Page 94 of Goode Tidings

Eden closes her eyes and looks sideways, playfully haughty. "Someone was sleeping in the room where my bathing suit is kept. This nudity wasn't my preference."

"Hmm." My grip on my coffee cup tightens. To think of Eden in there, unclothed and wet, her skin warmed and muscles relaxed. I am not cold anymore. Not at all. Hot blood sings through my veins. "I don't know if I believe you." I take a sip of my coffee, eyes on hers the whole time.

She shrugs, one-shouldered. "I suppose you could check."

I walk around the hot tub slowly. Stop to look out at the lake. Up to where birds dart through the pines. I'm drawing out the anticipation, watching a little scowl appear on Eden's face. It's so cute.

She huffs an exaggerated sigh, enough to let me know she's weary of my leisurely pace. I'm behind her now, setting my coffee in the cup holder beside hers. Leaning down, I catch the shell of her ear in my mouth before I murmur, "I'm here to check for claims of nakedness."

She shudders. "Who knows? Maybe you'll be surprised by what you find."

My hand drops to her shoulder, fingers moving over her slowly. "We'll see."

I brush my hands along her upper back, my fingers skating her throat. I dip down only twice, teasing her upper chest, her clavicle.

She leans her head back, looks up at me with those big brown eyes. The look in those eyes is what did me in last night. Watching them glaze over with all the sensation I brought her. What a privilege.

I have plans for a repeat performance this morning.

Eyes on hers now, my fingertips sink below the surface. Slip down the valley of her breasts. My hand splays over her stomach, a gentle caress.

"Your shirt," Eden says, looking down at the sleeve I didn't bother to push up.

"Don't care," I grunt. My arm descends, water up to my elbow now.

Eden's chest heaves with a heavy breath as she leans back. Her hips lift as she seeks my touch, her nipples cresting the bubbly surface.

I reach out with my other hand, capture one heavy breast. Steam rises, and a mangled little moan slips from Eden when I finally touch her where she needs me most.

"Look at that, Eden," I rasp into her ear. "I found you naked in my hot tub."

"Full circle," she says tartly, but her sass is dampened by her breathiness.

I give her nipple a pinch, and she squirms. She's so responsive, so ready, and I can't wait to hear my name on her mouth. "Are you about done in here?"

"That depends. Do you need me somewhere else?"

"I do." I run two knuckles between her thighs.

"Where would"—she gasps as I do it again—"that be?"

"The shower. The bed. The kitchen table." My heart. But it's too late for that. She's already there. Me and my sensitive soul.

Eden turns around, my hands falling from her. She plants a swift kiss on my mouth before wrapping her arms around my neck and standing. I reach for the large folded towel she placed on the corner, spreading it over her back. She shudders with chill, and I bend down with her in my arms, grabbing the slippers she must have worn out here and sliding them onto her feet.

"I thought the snow would be soft," she says as I crunch my way through it and back to the cabin.

"Sometimes it is. It just depends." I press a kiss to her head. "Desert woman."

"Mountain man," she shoots back, her teeth chattering. She opens the door for us when we get there, and I step inside and kick it closed with my foot. Eden's arm reaches behind me, and I hear the snick of a lock.

I carry her down the hall, straight through the bedroom and into the bathroom. I deposit her on her own two feet, reaching into a glass shower and turning on the water all the way to hot.

"I'll be out there," I tell her, pointing to an undetermined place beyond the bathroom, in case she'd like a moment of privacy.

"I'll only be a minute," she tells me, biting at her lower lip.

"Eager?" I tease.