Page 74 of Play With Me

“Or a Sasquatch.”

“Then I’m certainly a saint. What do you suggest we do?”

“We climb to the top of the cliff and check out their operation.”

“All right. Let’s do it.”

“Lola, wait.” He grasped my wrist, gently tugging as I tried to pass him. “There’s something I’ve been wanting to do since we left the campsite.

“Here?”

Without waiting, he pulled me to him and kissed me hard, locking his warm lips over mine. The force with which he fell upon me pushed my back against a tree trunk. Bark crumbled underneath my shoulder blades as Brook meandered his tongue through my mouth, trying to capture every inch of me. His breath warmed me, and my body responded with a need. When he let go of my mouth, my pulse was racing and my legs trembled.

“If we’re going to do this, then we’re going to have to be very quiet,” I said. “The moonshiners could hear us.”

“Sorry, but I can’t promise that you won’t scream.”

“In that case, you’ll have to wait,” I whispered against his mouth, gently bit his lower lip and lowered my hand at the same time, cupping his hard dick in my palm.

“I’ve been walking around with wood since the motel.”

“I’m not holding in a scream, Madman. If you want to fuck me, find the right time. Besides, you jerked off two nights ago.” I rubbed up and down his length through his camouflage pants.

“Not the same thing as being inside you.”

Brook crushed his mouth to mine again. This time, the kiss felt permanent. It felt like he meant to kiss my lips until the day I died. The wind blew, and thunder sounded in the distance.

“It doesn’t look like we have a lot of time.” I walked past him, aiming for the escarpment. Grasping at sharp rocks, pulling my body up with my arms with a little leverage when I stuck my toes between the rocks, I scaled the cliff. When I reached the top, I lay flat on the ground, closed my eyes, and tried to relax. Moments later, I felt Brook lie down beside me and I opened my eyes.

“Like I said, you’re a Super Woman.”

“And you’re getting cheesy again.”

“Why didn’t you wait?” he asked.

“I told you. I want to scream. This is not the right place to do so.” He knew I was right, and he couldn’t give any argument. “Come on, let’s see what we’re up against.” I flipped over on my stomach, creeping forward.

Beyond the cliff was a deep valley surrounded by impenetrable cliffs, with a stream running down the middle. Looking down and to the left, I saw the entrance Brook had mentioned earlier. It was the only exit out of what looked like a caved-in dome. I removed the binoculars clipped to my utility belt and scoured the moonshiners’ campground. There were three openings of caves filled with supplies and barrels of what I assumed were high-proof spirits. Four tents were set up across the valley, with three fire pits, hanging laundry items, and tables with pots and pans. Everything was surrounded by cliffs. It was a perfectly camouflaged hideout.

It appeared they’d been settled here for a long time. When I scanned their lair once more I stopped and passed the binoculars to Brook. “Look beside the fire,” I whispered as loudly as I dared. When I heard Brook gasp, I knew he’d seen the bearskin hanging off a branch by its front paws. Its carcass was being cleaned out near the stream.

“Fucking poachers,” he breathed.

“Sophie was right. Something did happen to Boo’s mother.”

“She would freak if she saw this.”

Suddenly Brook looked up across the valley. He squinted, focusing on the other side of the cliffs. I followed his stare as his brow furrowed.

“Holy shit. Lola, you’re not going to believe this.”

“What?”

“It’s the Sasquatch.”

“Give me those.” I yanked the binoculars from his hands and brought them to my eyes, adjusting the lens. Across the canyon, in between two bent trees, was a primitively crouched figure. The creature was holding onto one of the branches while dangerously leaning over the ledge, looking down into the valley where the moonshiners were going about their business. Brook shifted, and the man’s head flew up. He looked right at us but remained calm. I pulled the binoculars away from my eyes and whispered, “That’s not a Sasquatch. That’s Xavier Black.”

Chapter 17

---