“Above the washer in the mudroom.Take your phone back.Mine’s in the bedroom charging.I can use that to find my flashlights and candles in case the power doesn’t come back on.”
“All right.”He took his phone from her grasp.
She slipped out of the bathroom, and he shone the light toward her bedroom.Once she was inside, he headed down the hall toward the mudroom at the back of the house.He spotted the fuse box above the washer and yanked it open.
He flipped the fuses.Nothing.Damn.The cabin would get cold quickly.He’d have to grab some firewood from—
Crash!
What the hell was that?He made a dead run for the bedroom.
***
Quin’s footsteps shookthe house.
“It’s okay!”Josie called.“I’m fine.”
He skidded into the bedroom, chest heaving.She shined the beam from her phone at his chest and shrugged.“Sorry.I knocked the lamp over while grabbing my phone.”
His body relaxed as he walked further into the room, taking up the space like a superhero.“You scared the crap out of me.It doesn’t seem to be a problem with the fuse.Must just be the weather.”
“We can start a fire, but luckily it’s not winter and we don’t have to worry about freezing to death.”
“Mmm.”He moved closer, shoving his hands in his jean pockets as if he was afraid to touch her.While that thought should have terrified her, it only lit a fire of excitement in her belly.
Not only the fact that he wanted her, but that he was trying to hold back.There was something ubersexy about a barely restrained Quin.
She set the phone on the dresser, flashlight up, and closed the space between them.God, she needed someone.Loneliness had burrowed a hole in her heart and nothing had filled it since...
Except Quin.Having him in the house made the place seem not so small.His energy changed the frequency of her sadness to something else entirely.Something she couldn’t put her finger on.
“I should go look outside.Make sure no one’s fucking with you.”
She raised her eyebrows.“If you think someone’s out there causing problems, I want you to stay,” she said, her voice husky.
He grinned.“I’m staying, remember?Just want to check it out.”
She brought her chest inches from his.“And if I say no?”
He removed his hands from his pockets and rested one palm on her hip.His gaze lowered to her breasts.He reached up with his free hand and touched her citrine crystal.He toyed with it a minute and let it fall back to her skin.Her body ached for him to do more.To caress her.To do anything but stay in that one position.
“Don’t you want to find the cocksucker who ran you off the road?Maybe he’s back and—”
“Or maybe it’s just the weather, like you said.”She was playing with fire.Pushing a boundary she couldn’t retract, but she was sick of the weight she carried day in and day out.Sick of the quiet nights with no one to keep her warm.Just one night with Quin would get her by for a while.She rose onto her tiptoes again, so her face was inches from his lips.His hands slid to the small of her back.
Victory.
She inched him backward until he sat on the bed.He snaked his arm around her waist and pulled her down with him, sitting her on his thigh.Tension radiated through her body.His hand nestled itself on her hip and his other went to her jaw, his thumb gently stroking.“I’m sorry I left.”His hazel eyes carried the weight of eternity, full of anguish.
She brought her palm to his stubbled cheek.Part of her wanted to run, but that part was controlled by fear.Fear that she was betraying Liam’s memory.That somehow, he wouldn’t forgive her for moving on.The other part of her craved Quin’s touch—but more than that, his connection.
“I don’t care about that right now.”A deep tone dominated her voice.
His lips parted, his frown eased.He captured the back of her neck and pulled her mouth to his.Heat invaded her as his lips sealed over hers.This time his tongue didn’t tease.He pushed through the barrier of her teeth, flicking his searing flesh over hers.
She let out a groan and gripped the material of his shirt in her fingers.Soft pants escaped her throat as she broke away.He searched her eyes, desperation making his pupils dilate.
“You need to get this shirt off.”She tugged at the hem.
