Honesty had worked pretty well for him so far, so Nik spoke what was on the tip of his tongue.
“Jess?” His voice came out rough with desire. “I really want to kiss you again.”
She sent him a small smile, her dimple winking at him. “I know.”
She did? “How?”
“Because I want to kiss you, too.”
Neither of them moved.
“I think we should wait until the next date,” he said.
“Why?”
He swallowed, worried this would scare her off. It was a big move, and very soon, but he wanted to spend time with her far away from everything else, and he wanted to do it in the most picturesque and wintry locale he could manage within the confines of Southern California.
“I booked us a cabin at Big Bear,” he said. Big Bear Lake, in the San Bernadino Mountains, was a year-round vacation spot, complete with hiking trails and ski resorts. The perfect place to experience the winter holidays, with the convenience of being just a few hours’ drive from LA.
Jess’s eyes went wide. “This late in the season? How did you manage? What did it cost?”
“Don’t worry about that.” He waved away those details. He’d spent half the morning on the phone to make it happen, and had agreed to stop by the birthday party of his agent’s sister’s seventh grader, a hugeSeize the Nightfan, but it had been worth it. Still, he wasn’t sure what Jess’s reaction meant. “Will you go with me?”
Her gaze focused on something in the distance over his shoulder as she thought about it.
“This is a big step,” she said.
“Technically, our first kiss was almost a year ago. One could argue we’re behind.”
She gave him a bemused expression, and he held up his hands.
“Look,” he said. “It’s just one night, and the cabin has two bedrooms. I don’t expect anything if you come with me. But they have snow there, real snow, and this whole endeavor just wouldn’t be complete without a trip to a ski resort town decked out for the holidays.”
She tilted her head and looked at him like she was seeing him for the first time. “You really do have a spirit of adventure, don’t you?”
“There are many different kinds of adventures, Jeshka.” Did she get what he meant? That he wanted her to be his next—and hopefully longest lasting—big adventure? He’d traveled the world, and he’d never felt as content as he did sitting in a hot tub with her, relaxing after a day with his friends and family. What else was there besides this? What else mattered?
Did he love his job? Of course he did. Getting paid good money to do something he excelled at was a blessing every day. But, if he were being honest, it was starting to get old. He was…tired.
Being with Jess revived him, rejuvenated him. With her by his side, he felt like he could tackle whatever the world threw at him.
What would he do if, at the end of all this, she told him to leave? Probably go on tour again, because there’d be no reason for him to stay here.
Except this time, he’d be leaving his heart here with her. Or maybe he’d already done that a year ago and hadn’t even realized it.
He held back, hoping she understood him, not wanting to lay all his chips on the table just yet.
“You know what?” she said. “Fuck it.”
She launched herself across the water at him, landing in his lap with her knees hugging his hips and her arms locking around his shoulders. Her mouth crushed down on his, the most delicious, wonderful, invigorating kind of ambush.
And the best kind of adventure.
* * *
The juxtapositionof cool night air above and hot, bubbling water below heightened the sensory overload of Nik’s lips and tongue moving over hers. Jess lost herself in his kiss, moaning when he nipped at her bottom lip and sucked lightly.
Under the water, his strong hands clamped on her ass, barely covered by the thin spandex of her swimsuit. He ran those clever fingers up her ribs to palm her breasts and his warm hands stroked her through the fabric, but it wasn’t enough. She needed more contact. Breaking the kiss, she yanked at the ties holding the top of her suit up, then paused.
