Page 109 of Major Love

And I’d thought that I’d want him to teach me in high-speed, as if we were in an action movie or something, but I relished his unwavering patience and the careful way that he demonstrated each position, moving purposefully in slow-motion so that I’d understand why my body should respond in a certain way, his grip firm and protective as we swapped between offence and defence in the snow.

As my reward for being such a fast learner he laced his fingers through mine and walked us toward his large black snowmobile, reminding me that he’d promised me a ride on it. And seeing as the snow has held back all morning, we decided to seize the opportunity before the inevitable winter storm starts to fall.

He rode us up the ridges slower than he’d go if he was on an SAR mission, not wanting me to doubt the safety of the vehicle when I’m trying to push my fears aside, and I wrapped my arms around his warm abdomen as tightly as I could, my thighs squeezing the sides of his quads as he manoeuvred us through the elevating climb.

And after he killed the engine and wrapped his gloved hands around my thighs, I decided that I wanted to play with him a little.

He heaved himself up off of the vehicle, turned back to help me dismount, and after taking his hand and hopping down, that’s when I did it.

I took off like a bolt of lightning.

He waited a solid five seconds before shooting after me, giving me a decent head-start as excitement sizzled in my stomach.

And what I’ve learned from the past twenty seconds of racing through the pines is that, despite his heaving stature, Jason isfast.

Each step is calculated, his moves are effortless and graceful, and amusement crinkles at the corners of his eyes each time that I turn back to flash him a grin.

And those sexy smile-creases are what distract me for a second too long – making me scream with laughter as he finally captures me, compressing my body against his chest.

Strong forearms band around my waist, tugging me close as he shakes with laughter, and I reach my gloved hand behind my back to playfully shove the sexy smirk off his face.

He laughs harder and squeezes my hips, walking us easily back in the direction of the snowmobile.

“That was good,” he rumbles, amusement lilting his deep voice.

And even with the insane altitude, Jason doesn’t sound remotely exerted. But I’m panting so hard that I have to pause for a second, and Jason caresses my shoulders as he stands behind me, waiting for me to recover.

“How do you run that fast?” I gasp.

“Had something worth catching right in front of me.”

I laugh breathlessly at that, swallowing hard as I calm my inhalations.

“Don’t doubt yourself, Sunday. Seriously, you’re fast. We should come out here in the mornings and we’ll get your speed even higher in no time.”

“You run in the mornings?” I rasp breathlessly.

“On weekends. Just from my place to up here.”

My jaw drops as I turn around to face him. “You run from all the way downtheretohere?”

I don’t know how far we just travelled in the snowmobile but we’re far enough away from his place to warrant an emergency-supplies bag – although Jason promised me that he always takes it with him, no matter the mission’s distance.

“Yeah,” he says simply. “I want you to join me from now on.”

I raise a teasing brow, fighting back a smile at that. “In these mountains? With you and the wolf? Hmm, I think I’ll pass.”

Jason chuckles quietly. “Hey, she’s led me on some good trails.”

My irises flare. “She?”

“Sunday,” he laughs, amusement warming his sparkling eyes, and his palms squeezing my waist as he gathers my body against his.

But then I bite back a smile of my own because I’m suddenly ready to put our hand-to-hand practice into use – or, technically, knee-to-groin, as I back up a step and quickly shoot my leg up.

I mean, he did tell me to try out some moves when he was least expecting it!

But Jason instantly grabs my thigh, shaking with laughter as he spins me one-eighty, and then he presses his stubbled cheek against my jaw and rumbles tauntingly, “You don’t want to do that.”

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