“Yup. Got the letter three days before the ambush that killed Kade.” I watch the flames dance. “I was distracted and angry. Not focused on the mission like I should’ve been.”
Realization dawns on her face. “You blame yourself.”
“I’ve always wondered if I’d been more alert, more present... maybe Kade would still be alive.” I shake my head. “It’s just another thing I’ve had to learn to live with.”
“Oh, Rye.” Her voice breaks as she sets her dinner aside and moves to sit beside me. “It wasn’t your fault. You can’t keep carrying that with you.”
“I know that now.” I put my hand on her thigh and squeeze. “After I got clean, I threw myself into my work. It was easier to focus on other people’s pain than my own. Relationships seemed... unnecessary. Risky.”
“What about now?” she asks, her voice barely above a whisper.
My eyes meet hers. “Now there’s you.”
The air thickens, filling the space between us. I reach up and brush a strand of hair from her face, letting my fingers linger against her cheek. In that moment, everything I’ve been holding back—all my control, all my careful planning—crumbles to dust.
“Fuck it,” I growl.
Grabbing her around the waist, I pull her onto my lap.
She gasps, thighs straddling mine, hands automatically gripping my shoulders for balance. Her eyes widen, pupils dilating until only a thin ring of blue remains.
Before she can say a word, I capture her lips with mine. Hungry and desperate, a week’s worth of pent-up desire unleashes in an instant. Her mouth parts on a gasp, and I take full advantage, sliding my tongue against hers as my hands grip her hips, pulling her flush against me.
She moans into my mouth, grinding on my cock, fingers tangling in my hair, the friction the best kind of exquisite torture.
“I want to come,” she breathes against my lips.
“Show me how much,” I growl, gripping her hips as she starts to move.
Her head falls back as she starts to ride, the pressure building with each roll of her hips. The firelight dances across her flushed skin. She looks otherworldly, beautiful beyond words.
“Ryder,” she whimpers. “Please.”
“Please what, kitten?” I ask as I tuck my hands under her flannel and slide it down her arms, leaving her in just her T-shirt. I trail my lips down the line of her throat, flicking the tip of my tongue against her fluttering pulse, savoring the taste of her skin.
“I need... I need...” Her breath hitches as I suck at the pulse point below her ear and shove my hand under her shirt.
She moans.
“Use your words,” I demand, shoving her shirt up and latching my mouth onto her nipple.
“You,” she gasps. “I’ll do anything you want. Just let me come.Please.”
Her desperation pushes me past my breaking point. I stand, lifting her with me before setting her back on her feet.
“Take off your jeans.”
Her eyes widen, darting around. “Out here?”
“There’s no one around for miles,” I remind her. “Just us, the mountains, and the stars. You just said you’d do anything to come. And I’m going to hold you to it.”
She hesitates for only a second before she starts to unbutton her jeans.
Slowly, torturously, she peels them down her legs, revealing a pair of simple black cotton panties that somehow look sexier than any lace I’ve ever seen.
Once they come off, I sit back down on the log and pat my thigh. “Come here.”
Confusion flashes in her eyes as her lips part in surprise.
