I hug her with my free arm. “Oh, hey, I like you already. Wine is perfect.”
As we hug, I breathe in soft perfume. In the background, Kyle and Ryder engage in one of those exchanges where the guys grab each other’s hands and pull in for a quick tap of their shoulders.
Carla looks us all over with a slight squint, the sun in her eyes, and says, “Alright, let’s go to the cabin! I’m looking forward to a weekend break. It’s a chilly fall, but that’s what the hot tubs are for, right?”
“I’m game for any break,” I state.
“Do you like saunas?” She asks.
“Oh yeah, I use them for sports therapy.”
“Then you’ll love this cabin. It’s got one in the basement. The boys picked it originally because of it. Although Kyle uses it more than Joey.” Carla approaches the front door and punches a few numbers into the electronic lock.
“And now Joey just brings the whole sports therapist with him,” I joke, ignoring the small voice in my head that reminds me how awkward that could be, considering Ryder used to date hislastsports therapist.
Carla laughs. “Well, I’m happy to finally have somefemalecompany. It’s always just these two assholes. I don’t know what kind of wine you like… so I brought a few options. It was Joey that said you like wine, so if I got it wrong, we can just blame him.”
I step into the cabin, breathing in the smell of wood and cleaning supplies.
Ryder is quick to interject, “Hey, you complain about the two of us, and yet you keep coming. Sounds like you’re full of shit.”
Carla spins around. “I gotta tag along becausesomeonehas to watch you two, or else you’ll get into a fistfight with a bear after too many beers.”
I snicker, imagining Ryder fearlessly insulting a bear because it pissed him off. “I don’t know Kyle yet, so I won’t say anything about him, but I can definitely see Joey doing that.”
“These women have no faith in us,” Kyle says as the two men enter, the door shutting behind them.
Ryder faces Kyle. “Yoursdoesn’t, but mine doesn’t know shit about what we’ve gotten into.”
My heart warms at being called Ryder’s woman, especially by him. I say, “I don’t even know if I want to know what they’ve gotten into.”
Carla waves her hand. “Just dumb guy stuff. Anyway…” She pauses and heads into the open living area where natural light spills in through large windows. “Here’s the main floor. There’s a bedroom at the entrance behind one of those doors, but we rarely use it when we come here. This area is obvious: kitchen, living, and dining. Joey and Julie, you two have the downstairs to yourselves.”
Oh—that’s interesting. Iliketo be calledJoey and Julie. I must have missed it because I’ve always known him as Ryder.
I place my cooler next to the kitchen island. Kyle heads up the stairs, and Ryder goes down, the two men carrying our luggage. I smile at her and say, “Yeah, I actually might go check the downstairs out.”
She chuckles, winking with a wayward grin. “Yeah, go on.”
I open my mouth, pausing, not sure what to say. I’m not used to someone insinuating anything between us, let alone treating us like we’re normal.
Not wanting to linger, I turn around toward the stairs, everything in me sparking with an electric high as Ryder glances at me while descending, smirking when he sees me. “Can’t say no to a beautiful woman following me down the stairs,” he quips, loud enough that I’m certain Carla must’ve heard.
All I can do is roll out a chuckle, stuck between “whatever” and wanting to mumble “yeah, well, I want you all to myself right now and have no self-control,” but thoughts of Ryder leave me tongue-tied.
I’m not even aware of walking down the stairs, as before I know it, I’m at the bottom, which spills out onto a small landing where one door reveals a sauna, and then another leads to a master suite that Ryder has already shouldered open.
I have to pass him to enter the master, his eyes trailing me as I walk by. As soon as I’m in, he places the bags down by the door and shuts it, speaking with a voice that’s lower in tone and grittier than usual. “I’ll never not find it adorable that you go quiet when put on the spot. Especially when it’s sexual.”
Stumbling for a reply, I say, “Fine, I can’t help it. My brain turns to complete mush when I think of what you have planned for me. Or just when I think of you, in general.”
I try to capture how a passionate depth flashes through his hooded eyes before the hunger takes over.
His hands are swiftly around me, encasing me in his arms as his thick, warm lips press deep into mine, his strength molding my body to his. The heat of our kiss is both metaphorical and literal as hungry tongues press hard on the other, the warmth of his mouth filling mine. My arms snake around his thick shoulders and underneath his open jacket. I melt into his grip, breathing in his cologne, musk, and the wooded scent of the cabin.
His hand travels low enough to grab my ass, squeezing it while also pulling my hips closer to him. His hands are possessive, his kisses starved.
A needy throb pulsates between my thighs when I picture him tossing me on that bed and having his absolute way with me. I want this man so badly that it nearly hurts; I want his face between my legs, then to feel his hands locked on my hips as he holds me still...
