Page 42 of Chasing Paradise

“Marco will be getting us with the Jeep then driving us the rest of the way.”

“How far is it?”

“Another two hours or so. The resort should be reasonably easy to find from where we are going. If it exists at all. I think this could all be done in a day or so.”

I would throw those words back at him many times in the coming days. But right then, I lowered myself down in the thick grass on the side of the road, feeling the full day of travel weighing down on me.

It wasn’t until Wick suggested I move closer to the trees, then lowered down as well, using his pack as a pillow that I got suspicious.

“Whenis Marco coming to get us with the Jeep?”

“Sometime before morning.”

“Sometime before morning? Then why was there such a rush to get out here?” It would have taken all of five minutes to let me get in line at a café.

“Marco isn’t great with exact times. I wanted to make sure we were here when he does show up. Better to be early than late. You can take a nap. I’ll wake you when he gets here.”

Normally, I struggled to sleep around strangers. But, I guess, when I’d literally slept on this guy’s chest, he was no longer a stranger. And he’d proven himself a worthy opponent in a fight, even though I’d been training since I was in diapers, per my parents’ demands. So I was safe.

With that, I found myself drifting off. I thought lightly. Until, suddenly, I felt arms sliding under me, lifting me up.

“Shh,” Wick’s voice reached my half-conscious mind. “Just moving you into the Jeep.”

I should have startled awake. But even half-asleep, it felt so good to be held.

I wasn’t exactly the kind of woman most men would think to pick up and carry. Nothing about my personality suggested I would be okay with that. So it was a new experience for me thathad me drifting closer to consciousness so I could really soak into the moment.

The breadth of his chest, the strength in his arms, the warmth of him, the steady thud of his heartbeat, the whisper of his breath across my hair.

I expected to be lowered down in the backseat.

But Wick moved into the back with me, cradling me to his chest as the Jeep pulled off, rocking lightly on the road.

I let myself sink into Wick.

He thought I was asleep. He’d never know how awake I was, how much I was enjoying the closeness.

One of Wick’s arms stayed around me. The other slipped up to drift through my hair, making the coconut smell of his shampoo fill the air around us.

When his fingers moved up to start rubbing gently at my scalp, it took every ounce of self-control I possessed to keep from moaning.

Scalp massages were my favorite kind. And where they usually created a comforting type of relaxation, Wick’s touch was stirring up nothing but desire.

Within a few minutes, I was reasonably sure there was no way Wick could have thought I was still asleep as my breathing went quicker and got shallower, as little shivers racked my system.

My thighs were pressed tightly together, trying to ease the ache with little success.

The Jeep suddenly stopped, the car rocking, then a door slamming.

Not a moment later, Wick’s hands were off of my scalp and working my pants’ button and zipper down.

I tensed in surprise, not objection.

Wick’s hand stilled.

“Let me make it better,” he said, his voice a sexy rumble.

The only answer I could muster was to let my legs part in silent invitation.

---