Page 63 of Unbridled

As much as he wanted to get back to her, he also hated the idea of ending this quiet moment out in the woods.

Dayne’s eyes slowly opened and his chest expanded as he pulled in a deep breath. “I can’t even begin to tell you how many hours I spent on this mountain as a kid. Back when summer seemed endless and my biggest worry was how to get out of doing farm chores.”

Dayne laughed softly at some distant memory and the softness in his features stirred something in Heath that was better left alone.

“Once those chores were done, my brother and I would hike through these woods like we were out to discover a new world. Even in our teens, we’d come up here to talk about our dreams, what we’d do when we finally escaped Fisher Falls. Not once, in all those years, did we ever think of this place as our forever home. We always knew we were destined for something bigger than this little town could provide.”

Heath couldn’t help but laugh at the irony of thesomething biggerthey ended up bringing to the very town they had been determined to escape, which seemed to drag Dayne back to the present with a longing smile.

“But you’re right, we should get back to Cara, and I need to get my work done so I can spend time with you two later.”

“Is this weird for you?” Heath asked, wondering if whatthey’d shared had prompted the man’s walk down memory lane.

Dayne’s hazel eyes met Heath’s, but his expression was suspiciously blank. “What?”

Heath perched his ass against the boulder to pull on his socks and sneakers. “Spending a few days with the same people.”

Dayne finished pulling on his own socks and running sneakers, tugged his T-shirt over his head, then shrugged on his hydration vest.

That vest had come in handy this morning for sure.

After Dayne was done, he finally answered, “Yes.”

“But you plan to do it anyway,” Heath concluded.

“It’s less than a week. I’ll survive.”

Dayne’s tone said otherwise.

Heath chuckled softly. “You don’t sound so sure.”

“Honestly, my brain is screaming that this is a trap.”

Heath’s laughter quickly dissipated. “What do you mean?” He certainly wasn’t out to trap anyone and didn’t want to be trapped himself.

“What we did up here took me back to my childhood.” Dayne shook his head. “Not the sex, of course, but spending time out here in these woods. For a little while this morning, it lifted the weight of my responsibilities off my shoulders and I felt…carefree. Even content. I don’t know how to explain why that feels…dangerous.”

Or he simply didn’t want to.

Heath’s brain might not be screaming the same, but he understood where the man was coming from. “Is it because this feels like more than simply sex?”

“What do you mean?” Did the blood drain from Dayne’s face?

Heath explained. “I came here not expecting to make anyconnections. Have fun? Yes. Relax? Yes. Spend my stay with the same two people? No.”

Dayne’s brow furrowed. “You’re not obligated.”

“Of course I’m not. And neither are you. But I’d regret not exploring whatever drew the three of us together.”

“Attraction and sex. Simple.”

“If only it was,” Heath countered.

“You think it’s more?”

“I don’t know. I mean, I saw you two yesterday, and despite being very occupied, I had a difficult time keeping my focus on what was happening on the blanket and off of you two. There was something about Cara’s reaction to what you were doing to her…” Heath shook his head. “It was real and pure. Maybe it’s because she’s not jaded and is looking at what goes on here with fresh eyes.”

“Funny, that’s what drew me to her, too. And that’s usually not the type of person I seek out.”

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