Right now, watching the way the rising morning light plays over his body...
Believe me, I’d give them a shot.
I’d let him devour me in one chomp.
I’m panting, too warm, like I’m standing under a heat lamp, soaking him in until my knees want to drop right out.
I can’t breathe. I can’t—anything.
Any second now, he’ll look up and see me staring, and I’ll flush like a tomato. But I can’t seem to stop, can’t seem to break this scary trance.
Black magic. It’s got to be.
It makes me too aware of my aching, needy body and what the actual hell am I doing?
I don’t do this.
I don’t lose my spaghetti, letting desire overcome good sense, but if I’m being honest?
It’s not just desire.
It can’t be just desire when everything about Alaska Charter—his warmth, his humor, his power, his kindness, his goodness—drums on every string of my heart like a country rock ballad.
And his song breaks me down, building me into someone else one trembling note at a time.
I’m a stumbler in the desert, parched, thirsting after everything a man like him offers.
If only that man were compatible with a black cat like me.
When Eli comes bouncing in, I’m almost relieved, even if I start a little.
He’s far too energetic for this early in the a.m., still in his shorts and t-shirt and already clutching his camera.
“Morning!” he belts out. “I got a really good shot of some birds flying in front of the sun from my window!”
I blink, shaking myself, and tear my eyes away from Alaska—but not before, I think, he catches me ogling him to infinity and beyond.
His head comes up, and he blinks at me, finally realizing I’m there.
Eep.
I freeze solid, face bursting with heat, then clear my throat and look away.
“Yeah? That’s awesome, Eli,” I whisper
Hands busy. Keep your hands busy, mind empty, senses off the amazingly hot mess standing a few feet away, nearly naked.
“What kind of birds?” I start pouring a cup of coffee and smile at Eli.
Are my hands shaking?
Yes.
“I couldn’t tell.” He drops down on a stool at the breakfast bar, scrunching his face. “They look the way seagulls always do on those beach paintings, you know? Just these two pointy curves.” Then he eyes his father. “Gross, Dad. Put some clothes on. There’s a girl in the house.”
Alaska makes a startled, half-embarrassed sound that borders on a laugh. “Sorry. I smelled coffee. My body woke up before my brain. It’s all instinct.” He still sounds drowsy, growly and husky and sweet. “And you, polecat, aren’t old enough to be noticing Felicity’s a girl. Stick to girls your own age.” I’m pointedly not looking at him, but from the corner of my eye I catch his grin. “...the Fords’ niece is coming into town today. Tara. Think she’s about your age.”
Eli blushes red-hot.
“Aw, I don’t care about that! I don’t even know her.”
“All the more reason to make a new friend.” I giggle and somehow manage to push the cup of coffee at Alaska without looking directly at him. “I’ve met Tara Brenley a few times. She’s really sweet and funny. Very ladylike. She’s got some wild stories about Heart’s Edge and I bet she’d love your pictures.”
Eli’s eyes widen.
So do mine, because when Alaska takes that cup from me—ah.
His fingers brush mine.
And I feel it like fire in my bones, burning through my whole body.
Uh-oh.
Okay.
Breathe.
Um.
Crap.
What was I saying again?
I jerk my hand back. Alaska’s oddly quiet, but then says, “Hey, kiddo. Why don’t you go find that album you’ve been putting together? And shower. Brush your teeth. And get dressed.”
Oof. It isn’t hard to tell he’s piling on to his son’s to-do list to buy time.
“...sure.” Eli looks at us weirdly, cocking his head as he slides off the stool. “You know you can just tell me you need to have a grown-up talk, right?”
“Go,” Alaska emphasizes, suppressed laughter in his voice.
Eli just grins and darts off down the hall.
Oh, boy. Why? Why did he have to leave us alone?
Because I’m totally not gawking at that nearly naked slice of Alaskan perfection again.
Nope.
I don’t need to, not when I can feel him like there’s an imprint on the air, changing the space around me into this Alaska-sized shape I want so badly to sink into.
My nostrils twinge with an unfamiliar smell.
Pancakes!
Crap. I’m going to burn them.
Scurrying back over to the skillet with a shy grin, I can feel him watching me.
“Sorry,” he murmurs, that unique muffled sound of someone speaking against the rim of a coffee cup. “I’ll go put some pants on, but we’ve got like two seconds to talk about the gold before he’s bouncing back in here.”
“Oh, sure. About that. I didn’t get a chance to tell you last night...” How I manage to keep my voice steady, no clue. Or my hands as I flip the pancakes. “My cousin Ember helped out at the gas station. I promise she’ll keep a secret. She’s got half the secrets of this town in that pretty blond head of hers, including some highly classified stuff.” Yep, I’m babbling. I clear my throat before continuing. “Her husband, too. After his veterinary practice burned down during that whole arson mess, he had a keycard-secured vault installed in the rebuild. So we just need to get the gold to The Menagerie without anyone noticing, and that’s it. It’s safe until we—”
No.
I catch myself and start again with a shaky breath that hurts.
“—until I figure out what to do with it,” I finish.
Alaska’s quiet again, but that feeling of him pressing in from all sides gets more solid, more heated as he steps closer, setting his coffee cup down.
Here we go.
I can see it in my peripheral vision. His hand, dark hairs bristling on his forearm and the backs of his knuckles, the thick swell of muscle from the stark lines of his wrist, the tanned lines of his skin.
He’s so still save for that vibrant presence, so still it sends chills sweeping up my body and ratchets my pulse to Mach three.
I think I’m in trouble and he’s pissed—
Until he laughs.
Low, incredulous, rich with so much warmth.
“This town really has some stories, huh?” he asks.
I don’t know what I was expecting, but that good-natured amusement lets me breathe, and I actually smile. “You have no idea.”
“Got a feeling I’m gonna find out sooner or later.” With an amused sound, he withdraws, the space around me no longer boiling with this carnivorous want. “Not sure yet if I’m supporting cast here or starring in my own big adventure. Either way, Fliss, I’m in it till the end. I’m with you. Let me get dressed, we’ll eat, and then haul some gold.”
Just like that, he’s gone, leaving me alone with the crisping pancakes and a sinking dull guilt in my belly.
I’ve pulled Alaska into my story without meaning to.
There’s nothing left but questions.