Page 29 of Recipe for Temptation (Madewood Brothers 4)

The trail swerved a hard left, and when he turned the wheel, mud splashed up all around them. The buggy wrenched forward. Her ass went airborne. Thankfully, her seatbelt was tight under the arms and held her in securely. Instantly, the buggy came to a rocky halt.

The front right tire had hit a ditch. They were stuck.

“Nice driving, dude.”

He looked over as he revved the gas, shifting from reverse to drive, trying his best to rock the buggy out of the gully.

Finally, he gave up, smacking his gloved hands on the steering wheel.

“Take the wheel,” he growled.

She pulled down the bandana and let it settle against her neck. “There is no way I am driving this death trap.”

“You have to. Unless you want to push.”

She glared at him. “Fine.”

He unstrapped his seatbelt, hopped out of the buggy, and came around to her side. He reached between her legs and unsnapped her seatbelt.

“Slide over. I’ll push, you reverse.”

She balked. “Why don’t we just call the attendant?” That’s what they had been instructed to do. “I’m sure they have some kind of pickup that can pull us out of the ditch.”

“You want to win, don’t you?” He waited a beat as she hesitated. “How long do you think it’ll take for them to get here?”

Valid point. Plus, she wasn’t keen on actually staying put in one place to

o long in this forest. Who knew what kind of animals and insects lived in here?

She slid over and did as he’d instructed. He pushed with all his might, grunting and groaning as she pressed the gas pedal. But it was hopeless.

“Fuck. I think we’re officially stuck.”

He shook off the mud from his gloves as he came over to her side. In an unexpected gesture, he lifted her goggles to the top of her head, then ripped off his muddy gloves and tossed them to the floor of the buggy. After reaching across her body, he grabbed one of the bottles of water and opened it.

“Put your head back.” She did, and he poured water over her face, gently rubbing with his fingers across her cheeks. “You have mud everywhere.” The water traveled down her cheeks and wet her coveralls.

He then did the same to his own face.

He leaned closer, ducking his head under the red frame of the buggy, and grabbed the white towel that was in their supply bag.

This was the Cole Murphy she had come to love so much over the past couple days. The one who had forgotten the sadness and distance that plagued his everyday life. This Cole Murphy was just enjoying the moment.

He reached for the two-way radio, but she stopped him. “I think that can wait a few minutes.”

She tilted her head back and captured his lips. He tasted of sweat and sexy man. And she had a craving for just that.

“What about your family?” He looked around at the woods on either side.

“They won’t find us.”

With a grin, Cole dove in and deepened the kiss, pressing her back against the seat of the buggy with his torso.

“I want to kiss you all over,” he panted. “But I can’t.”

She moaned, totally caught up. “Why not?” She needed his kisses. Needed them more than the very breath she needed to survive.

“Because there is mud everywhere.”

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