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Quinn’s eyes are deep black pools of desire, and as another lightning bolt strikes above us, the yearning is highlighted with a sliver of silver.
Nodding, he carefully places a cold hand over mine, removing it from his lips and slowly resting it over his beating heart.
The sentiment has tears stinging my eyes, but before they have a chance to fall, Quinn reaches forward, brushing them away.
I don’t know how long we stand this way. All I know is the feeling of Quinn’s heart beating under my palm is one I never want to end.
But sadly, all good things must come to an end. “Hey! You can’t be out here!” a voice yells over the rain, surprising us.
Turning to the right, we see a park ranger with a flashlight pointed our way.
As I see Quinn’s mouth slowly tip up into a lopsided smile, I know we’re on the same page. I reach for his hand at the exact moment he lunges for mine. We gently lock our fingers and take off at a dead run.
“Hey, come back here!” the ranger shouts. Quinn and I quicken our pace, never looking back as we flick up mud in our hurried getaway.
The rain blinds me, so I’m thankful that Quinn leads the way. I happily follow, trusting him completely because I have no idea where to go. The adrenaline of the chase has my heart beating wildly, and I’ve never felt so free.
“Jump!” he says, and I obey, jumping over a fallen branch.
“Stop! You stop right there!” the ranger, following in hot pursuit, yells through his red megaphone.
I can’t help the laughter that bubbles from my throat as I turn to see the young pursuer lagging behind as he attempts to catch his breath.
Before long, it’s not only the rain that clouds my vision but also my big, fat tears. Because I’m laughing so hard at this ridiculous situation, I’m giving myself a stitch and gasping for breath, slowing us down. The intense rain isn’t helping either, and I’m slipping and sliding since the tread on my shoes has been obliterated after years of constant wear.
My ribs protest with every step I take. Quinn must sense my pain because he suddenly stops and picks me up, draping me over his broad shoulders effortlessly in a fireman’s carry, then continues pounding the soaked ground like a damn athlete.
I twist my neck and look behind me at the poor-winded ranger, who has no hope in hell of catching up to us.
However, his last attempt to stop us has me laughing so violently that Quinn has to secure his hand around my thighs so I don’t fall flat on my face.
“Stop!” the ranger yelps, blowing a whistle loudly.
But the whistle dies abruptly as he face-plants into the dirt with a loud splat.
“Holy shit!” I cry, tears rolling freely down my cheeks as the ranger slowly raises his mud-caked face with the whistle still firmly planted between his lips.
As he blows out an exasperated breath, it rattles through the mud-clogged whistle, and the sound resembles a dying hyena.
Quinn continues running like the wind, ignoring my fits of laughter until we reach our pickup. By the time I’m sitting in the truck, I’m laughing so hard that I can’t breathe. However, when I turn to look at Quinn, who’s sitting behind the wheel and speeding away from yet another crime scene, I almost choke.
The fact I never noticed his wet white T-shirt sticking to his gloriously muscled body is a mystery to me. But now that I’ve seen it, I can’t look away.
Chewing on his lip ring, Quinn concentrates on the road because the rain makes it difficult to see. But I can see perfectly fine, and I like what I see.
As I admire the way his soaked T-shirt highlights his nipple ring and the synchronized manner in which the little droplets of water trickle down his neck from his slicked-back hair, my mouth begins to water, and my cold body begins to sizzle.
Just as my eyes are about to wander lower, Quinn chuckles. “I’m trying to drive, Red.”
I bite my lip and can’t help but think some wishes really do come true.
My hair feels like a matted bird’s nest, and my clothes are still damp, but I have no energy to move. Nor would I want to since I’m wrapped up in Quinn Berkeley’s arms.
After our law-breaking trek, we returned to our motel and crashed, absolutely beat from the events of an exhausting day.
I didn’t realize how far Quinn had driven, as it took us over two hours to get back to Alberta.
I dozed in and out of sleep throughout our drive back to the motel, but I somehow managed to walk to our room without breaking a leg. However, as soon as I stepped inside, I collapsed face-first onto our tiny bed, falling fast asleep, fully clothed.
