WYATT
I want to follow Heath’s lead here, but… I look to the kitchen, where Emily is taking her pizza out of the oven.
Her yellow sundress crawls up her thighs when she bends over, her bare legs begging to be licked.
Goddammit, she’s pretty. And nervous, holy shit. I should wrap her back up in that blanket and haul Heath out of this cabin. I don’t care if it’s a perilous drive back to Conception Ridge in the dark; we should leave her be.
No licking her legs. No devouring of her tiny, perfect titties.
What is Heath playing at, suggesting that we stay for dinner? He knows how I feel about her. And even though he tried to hide it before, I know he has some of the same instincts.
He once put protecting her at the top of his priority list.
As soon as he realized how I felt about this stranger, this little slip of a girl who had no idea who I am, he took me under his wing and tried his best to help me manage those feelings—and learn to channel them more appropriately.
You’d never know to look at me, but I’m a shy guy. Always have been. Girls make me tongue-tied. I didn’t have any interest in dating in high school, and then by the time I was in my twenties and started thinking about what a forever kind of life situation might look like, everyone had passed me by.
Luckily, I had work and the gym to bury myself in. It didn’t matter that I hadn’t found the right girl yet. I had faith she would one day appear in front of me.
And then she did. Dark curls spilling all the way down her back, relaxed jeans that hid the perfection of her little body, and an oversized hoodie that loudly identified her as a Ridge College student.
In an instant, I knew she was the one for me.
And in the next moment, Heath cuffed my shoulder and dragged me around our truck. “You can’t look at the students like that,” he’d growled.
I didn’t. Not any other student.
Just her. A dark-haired angel who was gone by the time I tore myself away from my boss.
And now, that same man wants to insinuate us into her evening?
“Wait,” I say, raising my voice.
Emily turns back, that sundress swirling around the tops of her thighs, and as soon as her gaze meets mine, everything changes. My chest expands, my muscles all flex and relax, and I…fuck, I just know.
“Emily, is it all right with you if we stay?”
Her eyes widen. “Of course it’s all right. You booked the cabin. I’m the interloper here.”
“We don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”
“You aren’t.” She laughs lightly. “I was reading this heart-pounding book about two people on the run because their lives were in danger. I think I overreacted when you arrived.” She gives us both the prettiest smile, and I know it’s real because I’ve watched her for months. This girl doesn’t smile often. “I’d love to share dinner with you both.”
“Then we’ll just grab our food and be right back,” Heath drawls. Then he gives me a significant look as he stalks past me to the door.
Once we’re outside, he gives me that same look again.
“What?”
“What was that, wait?” His eyebrows arch up. “I’ve never heard you bark like that.”
“I didn’t bark at her.”
He shakes his head. “No, you didn’t. You barked at me. About her.”
My mouth drops open. Then snaps shut. “So maybe I did. Maybe you were presuming too much.”
“I saw an opportunity and I took it. You’re the dumbass who practically told her that you’ve jerked off outside her window.”