I roll my eyes and give him a smirk.It's not that I forgot about his promise, but I still don’t want to get my hopes up. "If it takes us too far out of the way, it's fine."
"Hey." His voice is so close to my ear I have to turn toward him and give him my full attention. "I promised you something, I'm not going to take it back."
We drive for another few minutes before Knox turns onto an overgrown forestry service access road that looks like it hasn’t been maintained since before Eruption. The Jeep crawls along, branches scraping the sides, until the trees open up without warning and I hear it before I see it. It's the sound of rushing water cutting through everything else. He eases the Jeep to a stop and we both just sit there for a second, taking it in.
The scene in front of us is beautiful. There's a waterfall, maybe thirty feet high that cascades down over a shelf of dark rock and pools at the bottom into an inviting and clear swimming hole. The late afternoon light catches the spray so that it shows the prism of a rainbow. Some beauty in the midst of all this ugliness we've had to endure. Beside it, tucked back against the hillside where the rock juts out, is what looks like the mouth of a shallow cave. It's deep enough to provide cover, wide enough to sleep in comfortably. We can have a fire inside, and I can't help but tilt my head back and give thanks to the sky. It's like the world left it here just for us.
"This is where we're staying." Knox's voice is quiet, like he doesn't want to disturb the vibe of the space.
"This place is amazing. You've never been here before?"
"No, I've never been south of Kentucky, so all of this is new area to me. Had I known what it looked like, I might have made the trip down. It's definitely more interesting looking than I thought it would be."
I get out stretch my back, sighing when I feel the tightness loosen, and the bones crack.
We spend the next little while unloading what we need for the night, Knox gets a small fire going just inside the mouth of the cave where the smoke will be blocked by the top of the rock. He stacks our bedrolls while I dig out the food we've set aside for tonight. For the first time in years the routine of this feels less like survival and more like just a little bit of normalcy.
"You ready for that bath?" he asks, nodding toward the waterfall. "I’ll stand guard for you."
I've already got my small bag of toiletries in my hand. "I've been ready since you promised me this yesterday. I don't want you to stand guard. Instead, I want you to join me.” I say those words on a whisper.
He inhales deeply, a groan making it's way past his throat.
The water is cold when I step into the pool at the base of the falls, and I suck in a sharp breath, but it doesn't stop me. I wade in up to my waist, tipping my head back under the edge of the cascading water and letting it run through my hair. It's the best feeling I've had this year. It's more than just washing off the dirt of the life we've been living, I feel like it's washing off the fear and stress of survival too.
When I turn around, Knox is already in the water, closer than I expected, droplets catch in his dark lashes, he's taken his hair down, and pushed it back from his face. He looks different out here like this. Not so much the man who's always in charge of everything, but a man who wants a quick second with a woman. Those eyes of his are throwing signals my direction. Ones that could burn us up if we let it.
Neither of us are willing to move for a moment.
Then he closes the distance between us, his hands coming to my waist beneath the surface, and I let him pull me in. The cold water and the warm press of him are such a contrast that I shiver for reasons that have nothing to do with the temperature, or the fact I'm naked. His forehead comes down to rest against mine, his thumbs drawing slow circles against my sides.
"Beth." My name coming from his mouth sounds different than it has before.
"I know," I whisper back, because I do. I feel it too, whatever this is that keeps pulling us toward each other no matter how many reasons we have to keep our distance.
My hands find his chest, and I feel the steady beat of his heart beneath my palms, faster than it should be. His eyes drop to my lips, and when he finally kisses me it's nothing like the quick, quiet kiss in the Jeep last night. It's more like the one we shared in bed back at that house in Beaver Dam. It's one that says once he gets started, he doesn't want to stop. This kiss carries the weight of everything between us behind it. His hands slide around to my back and draw me flush against him, and I stop thinking about Nashville, or the envelope tucked in the Jeep’s console we need to deliver, or what comes next. For right now there is only the sound of the waterfall, and the warmth of his hands, and the way he kisses me like I'm the only other person who exists in his world.
CHAPTER 11
KNOX
I'm in deep shit with Beth. I didn't even realize it until this moment. I've always been the kind of guy who loves being in a relationship. Which has really taken a hit since Eruption happened. Am I putting all my hopes and dreams in this woman? Is it fair to her for me to do this?
I turn all that off as my mouth claims hers. She makes a noise in the back of her throat that causes my body to react. Reaching down, I grab her thighs, separating them and bringing them around my waist.
The waterfall rushes around us. The cool water feels good compared to the heat that's been increasing the closer we get to Nashville. All I want to feel though is her. Her arms come around my neck, and she holds on, as desperate for my touch as I am for hers. I walk us toward the rock face beside the falls. Her shoulders meet the smooth stone and she gasps against my mouth at the chill.I pull back just enough to look at her, really look at her. She's a fucking wet dream. How I imagined women would look when I was a teenager. Water runs down her face, her lips parted, her eyes dark with passion and searching mine for something I can't quite put my finger on.
Whatever she's looking for, I want to be it. "You sure?" My voice, barely audible over the sound of the water, comes out rougher than I intend.
Her answer is to tighten her legs around me, pulling me closer, and that's all I need.
That little indication that she's ready for whatever this is. Bracing her back against the rock, I lean down, taking her nipple between my lips, worrying the flesh as it puckers against my tongue. She arches into me, her fingers threading through my wet hair and gripping tight, holding me there like she's afraid I might stop. I don't ever want to stop. This is the only thing that's felt good since all of this shit started. At this point, I don't ever want to give it up. A deep groan leaves her chest, swallowed up by the sound of the water, and the tranquil air around us.
I move to the other side, giving that breast the same attention. Her body responds to every press of my lips, every graze of my teeth. Her hips shift because she has no idea what she’s doing to me. Or maybe she does. Maybe that's exactly what she's doing. I drag my mouth back up the curve of her neck, her jaw, until I find her lips again, and I kiss her slow and deep. Her fingers grip my shoulders when I reach down to spread her thighs a little wider, making room for my body between them.
"You're fucking amazing," I murmur near her ear, hoping she can hear me.
"So are you."
