Total pages in book: 32
Estimated words: 33213 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 133(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33213 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 166(@200wpm)___ 133(@250wpm)___ 111(@300wpm)
She blushes—the same way she did the first time I kissed her outside that burning hotel, the first time she told me she loved me, the first time she said “I do.”
“Let’s walk,” I say.
She nods.
The Phantom River is quiet this time of night.
Snow blankets the banks, powder glistening under the moon. The water moves slow and dark, reflecting silver ripples from the sky. Our breath hangs in the air, mixing like it always does.
Briar squeezes my hand as we walk the narrow trail along the river’s edge.
“This is perfect,” she murmurs.
“It is,” I say—though I’m not looking at the scenery at all.
Only her.
Her hair is tucked into her scarf, cheeks rosy from the cold, lips forming a soft little smile that’s equal parts nostalgia and wonder.
“This used to be where I’d come to clear my head,” I say quietly. “Before you.”
She tilts her head. “And now?”
I lift her hand to my mouth, brushing a slow kiss across her knuckles.
“Now you’re the place I go to breathe.”
Her steps falter.
Her eyes shine.
She presses into my side, her voice small. “You always know how to undo me.”
“That’s the idea.”
We stop at the river bend, the moon bright above us, the water whispering softly below.
Briar leans into me, head on my shoulder.
“Five years,” she says. “Can you believe it?”
I wrap my arms around her waist from behind, pulling her into my chest. “Feels like my whole life and no time at all.”
She laughs gently.
Her fingers lace over mine at her stomach. “I never thought I’d have this. A family. Holidays. A marriage that feels like home.”
“You built this,” I murmur against her hair. “I just stepped into it.”
She turns in my arms, looking up at me, eyes warm and bright.
“You saved me, Saxon.”
I shake my head. “No. I loved you. There’s a difference.”
She rises on her toes and kisses me softly. I tighten my hold on her, pulling her closer, kissing her again, longer this time. The cold fades and the world narrows. Her hands slide to my chest. My breath grows heavy as her lips part. We kiss slow and deep, emotion in every stroke.
When she pulls back, she’s breathing hard. “God, you still do this to me.”
I smirk. “Do what?”
“Make me forget my name.”
“You don’t need it right now.”
She raises a brow. “Oh? And what do I need?”
“Less clothing.”
Her cheeks flush in the moonlight. “Saxon…”
I lift an eyebrow. “Come on, sweetheart. Last time we skinny-dipped out here was what, a year after Mason was born?”
She laughs into my chest. “We were almost caught.”
“Worth it.”
Her breath trembles—because she knows exactly where this is going. “Saxon, it’s freezing.”
“I’ll keep you warm.”
She bites her lip. Hard. “You’re impossible.”
“And you love it.”
She rolls her eyes, but her smile gives her away. “If we get frostbite—”
“I’ll rescue you. Again.”
I slide my hands down her sides, tugging her closer, brushing my lips against her ear.
“Let me undress you,” I whisper.
Her breath stutters.
There it is.
I step back just enough to watch her face as I slide my fingers to the hem of her coat. “Say no and I’ll stop.”
She swallows. “I’m not saying no.”
My smile is slow. Dangerous. Certain. “Good.”
I unbutton her coat, one slow button at a time, knuckles grazing her stomach. She trembles beneath my touch, breath catching with each inch of skin exposed to the cold air—and my hands.
When the coat opens, I slip it from her shoulders. She shivers but not from the cold. I tug her sweater up next. She lifts her arms without hesitation, lips parted, eyes on mine the whole time. Her shirt hits the snow and her skin gleams in the moonlight, soft and pale and perfect. My hands roam her sides—slow, reverent, possessive.
“Saxon,” she whispers, voice shaking.
“I’ve got you.”
My fingers slide to the button of her jeans.
“Still good?” I murmur.
She nods, voice breathless. “Yes.”
I unbutton them as I watch every reaction on her face.
She laughs shakily. “You’re going to kill me.”
“Not tonight.”
I tug them down just enough for her to step out. Her breath comes in shallow waves, chest rising fast, nipples tight in the cold night air, her body arching naturally toward my heat.
She reaches for me. “Your turn.”
She pulls at my shirt, her hands sliding up my stomach, warm and eager. I raise my arms, letting her strip me the same slow way I stripped her. Her palms skim my chest. I suck in a breath. Her fingers trail lower.
I catch her wrist gently. “If you keep that up, we’re not making it to the water.”
She blushes, smiling wickedly. “Maybe that’s the point.”
I kiss her again—deep and hungry—and we stumble closer to the riverbank.
The water glows silver.
“Ready?” I murmur.
“Yes,” she whispers. “Take me in.”
I step into the river, pulling her with me. The cold hits first, sharp and shocking—but the minute her body presses into mine, heat floods back in a wave.