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His hands were on her buttocks, supporting her, but exploring, too. And his mouth found her breasts, so that every part of her was exposed to his touch as her cries of pleasure echoed out across the cove, all the while the bullfrogs and other creatures quietly observing.

Afterward, they took the lifesaver cushions out of the skiff and placed them on the dock so they could lie together.

“Wow,” she mumbled, running her hand along his chest. She was up on an elbow, taking everything in about this night, from his beautiful body stretched out on the dock, to the moonlight on the water.

“And we didn’t get eaten by gators,” he said in a raspy voice. “We lived to tell the story.”

“What was the story?”

“Raw passion,” he said, looking up at her. “Testosterone. I’m crazy about you, Maggie. It’s a thing we say down in these parts when it’s too early to sayI love you. But, the fact is, I love you.”

She hugged him, kissing him again. “I’m crazy about you, too, obviously, since I just ravaged you out in the open. I hope no one is out there night fishing.”

“They’d be jealous if they are,” he said, chuckling.

In the same easy and companionable way they had done dishes together, they lay on the dock and told the safe, sharable stories of each other’s lives, nothing too deep, nothing painful, the funny incidents of childhood and beyond.

“As much as I hate to end this, I guess we’d better head back up to the house,” she finally said, stretching. “The little dog will be wondering where we are.”

They got up unselfconsciously, put the cushions back in the skiff, and after retrieving their clothing but not dressing, ran after each other up to the cottage, laughing. A shared hot shower was the icing on the cake.

“I think this cottage is going to be good luck for me,” she said afterward, getting ice cubes out of the fridge. Her hair was up in a towel, wearing a nightshirt, and he had boxers on, dabbing calamine lotion on bug bites.

“My butt is covered with mosquito bites.”

“Everything of mine is covered. Here’s lemonade. I think we’ve had enough wine for one night.”

She handed him a glass and they kissed again.

“You can’t blame that on wine,” he said emphatically. “That was flat-out desire. From the first day I saw you were back at the cove, I wanted to find a way for us to be together.”

“I wasn’t sure there was any chemistry two days ago. You sure didn’t give off any vibes.”

“It was pure self-control on my part,” Justin said, taking a sip of lemonade. “Do you want to sit outside for a bit?”

“Sure. I have to take Miss Brulee for a stroll again, but I’m ready to call it a night. You’re welcome to stay with me.”

“I think I will. I have tomorrow off at the clinic, but it’s my day to volunteer at the horse preserve. I’ll talk to them about choosing a small group to relocate if you’re still sure that’s what you want to do.”

“I’d better get my poop scoop tuned up.”

“You will have that,” he said, laughing. “Like I warned, just don’t start feeding them. That grass back there will be a big enough draw.”

“They keep it down nice around here,” she said, hooking Brulee up to her leash.

They sprayed themselves with bug repellent first and went out onto the porch. It was a cooler night than usual.

“Tonight will be good sleeping weather,” he said, stepping off the porch with Maggie. “Just warning you; I snore.”

“So do I,” she said, laughing. “I think Brulee might be in for a rough night.”

A horse whinnied and they looked up just as the group came into the clearing from the north woods. “They’re getting used to me. Every night about this time, they appear.”

For some reason, she hesitated to bring up the spy from the night before again. She had a feeling that he was keeping some information from her, like maybe he knew the identity of the rider, and she was going to give him time to reveal that. He did have a suspect in mind and planned on confronting the person later.

The next morning, Justin crept out of Maggie’s bedroom at dawn after very little sleep. Once they got into bed with each other, there was no stopping the passion, and they were up until after two. But he didn’t regret it; he’d take a nap later. He took Brulee for an outdoor visit before he left. Sorry his truck was so noisy, he looked up to her window after he started it up and didn’t see her looking out, so hopefully she slept through the racket.

By eight he was at the preserve. There was a routine; everyone gathered in the barn kitchen area for coffee and to eat the goodies people brought in, homemade muffins and coffee cake, day-old donuts from the grocery store.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
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