Page 71 of The Rancher's Unrequited Love

"Still does."

Oh my God.

I laugh and shake my head, speechless and shaken, but also thrilled and confused at the same time. I've never even thought myself as kind in the first place, and now Wyoming Keanu is telling me the reason he's been after me all this time is because I'm...kind?

"You are such a freak."

But Aidan only smiles and starts the engine.

I watch him drive, and I feel like there's somethingnewI should be figuring out now. I've told him that I don't know what I want in life, and his response is to tell me thatI'm kind.Is there even a real connection between these two things or am I just reading too much into things here?

When we make it back to the B&B, I'm still stumped, and there's only one thing I know. I'm just not ready for the night to end yet, and as Aidan helps me out of his pick-up, I hear myself ask, "Can we hang out a bit?"

Aidan only looks at me, and I add hurriedly, "They have a fireplace in the living room. Bettina says guests can use it whenever."

I want the magic to last, even for just a moment longer, and when I see his gaze glints—-

"You, me, a fireplace..."

I know he wants the same thing, too, and my toes curl.

"You're sure?"

I can only nod, and well...what happens after that is even more magical than I can ever dream of.

Fire crackles next to us as Aidan lays me down on a soft, thick rug, and my eyes close as the hot, hard weight of his body settles over mine. Our mouths touch, and the magic of his kiss seeps into my soul.

We kiss slowly at first.

Gently.

Teasingly.

But just as the flames watching us begin to burn hotter, so do things change between us.

All traces of softness disappear.

And all that's left is wild and feral.

His tongue thrusting hard into my mouth.

His teeth sinking into the fullness of my lip.

His mouth latching onto the sensitive flesh of my neck.

It's magic uncontrolled.

Impossible to contain.

And so heartbreakingly beautiful that even as it has me gasping and moaning, my body shuddering against his powerful hardness—-

There's also nothing I can do to keep the tears from falling.

Just nothing I can do...

Except cry at how magical it is.

And the tears fall harder and faster when I feel Aidan's mouth ease from my skin.

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