Page 122 of Whispers and Wildfire

“That does sound fun. Especially if it’s going to be hot again.”

Her lips were irresistible. With a gentle hand on her chin, I pulled her in for a kiss, enjoying the warm softness of her mouth and the velvety brush of her tongue.

“You should come back to bed first,” she said between kisses and rolled her hips against me. “So I can thank you properly.”

“You don’t owe me anything.”

“I know. But I want to. I want you.” She pushed herself off my lap and stood.

With a grin—I definitely wasn’t saying no—I got up and followed her to the bedroom.

And it was everything.

Melanie Andolini dressed in nothing but a pair of denim shorts over her bright red bikini, sitting in the passenger side of my Chevelle, was seriously hot.

Hot girl. Hot car. In that moment, I had it all.

I pulled out a cassette tape and pushed it into the player.

“You still have cassettes?” she asked.

“Hell yeah, I still have cassettes. Best way to make a mixtape.”

“What one is this?”

I hit play, and classic rock filled the car. “Luke Haven’s make-out mixtape.”

She turned to look at me, her lips parted in surprise. “Did you have this… back then?”

I gave her a crooked grin. “Haven’t listened to it since. This one was all yours.”

With a slight shake of her head, she smiled.

We grooved to the music as we drove out to a spot on my family’s land, near a trail that led to the lake. The sun was out, not a cloud in the sky, and there wouldn’t be a bunch of out-of-towners to get in the way. We’d brought drinks and a few snacks, along with towels and a blanket. I grabbed most of it, she took the rest, and we made our way down the trail.

The roar of a waterfall grew as we got closer. We emerged from the trees on a secluded beach not far from the falls. The water sparkled in the sun, and the mountains surrounded us.

“I haven’t been out here in so long,” Melanie said as we set our things down on a flat spot near the water’s edge. “It’s so pretty.”

We laid the blanket on the ground and put our towels aside. I peeled off my shirt and Melanie slid her shorts down her toned legs and kicked them off. The air was still, the temperature rising, and the sun baked down on us. The cold water was going to feel great.

I eyed my girl. She was going to feel great, too.

“Ready to get in?” she asked.

“Let’s do it.”

She took a few slow steps into the icy water, gasping at the cold.

“You gotta jump in and get it over with,” I said.

“I can’t. It’s freezing.”

I grinned at her, then jogged a few steps into the water, and dove in.

She was right, it was freezing. The cold hit me like a truck as I glided beneath the surface. But the rush felt good. Letting my feet drop, I found the bottom and stood. Taking a big breath, I shook the water off my face and ran my hands over my hair.

Melanie was still only ankle deep.

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