Her smile was sweet. “Well, that’s something, then.”
Chapter Fifteen
Honor stretched awake, her lower back protesting from the long ride the day before. She turned her head in the sleeping bag to see Sam’s bag empty, an indentation still on his pillow. Rolling onto her back, she took stock. Besides the slight backache, she felt fine. Her head was okay despite all the alcohol. Maybe the good stuff didn’t cause hangovers.
Memories of the night filtered through her brain. She’d thrown herself at the huge hybrid, and he’d been a gentleman. She sighed.
The sounds of life could be heard through the tent. Somebody laughing, a grill firing up, motorcycles roaring in the distance.
She definitely needed to use the facilities. She’d slept in her shirt, but she needed to retrieve her jeans and then go shopping. Drawing them on, she unzipped the tent, poking her head outside to see a nice fall day.
Juliet spotted her from a few yards away and made a beeline with a cosmetic bag in her hand. “Hey. I was going to hit the showers. Want to come?”
“Yes.” Honor pushed out of the tent, stood, and stretched. Her stomach growled, and she noted Nessa beneath a wide blue tarp manning several grills at once and issuing orders to the prospects around her to get a move on. First a shower, and then she’d see what she could do to help. “You’re a godsend,” she said to Juliet.
Juliet laughed and pointed toward a trail between a couple of leafy trees. “The bathrooms and showers are this way. Then we can eat breakfast and hit that mall. I need some new tennis shoes and you need everything else.” She nudged Honor. “Even though you’re here willingly, it was a surprise, right?”
“Yep.” Honor slipped on her boots and headed for the trail, crunching leaves as she went. “I don’t suppose you have an extra toothbrush in there?”
“I actually do.” Juliet tripped along behind her. “I bought a bunch of travel items for this trip, and there are two toothbrushes folded up in the kit.”
A sprawling pond lay to the right where several people were swimming and goofing off, shouting from the cold. It was way too chilly for the pond, so Honor didn’t even consider it. Crazy people. She hurried toward a large wooden building, smiled at a couple of other women coming out, and hurried inside to use the restroom before washing her hands and returning outside to Juliet. “Thanks for waiting.” She smiled at the young woman, noting tension coming from her. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” Her eyes said otherwise. “The showers are over here.”
Honor grasped her arm. “Juliet.”
The woman rolled her eyes. “I don’t know. Garrett is fun and wild, but it felt like he was... I don’t know, disappointed this morning. Like…” She lifted her hands helplessly.
Like he was looking for an immortal mate and couldn’t see what a great woman he had in front of him? Honor sighed. “These guys are way too tense—I wouldn’t take it personally. For now, let’s shower and then we can go pummel him with rocks or something.”
Juliet grinned. “Good plan.” She led the way to a shower area with separate and surprisingly nice stalls.
They showered, handing the shampoo and conditioner over the top. Then they moved to the sink area for teeth and then the mirror area, where Honor borrowed eyeshadow and some lip balm. Juliet’s base was too light and her blush the wrong color, but Honor didn’t use much makeup, anyway. She added a little product to her hair. “I really appreciate this.”
Juliet’s stomach growled. “I’m starving. Garrett didn’t let me get much sleep last night.” Pink colored her cheekbones. “Maybe he does like me and I’m just looking for problems where there aren’t any.”
“Sure.” Honor led the way out and stopped short at the sight of Sam emerging from the pond, water sluicing over his hard body. “Oh. My. God.” Heat slammed into her abdomen so fast she nearly doubled over.
Juliet giggled. “Guess he skipped the showers and jumped into the pond? At least he’s wearing swim trunks.”
Yeah. They were black and molded to his body the way Honor had wanted to be the night before. His torso was sculpted steel, his abs were solid rock ridges, and even his thighs looked powerful. Water slicked his black hair back from his angled face, and in the soft morning light, his eyes held the mysterious depths of genuine emeralds. The darker ones.
Right now, they were fully focused on her.
Juliet gasped. “All right. Well, I’ll meet you at the picnic area,” she whispered. Then she turned and hurried toward the trail.
Honor swallowed over the lump in her throat and moved toward him, her legs working independently of her brain. She soon reached him. “Morning.”
“Morning. How are you feeling?” The tension rolling from him stole her breath.
Aroused. Horny. So achy in her tender parts that she was going to get a stomachache. “Good. No hangover. How are you, um, feeling?”
He just stared at her. Then he moved. One second she was on her feet and the next up in the air and secured against his front, her thighs naturally clamping onto his hips for balance. He kissed her, hard and deep, not holding anything back. Diving in, he deepened the kiss, tasting of coffee and butterscotch. Heated thrills coursed beneath her skin, and she returned the kiss, for once not caring who was around. He set loose a part of her she hadn’t realized existed.
While his mouth worked her, his strong body carried them away from the pond. His skin was wet against her, and droplets of water plopped from his hair onto her face.
They reached the tent and he bent, carrying her inside and zipping it up. Then he just looked at her.
She panted, on her back, so much need filling her she couldn’t breathe. Slowly, he settled one knee to her side and flattened his hands over her stomach. Which was so not close to being flat like his. “Sam, I—”
“You’re perfect.” He slid those broad and way too heated hands up and over her breasts, his eyes shooting silver through the green again.
Shouting came from outside the tent from what sounded like a boisterous game of tag.
She paused, mesmerized by the sight as well as the feel of his palms against her. Just lying on her, gently placed, they nevertheless held weight. Power. He definitely had it. As if appeasing himself, just playing, he slowly curled his fingers around both breasts, filling his palms.
The sound he gave was a growl…a dangerous one.
Laughter pealed outside from the area of the grills. She jumped. “Sam. Everyone will know.”
“I don’t give a fuck.” He tightened his hold, shooting sparks of desperate, erotic need to her core. He paused, looking up at her face. “Do you?” A wet lock of hair fell onto his forehead, doing nothing to tame the harsh angles of his indomitable face.