Page 73 of Wild and Wrangled

When he started to move inside of me, he pushed up on his arms again. He thrusted in and out of me slowly, with one hand on the side of my neck. The cool metal of his rings pressed against my neck made me shiver, and we both moaned as he moved. Fuck, we were loud. I didn’t know what time it was, but I felt bad for the people in the room next to us.

I kept my eyes on him the best I could, but every once in a while, they would roll back. When they did, he would lean down and kiss me, reminding me that he wanted my eyes on him.

“That’s right,” he said. “Don’t hide from me.” His hips picked up the pace, and I tried to match him thrust for thrust. The noises that came out of him were obscene. I wanted to memorize them—to listen to them over and over again. “You’re doing so good, angel. You’re doing so good for me.”

His words cascaded over me like hot water. I pushed my hips up into him, trying to meet in the middle.

Dusty whimpered. “Fuck, baby,” he said. “You’ve gotta warn me if you’re going to do that. Oh my god.” Seeing how he reacted made me feel powerful, so I kept going—kept meeting him thrust for thrust. “Just a few more and then I’ll pull out—just a few more, okay?”

“Yes,” I moaned.

“Where do you want me, angel? Tell me where to go.”

“On my stomach, please. I want to feel you.”

“Fuck, there you go again.” His thrusts became more sporadic as he lost control. He sank his teeth into his bottom lip and gasped. His moans and gasps got higher and more frequent—like he was barely in control. “Good god, woman,” he groaned as he pulled out. He took his hand off my throatand grasped his length. He gave it one hard jerk before I felt warmth all over my stomach.

I watched his face as he came, the way he heaved and gasped. God, he was beautiful. His arms shook as he held himself above me. When his eyes met mine after a minute, they were hooded and dazed.

I moved my hand down to my stomach and dragged a finger through the mess there before bringing it back up to my mouth and tasting him.

“Fuck,” he gritted out and then brought his mouth down on mine. “You are so fucking hot.” He kissed me for a while, until both of our breathing slowed. “Wait here,” he said and then got off the bed. I heard water running in the bathroom.

I stared at the motel ceiling, trying to process what had just happened, but my brain was fried. I was just…content. Happy, even. When Dusty returned, he cleaned me up with care before getting in bed next to me and pulling me to him.

He held me close and moved his hands gently up and down my spine as I laid my head on his chest. “You did so good, angel,” he said with a kiss to my forehead. “You’re perfect. You’re so fucking perfect.” I wrapped my arms around him tight.Perfect.I knew nothing or nobody actually could be perfect, especially not me. But with Dusty, I felt pretty close to it.

“I missed you,” I whispered, finally getting brave enough to say it in the dead of night. His heartbeat was against my ear, and I heard it skip.

“I’ve been waiting to hear that for fifteen years,” he said softly.

“Thank you for coming back,” I whispered.

Chapter 31

Cam

Fourteen Years Ago

Ash,

It’s a long one today. I probably won’t be home until you’re asleep.

I miss you. I love you.

Dusty

Istared at the note from Dusty that he’d left on the kitchen counter of our small one-bedroom apartment. We’d been here since we came to Montana in July, and it was nearly November. Dusty ended up getting a job as a wilderness guide for the rest of the summer and into fall. We were planning to stay here for the winter and then try to go to Colorado or northern California for summer.

Seasonal work was…different from what I thought it would be. Dusty loved it. He was so excited to go to new places and try newthings. I loved the joy on his face when he told me about his day and his plans for the future.

He said that they were our plans, but I didn’t know where I fit into them yet. I didn’t feel like I was made for moving around all the time and not having something tangible to work toward. I was missing my outcomes, I guess. I didn’t really have any goals here. I worked at a small western wear store in town, which was fine, but most of the time, I was bored. When I was at work, I wished I was in the apartment, and when I was in the apartment, I wished Dusty was there, but he hardly ever was. He left early and often got home late.

I knew it would get better when the season was over in a few weeks, but right now, it sucked. And when I was alone, the only company I had was my thoughts. Did I make a mistake? Did I ruin my own life by following Dusty?

I read the note again. I miss you. I love you.

I loved him, too. So much. More than I did before we left Meadowlark. Everything about him still felt so right, but almost everything about the life we were living felt…wrong. I lashed out at Dusty all the time—when he left a cabinet open or left his dishes in the sink or left his work boots by the door. In the moment, I knew I was overreacting or taking my feelings and frustrations out on the wrong person, but I couldn’t help it. Dusty was patient with me, but I was filled with shame. I felt like I was trying to sabotage myself and our relationship.

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