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"If you say so." The deep rumble of laughter in his chest sends a shiver racing down my spine that has nothing to do with the crisp mountain air. "Lucky for you, I've got the reflexes to keep your dreamy ass from wandering straight into another ravine."
I huff out a reluctant laugh, shaking my head in resignation. Tucker's tongue is as deft and skilled as his hands, always leaving me flustered and off-kilter.
As we finally break through the treeline back at our camp, I pause to catch my breath, gulping in deep, cooling lungfuls of the thin alpine air. A pleasant ache has settled into my muscles from the day's rigorous hiking and climbing, a dull thrum of weariness laced with profound satisfaction.
"I could definitely use a chance to freshen up," I admit, plucking at my sweat-dampened shirt with a grimace. "I feel positively grimy after all that scrambling around on my belly for hours."
Tucker shoots me a wicked grin over the flickering flames. "Lucky for you, I know the perfect spot for some scenic bathing that'll have you squeaky clean in no time."
With that cryptic remark, he turns and strides off into the thickening dusk without another word, leaving me gaping after his retreating form.
"Well?" he calls gruffly over his shoulder when I fail to move quickly enough. "You coming, Doc?"
Curiosity overwhelming my confusion, I hustle after his long, confident strides.
We weave deeper into the dense forest for several minutes until a distant, rhythmic rushing gradually becomes audible through the trees. My brow furrows as I strain to pinpoint the source of the sound, but comprehension dawns as we finally break through a thick copse of brambles—
—and I'm greeted with the breathtaking sight of a crystal-clear mountain stream, its glittering turquoise waters churning over a rocky bed in a series of frothy white rapids. Soaring pines and firs ring the gorge, their needled branches reaching toward the dusky purple sky like a vast, sheltering canopy.
"Oh," I breathe, awestruck. "It's magnificent!"
"Best bath spot in the whole damn Reserve if you ask me."
My brow furrows slightly as he starts unbuckling his belt. "Wait, you don't mean...?"
Tucker pauses, his gaze finding mine. "What, you'd rather have a sponge bath?"
His hands continue stripping away layers, each newly exposed swathe of bronzed skin igniting a fresh blaze of warmth inside me.
"N-no, I just..." I stammer, tearing my gaze away with monumental effort as a furious blush scalds my cheeks. "I mean, are you sure we should be...?"
"Water's plenty warm and deep for a nice, long soak to wash off that pent-up sweat and grime... amongst other things."
His meaning is as clear as the sparkling waters behind him. And God help me, but that wicked glint in his eyes has me powerless to resist the lure.
With a trembling inhale, I give the smallest nod of acquiescence. A triumphant grin splits Tucker's face at my silent assent. Then he's stepping back, already shucking off the last of his clothing until he stands before me in all his rugged, naked glory.
My breath catches in my throat at the sight of him utterly bared. I can only gape, utterly transfixed, as Tucker saunters toward the rushing stream without the slightest hint of self-consciousness.
"You just gonna stand there and drool all day?" he calls over his shoulder with a wolfish grin. "Or you gonna come join me already?"
His words snap me out of my trance, and I force my fingers to begin undoing the fastenings of my own clothing. Layer by layer, I peel them away, each newly exposed inch of my skin prickling with gooseflesh and delicious, terrifying vulnerability in the open air.
By the time I stand naked before the gently lapping waters, I'm shivering violently—though from the crisp chill or the intensity of Tucker's devouring stare, I couldn't say. He crouches at the stream's edge, water sluicing over his waist and lower still, leaving nothing to the imagination in the most devastating way.
Emboldened by the naked hunger blazing in those feral eyes, I tiptoe forward into the shallows, gasping at the shock of icy water lapping at my calves. The bone-deep chill seems to strip away the last of my reservations, my insecurities and inhibitions melting away like so much morning mist.
In this moment, I feel more powerful and alive than I ever have before. More feminine and utterly in touch with some long-suppressed, ravenous hunger inside me.
And so, with an impish grin, I let my hands trail down the soft slopes of my breasts in a slow, sensual tease before dipping below the water. "You just gonna stand there and drool all day?"
Tucker growls deep in his broad chest, the sound reverberating straight to my core. Then he's on me—
His powerful arms banding around my waist crush me against that searing expanse of muscle and heat as our mouths crash together in a frantic, ravenous kiss. My fingers rake through his sodden hair, clinging to him like he's the only lifeline in a raging sea.
"Fuck, you taste so sweet," he rasps, trailing a path from the hollow of my throat down to the swell of my breasts with lips and tongue and teeth.
I keen softly as he latches onto one pert nipple, swirling his tongue in maddening strokes until the tight bud is a taut, throbbing peak. Sensation rockets straight to my core, stoking the ravenous ache between my thighs.
