Page 32 of One Last Chance

Kash? Seriously?

Ignoring my body’s objections, I pushed myself hard to my feet. The lights were back on and the pain in my ankle cleared my head. As the damn truck rolled closer to me, I recognized it. I crossed my arms and glared, waiting for it to roll to a stop beside me. The passenger window jerked down.

Kash sat behind the wheel, shock and concern all over his face.

“Kash, you ass! You scared the living hell out of me!”

“Yell my name a little louder, I don’t think your dad heard you. What’s wrong? You said to meet you here.”

“I didn’t say you should stalk me the whole way here!” I yanked the door open and stormed inside, dripping with mud and twigs and god knows what else. I crossed my arms and glared at him, freezing and furious—and relieved.

“I was going to offer you a ride, but I figured you wouldn’t want to be seen getting in the car with me—”

“Oh, like some big truck following me wouldn’t get more attention than me climbing into somebody’s cab in the middle of a rainstorm.”

“You looked right at me, I thought you knew it was me in here!”

“I couldn’t see you through the damn window in the rain, Kash.”

Realization crossed his face, making him wince. “Oh. I thought... oh. Okay.”

I stared. “No, no, finish that. You thought what?”

He was concentrating hard on moving the truck through the downpour. “I thought you saw me and decided not to flag me down. I was leaving it up to you.”

I was shivering too hard to answer, so I just shook my head. Sure, that made sense—if you didn’t know Kash. He took orders just fine, but he had never been one to sit around waiting for them. He used to push Hunter to make decisions, some of them maybe a little bit faster than he should have. His passive behavior made me want to pick a fight with him, but those shivers kept breaking up my thoughts before they could turn into words.

He glanced at me and frowned. “I’ll flip around up here. You should get changed before you freeze.”

“Freezing isn’t the worst way to go,” I said through chattering teeth. “I’ll just turn the heater on. I’ll be fine, really.”

“Don’t touch that!” Quickly, his hand shot out and he grabbed my hand, holding it tight. The warmth of his touch spread through my body. Not enough to stop my shivering, but definitely enough to get my mind going in a different direction. “Sorry,” he said. “This thing’s been sitting under cedar trees for around six years. You flip that switch and you’re going to be in pollen hell.”

“Mm. Fair. Well—it’s really just the clothes making me cold—if I could get out of those, I think I’d be fine.” I kept my tone neutral and didn’t look at him directly, but I could feel his warm surprise and hear his sharp intake.

“Hm, yeah, yeah, that’s true, but um…I mean, the truck’s kind of public, and your clothes will be just as wet when you put them back on. I could always take you back to my—oh, damn it, never mind.”

“Wait, why never mind? That sounded like it was going to be a good idea.”

He growled a heavy sigh. “Leroy. He never leaves that damn desk and he’s a talker. Talks to everybody about everything. Do you know how much I know about Mrs. Jameson’s bunions? Everything. I don’t even know what bunions are, but I know she had to exchange all of her high heels for slippers and she’s mad about it.”

“I don’t even know who Mrs. Jameson is,” I said.

“Me neither! You see? People who don’t even know you will be talking about you if we go there.” He pulled the truck over at the side of the main road, right at the end of the asphalt where it turned to gravel. He put it in park then slung his arm over the back of my seat, turning to look at me. His eyes were full of regret and his mouth looked hungry.

“Not that I don’t want you to get comfortable,” he said, his voice warm velvet. “I’ve missed a lot more than just your smile.”

My heart leapt with such force that it splashed down to my thighs, heating me from my belly button to my knees. His eyes were locked on mine, pupils dilated, irises burning. The rise and fall of his chest was like a magnet. I slid toward him, the dusty bench seat streaking my clothes, and put my hands on his shoulders.

“Kiss me,” I breathed.

He pulled me into his arms as though he’d been waiting for that invitation all his life. His mouth was a comforting fire on mine, all the excitement of a theme park with all the security of my own bed. Bed—God, how I wanted him in my bed. His big, warm hands ran over my wet clothes—then under them. As his skin touched mine I arched, pressing my ribcage to his palm, willing him to go farther. Wanting and needing and craving so much more than he was giving me right now, but yet panting like he was giving me everything. When his lips touched the spot on my neck just underneath my chin, my body heated up a hundred and ninety nine degrees. I wasn’t just on fire, I was burning.

“Kash,” I whispered. He traveled his kisses higher, capturing my mouth with his and sucking hard. I was breathless from his kisses. But if never breathing again was an option, I’d have taken that, as long as it meant his lips would stay on my mine, his body close to mine.

Lower, Kash’s hands traveled, first rubbing the heel of his hands against my breasts. My nipples tightened so hard it hurt to be touched and hurt not to be touched. I felt empty when he removed his hands, but that emptiness didn’t last for long. Cupping me through my jeans, Kash rubbed at my center. I was out of my mind and I knew it, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t just on cloud nine, I was in heaven.

Until I wasn’t.

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