Page 74 of Small Town Sizzle

Something tells me we’re not getting much sleep tonight.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Maya

“I’ll grab the blankets,” I tell Garrett as I pull away from his melting kiss.

I take a long, deep breath. I need to take a minute to get my head straight. I realize that we already slept together, but I don’t want him to think I’m easy. I groan inwardly and push that excuse out of the way. I’m scared that we’re moving too fast and that I’m going to get caught up in that and ignore the red flags.

In the past, after Carson, all the guys I dated were so great at love bombing, and because I was lonely and not healed, I took that as affection and adoration, when it wasn’t. I don’t think that Garrett is like that, but my track record speaks for itself. Shouldn’t I pause for a bit, give us some space?

His eyes search mine before he moves to grab our dinner mess. I grab the blankets, and then when he’s got everything packed away, he reaches back and takes my hand in his.

“I should have thought this out a little better,” he chuckles.

“You didn’t plan on us coming up to the cabin?”

“I didn’t want to seem presumptuous.”

“What’s presumptuous about hanging out around a fire?” I tease.

“You and I both know that if we’re near each other, snuggled up by a fire, it will move way beyond that.”

“Now,thatis incredibly cocky of you. I don’t sleep with a guy on the first date,” I gasp, pretending to be offended. “Clearly, I sleep with him before he even asks me on a date.”

My cheeks burn as I let the self-deprecating comment slip out without thinking. He squeezes my fingers lightly.

“We don’t have to be on a certain timeline, Maya. There’s nothing wrong with following a primal urge.”

“You’re right,” I sigh. “That’s a bad habit of mine. I…”

“Besides,” he says as he puts his hands up in a fake surrender. “I assumed my suave flirting skills would woo you over and I could have my way with you.”

“My walls are impenetrable, sir,” I flirt as I wink at him.

I’m grateful that he is so easy going and can make a joke to thwart the awkward moment I could have turned that into. I smile back at him. Funny men, men who are playful and flirty, are so damn hot.

He is so damn hot. He’s been so thoughtful and respectful that I can’t see this night ending without us in each other’s arms. I want to take a chance and leap without fear with him.

“Noted.”

We walk up the stairs leading to the cabin’s back deck. I smile widely as I take in the gorgeous view of the lake and the surrounding wooded area. Even at night, the glow of the moon makes this look like something out of a movie rather than real life.

“This is so gorgeous,” I sigh.

“You can put the blankets down on the chairs. I’m going to take this stuff inside and get a fire started.”

I nod, carrying the two blankets over to the wicker sectional that surrounds the fire pit.

I can play this two ways: I could follow him inside the house and start kissing him again, which is what I really want to do. Or I can stay out here and play hard to get and make him work for more.

The thought of waiting for more is agonizing. Every cell in my body is begging to get close to him and stay there.

He is everything I want in a man. His patient kindness and vulnerability with me are rare and endearing. Last night, when he helped me conquer my fear of heights, he broke down the walls around my heart. But tonight, being close to him and getting to know him better, and knowing that he didn’t expect sex at all, makes me feel things that I can’t hold back any longer.

I follow Garrett inside the cabin, unable to resist the magnetic pull between us. As he busies himself with starting a fire in the fireplace, I sneak up behind him and wrap my arms around his waist, resting my chin on his shoulder.

“You know, your suave flirting skills may have actually worked on me,” I whisper into his ear, feeling the rumble of his laughter reverberate through his chest.

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