Page 4 of Redemption in Misty Mountain

I’m not done with her yet.

Being this close to her again has supercharged every nerve in my body. I forgot what she does to me and the way my body reacts to her on auto-pilot. My skin burns and my muscles are tight with the kind of tension that only one thing can ease. I need relief.

I need to take the edge off before I lose my goddamn mind. All the blood in me rushes south, it's thick and demanding. My cock strains painfully against my zipper. I curse under my breath as I lay back on the bed, dragging a hand over my stomach before reaching down to unbutton my jeans.

My mind doesn’t have to wander far. Memories of her flood in, taking hold, making me harder. I can’t take it. I slip my handbeneath the waistband of my boxers, a groan ripping from my throat as I wrap my fingers around my cock.

I picture Rosalie’s wide, innocent eyes looking up at me years ago, her pupils blown with heat. The way her lips parted when I kissed her. The quiet gasp she always made when I deepened it. The feel of her curves pressed against me, soft and warm, the way she used to melt into me like she belonged there.

My tip grows slippery. I can almost hear her breathless little whimper that I pulled from her every time I ran my tongue down her neck. I stroke myself slowly, savoring the fantasy. My grip tightens as I picture her beneath me. Her thighs trembling, her nails digging into my shoulders, and her lips forming my name in a breathless plea.

Fuck. I’m so hard it’s almost painful, my hips lift off the mattress as the need for release builds. It’s sharp and relentless. Rosalie is all I can think about. The way she felt. The way shesounded. The way she came undone in my arms, gasping my name like I was the only man in the world.

My jaw clenches as pleasure coils tight, ready to snap. I bite back her name, the taste of her memory thick on my tongue as I finally give in.

Everything goes white-hot, heat crashing through me in a dizzying wave. And then—nothing. For a split second, I’m weightless, untethered, lost in the bliss of release.

Until a sound outside my window yanks me back to reality.

My eyes snap open, my breath is still ragged and my body thrums… and then I see her. My stomach drops. I yank the comforter over me so fast I nearly roll off the bed, my pulse hammering. She’s still staring, wide-eyed, her mouth slightly open, a flicker of something unreadable in her expression.

Rosalie? What. The. Fuck.

She’s right there. My jaw falls open, and her name tumbles from my lips for a whole new reason. “Rosalie?”

We lock eyes and she blinks. I blink. Time slows to a crawl as my brain catches up to what’s happening. First, the sheer horror hits me.Did she see me? Oh God, did she see me?But then, another realization slams into me like a truck…How the fuck am I making eye contact with her when I’m on the second floor?

I zip up my pants with lightning speed, my heart still hammering in my chest, and fly to the window. But my absolutehorroronly deepens when I realize Rosalie isn’t even looking at me.

She’s balanced precariously on a damn ladder. Aladderthat she’s wedged into the bed of my truck… in the ice storm. Even worse, she’s leaning out too far. She’s reaching toward the massive tree beside my window.

My pulse spikes as my eyes snap to the tree, following her line of sight. And that’s when I see it. A tiny orange cat.No fucking way.

“Of course. Of course, she’s out here in a snowstorm, halfway to breaking her neck, for a goddamn cat.” I grumble to myself until her name escapes my chest in a bark. “Rosalie! What thehellare you doing?” I fumble with the window, but it doesn’t unlock.

I pull on my boots and coat then take the stairs two at a time.

This woman is going to kill me. Or herself. Or both.

CHAPTER 4

ROSALIE

"Come on,it’s okay. You are okay. I’m right here." I stretch out a hand toward the tiny, shivering ball of fluff clinging to the tree branch. "You can't be more than a few weeks old, and it’s freezing out here. Let’s get you inside."

"ROSALIEEEEEE, GET DOWN!" Dawson’s voice explodes through the quiet forest, slicing through the eerie stillness of the storm.

I flinch, gripping the ladder tighter. "Shut up, you’re scaring him," I snap over my shoulder. “The Kitten Distribution System has finally come for me!”

"And you’re scaring me!" He sounds closer now, his boots crunching over ice-coated ground. "That isa cat, Rosalie. You do realize theyclimb trees, right? They’re born knowing how to do it."

"Thank you for that," I mutter, inching higher. "Iknowshe can climb, but she’snot. She’s scared, freezing, and I’m not leaving her."

"Yeah? Well, youshould, because in case you haven’t noticed,there’s a damn ice storm happening." His voice sharpens. "Get down. Now. Or I’m coming up."

I ignore him and focus on the kitten. The metal rungs under my boots are slick with ice, and I have to move carefully. One wrong step and I’ll be the one needing rescuing. But I’m not stopping. Not now.

"Easy, baby," I whisper to the kitten, holding out my hand. The kitten takes a half step toward me and I lunge toward her. "I’ve got you."

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