“…you don’t leave my sight again.”
The cabin is quiet now.
The kind of quiet that sinks into your bones.
Snow drifts slow and steady outside the windows, softening the edges of the world. The fire’s burned low, casting flickering gold across the floor. I shut Nugget in his room an hour ago, and for once, the menace went down without protest, probably worn out from the evening walk in the woods.
Nova’s on the couch, wrapped in a blanket, wearing one of my old flannel shirts, sleeves rolled to her elbows, collar wide enough to tease bare skin.
She hasn’t said much since the diner.
Neither have I.
But it’s not silence that sits between us, it’s weight. Heat. That heavy hum that only grows stronger the longer we try not to look.
I’m in the recliner across from her, beer forgotten on the side table. I keep watching her legs shift under the blanket, the curve of her thigh when she moves, the edge of a smile tugging at her mouth like she knows exactly what she’s doing to me.
She glances up and catches me staring.
Doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t look away.
Just watches me back, calm and steady.
Like we both know what’s coming.
I stand.
And the way her eyes trace the movement tells me she’s ready for this.
For me.
I sink down beside her, close enough that my thigh brushes hers.
Her breath catches, lashes dipping for a heartbeat before lifting again. She looks at me like she already knows exactly what she’s doing to me.
And she’s not going to stop it.
“You tired?” I ask, voice low.
She shakes her head once. “Not even close.”
I reach for the edge of the blanket. “Good.”
Her eyes track every movement as I peel it away and let it drop to the floor. My hand returns to her knee, bare and warm beneath my touch, and I slide my palm slowly up her thigh. Her breath hitches. I feel it in my bones.
“You wearing anything under this?” I ask, voice rougher now.
She shakes her head again.
Christ.
My hand slides higher.
She shifts, opening for me without needing a word. Her lips part on a gasp when my fingers find heat and slick waiting for me between her thighs.
No hesitation.
No question.
