Page 35 of Forever in the Country

Intimate.

Dangerous.

I’ve imagined being naked in here more than once which I’ll also not be telling him right now. Instead, I look out the window as we pull out of the parking lot and onto the road toward Clementine Creek.

Questions swirl around in my head, and I want desperately to voice them all. I want answers and to know what the hell this is—what he thinks we’re doing—but I don’t trust myself to say any of it.

Buzz, buzz, buzz.

His phone vibrates in the cupholder at the same time mine vibrates in my purse. We don’t need to check what it is, though, because the siren blares the warning loud and clear. Sorren takes the next right down my parents’ driveway. The house is dark, and I vaguely remember them saying they’d be having dinner with Cullen and Gwen tonight.

Throwing the car into park, Sorren grabs a sweatshirt from the backseat and climbs out. I should wait for him to get my door but I don’t because I know it will piss him off. He growls as he places his hand on my lower back and guides me toward the storm shelter.

I ignore him. And the warmth of his palm seeping through the thin material. It’s lower than where Colt’s hand had been, and where Colt’s gesture was friendly—gentlemanly—there’s no mistaking the possession in Sorren’s touch.

No one else is here and I flip on the Christmas lights before stepping inside the steel box like I’ve done a million times in my life. Sorren pulls the door shut behind us and bolts it.

It’s only been a few minutes since we got the alert, but I can already hear the wind howling outside.

“I hope nothing happens to your car,” I say as I cross my arms over my chest.

“I don’t give a fuck about my car,” he says as he closes the distance between us. Sorren hands me the sweatshirt and I glare as I put it on.

“Yeah? Well, whatdoyou care about?” I snap as I shamelessly snuggle into the soft fabric that smells like him.

“You.”

16

RHEA

You.

I scoff. “Whatever.”

“I hate that fucking word.” The vehemence in his voice startles me but I won’t back down. I don’t want to hear him tell me how we need to stay friends and keep things the way they are.

Friendsdo notkiss friends like that.

His arms stretch out to the sides. “This is me, Rhea. This is it for me. You wanted this—me—this is it.”

I roll my eyes with a forced bravado as my heart starts pounding in my chest again. “Yeah, I can see it’s you.”

“No.” He stalks toward me, my steps backward matching his until he’s caged me against the wall, and I appreciate the support of the steel behind me.

“No?” I ask.

“You want me to tell you it’s always been you? I can’t because I never believed I’d ever get here. I never knew I’d be able to deserve you and hell if I still don’t. You forced my hand and now here we are.”

“I didn’t—”

“You said that you didn’t want to be second to my sister. That you wanted to be first and that I was never going to give that to you.” He waits for my eyes to meet his, but it’s a struggle because his mouth is so deliciously captivating. “You have no idea what I’d give for you—to be the one that gets to touch you.”

“So what…now we’re just doing this? Just like that? We’re just going to act like the other day never happened?”

“You tell me.”

“It’s bullshit and you know it.” I seethe.

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