Page 31 of Pink and Country

Warmer and calmer, I roamed down the path leading to the gate, the fallen leaves and pine needles crunching under the sole of my boots, twirling on myself with open arms, letting the mountain air flush all my fears, uncertainties, and dirty thoughts away.

Upright, standing a dozen feet from the cliff, I closed my eyes, and let the sounds of nature rocked me to peace.

When I came back, the front door of the cabin was wide open. What the— I’d locked it when I left.

Panic knotted my stomach.

I skulked toward the door, my hands clenched in fists, ready to defend my five-foot-three self against an intruder. Or a bear. Could a bear break in? No, silly. Nana used to tell me I should project assurance even if I lacked self-confidence when I doubted myself in elementary school. “Fake it till you make it,” she said. Now I’d be strong and fearless. I put my Mighty April suit on and padded toward my cabin.

My hand relaxed, and I blew out a sigh of relief when I noticed HN, kneeling, stacking wood in the fireplace. My eyes took in his firm ass through his low-cut jeans, the ridges of his back muscles underneath the light fabric of his long-sleeve black cotton shirt, his muscular hand holding the poker. He looked younger with his dark hair untamed and messy, like he’d run his fingers through it multiple times. HN’s focus stayed on the burning wood, and I took in his square jaw covered in the same dark scruff from yesterday. It seemed he hadn’t shaved in a few days.

My hormones kicked in, and I felt like eating him for lunch.

HN turned around, and I snapped out of my daze.

Our eyes met, and I swallowed hard, at a loss for words, my mouth agape.

HN’s stare burned holes in me, and I steadied myself against the wall. His Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat, and I blinked, wanting to avert my gaze. Impossible. My lips pursed, but nothing came out. Handsome Neighbor stepped forward. I sucked in a ragged breath.

His own breathing quickened. His pupils dilated, and for a second, I thought he’d make me come just by the way he eye-fucked me.

With a single gaze in my direction, I soaked my panties. It should be illegal to be that hot. That male. That enticing. Take me. Play with me. Fuck me. I blinked my dirty mind to silence.

His stormy gray irises, now a shade darker, liquified me. I became a puddle at his feet, burning for him to touch me, to fuse my skin with his, to eat me alive.

I blinked again.

Smitten with his glazed eyes full of need, I took a step in his direction. I lost all control over my body. Like a magnet, HN’s pole attracted mine. We’d clash together. The sexual tension between us had grown tenfold since yesterday. The air electrified around us. We risked catching on fire with every breath.

HN prowled forward, eating up the space between us.

His tongue grazed his bottom lip. My eyes flared.

We got lost in our own world.

HN was about to swallow me whole, and I had no intention to put a stop to it.

My feet moved forward, but I halted when someone cleared his throat behind me.

“Hey, man, it’s been a long time.” A small chubby man stomped in our direction, a wolf grin on his lips. “Sorry to interrupt.” The man’s face flushed. “The door was open, and since you said I could come by anytime this morning, I didn’t ring the bell. I hope it’s all right.”

HN approached him, and they exchanged a handshake. My neighbor found his composure in a heartbeat, like we weren’t about to rip each other’s clothes off ten seconds ago.

“Your timing is perfect, Desmond.” HN coughed. “The wireless lock is giving the lady here some trouble, and the knob on the back door needs to be checked. The other night she got locked out of the cabin in the cold.”

“How are things back home?” Desmond asked, opening a red toolbox.

HN shrugged, stuffed his hands in his pockets, raising a wall around him, clearly not in the mood to discuss his personal life with the man.

“Let’s not take any chances and change the back door’s deadbolt. I might even have a spare one in my truck. Can you go check for it? Back shelf. Third row on the left.” HN disappeared outside, and I forced a smile to the man eyeing me like a piece of meat. I hugged myself as a slight chill ran down my back.

HN came back, empty-handed.

“Desmond, you’re out of luck, man. No spare lock in your truck.”

“I’ll come back another day to fix it then. Let me just look at the front door first. Those high-tech latches are fickle sometimes.”

“You don’t mind if I stay here while Desmond does his thing?” HN asked me in a low voice, his warm breath tickling the skin of my cheek. I shook my head. No way I’d stay in here alone with this Desmond guy. I rubbed my arms to wipe out the thousands of goosebumps sprinkling themselves all over my arms. The bad kind.