by Stacy Gail
“Right. What’s his name?”
There were times when she wished her aunt didn’t know her so well. “Quinn Kingfisher.”
“Your kidnapper?”
“Didn’t we go through this already?”
“Right, right. You call him your savior, and I call him the guy who was supposed to take you to a hotel designated by the airline, but decided instead to drive you up into the mountains and keep you. Kidnapper, savior—same difference.”
Mia sighed. “I really like him, Deb. A lot.”
Her aunt made a dubious sound. “This isn’t a rebound thing, is it? You know, just something you’re needing to make yourself feel desirable after being dumped?”
Mia was eternally grateful Deb wasn’t there to see her eye roll. “Definitely not that, since I had the hots for Quinn long before Jackson kicked me to the curb. If anything, that’s the reason why I feel so relieved Jackson broke up with me. I’m now free to do other things.” And the thing she wanted to do the most was Quinn.
Her aunt’s thoughts seemed to be traveling along the same path. “And is this Quinn guy the reason why you don’t seem to be in any hurry to get out of Montana?”
“Yep.” No need to lie when it was so obvious.
Her aunt chuckled, and there was an unmistakable ring of approval in the sound. “Well then, I’m not going to waste another minute worrying about you, sweets, since you’re obviously doing just fine.”
“I really am, I swear. In fact, I can’t remember when I’ve been so happy.”
“If there’s anyone on this planet who deserves to feel happy, it’s you. Oh, I almost forgot,” she said, interrupting herself. “Do you know a man by the name of David Brockman? He said he was a law professor of yours?”
Every muscle in Mia’s body tensed, and before she was even aware that she was doing it, she glanced in the direction of her purse lying on the bed she hadn’t used in days. “Yes, I know him.”
“He came into the office yesterday looking for you. Is he married?”
Mia blinked, momentarily distracted. “What? Why?”
“Are you kidding me? He’s got that deep, James Earl Jones kind of voice and a short, salt-and-pepper beard that makes me wanna rub my face all over it.”
“Uh, okay.” Mia tried envisioning that particular scenario and began to laugh when all she could see was her aunt doing a catlike nuzzle all over the scholarly, bowtie-wearing, oh-so proper Professor Brockman. “I take it you liked the look of him.”
“The look of him, the sound of him, and I made sure I got close enough to get a good whiff of him, and that was seriously fine too. And the best part of all, I didn’t see any ring on his finger. Believe me, I checked.”
Mia made an amused sound. “I don’t know if he’s married, but he was my favorite professor when I was at Northwestern.”
“I got the feeling you were a favorite of his too. He mentioned he had some papers for you that you’d drawn up as your last assignment for him, and that he’d be happy to take care of them for you. Do you know what he’s talking about?”
“I do.” And it was obvious Professor Brockman was getting impatient with her to get back to him, and she couldn’t blame him. She was getting impatient with herself for dragging her feet on what had to be done.
“So?” Her aunt’s voice brought her back to the present. “Do you have a message for the lovely professor? If you love me at all, you’ll make up a long and detailed response that needs to be delivered in person. Preferably with me wearing my new ruffled nightie.”
Good grief. “Uh, I don’t think I could ever come up with a message where that would be appropriate.”
“Kids today. You just don’t have any imagination.”
“I’ll work on that.” With a gusty sigh, Mia again looked to her purse on the bed, this time zeroing in on the corner of a manila envelope peeking out of the top. “I know exactly what the professor’s talking about regarding those papers, Deb. You can tell him that even though I’m currently in Montana, I have a copy of them with me. I didn’t forget them, nor have I forgotten a single word that they contain. He’ll believe you, because he knows my memory for the written word, just as I’m sure he remembers that Jackson’s memory is nowhere near as accurate.”
“Jackson?” From lighthearted and teasing, Deb’s voice turned diamond-hard. “What does he have to do with this?”
“Well…”
“Oh, no. I do not like the sound of that. Please don’t tell me the papers Professor Yummy was going on about have something to do with the jackass.”
“As a matter of fact, they do.”
“Suddenly I don’t like the professor nearly as much as I did a minute ago. Sweets, listen to me,” her aunt went on when Mia let out an impatient sigh. “If these papers have any power to pull the jackass back into your life, even for a second, then you should burn them. Right now. Find a fire and toss those suckers in. Forget they existed, just like you should forget that the jackass ever existed, and move the hell on.”
“I have to finish what I started, Deb. I have to do this.”
It was Deb’s turn to sigh impatiently. “Didn’t you just tell me that you’re interested in another man now? What does he think about this?”
“Um…”
“He doesn’t know about it,” she interpreted perfectly, and Mia wondered when her aunt had gotten so good at reading minds. “Mia, you said you can’t remember when you’ve ever been this happy. Why would you insist on holding on to a part of the past that made you miserable, when you’re happy with what you have now?”
“I’m not holding on, I swear.”
The silence that greeted this was deafening.
“You’re right,” Mia said, as if her aunt had chastised her for being the complete and utter loser that she was. “Quinn’s not going to like learning about those papers, which is why I haven’t mentioned them. But he does know that I was on my way to Seattle for a very specific reason, so I’m sure he’ll understand that I need to see this through to the end.”
Though deep down, she was fairly certain she’d just told a lie.
“Honey, I’m home.”
Mia looked up from sliding a pan of piping hot lasagna onto a trivet to cool, and grinned as Quinn came around the corner, still in his ski jacket and holding a small bag in one hand. “You did not just say that.”
“Yeah, I did.” Dropping the bag on the island next to the lasagna, he leaned in for a kiss, then answered her grin with one of his own as he unzipped his jacket and shrugged it off. “Wanna make something of it?”
“I don’t think so.” It was almost impossible to look away from those sexy eyes of his, but she managed to turn her attention to the bag he’d brought before she lost her mind and began ripping his clothes off right there in the kitchen. “What’s this?”
“It’s from Olivia. She said you texted her wanting to know what my favorite dessert was, so she packed some up.”
“That was sweet of her.” Curious, Mia peeked in the bag, then lifted a slow brow at Quinn “You’re kidding.”
“What?”
“Donuts? You favorite dessert’s… donuts?”
He shrugged. “What’s wrong with that?”
“It’s tragic.” With a pitying shake of her head, she set his bag of “dessert” aside. “What I wouldn’t give for my own kitchen and my own car so I could drive to my own grocery store and make you my famous chocolate chip cookie pie. Seriously, it’s like heaven on a plate.”
“Your own shit, huh? Sounds like the beginning of cabin fever is setting in.” Looking as though he was torn between being concerned and laughing, he came around behind her to wrap his arms around her waist. “Either that, or you’re getting homesick. Which is it?”
“A little of both, I guess.” Not to mention Deb’s voice kept cropping up to bug her when she least expected it. Her grin trickled away, and her mood threatened to tank. “Whatever it is, it’s causing hallucinations. Earlier today I was looking out th
e balcony window toward the mountain, and I thought I saw a Great Dane. Then I figured out it was a deer when it was joined by a bunch of others. Either that, or you have a serious problem with a roving pack of Great Danes here at Whiteout.”
“Holy shit.” Quinn buried his face in her neck and burst out laughing, and her heart executed professional-level gymnastics as the sensation of his mirth reverberated through her while he held her. Until that moment, she’d never realized how soul-stirring it could be to share a laugh with the person she loved. “I’m making a rule right now—you’re not allowed to go anywhere outside a building by yourself. You’ll be chasing Great Danes all over the fucking mountains, get lost, and we won’t find you until spring thaw.”
“Don’t worry, this city girl knows her limitations. The Great Danes can take care of themselves.”
“My city girl can also take care of herself in her natural environment, I’m sure,” he said, and the laughter faded as he turned her to face him. “But I’m serious about you not going out on your own, yeah? Experienced mountain men have been known to get lost in the wilderness around here, so if you need to go anywhere, just ask. If I can’t take you to wherever it is you want to go, then someone else around here can.”
Now, she thought, looking into his face that was so beautiful to her eyes that she was sure angels would be ugly in comparison. Now is the perfect opportunity to tell him I need to finish what I started. That I have to go, but that I’ll be back because I want to be with him. I don’t really want to leave him in the first place.
And there it was. The bottom line.
She didn’t want to leave him. And she wanted him to know it.
Was it crazy to have that thought now, when she hadn’t known of his existence a month ago?
Yes, came the immediate answer. Not just yes, but hell yes. She and Quinn had only known each other a week. True, it had been intense, and they’d spent almost every possible moment together, which probably amounted to a month’s worth of dates in regular, real-world time.
But still…a week. A single freaking week.
Nobody fell in love in a week.
Except her.
Jase Kingfisher might have thought his son had a bad track record when it came to romance, but on that score she was the biggest loser. She’d fallen in love with the likes of Jackson Hackler at the very first sight of him, for heaven’s sake. Now she’d done it again by falling for Quinn, despite trying her best to fight it. Worse yet, she could only imagine how she’d come off looking if she told him about it. No doubt she’d look like a clingy, crazy-eyed psychotic internet meme desperate to have her eggs fertilized.
They needed to slow down.
No.
She needed to slow down.
The last thing she wanted to do was mess up her relationship with Quinn; it had become the most important thing in her world. It was her world. She had to take care of that relationship and move him along one small step at a time until he had a chance to catch up with her on an emotional level. The physical part would help her there; they were lucky enough to be chemical dynamite together.
It was the emotional dynamite that she had to worry about now.
To keep herself from going full-on needy, she’d stay focused on clearing up the loose ends in her life. Her first step on that score was Jackson, and the papers still in her purse.
“Mia. Come back to me, babe.”
She blinked when the warmth of his hand cupped her cheek. “I’m sorry, what?”
Way to make the man fall in love, she inwardly groaned, just stopping herself from facepalming. Zoning out and forgetting he was even there was just so romantic. For her next trick she should forget his name altogether.
“Mia.” With the beginnings of a frown, Quinn searched her face while his hold on her locked her more tightly to him, as if he thought she was somehow trying to slip away. “Where’s your head tonight?”
“Everywhere.” She leaned into him with a long sigh. The feel of him was so delicious she couldn’t stop herself from sliding her hands around his waist. “I got a call from my aunt today.”
“Yeah?” She thought she felt his muscles tense. “She okay?”
“She’s fine. Everything’s fine. She… she just wants to know what the hell I’m doing.” And frankly, so did she.
“You’re living your life and loving it. You don’t want anything intruding on that, so don’t let it.”
“It’s not that simple.”
“Yes, it is.”
“Quinn, I—”
“Stop talking.” He brought his mouth down onto hers while she struggled to get the words out, and with each sensual stroke of his tongue her determination dissolved until she forgot all about talking out her immediate future.
At that moment, the only thing she needed to figure out was how to get him out of his clothes.
He was apparently on the same wavelength, as he seemed hell-bent on getting her naked. Clothes were quickly stripped away, with Quinn disappearing for a few seconds to the bedroom to retrieve with the much-depleted condom box.
“I’m going to have to start carrying extras around, considering I get hard just by being in the same room as you.” He handed her a packet, kicking their clothes aside. “I never asked. You on the Pill?”
“No, I… I stopped.” Another indication that she’d known she and Jackson were done, but she didn’t think about that now as she ripped the packet open. “I need to get back on it.”
“Don’t. I’ll keep a glove on it until we decide we don’t need it anymore.”
Her eyes widened, shocked. “Why would we…”
“No more talk, Red.” His fingers fisted in her hair while his other hand brought hers to his cock. “Do it, baby. I love it when you put it on me.”
She bit her lip to keep from blurting out that she loved everything about him, but damn, she wanted to say it. So much so she could taste the words on her tongue as she rolled the condom in place. Inevitably her attention focused on how his long, hard shaft twitched under her touch and was as hot as a poker, and the feel of him heated both her blood and the place between her thighs.
Man, could he ever turn her on.
She wasn’t surprised to find herself shaking with building excitement as she caressed his iron-hard length, her attention lingering on the ridge near the crown. When he bit his lip and rolled his hips she nearly moaned out loud as his pleasure made her so wet it was like a small release in itself. But all too soon, he took her hand and held it behind her back.
“You’re not getting me ready to blow without you being right there with me, woman.”
“Oh, no?” Thrilled with the rush of feminine power his words gave her, she went up on her tiptoes to threaten his mouth with hers. “I have another hand, and I know how to use it.”
Before she had any idea what he was going to do, he got a hold of it and spun her around so that she was pushed up against the island counter and her ass was cozied right up against his hardened flesh.
“No you don’t.” His breathing was as disturbed as hers, and the sound of it made her shiver. Her pulse pounded between her legs as wetness surged, and the ache was so good she couldn’t help but moan with it.
“Quinn…”
“I said I’m not talking anymore. I’m too busy fucking you so good you’ll feel it in your dreams tonight.” With that delicious promise ringing in her ears, he got both of her hands held in one of his behind her back, and reached around between her legs to push into her cleft.
Nothing could have stopped the whimper that escaped her lips.
“Always so ready for me.” His tongue caressed the indentation of her spine, melting her bones. The bold stroking of his fingers against her clit was excruciatingly delightful, and the overall assault on her senses dissolved what was left of her sanity. “I love that so much, my Mia. I love knowing how much you want me.”
“Need you.” He body couldn’t hold still, riding his hand in feverish search for more pleasure. In th
at isolated world, all she knew was Quinn and what he excelled at making her feel. “I need you. Always.”
“Always.” She barely heard him as he repeated the word like a vow, and all the while he worked her until she was panting. When he got her to the moaning point, he let go of her wrists and parted her legs from behind. She was already half-collapsed on the island counter, so it was easy to rest her weight onto it as he coaxed her to stick her ass up as high as she could go, giving him complete, and trusting access.
She bit her lip when she felt him at her threshold, then gasped out loud when he filled her with a commanding thrust. He fit her so perfectly, stretching her interior walls in a way that made the pleasure rise so fast she couldn’t begin to control it. All she could do was focus on how utterly amazing it was to have him fill her in an urgent rhythm of thrust and retreat that even her heartbeat became synched up with.
Her muscles began to clench, a sweet precursor to that mainline hit of ecstasy that he never failed to give her. Helpless noises bubbled from her as she reared back against him, taking him in deeper, loving the friction, loving the heat, loving the tension coiling so tightly in her belly.
Loving him.
Ecstasy slammed her only seconds before he groaned and surged wildly into her. As her orgasm turned her world inside out, it also left her with the absolute certainty that somehow, she had to have this sense of completion in her life for all her days to come.
Chapter Nineteen
Burn them. Right now.
Mia’s eyes snapped open as her aunt’s words filled her ears. Sunlight streamed in through the bedroom windows, brilliant and pale with the newness of morning. As she lay perfectly still beneath cocooning layers of covers and warmed by Quinn’s never-ending body heat, she looked around the room, trying to figure out what had awakened her. The memory of what her aunt had said, of course. But there was something else. Something important.
It was completely silent.
Surprised, her attention again snapped to the windows. They framed a peaceful winter wonderland complete with a heavy white blanket of snow and cloudless blue skies. It was the absence of the howling wind that had jarred her awake, because the storm had finally passed. It was a perfect day.
