AllFreeNovel
Share Us
And his raspy morning voice? Good God. It sends a delicious shiver through my body.
I was unsure of crossing this line before, and I’m still worried about the consequences, but I can’t deny that being with him like this feels right.
I can’t remember the last time I’ve enjoyed just being with someone. No cell service, no work, no distractions. We kissed just to kiss, and there were no presumptions made for it to lead any further. We were simply in the moment until we were too tired to keep our eyes open. It was blissful.
“You were talking in your sleep.” Bryce hands me a small mug of coffee. “Mumbling about snakes coming to get you.”
I roll my eyes. “I was not.”
He grins, and I do too. He looks different this morning. His shoulders aren’t bunched in his ears, the crease between his eyebrows has smoothed out. He’s more at ease, and not so wound-up. Lighter.
He looks happy.
I lift onto my toes, and wrap my arms around his neck. “For the record, I definitely want to keep kissing you. But I am in desperate need of a toothbrush and a shower.”
His nose scrunches. “I didn’t want to say anything, but you really do stink.”
I jab him in his ribs, and he fights to keep me in his arms while I squirm. I give in, and he peppers kisses along my jaw and neck.
“I’m going to have to trim my beard. Your poor skin will be covered in red streaks if I keep this up.”
“Have you always rocked this mountain man look?”
“No. I kept my hair short when I played football because it was under a helmet most of the time.” He scrubs a hand over his chin. “This has gotten a bit out of hand.”
I squint one eye, leaning back to get a good look at him. “I can’t imagine what you’d look like all cleaned up. It’d probably be weird, like when Beast turned back into a human at the end of the movie.”
He arches an eyebrow. “The cartoon movie?”
I nod. “It was very disappointing.”
“Are you just acting out your childhood Disney fantasies with me? Is that what this is?”
“No, but I wouldn’t be opposed if you wanted to lock me in your room for a few days.” I wiggle my eyebrows at him.
“Mmm.” He pulls me close, and slides his hand down my back, his fingers teasing the bare skin along the curve of my spine. “That can be arranged.”
My eyelids flutter closed, and I imagine his mouth on places he hasn’t yet been.
“We should get going,” he whispers, his lips at the cusp of my ear.
“To your room?”
He rasps out a deep chuckle. “No. To our next destination.”
“Which is your room?”
“There will be plenty of time for that.” He presses a kiss to my lips that tastes like a promise, and my stomach backflips in anticipation.
I’m trying to live in the moment, and enjoy what’s happening, but here’s a nagging fear in the back corner of my mind. The further we go, the more I’ll feel. The more I feel, the harder it will be to say goodbye. And I am saying goodbye. Once this vacation is over, then I go back to my home in Manhattan. Back to work at the diner. Back to life—life without Bryce, or Beatrice.
Sadness tugs my spirit down. I turn my face up to the sky, and stare into its endless depths.
“You okay?” Bryce’s hands still as he zips up his backpack, his keen eyes watching me as if he can hear the conflict in my head.
I nod, pushing away the anxious thoughts. “I’m excited to see where we’re headed.”
Bryce leads the way along a trail through the trees, and we spend a good portion of the morning in a comfortable silence. I soak up the nature around us. The fresh smell of the trees. The birds chirping overhead. Small animals scampering around us. It’s all so soothing—much different than the loud jarring noises of the city.
