“I have no words,” she said softly. None to do the evening justice.
A sigh slipped between his lips. Or maybe it was a catch of his breath. She couldn’t tell for sure, but whatever it was, it rang with admiration. He understood that being here in the middle of nature took her breath away. “That’s good,” he whispered back.
And then he kissed her.
Lightly at first. Softly. Sweetly.
The gentle touch told her he enjoyed having her here with him. She wound her arms around his neck and melted against him, hoping he got the message she enjoyed being here, too. Under the stars. Just the two of them.
He escalated the kiss after that, fusing their lips together until finally, he slid his tongue inside her mouth, cupped the back of her head with one hand, and deepened the kiss, moving to a level she’d never experienced before. “Possession” was the best word she could come up with to describe it. Deep, caring ownership, like he wanted to erase every other kiss she’d ever had before.
She was on board with that.
Drop the paddle and float around forever on board with that.
Kissing him triggered all sorts of feel-good chemicals, like dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin, to go hog wild inside her. Euphoria took over—all the pleasure centers in her brain stimulated at the same time.
Maverick moaned, the sound amazing, and just what she needed to get out of her head and the doctor analysis and back to the pure physical pleasure of kissing him. She didn’t want to miss anything by analyzing it.
His mouth took over hers with skill and affection. The hand on her waist tightened. The hand behind her head held her right where he wanted her. Their lips molded together in perfect harmony.
He delved inside her mouth, pulled back to drag her bottom lip down before he dove right back in. Her entire body went liquid pressed against his, her arms wove around his neck, her fingers playing with the soft strands of hair at his nape.
“Maverick,” she murmured against his lips.
He smiled in return, the feel of his upturned lips against hers a victory she’d treasure forever. She got to him. It made her feel powerful and humble at the same time. He pulled so many welcome emotions out of her. And in a matter of days, he’d made her feel capable of more than she’d thought.
She cupped his face, looked into his eyes. They took a much-needed breath, a moment to say everything without a word spoken before kissing again. And again. The kiss went on and on, his tongue stroking hers. She’d enjoyed kissing in the past, but no other kiss compared to this. No other kiss tunneled under her skin and straight to her heart and head.
She was falling hard and fast for Maverick Owens. And the timing sucked.
They kissed until the moon hit the highest point in the dazzling night sky and then he tucked her inside her sleeping bag. Kissed her forehead in good night. She didn’t take her eyes off him as he spread his sleeping bag beside her and climbed inside. He lay on his back, hands laced behind his head. She lay on her side, hands under her pillow, on the edge of the mattress so they could enjoy a few more minutes of gazing at each other.
She’d never consistently spent so much time with a guy before. A dinner date, a movie, an occasional museum, but never hours camping out, or on a horse, or in a canoe, or birthing puppies and crashing on the couch. She didn’t regret her total focus on work and her career, but this prompted a turning point. She could be a doctor and have more. She just needed to own it.
And right now, she wanted to throw all caution and reservation aside and climb in Maverick’s sleeping bag with him.
So she did.
“I don’t want you to be a gentleman,” she said, slipping out of her sleeping bag and landing on top of his with a soft thud.
He oofed before saying, “What do you want me to be?”
She unzipped his sleeping bag enough to comfortably wiggle inside, all while he continued to lie there with his hands behind his head, a sexier-than-should-be-humanly-possible smile, and eyes that gleamed with yearning. She straddled him, leaned her elbows on either side of his head so their chests touched and their faces were only inches apart. “Inside me.”
“Kennedy.” He murmured her name with velvety reverence she felt between her legs. His hands moved to her waist. His hips pressed against hers, the hard, thick bulge in his jeans giving away his desire. For her. The chemistry, the emotion, the connection—all of it and more had brought them to this moment, and she was grateful they were on the same page.
“I’ve never had sex outside before.” She rolled her hips, unable to stop from rubbing over his firm, solid ridge. God, they’d just started and she couldn’t remember ever being more turned on.
“Is that so?” He slid a hand underneath her T-shirt and cardigan, his palm warm and slightly calloused, and unhooked her bra with one flick of his fingers.
“Not your first rodeo, I see.” She figured as much, but a wisp of air left her sails.
“No, but it’s been a while.” He lifted his head to brush his lips against hers. An open-eyed, openmouthed kiss followed. “I’m glad it’s you here with me,” he whispered.
“Me too.” She touched her forehead to his. “I can’t believe—”
“Believe it.” He claimed her mouth, this time with hunger and urgency. The time for sweet nothings over, he made quick work of removing her sweater and shirt, kissing her while he did so.
She lifted his shirt over his head next. Kissed his neck, his collarbone.
He brought her face back to his. “Lose the bra.”
It took her an extra few seconds because he distracted her by slipping his hands underneath the material and cupping her breasts. Rubbing his thumbs over her nipples. “Better than I imagined,” he whispered.
“You pictured my boobs?”
“When we got caught in the rain.”
“You’re better, too.” He’d obviously lifted a million bales of hay, his chest and abs strong and defined.
“There is so much I want to do to you.” He traced his finger between her breasts, up the side of her neck, and around her ear, leaving a trail of tingles behind the soft touch. He landed on her bottom lip, dragged it down.
She sucked his finger into her mouth and she swore he grew even thicker inside his jeans. It made her lightheaded to know she affected him this way.
Without warning, he flipped their positions inside the sleeping bag, taking care to cushion her back with his arm before crushing his mouth to hers and unbuttoning her jeans. He slid his hand inside, effectively lowering her zipper, and grazed his palm over her most sensitive spot.
Two could play the in-the-pants game, so she undid his jeans. Pushed them—and his underwear—down his hips and freed his straining erection, hot and heavy in her palm. She made breathy sounds when he slid lower, along her very wet panties.