Page 110

“Don’t. Just Don't."

Sage fought a laugh and lost. “No, seriously.” She stepped closer to the ruined frame, running a fingertip along the fresh split in the wood. “This is actually impressive. I mean... I didn’t know doors personally offended you so much.”

The warmth of the cabin wrapped around her skin, the underfloor heating and massive stone fireplace doing their job perfectly, but the real heat was still coming from the mountain of a man standing right behind her.

He made a low sound — half grunt, half sigh — and she could feel him looking at her again.

Not at the door this time. At her.

The thin white tank top and the black boy shorts that suddenly felt a lot smaller in the bright daylight. She could practically feel his gaze tracing the curve of her hip, the flare of her ass, the way the fabric clung after a night of sleeping tangled up with him.

Her cheeks burned, but that warm, dangerous rush bubbled up again.

Don’t do it Sage…Don’t you fucking dare…

She arched her back just a tiny bit more, pretending to examine the damage while her pulse kicked higher.

She turned back to him just in time to see Cal’s eyes snap back to the doorframe. Barely.

Sage pressed her lips together, fighting the smile threatening to take over her whole face. A warm swarm of butterflies erupted low in her belly as she bent slowly at the waist to inspect the splintered wood, deliberately taking her time, knowing exactly what she was doing.

Cal started toward the bed, clearly intending to start cleaning up the mess, but —

“Ouch! Motherfu—” he muttered, cutting himself off before he cursed, and rubbing his shin hard, eyes still glued to her.

Yup! There it is…He likes my aaaasss… he likes my aaaasss…

The giddy little chant sang through her head like pure victory. She could feel the heat of his stare like a brand on her curves, and it sent a bright, dangerous thrill racing through her.

Sage straightened up slowly, trying to get ahold of herself, cheeks burning hotter than the cabin’s fireplace.

Okay, dummy. Stop it. You are not doing this right now.

Sage quieted as she looked down at the scattered pieces of wood, suddenly remembering the dream. She shivered as she thought about the void, about the dark evil thing that had been taking him from her, about screaming herself awake and finding him already coming through the door.

The air between them felt thicker, warmer, charged with everything neither of them was ready to say out loud. Her voice dropped, suddenly softer. “Cal? I… umm…”

He looked down at her, jaw tight, saying nothing. But she saw it — the flicker in those storm-gray eyes, the way his big hands flexed at his sides like he was physically stopping himself from reaching for her again. Like he wanted to hold her forever and never let her go.

Sage swallowed hard.

“Thank you,” she whispered. “For last night. For… everything.”

Cal’s expression softened in that quiet way of his — the smallest curve at the corner of his mouth, barely a smile, but it lit something deep in his eyes. “Of course, sweetheart,” he said, voice low and steady, like a promise wrapped in stone. “Anytime.”

The word settled between them, simple and enormous all at once. For a moment the ruined door, the wood chips, the bright morning light — all of it faded. There were only the two of them standing in the wreckage, closer than they should be, the pull between them humming like a live wire neither wanted to acknowledge.

Sage felt her throat tighten. She gave him a small, shaky nod and looked away before her eyes could betray her.

She blinked hard, pushing the sudden sting of tears away, then cleared her throat and nudged a piece of broken door with her toe, forcing lightness back into her voice. “So what’s the plan, Mr. Home Renovation?”

Cal looked away from her and back at the ruined doorframe. She thought she saw his massive shoulders shake once — like he was trying not to laugh.

“What’s so funny?” she asked, narrowing her eyes suspiciously.

He turned to her, and there it was — that rare, boyish grin breaking across his face, softening every hard line. It made her stomach flip.

“That was kinda fun,” he admitted.