Page 144 of Major Love

He breathes hard as he glances down at me, one hand gently squeezing my waist, and he rubs a soft curl between his fingers before closing his eyes and kissing my jaw.

“Why wait that long?” I whisper back to him, with a little smile.

A low growl rumbles through his chest.

And in less than ten seconds we’re out the door.

Chapter 34

Jason

I carefully manoeuvre the truck beneath the pines, pulling up into the clearing and then killing the engine in front of the cabin.

There hasn’t been any more snowfall since the last load, and there isn’t any predicted to happen during the night, so I’m fine with leaving the truck outside until the morning. Besides, I’ll be back to it in no more than six hours, and this vehicle has withstood temperatures that are way colder than this.

Our drive back from Pine Hills was really fucking romantic, with barely any traffic on the road down the mountain meaning that I could take my hand off the wheel a couple of times – squeezing Sunday’s thighs or caressing her nape while she massaged my biceps, making me chuckle.

Because, even though Riley made her jaw drop at the bar, there’s no way that I’m letting him ruin her night. I’m going to do everything in my power to make her feel better.

As soon as our seatbelts are off, I’m reaching over and hauling her forwards, feeling smile-creases dimple my cheeks as she gets onto her knees and wraps her arms around me.

“Don’t get me too excited,” I murmur as I hunch down to kiss her gently, grunting when her other hand slips up my shirt, my jaw tensing as everything stiffens.

I grip her wrist, restraining her from going further, and give her two more slow kisses, knowing that if she tempts me while we’re in the truck then this night won’t make it past the backseat.

She laughs shyly as I kiss her cheeks, my stubble rasping against her soft skin, and then I’m reluctantly pulling myself away from her and breathing heavily as I step out of the truck.

I close the door and round the hood, laughing quietly when I see how patiently she’s waiting for me, and then she’s beaming up at me like pure sunshine when I pull open her door and reach inside to get her.

My eyes drop to her bare thighs – the flannel that I’d given her to wear on the ride back discarded on the dash because I turned the heating on – and then they trail down to her arched feet, her pretty heels sparkling in the light of the warm-tone sconces at the front of the house.

Then I lift my eyes back to hers, my chest swelling as she peeks up at me.

“You were really strong tonight,” I tell her quietly. “I’m pissed that you had to go through that, but you handled it so well.”

She drops her eyes and shakes her head. “It’s nothing. I should have expected it.”

I crouch further down so that I’m more at her eye-level. “No, baby, you shouldn’t. No-one should have to expect that from a friend.”

She breathes out a shaky sigh, brushing her fingertips over the hem of her baby blue dress.

“Maybe,” she rasps back to me. “I mean, he was a pretty close friend.”

I watch her for a long moment and then lower my voice, asking, “Best friend?”

And her gaze flicks up to mine, her lips twisting to the side as she fights back her smile.

“You mean, wasRileymy best friend?” she whispers, making my blood pump faster as we watch each other.

I clear my throat and rub one of my palms down the side of my quad in agitation. “Yeah.”

She makes me sweat it for about ten seconds before sitting up on her knees again and pulling me closer.

My hands splay across her shoulder blades and the narrow width of her waist, instantly gathering her against my chest as she smiles up at me, cute as a button.

“Not mybestfriend,” she whispers finally, and my body starts feeling heavy, my muscles swelling.

“Yeah?” I ask huskily. “Who was your best friend then, baby?”

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