I caught her wrist gently.
"Gil?" Confusion flickered across her face.
I looked at her—really looked at her. At her flushed cheeks and swollen lips and those green eyes bright with desire. She wanted this—I could feel it in the way she responded to my touch.
But there was something else too. A distance I couldn't name. Like she was here with me but also holding something back, keeping part of herself locked away where I couldn't reach. Performing instead of surrendering. Going through motions that felt calculated rather than genuine.
And she was young. Late twenties, maybe, to my forty-eight. Around twenty years between us.
For ten years—since my divorce—I'd kept things casual with women, kept my distance from anything real. But this didn't feel casual. This felt like the beginning of something that could wreck me if I wasn't careful.
"Not tonight," I said, my voice rough.
"What?" She pulled back slightly, genuinely surprised. "But you just— I want to—"
"I know." I caught her face in my hands, made her look at me. "Believe me, I know. But I want you here completely. Present with me. Not just physically, but..." I searched for the right words. "I don't want to rush this. There’s a lot of years between us. I just need you to be sure. That's all."
She stared at me for a long moment, and I couldn't read what was going through her head. Then she climbed off my lap, putting a bit of distance between us in the tub.
"We should probably head in," I said quietly. "Before we both freeze or pass out from the heat."
"Yeah. Okay."
We climbed out, toweled off in tense silence, pulled the robes back on. The walk back to the cabin felt longer somehow. Inside, the fire had died to glowing coals.
"You know where your room is," I said quietly. "Help yourself to anything you need."
Ruby stood there for a moment, studying me. Then her mouth curved slightly.
"If you change your mind," she said softly, "you know where to find me."
She walked down the hall, and I noticed she didn't close the door all the way. Left it unlocked. An invitation.
I went to my own room, closed the door firmly, and lay in bed staring at the ceiling. Scrubbed my hand across my jaw, felt the stubble scratch my palm.
I'd been wanting this for months. Wanting her for months. Watching her from a distance, intrigued by her fire and her beauty and the mystery of why she seemed so angry all the time.
I could wait one more night. Make sure this wasn't just some impulsive decision she'd regret in the morning.
Even if it killed me.
Chapter Three
Ruby
