Page 81 of Unbearable

A few weeks ago, I thought one taste of her would beenough to get my fix, and then I could move on, but I’ve learned that was definitely not the case.

One taste of her only ruined me instead.

Because I couldn’t stop needing more.

After our kiss in Mount Leston, all I could do was replay it in my head over and over again, and it was only worse now that I knew what she sounded like when she came for me.

Fuck, she was everything. The way she smelled, the way she tasted, the way she laughed, and the way she loved her family and cared about her career.

She was truly sunshine.

I had finished up on the ranch for the day when I walked in the front door to see Dotty sitting on my couch, reading a book with a cute cartoon cover.

“What kind of book did you pick out today?” I asked, taking off my boots.

“It’s a rom-com. Is that a problem?” she asked, angling her body toward me.

“No, hand it over. I want to know what you like.” Grabbing the book, I flipped the pages, pretending to read.

“Give that back!” she laughed, reaching over me to grab the book.

As she leaned over, I pulled her down onto my lap. She gasped as our lips met. She melted into me for a moment before pulling back.

“Oh, no you don’t. No distracting me,” she said, and I stilled. “Nothing bad. I just… my work asked if I could come back for a meeting next Monday. I could join via Zoom if I need to, but they implied it would be best if I came in.” She nervously bit her lip. “I would probably be gone for a few days, maybe a week.”

“No worries. I’ll be here when you come back,” I said,stealing another kiss from her before she could open her mouth again.

She groaned as she pulled back. “Also, I haven’t been to the cabin at all this week. I need to finish everything up soon before… I go back to Seattle after the holidays.”

That sobered me. We both knew she was going back to Seattle at some point, but we also had been dancing around that fact, purposely avoiding the conversation it would bring.

“I know you’re leaving.” I pressed a small peck to her lips again, peppering her with kisses to soften the reality of the situation. “I don’t know where your head is at, but I’m willing to do whatever to make this work.”

“I know.” She pushed me down to straddle me.

And I came with her name on my lips.

We all sat around the table at the ranch house, playing board game after board game. Sawyer, who was able to make it home for Thanksgiving, was kicking everyone’s ass. Gracie was in second place for the most wins, and I was dead last. Dotty was somewhere in the middle, which was funny because she was a sore loser. I was sure not being in first was already doing something to her ego.

A beep echoed through the kitchen. “Turkey is ready. Can someone help me grab it out of the oven?” David asked.

“Coming.” Colt stood up and walked over to the kitchen.

Dotty looked at me in question then glanced over to the hallway that led to the back porch.

“I’m going to stretch my legs for a minute and try notto let my pride suffer too badly from this.” I pointed at the scoreboard.

“It’s okay, Uncle Trent. Sometimes we win and sometimes we lose,” Gracie said and Dorian laughed, patting her head.

“Thanks, G,” I said before walking over to the hallway.

The back hallway was set off from the rest of the house, a small space housing the bathroom door and the door to the backyard, making it semi-secluded. Dotty and I had been keeping whatever was going on between us on the down low, so no one knew. She had already snuck away from the table and was waiting for me.

“H—” before the words even fully let my mouth, she was grabbing my shirt, pulling me to her. Her lips were soft and feral.

The intensity of the kiss mirrored the fire that burned in me with need for her. The desire in her movements was equal to mine as my hand came to the nape of her neck, deepening the kiss.

Her fingers tangled in my hair, pulling me impossibly closer, as if she couldn’t bear to be separated from me a moment longer, and I reveled in that fact.

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