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“Are we here?” Cassie rubs her eyes, starting to sit up a little straighter in her seat and taking a look at the forest around her.
“Almost.” I take her hand and kiss her palm before placing it in my favorite place on my thigh. Feeling a connection even when I’m driving just does something for me. It’s not a sexual thing, just her touch that has my heart ticking along at a regular and peaceful beat.
“Good, because… I don’t want to hear any crap from you, but I need to pee again.” Oh, that is the cutest thing I’ve seen for a while. The tiny blush on her cheeks is something I love seeing on my fire-breathing girl.
I try to hold in any laughter before she lets loose at me with a diatribe of what an ass I am.
“You don’t have a very big bladder, do you?” I tease, grinning at her. I don’t actually care if she needs to stop every ten minutes. Well, maybe not that often, that could be problematic, but still, whatever she needs, I’ll do it.
“Hey.” She points her finger at me, with a smile on her face. “I’m blaming your child. Before you planted your little seed, I could go all day, but now maybe not.” Both of us start to laugh until she crosses her legs and stops suddenly.
“Oh God, don’t make me laugh, that’s not helping.”
“I can stop here,” I suggest, pushing my foot down on the brake pedal to watch her reaction.
“I swear, if you value your life, Ghost, I would keep driving and make it quick. I am not squatting in the trees ever again. Do you understand me? You promised me running water and an indoor toilet. I’m not fussy, and it’s not too much to ask. So, I suggest you get me to that toilet, and it better be clean… or cleanishif you haven’t been here in a while, not that you have even told me yet why or how you have this place. Anyway, I’ll take dust over the scratches of leaves on my ass as I squat.”
Now that is the Cassie I have grown to love. Never afraid of telling me what she thinks or wants.
“Yes, ma’am!” I say, mock saluting her, which just gets me a groan as she turns to look out the window and distract herself.
I have forgotten how thick the forest is on the property. It’s late in the afternoon, but driving down the gravel road, it almost looks like night, with the overhanging of the trees blocking the waning sunlight. Getting to the part in the road that takes a dip down to the right, I’m reminded that I wanted to show her something, but tomorrow will do. I just need to get her settled and the generator up and running to make sure we have power. I always intended to get power to the house from the junction on the property, but it just hasn’t been a priority. Until now!
The big reveal I was hoping for is now blown, with her legs bouncing on the floor as we pull up to the cottage. Not wasting time, I jump out with my keys and unlock the extra padlock I had on the door. She’s behind me, about to barrel past me, but I told her back with my arm. She’ll get used to this, but she will never be able to enter a room first while we’re on the run.
“I’ll be quick,” I tell her, opening the door with my hand on my gun. I’m not expecting anything more than a wild animal, but in this job, you always know to be on alert at all times and expect the unexpected.
The cabin isn’t huge but perfect for what we need. I move quickly into the main room that is a large open space, containing the living/dining room and kitchen all in one. Checking the bedroom on the way past and then pushing open the door to the bathroom, I turn to call Cassie that all is clear, but I should have known better.
“Move that hot ass.” Pushing past me, the door closes in my face and the sound of running water is all I can hear, with a big sigh of relief. Well, I should be happy there are no screams from the bathroom, meaning that it meets her expectations. Or she was just so desperate that she didn’t look.
Smiling to myself, I move from the door to give her some privacy, and I start opening curtains and windows. The night air creeping over the valley is cool but letting out the stale air in here is worth the chill it’s bringing in. Doesn’t matter what time of the year it is, the nights are always a little chilly up here in the mountains.
I start to carry in the bags from the car, always my guns and computers first, no matter where I am. I feel safe here but never want to be caught off guard, and trust me, that can happen in the first few minutes of arriving somewhere that you thought would be okay. It wouldn’t be the first or the last time it happened to me if things turn to shit here. I just have to trust in my gut that it won’t.
Leaving Cassie’s bag outside the bathroom door for her and letting her know it’s there, I tell her to freshen up while I get everything settled. Bringing a load of groceries in, I hear the shower running, which will still be cold, but I’m glad she took me up on the suggestion. That gives me time to strip the sheets off the bed and put fresh ones on, which I keep in a sealed container in the cupboard. Knowing it could be years between my visits, I needed to combat the dust and the creepy crawlies that are natural to have in a log cabin. It’s been a long few days, and I want a place Cassie can lie down straight away if she needs to.
This place is far from perfect, but it’s home now, and I hope Cassie will take to it like I did when I first arrived here. There is something here that speaks to a part of me I never knew existed. From the moment I drove down what was merely a track back then, I felt I belonged somewhere for the first time in my life. That this was meant to be mine, and I knew that eventually I would end up here. I must admit, though, I kind of thought it would be later in life, but here we are.
Wiping out the fridge, I stack it full of the food that will need to stay cold. I need to go for a walk to start the generator for power, and to turn on the gas for the fridge and hot water, but I don’t want Cassie to come out the bathroom and freak out that I’m missing and then go running off into the forest and get herself lost looking for me. One of her traits that we are going to have to push down is to act first and think later. That’s not really going to help us with the situation we’re in. Even with the best intensions, it could be the thing that puts us in danger, when it could have been avoided by just slowing the fuck down and taking a breath.
With the light getting dimmer as night closes in, I find matches and light a few candles that are scattered around the room before I get the generator on for the lighting. Not that they’re much brighter than candles. Last time I was here, I didn’t need them and preferred to sit in front of the fire with a few candles. Totally switching off from the world was the only way I could let some things I have lived through go from my head, and my heart at times.
The bathroom door opening has me turning to see Cassie with the flickering light from the candles on her face. I have never seen her look more beautiful fully clothed. I can imagine what she looks like dressed in the stunning evening gowns, fully made up with so much makeup, dripping with expensive jewels and heels that help to show off her amazing legs. I’ve seen the pictures that Jason used to make sure were in all the papers, creating the image of him and his trophy girlfriend who were so perfectly in love, or so he would have you believe.
But Cassie is standing here in front of me, her long brown hair a little wavy after she has taken it out of her braid from the car. She’s wearing a pair of light gray track pants that are hanging loosely on her hips, a white crop top with short sleeves and a scoop neck that is showing off her perfect cleavage. The bare olive skin of her stomach and the cutest little belly button have me already hard and wanting to kiss every inch of her. I push down those thoughts because we have things to do, but damn, I’d rather be christening our bed right now instead.
“Ghost.” Her voice is a little unsure, and we can’t have that. It’s time to let her know what is going on and who I really am. I haven’t ever shared the full story with anyone, but it’s time. She is the one, and I think deep down I knew that the moment I first laid eyes on her photo in that file. She may have looked sad and scared, but there was something that told me deep down, her strength was what I was looking for. Someone who matches my strong will and determination, even though in her I call it stubbornness, it truly is the same thing. I need her softness, but the fight that she isn’t afraid to use with me too.
Walking toward her, I can see her confusion at my lack of words and the way I’m mesmerized by her presence in the room. Taking her hand, I walk backwards and pull her toward the front door. Her eyes are asking me what I’m doing but no words are spoken. Stepping out into the open, I stop and place my hands on her cheeks, my thumb stroking her skin with all the tenderness she deserves. Letting one hand drop to beside my waist, I lean toward her soft lips that look smooth from the balm she has just put on in the bathroom.
Our lips meet, and it’s not hot and heavy like we’re about to explode if we don’t take it further. It’s exactly what I want to show her, that this has never just been about the sexual attraction between us that is like a fire that rages hot, day and night. This is so much more than I can say with words. I could use the excuse that I’m a guy and we aren’t good with romantic words, but it’s not just that.
Growing up, I didn’t hear my parents tell each other they loved one another, not once. There was never the snuggle on the couch I would hear others at school saying, about how disgusting it was seeing their parents making out, kissing, or cuddling. The closest to affection I saw was when Mom would slam Dad’s dinner down on the table in front of him and it was his favorite meal. He didn’t say thank you, but it would mean we would get through a meal without an argument, and that was his way of saying he appreciated the meal. As fucked up as it was, that was all I knew.
When I finally broke free from that toxicity, I quickly understood that there was more to life than that. As much as I dreamed of having more, I pushed every woman away that even came near me and wanted more than sex. I would blame my job or that they just weren’t the right one for some obscure reason I could find. It was my job most of the time, but Cassie is the first and only woman I would walk away from my job that has been my whole life. Regardless of our current situation where I had no choice, I had already decided that first time I kissed her that my time in this job was over, because I was never letting her go.
Pouring all that into our kiss, our lips are wet and swollen as I withdraw.
