by Kade, Teagan
“This,” I reply.
I move forward and kiss him. The moment his lips touch mine I know there is no going back, no resisting this call to the inevitable.
He presses me against the side of the cabin, the hard wood against my back. His mouth covers mine. He pulls my hands over my head and pins them against the log wall while his other hand lifts the hem of my skirt.
“I want you,” he barks, his legs pushing between mine, my face still wet with tears.
I arch my back and press my breasts against him, desperate to feel his entire body, to be covered completely.
I smell the damp around us, can hear the trill-like calls of birds in the trees that ring the ranger’s station. The sun’s on my face, my bare legs—warm and inviting.
He draws back just enough to help strip my jacket away, pulling my blouse over my head with one hand while the other works his zipper down. He pushes his boxers and jeans between his knees, both of us breathing hard with urgency.
I only just get my panties off my ankle when he comes forward again and grabs my ass in full, lifting me up against the side of the cabin, pinning me in position with his hard body.
I give a shudder as the tip of his cock presses against my opening, testing and teasing while his lips fall to my collarbone.
After the revelation there’s a freedom to the act that’s never been there before, as if the anchor I’ve been dragging behind myself has been cut away.
He lets his grip release and I slide down onto him, the sensation of his shaft inside me so exquisite I can barely breathe.
I lock my arms around the base of his neck and press my lips against his. His beard brushes my cheeks as we fight for territory, his cock sliding even deeper. My ankles tap together at the small of his back with each upwards thrust, one of my heels dropping free to the dirt.
“God,” I moan out as he goes deeper. He screws into me hard, rolling and circling around with his hips to please every sensitive inch of my slick pussy.
But it’s his strength that’s undoing me. He holds me afloat like I’m nothing, a leaf caught in the wind. He thrusts in and out, my thighs bouncing and falling against his sides, the sun beating down my hands and the back of his head, the forest itself willing this animal act.
In the back of my head I know we’re desperately exposed out here. Anyone could show up, but this small thrill magnifies the urgency, pulls and tugs at my core until I’m having trouble holding off orgasm.
My toes curl, the pleasure rolling inside my body at the touch of him. I run my hands through the dirty gold of his hair, tugging and pulling, each met with a grunt or moan from his beautiful mouth. He’s stretching me wide open, but I don’t care. I only want that sweet hit of release, a feeling that builds and grows until it consumes my every thought.
I use my ankles to lift myself higher and drive back down against his cock, a frantic tug-of-war starting between us. He knows how to hit all the right places inside me, to extend and lengthen the pleasure until I’m a pleading mess between him and the worn logs against my back.
He slams upwards as I sink down, can no doubt feel how wet and hungry I am for his cock. His jaw clenches, his eyes glassy and distant as he fucks me. He moves faster and faster, the rough surface of the logs against my ass contrasting against the silky shaft of his prick as it slides in and out.
I fuck him back with everything I have, even though my thighs are burning, my legs straining against the coiled muscles of his arms. I want to push him right to the edge, to assert myself again as the alpha, but he wins out, my climax powering through me with a deep and sudden implosion. I scream out so loud the birds flurry from the treetops, the sun a furnace, everything heightened and all-powerful.
And then he’s taking my thighs again, lifting me higher.
I can barely speak. “Dex, w—, what are you doing?” I ask as he places my legs over his shoulders, my open sex before his mouth.
“I want to taste you,” he says, before licking up in a long line from the slack opening of my sex all the way to the cherry bud of my clit.
I grab the top of his head and hunch over, perched on top of his shoulders while he continues to lick and stroke, his tongue stiffening and darting inside my sex.
It’s such a different sensation to his cock or fingers I find myself headed for another orgasm. I close my eyes and try to regulate my breathing, the top of my head inches from the roof, the sun on my body and Dex’s mouth on my clit, sucking and pulling it until I know there’s no coming back.
He’s merciless, sensation pooling deep. I’m powerless to stop it.
I press my legs together tight around his head, but still he shows no signs of stopping, continuing to lick and lave. I cry out again as the second climax overcomes me, my legs clamped so hard around his ears I’m worried I might press the life from him completely.
When he’s finally satisfied, when he finally lets me down onto my feet, I’m so overwhelmed I almost collapse on the spot, instead sinking to my knees breathless and taking hold of his cock.
I’m about to take him into my mouth, to eagerly repay the pleasure, when my cell begins to ring.
I ignore it first, but it continues. Every second it does so takes away from the mood.
“You can answer it if you like,” says Dex. “Don’t worry. I’ll still be hard when you’re finished.”
Damn it.
I’m caught, reaching out to my handbag and taking out the cell.
It’s Ian, curse him.
“Someone important?” asks Dex, his cock hot and hard in my hand.
The ringtone stops, the call lost.
“You still haven’t told me why you’re here,” says Dex, looking down at me.
I don’t know if telling him is going to help. If anything, it could put him in a dangerous situation, but I know that’s not true. The real reason I don’t want to tell him is because, if I do, he won’t want anything to do with me.
The telltale sound of tires on gravel can be heard before I get a chance to reply.
We speak at the same time. “Jasper.”
A frantic rush follows as we try to piece together our clothing, only barely making it before Jasper’s truck pulls up out front. Dex glances down at my crotch, the top button of my jeans undone. I only have a split second to do it up before Jasper’s upon us.
“Howdy,” he says, tipping his Ranger’s hat. “And what do we have here?”
I hunt for an excuse. “Ah…”
“I thought I’d swing by early, drop off these permits,” says Dex, holding up the folder he brought with him.
He hands the folder over.
I take it. “Thanks.”
I don’t know if Jasper is buying this spot of impromptu theater, but he smiles and walks past us, unlocking the front door. “Coming in, Lex?”
I look to Dex and hesitate again. He waves at Jasper. “See you ’round, Jasper.”
“You too, buddy.”
Dex walks back to his truck with what I imagine is a painfully hard erection while I head inside and place the folder down on my desk.
Jasper’s hanging up his coat. “Just me or Dex seem a bit flustered this morning?”
I swallow down a large lump in my throat, conscious of the color still tinting my cheeks. “Um, yeah. You’re right. He did.”
“Guess that’s what happens when you burn it at both ends.”
“Guess so,” I reply, trying my best to keep it together.
Jasper heads off to the back of the station for his morning Pop Tart.
I start up my computer and eye the folder, but I’m pretty sure I know what I’ll find in there.
I stare at the blank start-up screen. It black for a second and I can see a reflection of myself in deep thought. I’ve even started to look like a Lexi.
But the question remains: What about Dex?
You know what you have to do.
I do. I decide it’s a risk I have to take. Either way, it’s the right thing, if not for him, for m
yself. I’m better than this. I can be better.
I wait until I’m sure Jasper has closed the door to his office before I step outside and call Ian back.
I expect him to answer, to call me honeybun or something equally idiotic, but the call goes straight to his voicemail.
The recording tone sounds. I steel myself. “I’m out,” I tell him. “I can’t be a part of this game anymore. Expose me if you want, but don’t for one second think I’m going to let you blackmail me like the white-collar scum I’ve bagged you in the past.”
I hang up and place the cell on the desk as if it’s suddenly been infected.
My cursor remains fixed in the middle of the computer screen.
What now, genius?
I think it through. It doesn’t take long for me to settle into my usual business focus. I use it to sharpen and refine down a plan.
I open a web browser and search, finding what I need quickly and bringing up an email box.
In the ‘To’ field I paste the email address of the executor of Winthrop’s will.
I flag the email as ‘urgent’ and start to type.
To Whom It May Concern…
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
DEX
I’m unsettled and distracted when I arrive back at the Den. I’m positive Lexi is still keeping secrets from me, but I can’t deny I’ve got feelings for her that are a hell of a lot deeper than I know what to do with. This is unchartered territory, and I’ve never been a fan of the big unknown.
At least the fiancé isn’t real. I knew that suited-up prick wasn’t Lexi’s style.
Or do you mean Allie Smith’s style?
“Argh,” I grunt.
Dean pokes his head around the computer monitor. “Easy there, Buffalo Bill. Don’t want you busting a nut in here.”
I stand and move around the office. I can’t seem to sit still for more than ten seconds at a time.
“If it’s about the development thing, I told you not to worry about it. Relax,” says Dean.
I stop. If Lexi isn’t with that guy, what’s his part in this? What’s he doing here?
More questions. They’re building into a giant pyramid, bigger and bigger by the second.
“You’ve got a last-minute booking, by the way.”
I snap back to Dean. “I thought I was clear today.”
Dean takes another bite of his Clif Bar and points it at the computer screen. “Afraid not, my friend. This one just came in, as fresh as they come. Customer’s going to meet you at the launch site. You cool with that?”
Maybe a distraction is exactly what I need. The river has an uncanny way of clearing the mind. “Always. Which site?”
“Mmm,” says Dean, reading. “Benny’s Bend.”
“That’s a dangerous stretch of water.”
“Dude’s made it pretty clear. He says he has Grade IV experience with whitewater rapids.”
I shrug. “Sure. Whatever. Confirm it and let him know I’ll be down there in an hour or so.”
“Will do. You need a hand?”
“All good. Wouldn’t want you breaking a fingernail out there.”
Dean smiles, looking for something to throw at me but finding his desk surprisingly clean. “You bitch. Have fun at Benny’s.”
I salute, grabbing a radio and walking out. “You know it.”
I mull over the Lexi thing as I drive, taking the tight trail road that leads down to the bend.
Not many people come down here, but we get the odd thrill-seeker looking to make his mark on the river. I’ll size the guy when I see him, make sure he’s got the chops to take this on. If he doesn’t, I’ll suggest a lower grade of rapids.
I spot a black BMW waiting through the trees, pulling into an alcove and reversing towards the water.
I spot someone in the side mirror and stop. It’s Lexi.
She’s soon joined by her so-called fiancé. He’s waving at me.
What the fuck?
I apply the handbrake and jump out. “What’s going on here?”
The fiancé is standing behind Lexi, who looks surprisingly nervous. No, not nervous. She looks afraid.
I consider my options if this goes south, but I wasn’t expecting drama. My knife’s back at the Den along with the rifle we keep above the kitchen cupboard.
The fiancé moves around Lexi, approaching me. “What’s going on?” he repeats. “We’re getting wet and wild, aren’t we?”
The guy’s wearing his own life jacket, a dragon tattoo down his side. Again, he looks familiar in an odd kind of way. He’s built, fit, but I’ve seen good guys who looked they could run a marathon pulled lifeless from the water.
I keep one eye on Lexi. “This is a tricky section of river. It’s not a good route for the inexperienced.”
“I know we got off on the wrong foot, but you’ve got nothing to worry about here, champ,” he smiles. “Lexi and I have navigated tricky water before, haven’t we, hon?”
She doesn’t reply.
I return my focus to the fiancé. He extends his hand. “I’m Ian, by the way.”
“Dex,” I reply, noting the strength in his grip. But it’s his eyes that worry me. There’s something unhinged within them I recognize from the forest, something predatory.
I’ve got to be very careful how I play this. Something suspicious is going on, but if I make a move it might spook this guy, and who knows what he’s thinking. He’s not stable, that’s for sure. He’s edgy, if anything, but so am I. I decide I’m not willing to risk Lexi’s safety. For now, I’ll simply go through the motions and try to keep Lexi close.
I’m ready for anything as Ian helps me unload the raft and get it down to the river. Down here it flows much faster than it does upstream. Even regulars generally steer clear in favor the more predictable rapids, but from time to time someone will come along pushing the limits. I’m generally happy to oblige, but this is something else.
I hand out helmets and a life jacket to Lexi, trying to signal her to see if there’s anything she wants to tell me, but she remains blank.
Lexi and Ian in, I push off from the bank and take up position with Ian at the back of the raft. He lets out a wolf-life ‘aaaayyyyooooooo,’ the current starting to pick up below.
My plan is to divert us to a gentler channel, a small tributary that runs off the main river. I doubt fuckface here will even notice.
“She’s a hot piece of ass, isn’t she?” Ian says, leaning over and nodding towards Lexi.
I do my best to keep my paddle in the water and not the side of his head. “Sure,” I reply.
“I bet you’d love a bit of that, wouldn’t you?” he continues, laughing. “I can’t imagine the pussy’s particularly ripe around here, if you know what I mean.”
I ignore him and gesture to the first run of rapids. “Heads up.”
This first stretch isn’t particularly difficult. Surprisingly, Ian does seem to have a bit of experience, and strength. Even though Lexi’s struggling up front, it’s easy to navigate our way through.
We break out back onto flat water, Ian giving another shout.
I dip my paddle in, steering us to the side away from the center channel. “You do much rafting?” I ask Ian.
He smiles, but it’s artificial—a mask. “Rafting, rock climbing, surfing… anything on the edge. That’s how I like to live, brother.”
“How’s that?”
“With Death on my shoulder, conquering the fucking wilderness, you know?”
Lexi remains quiet up front. A true rafter knows you never ‘conquer’ wilderness. You simply pass through it doing your best to survive and soak it up. I can’t stand these alpha GQ types like Ian, all pumped up and looking to assert their masculinity. Nine times out of ten they’re the ones we have to carry out of here when they bite off more than they can chew.
He continues rambling, talking about how he’s overcome his demons and taken control of his life, something about corporate America.
I start to tune out and
concentrate.
The water begins to chop up. The most dangerous rapids are ahead, but we’re about to take a little detour.
I sink my paddle in deeper and twist, steering the raft towards the diversion stream.
But Ian’s onto me. “Where you taking us?” He points his paddle to the rocky maze down-river where the water’s tossing and turning restlessly. “Seems to me the action’s down there, right, honey?”
Lexi turns wild-eyed. She looks terrified and that’s when I know this is wrong—all wrong.
“It’s too rough down there today,” I lie. “best we divert around it.”
Ian sticks his paddle in, counter-steering. “I paid to get my rocks off, not play merrily, merrily on some pussy diversion.”
The entrance to the diversion is close. We have to get over there. I harden my tone. “Bring your paddle up. Let me steer us over.”
“No,” comes Ian’s curt reply.
“Ian,” pleads Lexi.
We have to turn now or we’ll never make it. “Lift your fucking paddle up!” I shout.
When he refuses I reach over to grab it, but he swings for my head instead.
“Hey!” I bellow, planting a foot to steady myself and make another go at the paddle.
He swings again, barely missing my head, the blade of the paddle skimming past my ear. “Are you fucking insane?”
The entrance to the stream passes. We’ve missed it. There’s no going back now.
Ian throws his paddle to the floor and reaches down between his life jacket, withdrawing a gun and leveling it at me. “Actually, yeah, bucko. I am feeling kind of insane. Toss it in.”
He’s referring to my paddle. “Those rapids are serious business,” I warn. “You need me to get through them.”
“Toss. In. Your. Fucking. Paddle!” he barks, face twisted and red.
I’ve got no choice. I throw the paddle in, watching it drift away and with it any chance we had of getting through the rapids unscathed.
I’m still keeping one eye on Lexi. She’s cowering in the front of the raft.
Ian keeps the gun on me, addressing Lexi. “You too, sweetheart. Throw it in.”
