I rolled off her and lay there on my back.
She nestled her head into the crook of my shoulder, her fingers tracing idle circles on my chest.
Neither of us spoke for the longest time. The storm was passing, the rain softening to a drizzle.
Finally, I rolled to my side and tucked her against my chest, determined to never let her go.
I just had to find a way to convince her to stay.
To realize that her life was here on Red Oak Mountain.
Withme.
Chapter 7
Mallory
Two days of Zane Thompson, and I was completely, utterly ruined for any other man on the planet.
I’d lost track of time somewhere around Saturday afternoon, when he’d pulled me back into his bedroom.
The hours had dissolved into a warm blur of his hands and his mouth and the low rumble of his voice against my skin, whispering promises of decadence still to come.
Sunday had been more of the same, lust and hunger punctuated by meals we barely ate because we kept getting distracted by each other.
My body felt as if it had been thoroughly taken apart and put back together slightly differently.
Every muscle ached in the most delicious way.
My thighs were sore. My lips were swollen. My hair was a disaster. I couldn’t bring myself to care about any of it.
But then Monday morning arrived, soft and gray, thin light pressing through the curtains.
We had a quick shower and did the dishes that had been piling up in the sink during our lovefest.
Then we cobbled together a quick breakfast.
This is what it would feel like if we were a permanent thing. This slow, easy vibe.
Even though I knew he needed to leave for work, he took my hand and pulled me back upstairs.
Then we fell back into bed together, making love frantically at first, a fierceness pulling in my heart. And then again, each tender stroke bringing me to life.
Maybe Chicago had been a mistake.
And Wade.
And even leaving for college.
What would it have been like if Zane and I had gotten together before I ever left town?
Would our mornings together be like this one, lost in the haze of love?
The man made me want to forget about real life and everything I’d planned for myself. On this rainy spring morning, hidden deep in the Ozarks, I had everything I’deverneeded. And everything I’d ever want.
Zane was above me, with his weight pressing me down into the mattress in the best possible way.
He was moving slowly, each deliberate pulse of his hips sending a wave of warmth rolling through me that made my toes curl.
