hand drifted lower, exploring, experimenting, making it obvious what else she liked.What else she wanted.
One thing he would not leave to chance, however, was a condom.Safe sex was still important.He fumbled with his discarded jeans, searching for his wallet and the protection he always kept in there.Summer lifted her head to see what he was doing, strands of her dark hair falling across the face.She looked oddly artless and trusting in that moment, and his heart swelled with… What?He didn’t want to dissect that emotion right now.
He covered himself with the condom and levered up onto his elbows to hover above her.Slowly, he slid into her, intent on giving her pleasure.He wanted her to enjoy this.But she bucked her hips against his and whimpered his name, and the idea of slow went out of his head.Sweat beaded on his skin as he thrust, going deeper, harder.And she answered each of his surges with a tilt of her hips, her head thrown back into the grass in abandon.
Right at this moment, Summer belonged to him alone.It was just the two of them; no one else existed in the world.He felt like she’d hollowed out his soul.
