I reach for her, slow, careful. My hand hovers for a second, like touching her might shatter whatever this is. Then I do—fingertips brushing her collarbone, down between her breasts, over the flat of her stomach. Her skin’s warm. Soft. She shivers beneath my touch, and I swear I feel it everywhere.
She watches me, her eyes wide—open. There’s vulnerability there, yes. But something else too. Power. Like she knows exactly what she’s giving me in this moment.
She shifts, her movement bringing her closer. Her hand reaches out, not for my unmarred chest, but for the jagged, puckered scar along my ribs—the worst one, a souvenir from a fall years ago. Her fingers trace its length with a feather-light touch that has me holding my breath. I expect a wince, a question. Instead, she leans forward, and the gentle, unhesitating press of her lips against the damaged skin sends a shockwave straight through my soul. It’s not a kiss of passion, but of acceptance. Of healing. It’s the most intimate thing I’ve ever felt, and a groan escapes me.
That single, selfless act breaks the last tether of my restraint. Her hands slide around my back, pulling me down until our bare chests touch. The contact is a brand, a jolt of lightning. I shift over her, bracing my weight on my good forearm and keeping my injured arm tucked carefully against my side. She moves onto herback, drawing me into the cradle of her thighs. The world narrows again to this space, to her. Skin against skin, new and familiar all at once. I brace myself above her, every part of me focused on her—on this. She looks up, eyes locked on mine, open and steady. No fear. No hesitation. Just her, trusting me with all of it.
And as I sink into her, the world stops.
It’s not just physical—it’s something deeper. A jolt that shoots through me, sharp and direct, like she’s flipped some internal switch I didn’t know existed. Every nerve fires. The man I was an hour ago doesn’t exist anymore. There’s only this. Her heat, slick and soft, pulls me in like she was made for me.
It’s a feeling I didn’t see coming—so complete it knocks the breath out of me. Like finding something I didn’t know I’d lost. Like coming home to a place I’ve never been.
She says my name—barely a whisper—but it lands hard. Like a fault line splitting open inside me. Breaking the old. Rewriting the new.
Right here, right now, I’m not just Finn, the mountain guide.
I’m hers.
I stay buried deep inside her for a long moment, letting us both feel the simple, staggering intimacy of it. Her breath hitches, and her body instinctively lifts to meet mine. That small movement shatters the stillness. I pull back slowly, and then press forward again, beginning a rhythm that is a slow, deliberate worship. Her hips answer my slow thrusts, a perfect, unspoken communication. She is with me, in this, meeting me move for move. The scent of sex and woodsmoke fills the air, a heady, primal perfume. The only sounds are the crackle of the fire and our mingled breaths, the soft, wet slide of our bodies coming together.
Her pleasure hits me like a wave—tightening around me,small pulses that make it harder to hold on. I feel it in the way she trembles, the way her body moves against mine.
I pick up the pace, going deeper, harder. Her moan—low and real—punches straight through me. She locks her legs around my waist, heels pressing into my lower back, pulling me in like she can’t get close enough.
Her hands aren't soft anymore. They grip my shoulders, my back—nails dragging lines across my skin. I’m close to losing it, that last thread of control hanging by a breath.
I lift my head, needing to see her. Needing more than friction. I needher.
Our eyes lock, and I see a wild light in her eyes that mirrors the storm in my blood.
“Mags,” I groan, the name torn from me, unbidden and raw. It’s not Lena, the actress I see. It’s Mags.My Mags.The woman of earth and fire currently coming apart beneath me.
Her eyes widen at the name—surprised at first, then something else. Something raw. It hits me hard, almost buckles me.
She arches beneath me, a sharp gasp escaping her as her whole body tightens, shaking. I brace myself with one hand against the cave floor, shoulder and back straining as I hold her through it—watching her fall apart, head tilted back, eyes slipping shut as the wave rolls through her.
The sight of her vulnerability, her unguarded response to a name only I have ever used for her, shatters the last of my control. The rhythm becomes frantic, each stroke taking me deeper, closer to the edge. My muscles tense, every nerve ending screaming. And then, the dam breaks. Pleasure explodes through me, a searing, all-consuming wave that whites out my vision. I hold her tight, burying my face in her neck as the tremors wrack my body, the world dissolving into pure, blinding sensation.
We’re still tangled up, our bodies warm and spent. The aftershocks haven’t fully settled, our breathing just starting toeven out. It’s quiet outside—the kind of quiet only mountain nights can hold—but in here, everything feels different.
Lena’s fingers move across my chest in slow, lazy shapes. Light. Steady. Like she’s memorizing me without saying a word.
“That was...”
“I know,” I say, understanding what she can't put into words.
She props herself on an elbow to look at me, her blonde hair a gloriously messy halo around her. The firelight catches the gold in it. I get lost looking into her blue eyes—so different from the polished version she puts on for cameras.
“What happens now?” she asks. The question hangs between us, scarier than any cliff we've climbed.
I brush a strand of hair behind her ear. “Now we sleep. Tomorrow, we rejoin the others. And after that...” I can't finish the sentence. After that, she goes back to Hollywood, and I stay here trying to save Crystal Creek. Our worlds don't exactly overlap.
But she surprises me, like she has since day one. “After that, we figure it out,” she says. “Together.”
Together.The word hits me harder than it should. I've been on my own so long, the idea should scare the hell out of me. Instead, it feels ... right.
“Together,” I agree, pulling her back down beside me. She settles against my good side, her head fitting perfectly on my shoulder. I pull the emergency blanket over us both.
