Page 45 of Playing With Fire
“You’re sure?”
“Shan, sweetheart, do you know me at all?” she teases.
“Okay, I’ll bring her by, but I can pick her up by eight-thirty.”
“There’s no need to wake her after dinner just to change where she’s sleeping, let her stay the night. That way you can have some extra time with your man friend and I’ll bring her by tomorrow after breakfast…as long as you think you’ll be doneworking it outby then.” She chuckles and her innuendo slams into me.
“Mooooooom!” I screech into the receiver.
“Shannon, if you think I’m dumb enough to assume you aren’t getting naked wherever you’re going, then I didn’t raise you right.”
“Mom. No one is getting naked,” I argue.Besides, I think to myself,we got off just fine last time with all our clothes on thank-you-very-much.
“Just so we’re clear, I don’t condone your actions Shannon Elizabeth, but I’ve lived enough life to know that not everything is so black and white. And you need to tell Gregor sooner rather than later. You know what they say about playing with fire.”
“I can just about guarantee that Gregor will make sure I get burned no matter how soon I tell him. See you in twenty.”
Afraid he might think I plotted and planned in an effort to stay the night I shootHudson a text.
Shannon
My mom called and wanted a girls’ night with Serafina. I’ll be coming alone. Just didn’t want you to think I was scheming.
His response is immediate, like his phone was already in his hand.
Hudson
Scheme away baby ;)
The knot in my stomach loosens as I notice for the hundredth time how easy-going Hudson is. He doesn’t twist my words or read meanings into them that aren’t there. He doesn’t make me feel like shit every time I voice an opinion. I hadn’t realized that I feel the need to justify myself in almost every interaction I have and it makes me angry.
After I drop Serafina off at my mom’s, I type in Hudson’s address. I know the general area, but don’t come out this way much. According to the GPS, I’m following the Wilson River north. Turning onto his property, I notice it’s more of a gravel road than what I would consider a driveway. It winds through the trees, and although it’s only five-thirty, it seems darker under the canopy above.
When the gravel road spits me out at his house, my breath is stolen from my lungs. It’s as if Hudson had somehow reached into my mind and taken one of my dreams and turned it into his reality.
In front of me is a small, A-frame cottage right on the river.It’s far more enclosed in this spot than I imagined it would be. I shut off my engine and steel myself for whatever lines I’m about to cross.
My breathing is ragged simply from the possibilities before me. The guilt that should be gnawing at my subconscious is notably absent. And all I can think about is the rush of pure adrenaline I feel.
Every time I’m near him, a hit of dopamine courses through my veins which only serves to fuel my lust. It’s the kind of intensity that makes you want to douse your entire life in gasoline and has you volunteering to strike the match.
I’ve never felt anything like it before and something tells me I never will again…not outside of Hudson, at least.
What happens when the one that got away was the one you were never supposed to have in the first place?
Before I can get lost in more of my thoughts, I step out of the car. Hudson opens the front door and I damn near fall right back in my vehicle. His hunter green Henley almost causes him to blend in with the scenery, except for the part where Hudson Goddorah doesn’tblend inwith anything. Not to me, at least. The man is far too attractive to fade into the background, no matter what the background is.
“This is incredible,” I tell him, looking up and spinning in a slow circle to take in the nature around me. I half expect him to say something likeit’s not as big as yoursorthere’s no pool out back,but he doesn’t.
He simply smiles and says, “Thank you. It’s exactly what I wanted when I got out of the military.”
It’s then I realize my own responses to people have been so programmed into me, to stay humble around the other partners and basically become complimentary through self-deprecation. Interacting with someone so comfortable and confident feels like jumping into a cool springon a hot summer day.
“Come inside, I’ll show you around,” he says, nodding his head toward the front porch and the open door. His hands are in his pockets, and I wonder if it’s so he doesn’t touch me. There is no doubt in my mind that Hudson is giving me the reins tonight.
Chapter 18
Hudson
