Page 32 of Wild Promise

Fuck, she was beautiful, even wounded and pissed off. Vulnerable, yet ruthless.

I couldn’t resist her. The space between us shrank to nothing. The heat chased away the chill of the night. My mouth dropped to within a breath of hers, and I ached to kiss her.

“Walking or riding?” I whispered.

Her tongue darted out to wet her lips, and her body swayed into mine, making it near impossible to hold out.

“Melina.” Did I sound as wrecked as I felt? “Pick one.”

“Huh?” Her eyes dipped to my lips and back again.

“I didn’t want to torture your bruised behind, but if you’re still in this, then so am I. So, pick…walking or riding. Which will hurt less?”

“Well, unless you’re talking about a horse, I think I’d like to ride.”

Fuck, why did I use that word?

Her lips glistened in the moonlight, and the fire in her eyes still danced over me. My hand traveled to her nape, my fingers digging into the thick fall of her hair, and my imagination wandered into dangerous territory. My mind flooded with thoughts of her riding my cock. What she’d look like. What she’d feel like. What sounds she’d make. And just like that, I was hard.

All the women before her were just a faceless, nameless blur. There was no comparison. I’d barely been to first base with Melina—hell, I wasn’t even sure if we were on the field together—but holding her hand, kissing her, and touching the curve of her cheek made me feel like I’d hit a home fucking run.

“Good choice,” I croaked and kissed the tip of her nose before pulling back. I couldn’t not kiss her, but anything more than a harmless peck and I’d be done for. “Come on.”

Heading back toward the hotel, she tried to drop my hand, but I refused to let her go. Fuck it. It was only hand-holding, not a wedding ring, and even though I didn’t fully understand it, I needed the connection.

Anything to take the edge off this unrelenting craving for her.

“Chapman,” I called to the driver of the horse-drawn carriage, who was relaxing in his seat outside of the hotel.

“Alexander! How goes it?”

“Good. I’m just helping my girl, Melina, unwind. She’s had a rough week at work and wanted some time to relax. You think you can help us out?”

His mouth quirked to the side as he assessed us, his eyes lingering on Melina longer than I liked, and for a moment I worried he might have a filthy comeback. Despite his East Coast roots, Chapman wasn’t known for his subtlety or his manners.

“Guess I can’t say no after you helped me out,” he said, then reading the warning in my glare, he smiled almost politely at Melina. “Hop in.”

I turned to Melina and, catching her around the waist, lifted her into the carriage. She let out a slight gasp as I hoisted her up, her mouth open in a sexy show of surprise that made me want to dive in with my tongue.

Somehow, I managed to keep my self-restraint in check, making sure she was comfortable before joining her on the bench seat, facing the driver.

“Slow night?” I called to Chapman as he gathered the reins and clicked his tongue at the horses.

“Yeah. Things won’t likely pick up until we get some snow and switch the carriage out for the sleigh. Then it’ll be nonstop.”

“With good breaks for your horses, I hope,” Melina piped up. Her stern tone and concerned look were one hundred percent adorable.

“Don’t you worry, love, Henrietta and Heidi are my girls, and I take extra-good care of all my girls,” he drawled, his Maritimes accent sounding thicker than it had only moments ago.

Was he flirting with my woman? If she were any other woman, I wouldn’t give it a second thought. Fuck, I probably wouldn’t even care if she flirted back. But with Melina, I had the sudden urge to rip Chapman’s head off.

Instead, I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and nuzzled her ear. “You warm enough?”

“Yes, thank you.” She turned away from me, looking back at the hotel and silently reminding me she wasn’t really mine.

No matter how much I wanted her.

I relaxed back into the seat as Chapman drove away from the standard circle he drove for every other guest. He steered the horses toward Green Mountain and away from the hotel, the cabins, and the Bay. About as far away from the clamor of the world as we could get.