Page 16 of Threatened

Slowly, she slid a hand between them to stroke him through the soft denim, loving the way his breath caught before she captured his deep groan in another kiss. Meanwhile, he pressed his leg harder against the heat building between her legs. She ground against him, driving her passion higher and higher until it threatened to spill over.

“I want you to come undone for me,” he whispered in her ear, taking the lobe between his teeth. “Let go, Kylie. I’m here to catch your fall. I promise.”

She turned to look at him, the heat in his dark eyes threatening to sear her very soul as she rocked her hips to increase the pressure of his hard muscles against her most sensitive flesh. Stopping now was unimaginable, impossible.

He leaned closer until his forehead rested against hers, his warm breath fanning her face. “Are you close?”

Kylie nodded, biting her lip. Tension coiled inside her, tighter, tighter, until finally it exploded. She bit back a cry and bucked beneath him, staring into his eyes, getting lost in his gaze as shetumbled over the edge into ecstasy. Never had she felt this close to another man in her life. Never.

Finally, once she’d drifted back down to earth, she closed her eyes and just centered herself with the earth beneath her, the wind caressing her skin. Energy seemed to flow through her, around her, connecting her with everything—Gage, the twins, the trees, the sun.

“Okay?” Gage asked at last, his tone quiet as he kissed her temple.

“Wonderful,” she said, cracking open one eye and grinning up at him. She reached for him, wanting to return the favor, but he caught her hand and kissed the inside of her wrist instead. “But?—”

“Later.” He leaned down and kissed her before sitting up. “Wait until tonight.”

Giggling from the way he waggled his brows with his last words, Kylie sat up and kissed him again before turning to look back at the twins. “We should probably start heading home, huh?”

“Yeah.” He stood and then held his hand out to help her up. She came to her feet and was instantly in his arms. “Another kiss to tide me over,” he whispered against her lips before taking them in a kiss that threatened to incinerate them both. “I like that.”

He put a few inches between them but seemed reluctant to leave the spot. She pressed her face into his shoulder as they held each other in the late day sunshine. When a bird burst into song nearby, the moment was almost too perfect, like something from a movie.

Not perfect, but good. Better than Kylie had thought possible even a few weeks ago when she’d gotten the crushing news of her sister’s death. That good was owning to Gage. He seemed to get her, and he always knew what to say. He even came up with the perfect words when she’d told him about her endometriosis.

She heard a small snort and turned to see Brennan watching them. His eyes were still sleepy and drifted closed again seconds later.

“Time to go,” Gage said in a low voice. “With luck we can make it another hour before they wake up fully, then we’ll make a pit stop to feed and change them along the way.”

“Sounds good.” They picked up their things before walking down the short path to their SUV. Once they’d gotten the stuff loaded in the car and the twins secured in the back seat again, Kylie climbed into the passenger seat and buckled in while Gage did the same behind the wheel. He started the engine, but he didn’t start driving, just sat there, staring out at the view once more.

“I had a really great time today. Thank you for bringing me here,” she said, suddenly feeling shy after everything they’d just done together. “Thank you for sharing your past with me too.”

“You’re welcome,” Gage said, reaching over to tip her chin up, forcing her to meet his gaze. “And thank you for telling me about your endometriosis. I meant what I said before too. You’re not broken or defective. You’re wonderful. Everything about you.”

Heat prickled her cheeks, and she shook her head, trying to deflect the pang of yearning in her heart conjured by his words. At that moment, she wanted nothing more than to stay in this little paradise with him and the babies. It wasn’t reality, though. He’d implied that they might have something together past theafternoon, something that could potentially last long-term, but she worried he hadn’t really thought things through. She refused to allow herself to put too much stock in his words. For now, she resolved to just enjoy the present. Because she knew, too well, that for a man, giving up on the idea of having biological children of his own was a big deal. Relationships fell apart over that, and if that happened here, with Gage, she would be the one to get hurt. So she opted to keep it light between them. “You’re just saying that because I let you feel me up.”

“Nah.” He winked then kissed the tip of her nose. “I’m saying that because it’s true. Someday, you’ll make a guy very lucky.”

“Yeah?” She couldn’t resist reaching over to place her hand on the inside of his thigh, her grin growing in direct response to the twitching of his still-semi hard bulge in his crotch. “Sure you don’t want to get lucky right now?”

His response emerged more as a growl. “Stop tempting me, woman.”

“Fine.” She chuckled as he pulled out of their parking spot and headed back through the nature preserve to the highway beyond. Flirting with him was nearly as satisfying as the actual act of sex, which was both new and exhilarating. She’d been with her share of men over the years, but it had been a long time since one of them had been more than a quick tumble in the dark. She cultivated her hippie, party girl persona as armor, a way to keep her true self hidden away and protected. But with Gage, she felt fully engaged—body, mind, spirit—and that was possibly the greatest aphrodisiac of all.

The greatest risk, too, considering that once they did sleep together, Kylie was certain he’d end up stealing her heart as well.Which made sense, because after today, she was pretty sure he’d already captured her soul.

9

By the time they pulled into the driveway of Gage’s house, Kylie felt about as Zen as she had since before the accident. Hard to believe with all the emotions churning inside her, but it was true. Being in nature had helped. So had the time with Gage.

As if reading her thoughts, he glanced over at her as he cut the engine and grinned. “I’m glad you came today.”

“Me too.” She unbuckled her seat belt and climbed out to get the twins from the back seat while Gage went to unlock the front door and turn the lights on inside. She got Maya’s carrier seat out and set it on the ground near her feet, then started on Brennan’s. But before she finished, Gage was back. She looked at him over her shoulder and spotted his scowl. His body language was tense, and he somehow seemed larger than usual. “What’s wrong?”

“Someone’s broken into the house,” he said, pulling out his phone. “I did a preliminary sweep of the interior but didn’t find anyone inside. Stay near the car with the kids. I’m calling the police.”

She returned Maya’s seat to the car and got back in. The twins were awake and starting to get restless, so she played with them as best she could to distract them. She half-listened while Gage relayed what he’d seen during his brief visit inside. With each word, her stomach cramped harder.

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