He’s staring at me with wide eyes, like he’s never seen anything so amazing. It makes my palms sweat and my belly feel like it’s sliding across the ice.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” I find the courage to ask.
“You’re so pretty,” he whispers.
I dip my chin, trying to hide myself from his intense stare. “Am not.”
He places his fingers under my chin, bringing my eyes up to meet his. “Yes, you are.” His gaze darts toward the bear. “He’s moving.”
The moment is broken, and I silently curse the bear that would have to cross a giant gorge to get to us.
We sit in silence as I snap a few more pictures.
“Can I ask you something?”
“Sure,” he says, leaning back on his hands. “Ask away.”
“You said last year was rough. Was it because of breaking up with Trinity?”
He leans forward, and I stop snapping pictures. “No, it has nothing to do with Trinity at all.”
I stay silent as he breathes in deep and lets it out slowly.
“My mother was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer at the beginning of last year, and within five months, she died. The cancer ate away at her so quickly we didn’t even have time to say goodbye. I was away filming the last SharkQuake movie, so I didn’t get to spend as much time with her as I would have liked.”
“I’m so sorry,” I say to him, placing my hand over his. “Death sucks. It isn’t fair. But I’m sure your mother would be really proud of you.”
He blinks at me. “Thanks.”
“I know what you’re going through.”
I suck in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Yeah? What was it like when your mother died?”
“I was young. I barely remember her, and every time I think about it, it pisses me off more. It’s not fair that I can't remember her. I can remember something stupid that happened in first grade, or I can remember the square root of pi, but I can’t remember her smile.”
He brushes a piece of my hair out of my face. “I’m so sorry, Rachel. I bet she had a smile like you. One that takes your breath away. One that lights up any room.”
“I don’t smile like that.” I turn away from him so he can’t see me blush.
“Yes, you do. You have a stunning smile.”
I stare into his eyes, unsure of what to say, not wanting to break this spell he’s cast on me. “You do too,” I lamely say. I snap out of the trance he’s put on me, and stare around us. “It’s beautiful here. I think our mothers would have loved it.”
Fender breathes in the fresh mountain air. “I know they would have.”
We sit in comfortable silence for a while, and then he turns to me. “Can I ask you a personal question?”
I shrug. “Sure.”
“Anything going on with you and Sam?”
I nearly fall over. “No, why would you even think that?”
Now it’s his turn to shrug. “Just making sure you’re completely single.”
I suck in a deep breath. “Can I ask you something now?”
“Sure.”
“Is that why you broke up with Trinity? Because you had just lost your mother?”
His finger trails across my cheek, and his eyes drop to my mouth. “I broke up with Trinity because I didn’t love her. And when my mother died, I realized life is way too short.”
“Life is short,” I hear myself say. “You should go after what you want.” I feel like I’m trapped in a dark tunnel, and the light shining at the end is Fender’s blue eyes. Our eyes are locked in an intense battle, neither of us turning away.
“You’re right. I should go after it,” he breathes, and then he leans in, capturing my lips in a searing kiss.
He moans, and my world explodes into a million tiny pieces. His lips are perfect, soft yet firm, and I cling to him, lest he try to pull away. His hand moves into my hair, gripping my scalp, and he deepens the kiss, tangling his tongue with mine. I let him because I can’t find a good enough reason to stop him. I’ve craved this since the first moment I saw him on screen in SharkQuake One: The Beginning.
I need his hungry kiss to last forever and a day.
Heat flares inside my body, and if he keeps making that sexy noise deep in his throat, I may accelerate global warming. It’s making me that hot.
But dammit, he breaks the kiss, wrenching his lips away, panting.
“I’m sorry—”
I cut in, not wanting to be a regret for him. “Please don’t apologize for kissing me. That would break me.”
“Rachel—”
I stand. “Let’s just move on from it.” He obviously got caught up in the moment from our conversation. “We should get to the glacier before night falls.”
It’s almost like a giant elephant is walking with us as we trek across the snow toward the glacier. My mind works overtime, trying to understand the life-altering kiss Fender Fallon just laid on me. Joanie would turn as green as the Grinch if she knew. Not that I’m going to tell her, or anyone. No, this kiss will make it to the grave with me. It’ll be something I can look back on when I’m older. And living with my cats. Ugh.