Just Trust Me…

He was still breathing hard when she said, “Thanks. I seriously needed that.”

“That makes two of us.” He lifted his head and looked at her. When their gazes met, his heart, still slapping against his ribs, seemed to skip a couple of frantic beats at her smile.

“You look flushed,” he said. “And gorgeous. And sexy. And…wow.”

“Dazzling me with those scientific terms again, huh?”

“Just calling it like I see it.”

“Well, I feel flushed. And sexy. And wow. Thanks to you.”

“You forgot gorgeous.”

Her expression turned serious and she shook her head. “I’m not. But I have to say, the way you look at me…the way you touch me…you make me feel as if I am.”

He leaned in for a kiss. “Because you are.”

“Back at ya, Mr. Chemistry.”

“You mentioned having a condom in your pocket-where did you get it?”

“I didn’t just purchase film and water-purification tablets when we went shopping this morning.”

“You bought condoms?”

“I did.”

“But I bought condoms.”

“I know. I just wanted to have some of my own, so if I had the opportunity to drag you off into the woods to have my wicked way with you, I could.”

“I like it. But you could have just taken one of my stash from my bag.”

Something flickered in her eyes, and a dull flush crept into her cheeks. “I wouldn’t want to go poking through your things. So I just bought my own.” A half smile curved her gorgeous lips. “Besides, a girl can’t have too many condoms-you never know when you might need one.”

He’d bought a box of thirty-six-way more than enough for their hike, especially considering that privacy was at a premium. And if she had her own supply…an image of her needing a condom with a guy who wasn’t him flashed through his mind.

An unpleasant sensation crawled through him, cramping his insides. As much as he hated to admit it, there was no mistaking it: jealousy. The thought of her making love with someone else, of her looking at another man the way she was looking at him right now, with teasing warmth glittering in her eyes, along with the lingering remnants of sated arousal…well, he didn’t like it one bit. Not one damn bit.

Something of his displeasure must have shown in his expression because she frowned, then cupped his face between her hands. “You okay?”

Brett blinked away the unsettling image of her wrapped around someone other than him and forced a smile. “I’m fine.” He ran his hands over her bare butt, and hauled her tighter against him, telling himself that the gesture wasn’t as possessive as it felt. “Thanks to you.”

“And thanks to me, we have another condom.” She waggled her brows. “And I’m willing to share.”

With him. Some of the unwanted tension eased from his shoulders. “Sharing is good.”

“I agree. So why don’t we share a cold bucket shower then see if we can’t find a way to share the condom I brought?”

His fingers flexed against her soft skin. “Like I said, sharing is good.”

13

“OH. MY. GOD.”

The words exploded from between Kayla’s lips with what little breath the icy water sluicing down her naked body had left in her lungs. Rivulets streamed down her wet hair, over her goosebumped flesh, and she clasped her arms around herself in a vain effort to stave off the chill. She glared at Brett, who stood-grinning, damn him-several feet away, holding the empty bucket. “That is crazy cold.”

“It’s a little chilly.”

“A little? Feels like it came from a freakin’ ice floe.” She eyed his wet nakedness with a combination of flat-out admiration and deep suspicion. “You didn’t say boo when I tossed a bucketful on you, nor did the frigid temperature rip the air from your lungs. What are you, made of steel?”

“Men possess more body heat than women.” His gaze ran down her naked form with unmistakable appreciation. “Besides, looking at you supplied a lot of heat.”

Teeth chattering, she grabbed her soap and quickly lathered up, watching Brett squat down along the river bank to refill the bucket from the rapidly moving water. A bit of her chill was forgotten when he stood and walked toward her, tall and leanly muscled, deliciously wet from the dousing she’d given him, and clearly not suffering from shrinkage.

When he stood in front of her, he set down the bucket. “Need some help?”

Before she could reply, he cupped her soapy breasts and flicked his thumbs over her hard nipples. Heat instantly shot through her. “You should have warned me how cold that water was,” she said, trying to sound stern, an effort that was lost when her words ended on a low groan as his magic hands roamed her wet, soapy skin.

“If I had, you never would have let me dump a bucket of it over your head. And look at the fun we’d be missing out on now.”

True. There was no way she could deny that his touch was incredible and warming her up fast. In gratitude, she slowly rubbed her bar of soap across his chest. His strong fingers massaged their way down her sore, tired back, dragging a groan from her.

He looked at her hands gliding across his chest. “You’re getting me all in a lather,” he murmured, leaning in to brush his mouth over hers. “In more ways than one.”

Her gaze flicked down to his arousal which rose between them, hard, wet and so very tempting. She moved her slick hands slowly downward, palming the bar of soap, leaving a trail of suds down his taut abs. When she encircled his erection in her slippery fist and gently squeezed, he sucked in a hard breath and his eyes slammed shut.

Encouraged by his response, she grasped him lightly, moving her hand slowly up and down, from the base of his shaft to the tip, while she ran the bar of soap between his legs. A long groan escaped him, and he thrust into her hand, all while his fingers played over the base of her spine, which, no doubt about it, was highly sensitive.

“You know,” she said, her voice husky with arousal, “this hiking gig is turning out much better than I ever thought it would.”

“No argument here. Ahhh…that feels really good.”

“This?” She tightened her fingers slightly around his shaft and circled the pad of her thumb over the engorged head.

“Yeah. That.” His fingers slipped lower, over her buttocks, then between them to stroke her from behind. The soap slipped from her hand and she raised her leg, hooking it over his hip, opening herself to his wickedly arousing touch. Leaning down, he lightly grazed her neck with his teeth. “Really glad you brought that second condom,” he murmured against her ear.

“Me, too. I only wish I had it in my hand right now.”

“Personally, I really like what you have in your hand right now.”

Her chuckle turned into a sigh of pleasure when he eased two fingers inside her.

“Still cold?” he murmured against her neck.

“No. God, no.”

His magic fingers brought her to the edge, but just before she plunged over, he stopped, pulling his fingers from her body and a moan of protest from her throat.

“Hold that thought,” he said, the glitter in his eyes letting her know he knew exactly where he’d left her. He moved to her shorts, snatched the condom from her pocket, then returned. After tucking their towels under one arm and lifting the bucket of water by the handle, he took her hand and led her to the large rock several feet from the riverbank where he spread the towels across the gray surface, then stepped up behind her.

Peeking over her shoulder, she saw him bend down, then a gentle trickle of cold water touched her shoulder, meandering downward, eliciting a gasp. He rinsed all the soap from her body with that same unhurried drizzle,