Page 34 of Camping with the Boss

He’s not asleep, but he is already in bed.

“Took you long enough,” he says, and then his gaze shifts away. “I wasn’t sure if you were coming.”

I sigh. “Honestly? I wasn’t sure either. I just needed time, I guess.”

“Time?”

“To talk myself out of it.”

“Oh.” His eyes dart to my face and back down. “And did you succeed?”

“Not even a little.” I gesture to the bathroom. “I’m all sweaty and smell like smoke. I’m going to take a quick shower.”

“Okay. But for the record,” he says, inhaling deeply, “I like you all sweaty. It’s giving my body all kinds of ideas.”

I lean down and kiss him. My hands cup his face as I give in to this need. Just one kiss. But it turns into more. A breathy “oooh” escapes his lips and I deepen the kiss, chasing his sexy gasps.

A whiff of my own sweat has me pulling back. He stares at me, his pupils blown. Do I really need a shower? But another whiff has me pulling away from his tempting mouth. Ireallystink.

I take the quickest shower possible. If he’s asleep by the time I’m done, it’s probably for the best, though I might weep from frustration. But when I return to the room, Canyon’s awake and watching my every move.

I slip under the blanket, and he turns on his side so we’re facing each other. His breathing is fast, like he can’t catch his breath, and his eyes are hot on my face. I touch his cheek. “Hey there.”

He lunges forward, bumping our noses together, and our mouths meet at an awkward angle. He jerks away just as quickly.

“Sorry,” he mumbles as he scoots away from me. I wrap my arm around him and pull him closer.

“Stay right here, okay?”

“I don’t—I’m not?—”

“Shh. I’ve got you.” I brush my thumb over his soft lips.

He doesn’t look at me. “You promise?”

My chest tightens. “I promise.”

He lifts his gaze, and it’s all there. Raw vulnerability. Desire. And stubbornness. “Then prove it.”

Fuck. Even nervous, he’s still such a brat. I replace my thumb with my lips. The kisses are soft and sweet and nowhere near the intensity burning inside me. I don’t want to scare him, but his soft gasps and needy whines ignite a fire that leaves me helpless. “Open for me, sweetheart.”

He opens his mouth obediently. His eyes are trusting. And I tamp down the part of me that wants to dominate him. That needs his utter submission. Canyon is innocent. Vulnerable.

But I also can’t deny him his reward. He’s earned it. “Good boy,” I whisper against his lips as I cup the back of his head and really kiss him. Taste him. Gentle, exploring kisses. Sliding my tongue against his, his gasp draws me further in as he melts in my arms. I kiss him again and again. I hold myself back. I want to ravish him. Own him.

Jared’s words from that first night come back to me. Sharing a room now seems incredibly naive and self-destructive. How can we be in the same room and not give in to what our bodies need?

His eyes are closed and his lips are still parted, waiting for another kiss. I make it count. More insistent than the others. But still gentle. I suck his bottom lip into my mouth, and he moans breathlessly. “Wade, please.”

I sprinkle kisses over his cheeks. His jaw. The edge of his mouth. Slowing everything down. And I hesitate to ask, but I need to know. “Is this safe? Your heart—is that why you’ve never…?”

His body tenses in my arms.Fuck. “I was young. Seven for my first surgery. Nine for my last. And some in between. They repaired the hole. Normally, they take care of those in infancy, but they didn’t think it would get bigger, and then it did.” He rubs his fist against his chest. “My parents were so supportive. They didn’t let anything stop me. After checking with the doctors, they let me be as active as I wanted. I was nothing like River. But I’d camp and fish and hike. I loved being outdoors.”

He gets quiet, and I kiss his shoulder. Reminding him I’m here but not pushing.

“Everything changed after they died. I realized how stupid I’d been. Risking everything.” His eyes find mine. “What if I died and left River all alone.”

“You started being more careful?” I ask, tucking a curl behind his ear.

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