Page 33 of About Last Night

“I thought you said it wasn’t safe.”

I shifted my jaw. “It’s not, or at least it’s harder to guarantee it’s safe. But Raf’s got this place rigged with perimeter sensors and none of them have been tripped, so as long as we remain on the property, we should be okay. There’s about two acres that are covered by the sensors. Both properties on either side of this one are also vacation homes and vacant right now. Raf got the owners’ permission to put cameras on their properties for the time being so we could probably go a little farther into their lots if you want to walk more.”

She grabbed my arm and stunned me stupid with a smile so bright it completely transformed her face to make her glow like an angel. “Let me go put on my shoes!”

She pushed up onto her toes and planted a quick kiss to my lips, then darted into the living room and up the stairs to the loft while I remained in the kitchen. I brushed my fingers over my lips and wondered if the awe that she always made me feel was normal.

Was this how Travis felt about Sadie? No wonder it had knocked him on his ass. I felt a bit knocked on my ass myself.

As much as I loved and craved sex with her, it wasn’t just the sex that had my head a mess. I wanted to know everything about her, from the smallest details like how she took her morning coffee—two spoonfuls of French Vanilla coffee creamer or three spoonfuls of sugar and some milk in a pinch—to what her long-term dreams were. I wanted to make her laugh so hard she snorted. I wanted to be the shoulder she leaned on when she was having a bad day. I wanted to be the man she came home to at the end of every tour.

This wasn’t lust. Lust was heady and fleeting. It didn’t make my stomach bunch with thoughts of making a life with her and building a family if she wanted one. Lust didn’t make me plan out my resignation letter in my head for the job I’d made my life since I got out of the navy.

I’d given up worrying if it was too soon to feel the big L word. I was gone for her. I’d fallen so hard in love with her, I knew there was no way I would ever be able to feel this way for someone else again.

But also saying it out loud was more terrifying than I’d expected it to be.

“Okay, I’m ready,” she said, bouncing off the last step like a kid who’d just been given the go-ahead to jump in every puddle they could find after a hard rain. Her face had been free of the heavy makeup she wore for shows the whole time we’d been here, and I loved her fresh face and getting to see her this way. Her green eyes were bright with joy as she walked toward me, her expression open and eager.

“Let’s go.” I held my hand out for her, and she took it without hesitation which made me feel about ten feet tall.

My senses were on alert the second we exited the house, but it was hard to stay as focused as I knew I should’ve been when Brynn was practically bouncing on her toes with each step. She closed her eyes, tipped her head back, and breathed deep as we walked deeper into the woods.

“God, this is exactly what I needed,” she said.

I smiled at the happiness in her voice. “I figured.”

She faced me with a sly smile on her face. “Think you know me so well already, huh?”

“Oh, most definitely.” I shrugged. “You’re pretty predictable.”

Her jaw dropped and she smacked me with the back of her hand. “Rude.”

I grabbed her hand before she could move it and twirled her around, making her laugh. I pulled her tight against my body, wrapping my other arm around her waist and lowering my head until our noses almost touched. “See? I knew you’d laugh if I did that.”

She rolled her eyes, and for once she truly looked her age. “I’d have to be heartless not to laugh when you twirled me by surprise.” Her eyes sparked and the eyebrow over her right eye arched. She leaned forward until her lips brushed against the shell of my ear. “I bet you’d never expect me to do this…”

There was a moment’s pause and then she nipped at my earlobe and took advantage of my surprise to dart away into the trees. My heart raced as worry and adrenaline battled for dominance the farther she got away from me, her laughter ringing through the trees.

And then something predatory spiked through my veins and I chased off after her. The trees were thicker here, but she wasn’t as fast as I was. She could hide behind one, but she’d need to move at some point.

I also had another advantage on her—I’d been trained in tactical operations. I knew how to move in the space damn near silently.

If she wanted to play the prey, I’d hunt her down.

A branch cracked a few feet away, and I stealthily moved around a cluster of trees to come around on the right instead of the left where I suspected she’d be looking for me.

Her body was twisted as she glanced around the left side, her chest rising and falling with her rapid breaths from running. I came up behind her before she had a chance to twist around and wrapped my hand over her mouth to stifle her scream. Holding her close to my body, I dragged my nose delicately up her neck and then brushed my lips against her ear. “Think you can run from me?”

She huffed behind my hand, but the crinkles next to her eyes told me she was smiling.

“Don’t you know I’ll always find you?” I whispered.

She moved her body, and I let her go just enough that she could twist around. “Promise?” she asked, her voice low and throaty, her green gaze piercing my heart with the longing there.

“Always,” I murmured. Then I crushed my lips to hers.

She moaned against my mouth, her body melting against mine. With every kiss, this woman owned more pieces of me. I didn’t think there’d be anything left that didn’t belong to her by the time we left Tahoe.