by Penny Dee
I swallow hard.
Our push and pull banter is gone. The air has changed. Now, it’s charged with something else. Something primal and raw. My lips part. My breathing hitches.
“Which is what?” I ask, my voice craggy.
The mattress dips beneath his weight as he sits down beside me. I can feel the heat coming off his skin and the air sparkling with anticipation around us.
He leans forward and reaches for the silk tie binding my wrists together. But the move places his powerful chest against mine, and I’m suddenly engulfed in the heat radiating from his flawless skin, and it’s all I can do to not whimper. A warm flush spreads through me. My body is downright traitorous. It softens beneath him, the aroused throb pulsing harder between my thighs. I hold my breath in a pathetic attempt to control it. But it’s no use. He is so big, so broad and powerful. I want him to touch me. I want him to touch me so bad.
“What are you doing?” I breathe.
“What does it look like I’m doing?” He growls. “I’m untying you.”
Disappointed, I huff out a rough breath. “About time.”
He leans his face closer.
“Be grateful. Like you said, I could keep you tied up all night.” His voice is husky as his lips brush my ear. “But I have a feeling you might like that.”
Chapter Ten
AXEL
As I watch Lauren build a pillow wall between us on the bed, I know two things:
One.
She is going to be a handful.
And two.
Jerking off in the bathroom has done nothing to ease my need for her.
In an attempt to save my sanity, I force the image of her tied to my bed out of my head and try to forget the look of desire on her face as I’d leaned over her to free her wrists. I tell myself not to remember her wildly beating heart. Or the way her lips and thighs parted as I’d come closer. Or the fact that she isn’t wearing any panties.
Sweet baby Jesus.
I shove my hands behind my head and watch as she checks her pillow wall for any breaches, making sure it is sturdy, before she lies down.
In the silence, my heart kicks inside my chest like a jackhammer. My body is on fire with want and I’m fucking hard everywhere. It’s like my entire body goes rigid around her. It’s like an instinct that wakes up every single time we’re close. Before I know it, I’m wanting to touch her. Wanting to taste her lips against mine. Wanting her beneath me, moaning my name as I make her come, over and over again.
Lauren has turned me back into a fifteen-year-old boy with constant urges.
I’m torturing myself. I should sleep on the couch. But I’m six foot six, most of me won’t even fit on the couch. Besides, it’s been years since I’ve felt the warmth of someone lying next to me, and the need—the temptation—is too big to ignore. I know it’s not real. It means nothing. But at the same time, feeling the warmth of her in bed beside me means so much more than she could ever realize.
I want to reach for her.
But the last woman I touched was my undoing.
And that was a lifetime ago.
I push the thought back. I don’t normally let those thoughts escape very often, because when they do, they always bring a whole bunch of hurt with them.
My past destroyed me.
But it did not break me.
Our awkward silence hangs heavily between us. I can feel both our minds racing.
She breaks first. “This is weird.”
“Which part?”
“All of it.”
She isn’t wrong. Weird is just the beginning.
“It could be worse,” I say.
“Oh yeah, how?”
“I could be fashioning a new set of human-hide lampshades right now.”
She gasps. “You’re such an ass.”
But I feel her smile behind the pillow wall.
“You can relax, princess, I’m not going to hurt you. You’re safe.”
She’s quiet for a moment before her voice cuts into the darkness. “I know. But you should ask yourself something.”
“What?”
Her voice is smoky. “Are you?”
I can’t help but grin into the darkness. I love her fucking fire. She’s ballsy. And apparently not a princess at all.
I don’t doubt she could put up a fight. She wouldn’t win. But nevertheless, she’d go down fighting.
“Are you telling me you’re going to do something to me in my sleep?” I ask.
She snickers. “Now why would I tell you my plans and ruin the element of surprise?”
I try not to think of all the pleasurable things I’d like her to do to me in my sleep.
Like waking me up with her mouth.
On my cock.
I roll onto my side. “Well, I look forward to finding out. Goodnight, princess.”
I feel her relax beside me, despite the pillow wall.
“Goodnight, Mr. Kidnapper.”
I smile against my pillow.
She isn’t afraid of me. But she should be.
Because if she knew the truth about my past, then she wouldn’t want anything to do with me.
Chapter Eleven
LAUREN
I wake up, and for a moment I forget it’s my wedding day. Axel is asleep next to me. Somewhere during the night, the pillow wall disappeared and I’d slid into his aura of warmth and nestled in behind him. Realizing my mistake, I quickly pull away to create some space between us before taking a moment to study him.
He’s huge. Like Thor huge. The bulk of him fills the bed beside me. The comforter hugs him from the waist down, leaving his glorious torso exposed. It’s thick with muscle and his skin is golden and flawless. He’s on his side, hugging the pillow, his big arms wrapped around it, his long lashes fanning his cheek bones as he is lost in a deep sleep.
I climb out of bed and walk to the big window at the far end of the room. It’s snowing.
I press a hand against the glass and take in the view. Snow caps the top of the pine trees for as far as the eye can see, and snow falls like confetti, floating softly past the window. It looks like a winter wonderland.
During the night, I had woken a few times to the storm blowing wildly around the cabin. But now it’s calm and beautiful.
Oddly, I am at peace. I mean, I feel weird and strange, and somewhere inside me I know I am sad. But I just don’t understand why.
Is it because I’m missing my wedding?
Or because it took this happening to make me realize I didn’t really want to go through with it?
Hell, did I just admit that?
I bite down on my thumbnail, surprised by my admission.
Perhaps I’m having some kind of breakdown.
No. I feel too calm and my head feels remarkably clear.
And this feels so… right?
I shake my head.
I don’t understand any of it.
“They said it might snow early this year,” Axel says behind me. His voice is deep and masculine, and it settles on my skin like silk. I turn away from the window to look at him. And for heaven’s sake, could this man get any hotter? He’s wearing nothing but sweatpants hanging low on his hips, and his hair is messy from bed. His usually rugged face is softened by sleep.
“It’s beautiful,” I say, turning back to the view, suddenly feeling vulnerable and strange.
He steps behind me, and I feel the heat of him engulf me. It’s like a gentle, comforting caress against my skin, and I shiver.
“It’s what made me want to buy this land,” he says. “When I saw the view, I knew this was home. I bought the land that day and started building the cabin a week later.”
“You built this?”
He reaches out to touch the logged wall. “Every inch.”
There is something incredibly sexy about a man being able to build a home. It arouses my primal instincts. A strong man building a strong home to protect you from the weather and the wildlife. I look at his hand presse
d against the timber log. It’s big. His fingers long. I had no doubt his hands could do anything.
Especially to my body.
Our eyes meet and his hand drops to his side. I watch his Adam’s apple bob in his throat as he swallows back the intensity of the moment. The air stretches around us. I lick my lips again because more than anything, I want him to kiss them. Yeah, I know. It’s crazy. And clearly, I was wrong. I am having some kind of breakdown because I know I’m exactly where I want to be and it’s right here, right now with this man. Kissing him. His eyes track the movement of my tongue sliding over my bottom lip, and I can see the desire burning in his eyes. My mouth parts. My heart pounds. My breathing quickens. Lust is a tightly coiled spring in my gut, ready to snap.
It’s been so long since I’ve been touched.
Like really touched.
“Lauren…” he breathes my name and it is dripping with need.
I step toward him. I’m going to kiss him and he is going to put his hands on my body. And it is going to be magical. A thrill of excitement ripples through me. I look down and can see his arousal at the front of his sweats. When I look back up, the heat of desire is blazing in his eyes.
This is happening.
But just as we start to move toward each other, the sound of a vehicle pulling up outside breaks the spell and we both pull back. Axel glances out the window looking over the driveway.
His shoulders relax.
“It’s my grocery delivery.”
I let out a shaky breath for no other reason than because I can’t believe it’s my wedding day and I was just about to kiss the man who made sure I wouldn’t make it to the ceremony.
Axel puts on a shirt and I watch him walk away, taking in the broad shoulders and muscular back as he crosses the room to the front door. Appreciating the view, I exhale deeply.
I think back to last night and how turned on it made me to be tied to his bed. How desperately I wanted him to kiss me and ease the ache between my thighs as he’d untied me.
And how a moment ago I was ready to throw caution to the wind and make out with the man who had kidnapped me.
An aroused shiver rolls through me, and I run my hands down my face.
I want Axel to fuck me.
I know that without a doubt.
But I need coffee before I can even begin to process what any of it means.
Chapter Twelve
AXEL
Fuck.
I was seconds away from drawing Lauren into my chest and sinking my mouth to hers. And going by the heat on her face and the breath caught in her throat, it was exactly what she wanted me to do.
And who knows what would’ve happened after that?
I do. I know exactly what would’ve happened.
I would’ve taken her back to my bed and spent the rest of the day and night worshiping her body with mine. Over and over until we were both too exhausted for anymore.
Fuck.
I wasn’t counting on this when I decided to protect her from an abduction when I stole her from her room at the lodge.
Not in a million fucking years did I think I would find myself in this crazy situation.
Relieved by the distraction of my grocery delivery, I answer the door to see the very first friend I made on the mountain stepping onto my stone porch.
Cooter Briggs has been delivering my groceries since I moved to Mirror Lake.
I don’t really need my groceries delivered. But I met Cooter on my second day here when he came over with a bottle of moonshine and an offer to help me build my cabin. He wasn’t much of a builder, but he could carry more than the average man and had a willingness to help.
He has entrepreneurial blood in his veins, always looking to make a buck here and there. When he decided to start up his grocery delivery business, I was the first to sign up. A lot of people on the mountain followed. Because that’s what the mountain folk do in Mirror Lake. They stand behind each other and keep one another’s secrets.
Cooter’s a good guy. Trustworthy. Even though he looks like he should be on America’s Most Wanted.
He walks in, his arms full of grocery bags, and dumps them on the counter.
His eyes light up when he sees Lauren curled up on the couch, a blanket hiding the fact that she’s wearing nothing but one of my shirts.
“Well, hello there, sweet lady.”
He removes his flannel hunting hat and suddenly looks self-conscious as he wipes a big hand over his greasy hair.
Cooter didn’t spend much time on his appearance. Hell, I’d be surprised if he had a mirror.
“You’re new,” he says.
Lauren’s eyes shoot to mine, then back to Cooter. I see the cogs working in her brain as she comes up with a story.
She relaxes and smiles brightly. “I’m Axel’s cousin. Visiting from the city for Thanksgiving.”
“Cousin?” Cooter looks at me, excitement spreading across his ruddy cheeks. “Well, boy, you never did tell you had such a beautiful cousin.” His eyes twinkle over to Lauren. “You staying long, honey?”
Again, Lauren looks to me, then back to Cooter. “No, just for Thanksgiving.”
“What a shame. I sure make a mean catfish and bean stew that the ladies like.” He grins, showing all three teeth in his mouth. “You like catfish, pretty lady? You see, the trick is to soak the fish in hot water first. You know, to really get rid of the slime. Then you add homemade canned tomatoes and just the right mix of herbs and spices.”
What Cooter lacks in looks, he makes up for in charm and confidence. Even if it is misguided.
“Wow, that sounds… um, delicious. But I’m afraid I’ll be leaving right after Thanksgiving.”
Cooter shrugs it off, but his eyes sparkle. “Oh, well, maybe next time.”
The idea that there won’t be a next time suddenly registers in my brain, and I feel a sudden and unexpected surge of disappointment.
I force it back into the dark recess of my mind as I hand Cooter some money. There are two types of currency on the mountain, bartering or cold hard cash.
Some people on the mountain pay Cooter in weed, fish from the river, or baked goods. Some pay like Wilbur Floyd does, in services like mechanical repairs or laundry washing. Me, I prefer cold hard cash because I don’t like owing anyone anything.
After Cooter leaves, I put away the groceries and fix breakfast, while Lauren collects her clothes from the dryer and redresses. When she walks back into the kitchen, she looks confused.
“Hmmmm, that’s baffling.”
“What?” I ask, adding slices of bacon to the grill.
“Oh, nothing.” She waves it off and sits down at the island bench.
I lean against the counter. “You can’t do that.
“Do what?”
“Say something mysterious and then not tell me what it is.”
She rolls her eyes. “Fine, if you really must know, I’ve lost my…”
She stalls, her teeth tugging at her bottom lip, and it’s distracting as fuck.
Tearing my eyes off her juicy mouth, I prompt her. “Your...?”
Her cheeks are pink, and in this bright morning light I can see the light dusting of freckles across her nose.
“Oh, for heaven’s sake… my panties are missing, okay.”
Two things happen to me in this moment.
One, I think I fall a little in love with her. She’s adorable and feisty at the same time.
Two, my mind goes back to last night and what I did to those panties, and it gets me hard.
Nope.
It gets me harder.
Because this woman has me walking around with a permanent erection.
I turn away so she can’t see the guilt on my face, or what is happening behind my sweatpants, and add eggs to a bowl, beating them with a fork. “I think I saw them in the bathroom.”
She disappears, and then comes back a minute later. “They’re wet.”
Again, I think back to how those panties felt rubbing aga
inst my cock, and I fight the urge to readjust my now throbbing erection. The last thing I need is for Lauren to see it. And let’s face it, I’m in sweatpants and I’m not small… so there is no hiding what is going on in there.
While Lauren throws her panties into the dryer, I busy myself cooking the bacon and scrambled eggs, trying desperately not to notice her. Yet, the way the yoga pants cling to her curves as she bends over is driving me to distraction, especially knowing she’s going commando beneath them. I revert my gaze and focus on the food on the stove in front of me, relieved when Lauren stands up and begins to set the table for two.
As I put the food on the plates, she takes two coffee mugs from the cabinets and pours two cups from the pot I put on earlier.
“This looks amazing,” she says when I put the plate in front of her.
She digs in like she hasn’t eaten in months.
It’s refreshing. And surprising. For someone so tiny, she can certainly eat a lot.
And Jesus Christ, the way she slides the bacon between those luscious lips of hers.
I look away and focus on my breakfast.
But there is a giant elephant in the room, and neither of us seems ready to address it.
After some coffee and several mouthfuls of food, I decide to bring it up.
“About before, when we were over at the window—”
“What about it?” She doesn’t look at me, instead she focuses on scooping up scrambled eggs from her plate.
She’s obviously choosing the denial route.
But I’m a straight-to-the-point kind of guy.
“You want to talk about the fact that we almost kissed?”
Her gaze flies to mine. “Nothing happened.”
“No, it didn’t. And it can’t.”
Her face tightens, just a little. “No one was going to kiss anyone. You don’t honestly think I’d do something so crazy? If you haven’t forgotten, it’s my wedding day.”
“You and I both know something was about to—”
