His mouth stretched into a beautiful grin. “Did I just discover a natural memory eraser or is this typical Mia Russo forgetfulness?”
“I don’t believe it’s an actual discovery until you exclaimEurekalike your friend, Archimedes.” Her mouth slid against his in a deep kiss, their tongues mingling together.
“Eureka,” Ross whispered when they broke apart. “I’ve found it.” His eyes were like ink, taking a determined glint, looking as if he actually had found something. She should have panicked, but she was trapped within that gaze.
Ross propped himself on an elbow, a hand stroking through her hair. The way he looked at her during these moments was always unsettling as if he discovered some part of her even she wasn’t aware of or didn’t want to be aware of. It was too deep, too vulnerable. In keeping with her standard practice, Mia pushed for action, reaching for him, encouraging him to do more. She didn’t care what happened as long as he stopped staring at her.
This time, he resisted. Pulling her hands off him, Ross gave her a lazy smile. “Slow down there, Eager Beaver,” he replied.
“Ross—”
“We’re camping. It’s your birthday. Relax. There’s time.”
But was there? Guilt invaded her conscience.
“Happy Birthday, Russo,” he said. A single finger did a slow slide down her face, stopping at the epicenter of her cheek.Xmarked the exact spot her dimple would emerge from. She’d allow Ross to unlock the treasure anytime he wanted with nothing more than the different parts of him: body and mind. The buzz of unspent energy was already snapping along her spine.
His finger remained fixed on her cheek. “This. I like.”
Mia smiled, releasing the indentation beneath his finger. “Oh? You don’t see it as a defect anymore?”
He shook his head, his eyes never leaving her cheek as if hypnotized. Ross bent his head, leaving a measured kiss there, and Mia closed her eyes. His lips worked a path along her neck, dragging slow, gentle kisses across bare skin. She may have heard the soft uttering of her name, but it was so faint her ears weren’t sure they perceived an actual word or a sigh. It didn’t matter because her mind was doing its best to capture the experience by touch and scent and sight. She wanted it broken down like a strip of film, frame-by-frame, to be referenced later whenever she needed it.
An internal heat swept through her, the surface of her skin sensitive to his touch. Ross was no longer paying attention to her eager-beaver hands as she scraped her nails along his back.God.Whenever they were together, she was always on the verge of falling. Falling apart. Falling into. Falling…At this moment, Mia wasn’t sure what other type offallingpeople did, but whatever it was she must have done it.
He focused on her lips, drawing forth heavy, lush kisses from her mouth as he guided himself into her. Something about this time made it unique. Was it the fresh pine air? The freedom from everyday life and work? The seclusion they had inside their tent as though they were the only two people in existence? Was it Mia’s knowledge that this was one of those moments she’d remember forever regardless of how old she got? She couldn’t put her finger on it, but something had shifted. Ross’s movements, as he rocked against her, were slow and deliberate.
“Look at me,” he said, his voice low and gravelly.
Maybe she could this time. Maybe she had to. Just this once, she’d let him unlock her.
The thing with dark intense eyes, the type that seemed to peel armor away from a person, leaving nothing but the bare essence, was that they weren’t a security window. She could see into him as well. Past his fevered gaze, she saw Ross. Compassionate. Supportive. Kind. He was a man who had a lot to give and was just looking for someone to take it.
Too bad it couldn’t be her.
She wanted to cry. Instead, she wrapped herself around him, pressing her face into one strong shoulder, inhaling him, kissing him. She was a rubber band, and with each stroke made between them, Ross was stretching the band to its limits. Until it snapped. She broke apart in a mixture of sparks and tears, his name tumbling from her mouth. His own groan reverberated at her temple. What Mia felt for him seemed too big to be contained within her chest. She tucked her face into his neck, waiting for control and for her breathing to return to normal.
Ross gathered her to him as if she was a precious bouquet of Shasta daisies, his arms encircling her with tenderness. Though bedtime was hours away, Mia’s own eyelids were drooping, ready to drift off into a peaceful nap of a spoiled cat. It didn’t help that Ross was brushing his lips across her forehead with a light touch.
“Mia?” she heard him say somewhere from the other side of hazy consciousness.
“Hmm?” Mia didn’t have enough energy to give him anything more than a murmur.
This was met with continued silence on his part. She was about to follow up with more encouragement. But the low whine of an impatient Hermes outside the tent’s wall interrupted the tranquil atmosphere.
“I better put out a food bowl for him and start cooking something for dinner,” Ross said, pulling himself from their embrace. Mia turned to watch him as he retrieved his clothes.
“What can I do to help?” she asked.
He gave her a quick glance. She imagined her hair took on the appearance of a fluffy love nest, and she finger-combed it to tame it.
He gave her a warm smile. “I got it. Relax. Just come out when you’re ready.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. Don’t worry about it.” Dressed, he gave her a final kiss on the head, then let himself out of the tent to take care of camp business, zipping the entrance behind him.
Mia rolled to her back, basking in contentment as she closed heavy eyes, ready to surrender to a few minutes of light napping. This could be the most luxurious activity she ever allowed herself. His warm, loving kiss was still imprinted on her skin and—
