My Yeti instincts were going haywire. Every primal part of my brain was screamingmine. Mate. Keep. Protectin an endless loop. I’d expected that. In fact, I had been bracing for it since the moment she’d kissed me last night. What I hadn’t expected was how right it would feel. How natural, as if some fundamental piece of myself had been missing and had finally clicked into place.
I was swimming in dangerous territory. We’d known each other in person for such a short time, but so help me, I was already thinking about forever. About having her things mixed with mine in the bathroom. Her scent permanently embedded in my sheets. I allowed myself to picture a future where I woke up like this every morning with Maya in my arms, her soft body cradled against mine.
“You’re thinking too loud,” she mumbled against my chest.
I looked down to find her eyes still closed, but a small smile played on her lips.
“Sorry. Didn’t mean to wake you.”
“I’m not awake. This is sleep-talking.” She nuzzled closer, and my arms tightened around her automatically. “What time is it?”
I glanced out the window. I based my guess on the quality of light, and the position of the shadows. “Around eight, I think.”
“Too early. Go back to sleep.”
“I don’t think I can.”
“Why not?”
What I wanted to say was: Because you’re in my bed and every instinct I have is telling me to keep you here forever. Because I can smell you on my skin, and it’s the best thing I’ve ever experienced. Because I’m terrified once we step out of this room, everything we shared is going to disappear.
“Just wired, I guess,” I said instead.
Maya finally opened her eyes, tilting her head back to look at me. Her hair was a disaster, her lips swollen from kissing, and she had pillow creases on her cheek. None of that mattered. She was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen.
“No regrets?” she asked softly, echoing my question from last night.
“Maya, I just spent the night with the woman I love. The only regret I have is that we didn’t do this sooner.”
Her smile was radiant. “Good answer.”
“It’s the truth.”
“Still a good answer.” She stretched, and winced. “Ow. Okay, I may have overdone it slightly.”
Concern immediately flooded through me. “Your bruises? Did I hurt you? I tried to be careful.”
“Geoff.” She pressed a finger to my lips. “You were perfect. Amazing. Mind-blowing. My bruises are from the car crash, remember? And they’re fine. I’m just a little sore from activities.”
“Good sore or bad sore?”
“Very good sore.” Her eyes were dancing with mischief. “The kind of sore that makes me want to do it again.”
My breath caught. “You’re going to kill me.”
“What a way to go though.”
I groaned, pulling her closer. “You’re dangerous.”
“Says the eight-foot Yeti who can probably bench press my car.”
“Could bench press your car. Did bench press part of a boulder once when it fell on a hiker’s leg.”
“That’s so hot.”
“It was a medical emergency.”
“Still hot.”
