Xavier’s hand moves slowly up and down her spine, and the last thread of control I’ve been holding onto snaps. White spots form around my vision. I’m moving before I realize it, feet stumbling over sticks and jagged rocks as heat burns through my chest. The guys howl behind me, but their laughter doesn’t break through the static in my head.
All I see is his hand on her.
All I feel is the undeniable urge to claim her.
“Hunter! How’s it going?” Xavier calls out as I step behind Madison.
My arm slides around her waist on instinct, pulling her back into my chest. She lets out a quiet, startled gasp, her body going rigid for a second before melting against me. Xavier’s brows lift, and I give him a slow smile.
“Better now. I have my girl in my arms,” I say.
Madison stiffens again, the smallest hitch in her breath giving her away. Her hand moves over my forearm, where it’s wrapped around her waist, her fingers digging into my skin in a silent warning to behave. It should snap my control back into place, but it doesn’t; if anything, it makes the buzzing under my skin flare hotter. There’s a wild part of me that wants to climb onto the picnic table next to us and announce to the whole damn town that Madison Taylor is mine and I’m hers.
Xavier’s grin sharpens, like he’s got a front row seat to what’s running through my head. “I was just saying to Madi here that it’s a shame we never got to go out on our date.”
Madison’s breath catches real quick, a faint flush climbing up her neck. Her fingers tighten on my arm in another warning.
Every muscle in my body locks. “What?”
“He’s messing with you, Hunter,” she says quickly, stepping out of my hold.
She shoots Xavier a glare. “Really?”
“Sorry,” Xavier says, though the grin on his face makes it clear he’s not sorry at all. “Thought I’d see how far I could push him.”
I blink, thrown. He doesn’t even sound slightly put out. If anything, I feel like I’ve walked into some inside joke between them. Madison shakes her head at him, smiling in an all too familiar way, like it isn’t the first time he’s earned it. My brows pull together. Something in my chest goes tight, and I’m reminded that I left for too long… and someone else tried to step in.
My eyes find hers, and the tension shifts. One look from her and the noise in my head slows, the tightness in my chest loosens. She steadies me without even knowing.
“You’re lucky she’s giving you a second chance.”
My gaze snaps back to Xavier.
“Don’t fuck it up this time.” He smiles, then turns, strolling back to his friends.
I let out a slow, shaky breath. He wanted her, tried for her, and she still chose me. She could have said yes to him. Hell, maybe she should have, but she didn’t. She stayed. Always in my corner. Always showing me she cares in the quiet ways I never deserved. Meanwhile, I’m fumbling every chance she gives me.Yeah, I’m an idiot.
“Jump with me?” I blurt.
Her eyes widen, lashes fluttering. “Wh-what?”
“Take a leap with me.” The words stumble out, raw and trembling. “Shit… Baby girl.” I step in, closing the space between us until our breaths mingle. Her hands are small and warm in mine, holding them feels like I’m holding onto home. “I’ve been doing this all wrong, but I want…” I swallow hard. “I need you to jump with me. So what do you say?”
She bites her lip, gaze sweeping around Falls Creek, seeking the answer she needs, searching for someone to lean on. The girls are too far away in the water with Remi, their laughter echoing off the rocks. Connor and Asher are at the barbecue, bickering over who ruined the tongs this time. She won’t find anyone to deflect to. No safety net.
It’s just us. Her and me.
And I want—no, need—to go all in with her.
“I promise I’ll catch you. I’ll catch you and never let go. Be spontaneous with me,” I say.
“I… I don’t…” Her voice shakes as she backs up, one step, then another.
She spins away from me entirely, and the world drops. The chirping birds fade in the distance. The rush of the waterfall dulls. All I can hear is the thud of my own heartbeat as she takes off.
“Mads!” I call, knowing how the nickname will hit.
She stops dead in her tracks, chest heaving, eyes flashing fire. The pull between us tightens, sparks flying as I catch up to her.
