Page 24 of Chosen

My cheeks heated with embarrassment at the admissions, not truly believing them but knowing it was what Damon wanted to hear. A few moments later I could tell that he was coming, too, his hips going still behind me. When he was finished, he lowered himself toward my back, resting his chest against it.

He began pressing small kisses down my neck, around my ear, on my cheek, a tenderness in his every move that made something inside me gently flutter.

8

DAMON

What if I’d gone too far?

The thought was eating away at me as I lay next to Sam in bed. He somehow looked even more beautiful in the morning light, its rays cascading over his skin. I gently brushed my fingers along his arm, my thoughts racing a million miles per minute, barely able to hold onto one of them before another one rushed right through.

What if he never wanted to do this again?

It wasn’t the first time I’d been dominant in the bedroom, but my previous partners had known what I was long before we ever touched. With Sam, it’d been organic, unexpected, something I’d unleashed because I couldn’t help myself any longer. There was just something inside me that wanted to be in control, that wanted to find a way to save him from himself. All I wanted was for Sam to know his true worth, to teach him how to value—

No.

I couldn’t do this to myself. I couldn’t just lie here wondering what was on his mind, trying to read his thoughts despite him being fast asleep. I took in a deep breath before I shuffled out of bed, sighing as my feet hit the bedroom floor. Thankfully, it looked like the lights had come back on sometime during the night. It also looked like the storm was finally over, the ground still soaking wet but seemingly drier than it’d been in days.

When I was finished putting my clothes back on, I headed toward the living room, grabbing my phone off its charger base. I dialed Parker’s number as I took a seat on the couch, my eyes focused on the nearest window, wanting to keep a pulse on if the storm was set to return.

“Damon! Holy shit!” Parker started, right after he picked up the phone. “You’re alive!”

“Did you seriously think I was dead? I talked to you less than 48 hours ago—”

“Nah. I figured it’d take more than a storm to kill you,” he joked. “It’s just been weird not having you around Wild Woods HQ. You’re pretty much our mascot, you know.”

“I see the storm hasn’t changed your incredible ability to be a little jerk,” I joked back. “How are things over there, anyway? Any updates since my last check-in?”

“Nope. Looks like we made it through the worst of it. Lucky us, right?”

“Lucky us until we scope out the place and see that it needs a bunch of repairs from storm damage…”

“Stop being such a Debbie Downer. Besides, people hear about a storm like this on the news and it might make them want to spend more cash to check the place out. See how rugged it is.”

“That’s a good spin.”

“Thanks. I’m pretty proud of it.” I could tell Parker was beaming on the other end of the line. “What about you? Have you been holding up okay?”

“We’ve been fine—”

“Oh. Right. We.” Parker hummed. “Is Sam asking for a refund yet or what? I mean, I know I would, if I booked a solo cabin experience but I’m stuck with some random guy—”

“He doesn’t want a refund, Parker.”

“Not yet.” Parker chuckled. “Still. I’m happy you didn’t drive him insane or into the woods. Not that you’re a bad roommate or anything, you’re just not the greatest when it comes to being chill.”

“Duly noted. Thanks, Parker. Was that all?”

“Hey, you’re the one who called me.” Parker chuckled again. “And no, that’s not all. Jacob is saying we should be able to get a Jeep up to you by tomorrow. You’re going to need it to check things out. Your truck won’t be able to get to some of the areas due to the storm.”

“Right. Jacob.” My face fell as I spoke. “He’s not freaking out about me being gone, is he?”

Jacob was another co-owner of Wild Woods. Where Parker was a smartass, Jacob was the complete opposite, taking his job dead serious. It was one of the reasons he was so good at running the place, seemingly dedicating every free moment to the business. Even though none of us were the boss, per se, it often felt like Jacob fulfilled that role, and he was happy to do it.

“Why don’t you ask him yourself?” Parker said, before I heard rustling on his end of the call. A few moments later, Jacob’s gruff voice was greeting me.

“Damon? You there?”

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