Page 57 of Lawless Rivals

I fish out the pack of smokes next, take one, and slot it behind my ear, only then noticing the tremor in my hands from the cold.

These wet jeans need to come off, but she’s got my coat, and I’m not taking it away from her.

I crouch over the kindling, flick the lighter, and coax the flame until it catches. Smoke drifts, and I lean in, blowing until the fire takes hold. The heat is weak, but it’s better than nothing.

A hard shiver rips through my muscles. I curse under my breath, fingers stiff as I light the cigarette and inhale the smoke deep into my lungs.

Pressing it between my lips, I unbuckle my belt, step out of my jeans, and hang them over the lowest branch of a nearby tree, the fabric dripping into the dirt.

I grab her wet clothes next and hang those beside mine, spreading them out as best I can so they’ll dry faster.

Then I drop to my haunches near the fire, close enough so the heat reaches my skin.

“Why don’t you call someone?” she asks.

I keep my gaze on the flames and take another drag. “There’s no signal this far out. We haven’t had one since we crossed the lower track.”

The fire pops, sending a scatter of sparks into the air.

“So we’ll have to walk back when our clothes have dried,” she says.

“Nah.” My voice is steady, even as my hands refuse to stop shaking. “Bran’ll head home. Someone’ll come looking when he hits the yard alone. They’ll be here soon.”

She glances at me, frowns, then fiddles with the coat zipped to her throat.

“Saint,” she says quietly. “You’re going to freeze.”

“I’m fine.” I force a shrug. “The fire’s getting warmer.”

Another shiver tears through me, violent enough that my teeth knock together once before I clamp my jaw shut.

Her eyes drift to my mouth. “Your lips are blue.”

Truth is, I can’t afford to get sick. Not with everything riding on this.

So, fuck it.

“I’m not happy about getting this close to ya,” I say, moving. “I won’t let everything go to shit.”

I strip off my shirt and lay it out on the grass beside the fire.

Her brows snap together. “What are you doing?”

“Making sure neither of us dies out here.”

I’m already reaching for the zip of the coat when her hand comes up fast, slapping mine away, skin striking skin. The contact jolts through me harder than the cold ever could.

“Don’t,” she says, her breath uneven.

The coat parts anyway, and my gaze falls to her bare breasts before I can stop it.

Her nipples are drawn up hard and dark from the cold, and my mouth goes dry. My veins run red-hot despite the chill, and I swallow as goosebumps race over her skin, her body reacting to the air and to me staring when I shouldn’t.

“Everything about you is trouble,” I mutter, not giving myself time to think.

I spin her away and watch the coat slide loose in the movement before I strip it off her shoulders and tug her back against me. Her back collides with my chest, breath punching from both of us at once.

“Jesus, Saint—” she starts, but the word dissolves as I drag her down with me.