Total pages in book: 38
Estimated words: 34715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 174(@200wpm)___ 139(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34715 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 174(@200wpm)___ 139(@250wpm)___ 116(@300wpm)
"Banks, you don't have to—"
"I know." My voice comes out gruffer than I intend. "But you're sleeping in the bed. End of discussion."
She hesitates for a second, then heads down the narrow hallway without another word. I watch her go, the sway of her ass catching the majority of my attention. I force my eyes away and grab a blanket from the closet. The couch is too short for me, but it’ll have to do.
I lie down and stare at the wooden beams above me. The cabin is quiet except for the soft sounds of Anniston moving around in the back room. I hear the mattress shift as she climbs in. Then nothing. I close my eyes and try to shut my brain off, but all I can think about is her. The way she tasted last night. The little gasps she made when I was inside her. How perfectly she fit against me. My body reacts immediately and I curse under my breath, adjusting the blanket. I need to stay professional. She needs protection, not another complication.
Sleep finally pulls me under sometime after midnight.
A scream rips through the cabin.
I’m on my feet before my eyes are fully open, pistol in hand, heart slamming against my ribs. Another scream comes from the master bedroom, raw and terrified. I rush down the hall, gun lowered but ready.
Anniston’s thrashing in the bed, sheets tangled around her legs, face twisted in fear. "No... please... Sadie... don't—"
I set the pistol on the nightstand and climb onto the mattress beside her. "Anniston. Hey. It's me. You're safe."
She jerks awake with a gasp, eyes wide and wild. For a second she doesn’t seem to recognize me. Then her whole body sags with relief.
"Banks," she whispers, voice breaking.
I pull her into my arms without thinking. She buries her face in my chest, trembling. I wrap one arm around her back and stroke her hair with the other hand, slow and steady.
"You're okay," I murmur against the top of her head. "It was just a dream. I've got you. Nothing’s going to touch you while I'm here."
She clings to me tighter, her fingers digging into my bare shoulders. "I saw them take Sadie. They had knives like the one in the boutique. They were hurting her because of me. I couldn't stop them."
My chest tightens. I hold her closer, rocking her gently. "Your sister is safe. Mack called her, remember? I’ll text Mack right now to pick her up. Get her protected. She'll be fine. This is just your mind playing tricks after everything you've been through." I grab my phone from my sweats pocket and shoot off a quick text to Mack. He replies in seconds and says they’re on their way now.
She nods against me but doesn’t let go. Her breathing’s still ragged. I keep talking, low and calm, telling her about the perimeter alarms, about how no one can find this cabin, about how I won’t let anything happen to her or the people she loves. Slowly her body relaxes against mine. The trembling stops.
I should move back to the couch. I should put distance between us. But I don’t. I can’t. Not when she feels this fragile in my arms.
Anniston lifts her head. Our faces are inches apart in the moonlight coming through the window. Her green eyes are shiny with leftover tears, but there’s something else there too. Trust. Need. The same pull I’ve been fighting since the moment she spilled coffee on me.
"Banks," she whispers.
I shouldn’t. I know I fucking shouldn’t.
But when she leans in the last inch, I meet her halfway.
The kiss is soft at first. Gentle. A careful press of lips that says more than words ever could. Then she makes a small sound in the back of her throat and I lose the last thread of control I have left. I cup the back of her neck and deepen the kiss, tasting the salt of her tears and the sweetness that is purely her. She melts into me, hands sliding up my chest, fingers threading into my hair.
We kiss like we have all the time in the world and none at all. Slow and deep and aching. My hand runs down her side, over the curve of her hip, pulling her closer until there’s no space left between us. She sighs into my mouth, body arching against mine, and heat floods through me so strong it makes my head spin.
I break the kiss just enough to rest my forehead against hers. Our breaths mingle in the dark.
"I shouldn't want you this much," I murmur, voice rough. "But I do. God, Anniston, I do."
She brushes her lips against mine again, soft and lingering. "Then don't fight it tonight. Just hold me."
I roll us so she’s tucked against my chest, my arms wrapped securely around her. She fits there like she was made for it. I kiss her once more, slower this time, savoring the way her mouth moves with mine. The kiss is warm and sweet and full of everything we’re not saying out loud.