MAC
The harsh sound of metal and rusty hinges woke me the following morning.
I squinted against the sunlight streaming in and tried to force my groggy brain to come online.
“Now,thisis the best day of my life.”
The voice came from my cousin Laramie, who was silhouetted in the doorway of the shed.
I groaned as the night before came rushing back. Being trapped. Playing cards. Snuggling for warmth.
Oh, God.
“Just five more minutes,” the man beside me slurred as his arms tightened around my middle. Brady’s cold nose burrowed into my neck, and something large and impossibly hard ground firmly against my thigh as he shifted closer. Suddenly I was wide the fuck awake.
I heard the manufactured shutter sound of a phone camera snapping away, and I turned an incredulous glare on Larry.
“What?” She grinned. “This should be documented.For posterity.”
“You don’t even know what that means,” I hissed, extracting myself from the cocoon of uncomfortable blankets and the very prominent erection beneath them.
Larry wore a toboggan over her dark hair. Her perfectly lined eyes were wide with excitement as she held the door ajar and took in the situation.
Brady was still mumbling sleepily into the space I’d left behind.
“Have y’all been stuck in here all night?” Larry asked. “Hey! Are those my Twizzlers?”
I stood and slipped my socked feet back into my boots. “Yes, we got locked in, and your candy stash kept us alive.”
We both watched as Brady slowly sat up, rubbing his eyes.
“Not a morning person, is he?” my cousin murmured. “That feels important to note. Guess you’ll be the one making the coffee.”
“Shut up,” I whispered. Embarrassment was swiftly followed by defensiveness. I felt like I was in high school and I’d gotten busted for sneaking out. “It was an accident. The door closed, and everyone was gone. We didn’t have our phones.”
Larry’s grin was amused. “And you needed to conserve body heat?”
I glared.
“You know,” she said, “that works better when you’re both naked.”
“That’s what I tried to tell her,” Brady said, finally rising to his feet. His voice was rough from sleep, and now I knew how he sounded when he first woke up in the morning.Oh, God.
My gaze snapped to him, and, I’m not proud of this, my attention immediately lowered to his groin. But he was folding one of the moving blankets in front of him, and I couldn’t see anything. Not that Iwantedto see anything. But it had felt surprisingly enor?—
“Thanks for the Twizzlers,” Brady said, interrupting the horrifying thoughts running through my brain. “They kept us alive in our time of need. I’ll buy you a new pack.”
“Oh, not necessary,” Larry said brightly. “Believe me, finding y’all has been payment enough. I’m just glad you and Mac didn’t freeze to death.”
For whatever reason—and there were many—I couldn’t meet Brady’s gaze. I kept my head down and made for fresh air and freedom.
Uncomfortable truths were swirling around inside me like a tornado of destruction. Like the way Brady must have worn a different cologne last night or something because he didn’t smell like alpine yeti or whiskey-soaked machetes or whatever the hell Axe body spray was going for. When I’d snuggled against his side, he’d smelled like something warm and bright—a beach, complete with saltwater spray and glorious sunshine.
“Thanks for the rescue,” I heard Brady say when I’d stepped out into the shining light of early morning.
“No problem,” Larry replied as I rushed by her. I ignored the what-the-fuck look she was aiming my way. “This has been the second most exciting thing I’ve ever found in this shed.”
The wind tunnel of realization whipped another helpful fact my way. I was still attracted to Brady. The kiss wasn’t locked away and forgotten. It was a reminder, and every time I glanced at his lips, muscle memory had me leaning closer, seeking him out.
