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“You’re kidding me, right? I mean, look at you. You’ve still got it, Ace. Besides, I’ve heard forty is the new thirty. Any woman would be lucky to be with you.”
I chuckled. I couldn’t help it. This woman was too good to be true and I think I might already be half in love with her andshit. Where had that come from? Could it really be love so soon? Lust, sure. I was definitely in lust with Nori, even if I didn’t know her last name. But even for me, tonight was too soon to make a move, but all bets were off tomorrow. I knew if we were going to be here another night, there was no way I wasn’t going to try for something more with her than playing twenty questions and sharing meals.
“That’s kind of you to say. And I won’t bore you with the evidence that proves you wrong on that, so I was thinking you take the pull-out bed in here, I’ll stoke the fire and the stove and keep the door to my room open to capture some of the heat. I’ll check on you every couple of hours. Sound good?”
She nodded, gathered her backpack, and went into the bathroom to change.
Man, I was in so much trouble.
CHAPTER7
NORI
Waking up in a strange bed was nothing new to me, not in my profession. No, it was the warm, hard body next to me that had my heart racing and my breathing ramped up to almost a hundred. Then there was a pounding pulse between my thighs.
A soft snore sounded next to my ear. Definitely human and male. No wandering bear had made its way inside, searching for a new place to hibernate. Dean had teased me at last night when I expressed concern about that very thing happening. He was quick to reassure me there was next to zero percent chance of that occurring. I chose to believe him because I didn’t have any other choice.
I’d come up with the silly thought when I almost found myself confessing to Dean who I was, but then I chickened out. I also hadn’t planned on telling him that I knew who he was, but I couldn’t keep it from him. Not when I was keeping an even worse secret.
Man, this situation was so unfair. The first real knock-me-over the-head-tie-me-to-his-bedpost-attraction I have for a man finally happens, and he’s my brother’s boss.
Tyler would kill me if I seduced Dean. That is if I could seduce him. I still wasn’t sure he was into me, or if it was just being a forced-to-spend-time-together kind of attraction. At my age, I knew when a man was turned on and I’d noticed the signs with Dean. The shifting and adjusting of his, um, impressive manhood. The widening of the eyes, the intense and darkening gaze as he checked me out.
I mean, I wasn’t vain, but I knew I was attractive. Maybe a bit exotic to some men as I was bi-racial, but whatever. I knew how to weed the creeps out. I got my coloring from my Japanese father but everything else was all moms. Curves, big boobs, and an independent streak a mile wide.
But here I was lying next to the man I’d spent more than a few nights dreaming about on lonely nights in a foreign country. He’d done as promised, waking me several times in the night to make sure I wasn’t experiencing any headaches or severe pain from the bump to the steering wheel. And he was so sweet. He’d whisper my name, gently shaking my shoulder to wake me.
His husky, sleep-laden voice floated over my body, sparking all kinds of interest along my nerve endings. And if I’d been braver, I would have lifted my face and kissed him until there was no question what I wanted from him.
But I didn’t. Instead, each time he woke me, I reassured him I was fine then I’d snuggle deeper under the layer of blankets he’d thrown on top of me and fall back into a dream where he gave me what I wanted, stripped me of my clothes, pleasuring me until I had the best orgasms of my life. Yes, I said orgasms, multiple orgasms because I was sure he was the kind of lover that wouldn’t stop until he’d wrung me dry and made me hoarse from screaming his name.
And thoughts like those were the reason I awoke needy, sleep deprived and in desperate need of a cup of coffee. At least I could go take care of one of those things right now.
I took a quick peek over the mound of blankets and noticed his hand was outside the covers, laying near my hip. He was lying on top, but had a blanket bunched around his hips. It looked like he’d put on another sweatshirt during the night.
But why was he in bed with me?
Had he been there all night?
Maybe my subconscious knew he’d been there, and that’s why I had all those sex dreams.
The sudden urge to do a fake stretch and snuggle into him was hard to fight. I had two layers of clothes on, thick socks plus at least three blankets, but I’m sure if I got close enough, I’d be able to feel his hard frame against mine and maybe, just maybe, he’d press back into me.
Not a bad way to start one day. Grinning at my wandering thoughts, I let my imagination run wild. How would it feel to have his strong arms around me, without clothes? Were his lips as soft as they looked? What would it feel like to have him buried deep inside me?
Was this fate? I mean, as soon as I began thinking about cutting back on my assignments and taking a long overdue break to reconnect with my family—was this the universe’s way of saying,“Okay, Nori. This is your chance. Don’t screw it up.”
I debated what to do next while staring up at the vaulted ceiling with its wide, dark stained planks and as I let my gaze wander, the cozy feel of the cabin made me feel safe and an unexpected sense of contentment overcame me. It was something that had sadly been missing in my life.
For years, I’d loved the excitement of my profession: the travel, the people, and their cultures. I was known for adding a layer of humanity to my stories as I highlighted the struggles of the people I wrote about. It had filled my cup to overflowing, but several months ago something changed, and I’d gotten honest with myself.
I was no longer satisfied with my work, and I wasn’t sure why. And the thought that it wasn’t enough, scared me to my bones. It was why I came to Pineville. Well, almost in Pineville, but at least I was in Idaho. I needed my parents’ wisdom to help me figure out what came next?
An itch began next to my ear, but if I moved to scratch it, I’d have to free my arms, but I didn’t want to disturb Dean. Letting out a soft sigh, I did my best to ignore it because I wanted this moment to last. Lying here, it was so easy to imagine that Dean and I were a couple. His deep, rumbly laugh and intense gazes had me tied up in knots last night. Did he know how he affected me? It was crazy how turned on I was by him. And how unreasonably worried that he’d shoot me down, or worse, laugh if I tried to seduce him. But oh, I wanted to.
Soon, two things became equally urgent. My need for a cup of coffee and the use of the bathroom. Easing out from under the blankets, I tiptoed to the kitchen. Still no power. Shoot. Coffee would need to wait until Dean woke up, so I altered course and went to the bathroom. Returning to the middle of kitchen I stood and debated as I glanced over at Dean softly snoring.
I felt bad he’d slept in his clothes, but equally happy at the view his toned backside encased in tight jeans provided. I could go back to bed and get some more sleep or stand here and freeze my ass off, staring at the man I wanted more than a second cup of coffee.
