“I didn’t say I would.”
“Then neither will I.” He slipped a hand under the back of her T-shirt and unhooked her bra. Then when he made a frontal assault with that same hand, he discovered that her nipples were as rigid as his.
She moaned deep in her throat.
“You’re asking for it,” he murmured against her mouth.
“Uh-huh. Make it fast.”
Fire licked through his veins. He backed her toward the tent. “Get in there and take off your shorts.” He released her, unbuckled his belt and unfastened his jeans.
By the time he crawled in after her, she was in the process of kicking away her shorts and panties. He felt under his sleeping bag, located a condom and knelt at the tent entrance while he quickly took care of that chore.
Then he was on her. With his booted feet sticking out of the tent, he took her with such enthusiasm that he lifted her bottom right off the floor of the tent. She squeaked, but that squeak soon became a whimper as he pumped rapidly.
She came fast, and he followed right after. Then she started laughing, and he did, too. It was crazy to be doing this when it might mean ruining their meal.
But apparently she didn’t plan for him to do that. “Go.” She kept laughing as she gave him a little push. “Check the meat.”
“What if I want some cuddling?”
“I’ll cuddle you later! Don’t burn the steak.”
Grinning like a fool, he backed out of the tent, disposed of the condom and zipped up. He glanced over at the steak, which looked about perfect. Still chuckling, he made a megaphone of his hands. “Dinner’s ready!”
God, but she was fun. Yep, best day ever.
“THIS STEAK is fabulous.” Naomi sat on a flat rock with a tin plate balanced in her lap and a bottle of beer at her feet. Good sex followed by good food was a combination she hadn’t had that often, but she’d like to make it a habit.
“I’ll bet you say that to all your camp cooks.” Luke sat cross-legged on the ground near her. The campsite had one decent sitting rock and he’d insisted she take it.
“I do. You’re the first one I’ve ever had. Are you sure you’re okay on the ground? I can go get the camp stool. I didn’t even think about seating arrangements. I’m so used to eating alone here.”
“Next time we can bring the stool down.” He looked up from the ear of corn he was eating. “Assuming I’ll get invited back.”
“The odds of that are very good.”
“I can bring you fresh food each time. I know you’re surviving on energy drinks and canned goods, but that must get old.”
“I consider it part of the job,” she said. “The main focus is the eagles, and I just need to stay reasonably fed and hydrated so I’ll be able to keep climbing that ladder.”
“Which reminds me. Next time we decide to have sex up there, we—”
“Liked that, did you?” She was amused at his eagerness to continue their adventure. amused and flattered. Something about this setup had touched a chord, and she wasn’t going to argue about that. She reaped the benefits.
“I can’t imagine why I’ve never had sex outside before. Maybe it was the fear of getting caught. That platform gives us a measure of privacy that’s not easy to find.”
She laughed. “I’m sure that’s something Jack and Emmett didn’t envision.”
“They didn’t count on me.”
“Neither did I. But I’m so glad you showed up, Luke.”
He held her gaze. “Me, too.”
Maybe this was her perfect moment. “I’ve been thinking about something.”
“So you had the same idea? Pull up the ladder so we don’t get surprised by an unexpected visitor?”
“No, I didn’t think of that, but it’s a good idea. Yes, it will look suspicious, but better that someone imagines something is going on than that they see it in living color.”
“My thought exactly.”
“But that wasn’t what I was going to say.”
“Okay, shoot.” He picked up his beer and took a swallow.
She loved looking at him sitting there, his shirt unsnapped at her request, his posture relaxed, happy. He was a gorgeous man. Even watching him drink his beer was a treat.
“What?” He smiled at her.
“You’re incredibly good-looking, Luke.”
He actually blushed. “That’s not what you were going to say.”
“No, but it doesn’t hurt to tell you.”
“You’re not afraid it’ll go to my head?”
“Actually, no. You’re brash, but you’re not conceited.”
“Thank you.” He put down his empty plate. “But you still haven’t told me this big revelation.”
“Okay. We had a discussion about my potential plans for the future. They’re different from yours.”
“Yes, they are.”
“Just so you know, I realize the difference. When you said this was possibly your best afternoon ever, you could say it because you’d already announced your plans to leave. It was possibly my best afternoon ever, but I was afraid to say so, in case you’d think I was trying to, I don’t know…trap you into something.”
His expression brightened. “It was possibly your best afternoon ever?”
“Yes. But that doesn’t mean that I—”
“I’m glad. I’m really glad. As for being worried that you’d try to trap me, I’m not.”
“That’s good, but why not? We get along and we have great sex. Why wouldn’t I want to try and change your mind?”
“Because you believe in the principle of live and let live. You’re watching those eagles from afar. You’re not trying to capture them and band them.”
She nodded. Good observation on his part. “So if I’m enthusiastic about something we’re doing together, you won’t worry that I’m building castles in the air?”
“No. I trust you. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be here.” “Fair enough.”
“Ready for dessert?”
“You brought dessert?”
“Of course. Hang on.” He stood and walked over to his saddlebags. He pulled out a plastic container. “I put them in here so they wouldn’t get crushed.”
Popping the top on the container, he showed her two chocolate cupcakes.
“Yum.”
“Even better, they have cream filling.”
“I love that.” She reached for one.
“You know what I wish?” He took the other cupcake and returned to his spot on the ground.
“What?”