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“You are so fucking beautiful,” he growled, an instant before his mouth descended on hers.
He devoured her lips, skillfully teasing and nibbling.
Desire flared up like a wildfire inside Malia, burning and out of control. She wound her arms around him as his kiss turned hard and deep.
She’d never been kissed like this before, all heat and need and demanding urgency. Her own body began throbbing with the pulse of aching need.
I want him. And he wants me, too!It felt too good to be true.
Desperate to touch his bare skin, she tugged at the bottom of his t-shirt, pulling it up so that she could run her hands over his back.
At the same time, Lucas’s hands cupped her butt, and squeezed gently before pulling her against the hard bulge straining the front of his jeans.
He lifted his lips from hers long enough to whisper, “You smell and taste so damned good.”
Distantly, the sound of an approaching vehicle registered in Malia’s brain. It was probably one of the ranch’s other guests. Uncle Michael had a dozen cabins on the property that he listed as short-term vacation rentals.
Enveloped in a haze of desire, she ignored it as Lucas’s mouth began working its magic once more. Getting more of his delicious kisses was way more important.
Sometime later, someone cleared their throat nearby.
“Lucas? Malia?”
Oh, God! I know that voice!She instinctively tore herself out of Lucas’s embrace. At the same moment he all but leaped backwards.
Gage Tringstad stood gaping at them from the bottom of the porch steps.
Chapter 9
“Gage, what on earth are you doing here?” Malia demanded.
She was simultaneously mortified at being caught smooching a complete stranger, and annoyed that a pack member appeared to be checking up on her.
I’m an adult and I can kiss whoever I want to,she thought, anger shoving aside her embarrassment.
Then reason penetrated her lust-fogged brain, and with it came concern.
Gage didn’t live anywhere near here, and if someone was going to check up on her, it would be a pack member who actually lived on this ranch. “Did something happen? Is there an emergency?”
“Uh, no, everything’s fine. Um,” Gage looked and sounded flustered.
His eyes kept darting between her and Lucas. They were now separated by at least five feet. “I mean, I was in the area, and I thought I’d follow up with you regarding that dead spike this afternoon.”
“And? Did you find a connection to Rob’s shooting?” Malia asked eagerly.
After all, he’d driven all the way out here to share the news. And he was out of uniform, which meant he was off the clock right now.
“Kind of. Maybe. It was, um, definitely shot with the same ammo.” What had Gage so flustered, anyway? She’d seen him calmly wade into a tangle of several angry, armed hunters to resolve a dispute. “I’ve sent the bullet away for ballistics testing, and donated the meat to the Bearpaw Ridge Community Pantry.”
Donating salvageable poached meat to a charitable organization was standard practice for game wardens. No one wanted to waste food.
All that was interesting, but not the big break she’d been hoping for. And certainly not something he needed to drive all the way to the ranch to tell her when he could have just sent her a text message or an email.
She frowned and crossed her arms. “So why are you here? Did someone from the pack send you to check up on me?”
Her parents would never do that, but there were other pack members who were busybodies. And plenty of people had seen Lucas talking to her at the club on Sunday afternoon.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lucas tense.
