Page 62 of Will to Run

“Hey, beautiful,” I lean in to kiss her.

It’s sweet, slow, and contradicts what I want to do to her.

“Hi!” she laughs nervously. “So I know you wanted to take me out. And I love that. But what if we stay?”

“Stay?”

“Yeah, stay here. I haven’t had the opportunity to see the whole ranch. Partly because I’m scared I’m going to get lost, and partly because I just haven’t had the time, but I’m curious! So if you’re up for it, and I promise you can say no, but if you’re game, I packed us a picnic basket of stuff to munch on, and maybe we just have a picnic somewhere I haven’t seen yet?”

Admittedly, I didn’t think long and hard about where I was going to take her because most people I’ve dated care more about the fact that they’re dating me than what I do for them, but this throws me for a loop in the best way possible. And I feel guilty that I thought I could get away with the bare minimum for her. Depending on what she wore, I figured we’d end up at a restaurant in town, hell, even at the lodge. But this seems better than any of the options I had. I love the challenge that she didn’t even know she gave me.

“Yeah, I love the idea!” I say. “I know exactly where I want to end up. First, I’ll take you on the big loop in the truck, and then I’ll surprise you with one of my favorite spots.”

Her face lights up as if I’ve just delivered the best, most life-changing news. The last girl I took out complained that she only got steak, not steak and seafood, and here is Della with a basket of snacks, excited for a truck ride.

We complete our lap, and she’s engaged the whole time, asking questions and taking photos, but when it’s time to eat, I take her to the far northwest corner. It’s one of my favorite spots on our land, and admittedly, I don’t get out here enough anymore. I set us up among the wildflowers I love so much, and position us so we can see the stream and the breccia cliffs behind it. When she showed me her paintings, it felt like I was afforded the opportunity to get a glimpse of her heart. Sharing this with her feels like opening mine in return.

As we take a seat on the blanket, she takes a few things out of her basket.

“I’m going to be honest. I didn’t research what kinds of bugs I should be worried about right now. Are there scorpions out here?”

“Scorpions?” I laugh. “No, not quite. You’re going to be fine. I’m curious to see what else you have here.” I lean over to sneak a peek because I am hungry.

“I’m not sure what your favorite foods are,” she says with a nervous edge.

“Good news, they’re all my favorites.”

“We should be okay then,” she laughs while pulling cheese, crackers, and some kind of summer sausage, and just keeps reaching in.

“This is a lot of food,” I say, raising an eyebrow at her.

“I know, I was just worried about what you ate.”

When she reaches in to pull out more, I touch her wrist to get her to look at me.

“Del, this is amazing. Thank you.” My other hand finds its way behind her head, and I bring her lips to mine. This is the nicest thing someone has done for me in a long time. I take a quick mental inventory of what she’s laid out already and if it will spoil. When I realize that it’s not super perishable, I decide that I’m going to lay her down and eat her for my first course instead.

29

DELLA

Though I wasn’t exactly sure how he would take to the picnic idea, I think he enjoyed it when I pitched it. Plus, I am curious about a full property tour, that I find out quickly, does not disappoint. This place is… I can’t say a dream because I’ve never really dreamed of life out west, but I can’t imagine that I could dream up something better than this.

There have been a couple of times since we’ve started our little date that I’ve caught him looking at me with adoration, and each time I catch it, my stomach does an embarrassing little flip.

When I’m pulling out the food, he grabs my wrist, and it forces me to look at him. It’s the gaze I’ve come to love, and I feel the weight of every word when he says thank you. After bringing his lips to mine, I close my eyes and sigh at the feeling. God, I could get used to this, I think, as he leans further into the kiss. The way the man approaches making out is reverent. Soft lips, hands in my hair, full body turned towards me. Yes, please. I’ll be thinking about Jaxon Wills and his magical lips for a long time after I’m gone from this place.

“Della,” he whines at me. I am making this playboy lose his mind, and I love it.

He reaches behind me and pushes the things I’ve already laid out to the side before gently laying me down on the blanket, putting his weight over me. This is another feeling that will not easily be forgotten; how every point of contact narrows my world to a single focus when I’m with him. His hand traces a path from my cheek down over the thin fabric of my sundress, going up over my breast, circling my hard nipples, and continuing down my body to where my skin meets the bottom of the dress. The way it rests on my bare thigh causes anticipation to thrum through me.

“I can’t keep my hands off you, Del,” he says into my mouth between kisses.

“Then don’t,” I say, arching my back up to show him how very much I’m okay with that.

The kiss turns greedy, and I’m hyperaware of how his fingers have started feathering up my sensitive inner thigh, getting closer and closer to where I want them to be. I bring my hand down to his pants, and even though I’m above the denim, I can feel how hard he is.

When he reaches the apex of my legs, he’ll find the wetness that has spilled onto the thin strip of underwear, but after rubbing over it for a few beats, he moves the fabric to the side and sweeps his finger right over my clit. I shudder at the sensation before arching my back even higher, and desperately using one hand to try to unbutton his jeans.