Drake thanked her and waited for Sadie’s footsteps to retreat before he stepped back out into the hallway and knocked softly on Cassie’s door.
She pulled it open, grabbed his shirt and dragged him across the threshold and into her arms.
Drake stripped out of his dusty clothes and helped Cassie out of hers. Together, they slipped into the shower and washed each other’s bodies until their skin glowed and they were ready to take the action to the bedroom.
After a quick rubdown with towels, Drake scooped Cassie up in his arms, carried her into the bedroom and laid her across the bed.
He dropped onto the mattress beside her and held her for a long moment.
She cupped his cheek and pressed her lips to his. “We nearly died today, and all I could think was, I’m not ready for this to end.”
His heart swelled. “I had the same thought. I’d finally found someone who fit me like she was the other half of my heart. Cassie, you make me feel complete. You’re gutsy, caring, smart and beautiful. I want to love you until we’re old and gray and beyond.”
She smiled. “You say it better than I ever could. I love that you’re strong and capable and that you recognize I can be, too, without it threatening your masculinity. You care enough about a woman you never met to want to help her family find peace. And you love me for me, not for the person you want me to be. Hell, I’m not a poet.” She pressed her lips to his. “I just love everything about you.”
He laughed and held her close. “It’s enough.”
She leaned close and whispered into his ear, “Now, shut up and make love to me.”
He’d been exhausted by the long day driving to Idaho and back, the terror of nearly being crushed to death by a landslide and the harrowing climb up the side of the mountain. But her words and the way her body moved against his sparked flames inside him. Adrenaline moved blood through his veins, providing the burst of energy he needed to bring her to the edge and beyond.
He touched and tasted every inch of her body, stroking the places that brought her the greatest pleasure. She cried out his name and clung to him, her body pulsing with her release.
Then she urged him to take her.
“Please,” she begged.
Drake leaned over the side of the bed, snagged his jeans, and pulled his wallet from the back pocket. Thankfully, he’d restocked the day before. With the little foil packet in hand, he rolled back into the bed.
Cassie took control of the packet, tore it open and rolled the condom over his shaft, her hands lingering at the base, fondling him, making him even harder.
Then she guided him to her entrance and brought him home.
They settled into a rhythm, him pressing into her, her rocking her hips to meet his every thrust. The pace increased with their need until the tension built to the ultimate climax.
Drake thrust one last time, going deep.
Cassie locked her legs around him, holding him there as waves of sensation washed him ashore.
He collapsed onto her, breathing hard. Then he rolled over, taking her with him, holding her close as his heart rate slowly returned to normal.
Yeah, they still had a killer to find, one who might be getting desperate to keep his identity secret. Drake suspected the avalanche hadn’t been an act of nature but rather an attempt on Drake and Cassie’s lives for getting too close to the truth. Danger was knocking on their door, but, for that moment, all Drake wanted was right here in his arms.
He fell asleep with Cassie’s body pressed to his, thankful for another day with the woman who had so quickly become his life.