by A. K. Evans
“I’m not,” he insisted.
“Where would our lives be right now if I hadn’t made such a stupid mistake?” I asked him.
Mack shook his head, and even in the dark, I could see the disappointment on his face. “I don’t know,” he answered honestly. “But I do know that if you spend all your time thinking about what could have been, we’ll never figure out what can be. Marley, I love you. I want this to work, and I think you do, too. We’ll get to wherever we’re supposed to be, but you’ve got to stop beating yourself up about it.”
I didn’t know how I’d gotten so lucky. Mack had every reason to hate me for what I’d done to our friendship. And now that I knew how much we both loved each other, I couldn’t begin to understand how he wasn’t upset about all the years we’d lost. We could have been together all this time. We could have been…
“What’s that?” Mack asked, interrupting my thoughts.
“What’s what?”
“Your whole body just went solid,” he said. “What are you thinking?”
I couldn’t tell him.
No way could I tell him.
I pressed my lips together in an effort not to say anything stupid. Mack’s fingers pressed in at my ribs. “Talk to me, baby,” he urged, his voice sounding desperate.
And it was that sound that had me spilling my guts. “I was just thinking that you and I, if I hadn’t destroyed us, we might have been engaged or married by now.”
Mack’s features softened, and the back of his finger slid down my cheek. “We can still have that, Marley,” he promised. “But we can’t spend every day from here on out punishing ourselves. You’ve got to find a way to get past it.”
“It’s really hard,” I admitted. “If I’m not distracted by something else, it’s all I can think about.”
I heard a soft chuckle come from Mack before he declared, “So, what you’re saying is that I need to find ways to take your mind off of it.”
His hand began to drift down from the side of my face toward my chest.
“I wasn’t saying—”
“I know you weren’t,” he said, cutting me off. “But I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get your mind in a better place. And based on what we just did a little bit ago, I know you weren’t thinking about any of this stuff.”
He made a very valid point. It wasn’t hard to forget about all the things that were messing with my head when I was in the throes of passion with Mack.
And right now, with his lips just barely brushing up against mine as his hand drifted down my body, I could think of nothing other than the present moment.
Wrapping my arms around his neck, I whispered, “You’re such a smart man.”
I felt Mack smile against my lips. “Stick with me, baby. You haven’t seen anything yet.”
Without another word, we commenced our second round.
Mack
This was it.
This was all I ever needed.
Marley was in bed with me, and she had just fallen asleep following our second round of lovemaking.
With her warm, soft body tucked close to mine, I couldn’t help myself from feeling anything but grateful.
I finally had her. The first girl I ever loved was finally mine.
I was beyond thankful that she took that walk down the hall tonight. After everything, after all these years and even the encounters over the last few days, we were both right where I always knew we were supposed to be.
There was no way that we were put into each other’s lives all those years ago to form the connection that we did, only to have it ripped apart for no good reason. Even if I still didn’t think it had been a good reason, even if I still didn’t understand why it ever had to happen, I didn’t want to waste precious time trying to figure it out.
I hated that we had lost so many years, but just as I had told her not to do, I wasn’t going to sit on dwell on what could have been.
We were here now. I had every intention of making sure we didn’t waste any more time. If that meant I had to continue to keep Marley distracted, then that’s what I would do. It wasn’t as though that was a hardship for me.
Years.
For years, I had dreamt about what it would have been like to be with her. Even when we weren’t on speaking terms, I was still attracted to her. It never faded.
And tonight, that dream finally came true.
Somehow, it exceeded all my expectations.
So, I could do nothing else but make myself a promise.
With Marley turned on her side, her back to my front, and my arm curled around her and holding her close, I promised myself that I’d never let her go. No matter what came our way, no matter how many times I needed to reassure her that I wasn’t angry or upset about the past, I was going to do whatever was necessary to get us through to the other side.
We both deserved it.
On that thought, feeling the best I had in my entire life, I pressed a kiss to Marley’s bare shoulder, held her a little tighter, and finally allowed myself to drift.
Sixteen
Marley
Nothing could wipe the smile off my face.
I was in the kitchen pulling out ingredients for breakfast while Mack stood in front of the wall of windows, his back to me as he held the phone up to his ear.
We had slept in.
For the first time since I’d gotten here, I wasn’t up before the sun. And that could only be attributed to the fact that I was utterly exhausted from all that Mack and I had done last night.
Looking at him now while he stood there in just a pair of gray sweatpants with his back to me, I struggled to not only remain focused on breakfast ingredients but to also hold myself back from approaching him and begging him to make love to me again.
But the longer he stood there talking to Easton, the more impatient I grew. And then I started to think that I’d held myself back from him for long enough. Why shouldn’t I approach him? Why shouldn’t I communicate just how much I appreciated the sight of him?
I set the food down on the counter and crept over toward him. When I made it to him, I slid my arms around his body, pressing my front to his back. As I pressed my lips to his back and shoulders, Mack brought his hand up to cover the one I had resting at the center of his chest.
I heard the change in the tone of his voice, but I couldn’t pay attention to what he was saying. I was too distracted.
By the warmth of his skin.
By the security I felt with him simply holding my hand.
By the love I had for him.
By the memories from last night.
And by the feeling of utter joy and happiness.
This trip had been the best thing for us. Getting stranded here alone was everything. I couldn’t have been more grateful for the awful weather conditions that kept the rest of our friends from making here. That might have made me a horrible friend, but it was the truth. This time alone in forced proximity with Mack was absolutely critical for us to fix what had gone wrong between us.
Just as I decided to get naughty and allow my free hand to drift down Mack’s washboard abs to the prize beneath his pants, I was stopped.
I vaguely heard something land on the chair to the side of where we were standing before he caught my hand.
“What are doing to me, Marley?” Mack asked as he spun around and brought his arms around me.
After he lifted me up in his arms, my legs going around his waist, I answered, “I just missed you.”
“I didn’t go anywhere,” he noted, walking away from the window and back toward the kitchen.
“I was in the kitchen, and you were all the way over there looking sexy with your ripped, half-naked body,” I explained. “You were just taunting me.”
Mack chuckled. “Is that so?”
He set me down on the island countertop but did not step away. I dropped my mouth to his neck and replied, “Mm hmm.”
“You’ve got to take it a little easy, baby,” he warned me.<
br />
My body stiffened as my head jerked back. “What?”
“We’re both going to be in for a world of hurt if we’re not careful,” he advised.
My lips parted.
Had I missed something?
“I… I don’t understand,” I stammered.
“Coming here, I thought I was only going to have two weeks of snowboarding and hanging with friends and a girl who hated me,” he started. “I did not expect that the rest of them would never make it here, and that I’d be stuck here with that girl.”
“Mack…” I trailed off.
I didn’t want to feel hurt, but I wasn’t sure what else I was supposed to feel in that moment. I started to wonder if perhaps something had happened while he was on the phone. I should have been paying better attention.
“Marley, I never anticipated you and I would ever speak to one another again, let alone that we’d end up doing all that we did last night,” he began again. “I had three condoms on me. That’s it. We’ve already used two of them. There’s one left until we can get down the mountain road and to the store.”
“I want to feel relieved that you aren’t telling me you don’t like what happened between us, but I’m not sure this news is much better,” I pointed out.
Mack’s lips twitched.
Truthfully, I was relieved. I didn’t know why I constantly felt the need to assume the worst. I hoped that would get better with time.
“Okay, so I took a bunch of stuff out, but I couldn’t decide what to make for breakfast,” I shared, realizing it was best to change the subject to something other than sex. “Do you have a taste for anything special?”
Mack cocked an eyebrow. “Do you honestly think I’m going to have you here all riled up and not do something about it?” he countered.
“Pardon?”
I felt Mack’s hands grip the material at my waist. “Lift up,” he instructed.
I hesitated.
Mack lifted his gaze to mine. As I stared into the intense blue depths of his eyes, he said, “You asked what I had a taste for. I have a taste for you, baby. Now, lift up.”
I no longer hesitated. I lifted my hips so Mack could pull my bottoms off.
The moment they were gone, he tore off my top and instructed, “Lean back.”
I dropped back onto my elbows. Mack put his hands behind my thighs and buried his face between my legs.
Then, it happened.
Mack demonstrated just how talented he was with his tongue.
Teasing. The teasing was unbelievable. I didn’t know this was possible. His tongue did things that had me panting in a matter of seconds.
My head dropped back, the air left my lungs in short, rapid bursts, and my body shuddered. He’d lick, he’d suck, and he’d flick his tongue in the most delicious way imaginable.
The licking was nice.
The sucking was even better.
But it was those gentle flicks of his tongue that were going to send me soaring.
I knew it.
Or, so I thought.
Just when I thought I had it all figured out, I lifted my head and looked down between my legs. At that moment, with my lips parted and my breathing shallow, Mack’s eyes locked on mine. He allowed my thigh to fall over his shoulder so he could reach up for my breast.
Then it was a masterclass in teasing. His fingers on my nipple and his tongue on my clit.
I was squirming.
Panting.
Moaning.
Begging.
And Mack? I could see the glint in his eyes. He was loving every minute of this.
“Mack. Please,” I begged.
That was all it took. Clearly not wanting to disappoint me, Mack did what he had to do to take me there.
And between his tongue and his fingers, I could have easily gotten there. But it was the look in his eyes, which still hadn’t left mine, and the groans coming from him that did me in.
I leaned my weight into one arm and reached down to him. My fingers drove into his hair and gripped him behind his head. Then my head dropped back, and my body shook as wave after wave of pleasure moved through me.
As it left me, I felt Mack press tender kisses to my inner thighs, and I eventually dropped my chin forward to look down at him again. He wore a proud look on his face.
He stood up straight, slipped his arms around my waist, and kissed me senseless. I could taste myself on him.
When he tore his mouth from mine, his hands framing my face, he shared, “There’s nothing more beautiful in this world than the way you look and sound when you come.”
More heat hit my cheeks.
Since we were giving out compliments, I replied, “I didn’t know your mouth was capable of all of that.”
The corners of his eyes crinkled with the smile that formed on his face. “I’m glad you enjoyed yourself,” he returned.
I reached my hand down between us and gripped him through the material of his pants. “Can I help you out?” I asked.
He groaned. “Later,” he promised.
“But you… I… you took care of me,” I noted.
“Yeah, and I’m planning to do it again later, too,” he returned.
My shoulders fell. “Are you sure?”
Mack chuckled. “Marley, do you honestly think I’d turn that down for absolutely no reason at all? I’m trying to pace myself because I know if I get your mouth on my cock, I’m going to need to fuck you afterward. We have one condom left, and I don’t know the state of that road out there just yet.”
I hadn’t considered any of that.
“Oh. I’m sorry,” I murmured as I dropped my gaze.
Mack’s thumb and forefinger gently pinched my chin and lifted it up, so I was forced to look at him. There was a smile on his face. “This is not something that requires an apology,” he informed me. “Unless, of course, you’re purposely this sexy and beautiful.”
I offered a smile and a roll of my eyes. “What do you want for breakfast?” I asked.
“What are my options?” he asked, directing his attention to all the ingredients on the counter.
“Well, I was thinking that we’ve had a lot of eggs lately, so I was considering going with something like pancakes, waffles, or donuts,” I explained.
Mack’s brows shot up. “Donuts? Won’t those take a while?”
I shook my head. “I’ve got a recipe that’ll have us eating them in fifteen minutes.”
“Donuts it is,” he declared.
I loved seeing his excitement, and I wanted to do whatever I could to keep that look on his face. “I’m going to need my clothes to make this happen.”
“You mean, you won’t do it naked?” he asked.
I cocked an eyebrow and teased, “Maybe one day. But today is not that day.”
At that, Mack grabbed my bottoms for me as I reached for my top. Ten minutes later, I had cleaned myself up, gotten my clothes back on, and was mixing ingredients for donuts.
Mack kept me company.
“Easton said that there’s no way anyone is making it up today,” he shared. “Lily Canyon got clobbered by the storm. He’s hoping within another day or two they should all be able to get up here.”
“I feel so bad for all of them,” I replied as I whisked together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. “I mean, I’m so grateful that you and I have had this time together to patch things up between us, but how horrible is it that they’ve not been able to join us?”
“Yeah. That’s precisely how I feel, too,” he said. “And while you were getting yourself dressed, I checked out Hidden Lake’s website, and as it turns out, the road leading up here is closed.”
Worry consumed me as I stopped what I was doing and stared at Mack. “What are we going to do?” I began to fret.
“About what?” he asked, clearly alarmed by my sudden panic.
My eyes widened as I leaned toward him and whispered, “Sex.”
Mack burst out laughing. I didn’t know why he thoug
ht anything was funny. This was horrible news. We had only one condom left, and the mountain road was closed. Was he okay with us not having sex? Did he not enjoy it?
I stood there feeling completely horrified that we were going to have all this sexual tension running between us and we wouldn’t be able to do a single thing about it.
Mack calmed himself down and brought his shining eyes to mine. “Baby, we’re not going to be trapped here forever,” he assured me.
“Yeah, I know,” I insisted. “But it could be a while. What are we going to do?”
He grinned at me. “You really enjoyed yourself last night, didn’t you?” he asked.
I cocked an eyebrow and challenged, “Are you saying you didn’t?”
Mack shook his head. “I loved it. I loved every single thing about it.”
“So, why are you teasing me?” I questioned him.
He still hadn’t wiped the grin off his face. “Because I love that you love what we had last night,” he answered as he moved toward me. When his mouth was inches from mine, he brushed his lips against mine and promised, “If they don’t open that road up before the end of the day today, I promise I won’t leave you feeling anything less than satisfied. I’ll get creative and make sure you’re taken care of, Marley.”
“Okay,” I replied.
That was all I could manage to get out because my mind had started to wander to what creative things Mack was planning to do.
Not only that, but he kissed me. And that made it impossible to say much of anything else.
After calming my nerves and making me feel better about the road being closed for now, Mack returned the conversation to the discussion we’d been having about our friends. As he sat back down on the stool, he suggested, “Maybe they won’t feel so bad about missing out on a few days when they get here and see what happened.”
My brows pulled together. “What do you mean? What happened?”
“With us,” he clarified. “Unless you’ve told the girls, none of them know.”
I shook my head while I started adding the wet ingredients to the dry ones. Then, as I started to stir them together just until they were combined, I replied, “No. In fact, I told them that you and I were just trying to repair our friendship. They might be hoping for more, but they’ve not gotten any confirmation of anything from me. I didn’t secretly wake up in the middle of the night to make that call to one of them.”
