Текст книги "Tell Me You Need Me"

Автор книги: Joya Ryan

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Текущая страница: 7 (всего у книги 10 страниц)

Chapter Eight

Gage paced in his living room and gripped the phone against his ear. He was in Beaufort, training recruits until the next mission came up. He wasn’t banned from going out in the field per se, but he had a commitment to finish the training of these recruits first. A commitment that now fell right in the middle of an unexpected mission.

“I can go in the field anytime,” he told his boss.

“I know, but everything’s been covered. You stay and train, and when you’re done, you’ll be on the next mission.”

Shit. Gage wanted to be out there now. He’d been up last night, listening to the incoming radio transmissions so that he could keep himself from obsessing about Chloe. That was when he’d heard about the group of teenagers missing on the west coast. He’d immediately called his boss, but instead of being sent out himself, he’d been told that the mission didn’t need him.

The feds had stepped in with their team, a team Gage was normally a part of. Only he wasn’t heading to the west coast. He was in North Carolina, training new recruits instead of rescuing people himself. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the other people sent out there instead of him. It was simply that he couldn’t live with himself if he discovered those teenagers died out there. He’d never be able to live with himself knowing that if he’d been there, maybe he could have made a difference.

His chest buzzed with the need to help. To run. To roam.

Yeah, some of this frustration came from wanting to be a part of this big mission. And some of it came from Chloe. She’d opened up even more to him, and then she’d walked away. Which made him happy and uneasy at the same time. The woman was tricky, but he thought she was warming up to the idea of finally exploring the romantic side of their relationship. Or she was setting him up to knock him on his ass when she walked away for good.

He mumbled a curse, unable to really think of that, because the possibility stung his chest. Maybe getting out and getting some clarity would be a good thing? Yeah, like going on a fucking mission. If only he could convince his boss.

“The people in training here are doing well and are pretty set,” Gage said. “I can leave early if you need.”

His boss was quick to answer. “No, stay there, get those NC recruits all trained.”

Gage bit his lip. “I can do more. Let me help.”

“You know as well as I do it’s only a matter of time until someone needs your help,” his boss said. “But the training you’ve done with these guys has shown me you could help a hell of a lot more people if you didn’t run off to do so many of the rescues yourself.”

Gage’s heart punched his chest. “What the hell is that supposed to mean? You think I’m not the right man to rescue those people?”

“Calm down. You’re one of the best we have, which is why a lot of higher-ups, including myself, are anxious to put you in a permanent training position.”

Gage’s stomach sank. “What?”

“The North Carolina branch could use a man like you to oversee the training program.”

This wasn’t happening. It wasn’t enough. It would never be enough. He couldn’t root himself to Beaufort and never take a mission. He had to make an impact. How would he live with himself if he heard someone died while he’d stayed behind?

Hell no.

“I’m a field man. I don’t mind doing the training here and there, but I’m not going to only train.”

“There’s more than hitting the field,” his boss said. “You have the level head to deal with these types of situations and delegate the right teams to the right missions, which is essential to search and rescue.”

How had this conversation turned into trying to keep Gage at a glorified desk job? He wasn’t trying to diminish the work people like East did, and yes, his boss had a hard job, strategizing the best plan and team for certain jobs. Gage could do that…but at what cost? How would he handle hearing about people they lost on missions and never knowing if he would’ve been able to save them?

“I’m honored you’d think of me,” Gage said. “But that’s not what I am. That’s not who I am. It’s not how I’m built.”

“Sounds like you’ve made your decision. Keep doing what you’re doing.”

“Well, let me know what missions come up. I can be there—”

“I know. But you need to finish training the volunteers,” he said and hung up.

Gage gritted his teeth as he resisted the urge to throw the phone. He stared at his suitcase in the corner of the room—he’d never even unpacked.

Who the hell was he to think putting down roots would ever be a good idea?

His plan was crumbling, and if he didn’t regroup, it would all fall apart.

“So is this part of your grand plan?” East asked, coming to stand by Gage.

Gage hovered near the bonfire on East’s property, glancing across it to look at Chloe. After his earlier failed attempt to get his boss to send him on the rescue mission, he’d gratefully accepted East’s offer to join him and his many other friends for a barbeque. If he couldn’t be out on a rescue mission, he’d focus on the mission he’d come here to finish. Because truth was, Chloe hadn’t reached out to him since their date the other night.

Something in his heart had shifted that night. When he thought about the situation he’d put them both in, he had a hard time breathing. The possibility of leaving was more difficult to swallow than before, but so was staying.

“You’re just going to stare her down without saying anything?”

“Maybe,” Gage said. He had a plan. But after their date the other night, he was feeling less at ease about it. What had felt like a win-win was getting more complicated. He’d been so focused on what it meant to be with Chloe that he’d pushed one big issue to the back burner.

Staying.

And thanks to his boss, he now had the word at the forefront of his mind.

The word made his damn mind do somersaults. He wanted a lot of things, but Chloe was at the top of the list. After having an amazing evening with her, then another, he wanted to spend all his free time with her. So why did the idea of sticking around feel so heavy?

Maybe because it’s becoming more real…

And therein lay the snag she’d been warning him about from the beginning. It had nothing to do with wanting her—just the logistics of keeping her. They’d spent every encounter up until the other night in a fantasy world. It’d always been temporary, but now he didn’t have to leave. This time, whether he stayed or went was a choice—and it was daunting as hell.

He drank his beer. The night was beautiful—clouds hung low, and the smell of impending summer rain was in the air. But East was right. While Gage was pretending to look at the bonfire, he was really staring at Chloe standing across from it.

“Speaking of staring,” Gage said, changing the subject. “The cute girl in glasses keeps glaring at you. What’s going on there?”

East laughed. “Ah, sweet Natalie. She’s hated me since we were kids.”

Come to think of it, everyone there knew each other. Likely had for a long time. For a while, Chloe had been one of the few people Gage hadn’t been familiar with. And then that had changed. She’d gone from the intimate stranger he had casual sex with and instead had become…

That was the hell of it all. He had no idea what she had turned into. Or what she would become. What they would become. All this time, he’d assumed that if she just gave them a chance, they’d automatically see how well they fit together.

But his brilliant blackmail plan was biting him in the ass, because now he was messing with something he might not be able to get out of: a commitment to staying.

I can commit to a woman, but not a place…

That little gem of truth his buddy had laid down on him earlier was now pulsing harder than ever in his brain.

“Word around is the head of the Carolina Search and Rescue core retired and they’re looking to replace him. Rumor is they even offered this job to a specific person and still haven’t heard if said person is going to take this job.” East eyed Gage. “Hmmm, I wonder what this mysterious person will choose…” He tapped his beer and grinned at Gage.

Gage nearly knocked his friend flat on his ass. “So it was you who told the boss it should be me in the training position.”

East shrugged. “All I said was we should look for the right person.”

“This person is probably thinking training instead of searching is bullshit.”

“It’s a job, dude,” East said. “A good one. One you enjoy and you’re good at. This isn’t a hard choice.”

“I enjoy my job now. This new gig would be less fieldwork and more overseeing, scheduling, planning, and training.”

“Which you’re good at since you’re a tight-ass who always has a plan.”

Gage hit his friend with a hard look, and East held up his hands. “Don’t get your panties in a wad. I’m just telling you what I see. But I’d hate to offend your delicate feelers and get on your shit list.”

“My shit list is color-coded, asshole. And yeah, you’re officially on it now.”

East laughed. “Of course it is. Well then, in the spirit of friendly advice, maybe put down the spreadsheet and think about what you really want.”

“That’s what I’ve been doing.” Gage glanced back at Chloe. But it wasn’t as simple as what he wanted, because what he wanted conflicted with how he operated. He was a man on the move all the time.

“Any epiphanies?” East asked.

Gage shook his head. “No.” What he wanted hadn’t changed, but the way to go about it had. Maybe he needed more time. Staying wasn’t an option, but coming back regularly was. Keeping with his current routine was best. He got to come into town and be with Chloe. Hopefully more often, assuming he could convince her dating wasn’t so bad.

Either way, he could have Chloe, right?

For the first time, he wasn’t sure. This wasn’t a weekend in and out. This was more time, which was creating more of an attachment. It’d be so much more difficult to leave now, and yet staying terrified him.

“There’s a lot I have to consider,” Gage said. “I don’t have enough data yet.”

East shook his head. “So you’re going to continue pursuing Chloe until you gather your data?”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing. I like her, so either way—”

“Either way, this could end badly,” East said.

“Since when do you know about pursuing relationships?”

“I openly admit I know nothing about relationships, and I’m good with that. But I know a lot about the pursuit. And trust me when I say you’re doing it wrong.”

Gage sighed. He wasn’t doing it wrong; he was being smart. Diligent. He was trying not to think with his dick, otherwise he wouldn’t have been blackmailing Chloe the way he was. So what the hell was East talking about?

“You going to tell her about the possibility of staying?” he asked.

“No, because I’m not going to be a trainer. And I don’t want to put that kind of pressure on Chloe.”

She already hated the notion of commitment longer than a weekend. If Gage moved here full time? He wasn’t prepared to see the terror on her face with that admission. No, he’d stick to his mission of getting her into a long-distance relationship. If she didn’t tell him to fuck off first…

And we’re back at square one.

“Still something to think about,” East said.

He drank and looked at Chloe again. He could get a grip. Find a balance and deal with this situation. If he used this time wisely, really slaked his need for her, at the end of this stay it’d be easier to leave for both of them. Hopefully she’d want him to come back. Hopefully she’d wait for him.

Or maybe he was insane.

“More data,” Gage repeated. It was all he could cling to. Getting lost in Chloe for a week or two was a hell of a good way to spend his time—and it’d clear things up in the process. At the end of his time here, he’d have a good idea of what Chloe wanted…and whether he could provide it.

Or maybe he’d hit the road for the next mission, and this time, she wouldn’t wait for him to come back.

And if that was the case, could he really blame her? He wanted Chloe to want and miss him, but he couldn’t stay. Which made him a special kind of asshole.

No…you’ve been honest. Haven’t over-committed to anything.

He wanted her for the time he was there to see where it went. But now the follow-through was getting slippery. He’d gotten a glimpse of the real Chloe the other night. And yet…

“Look, I don’t know what your deal is, but staying isn’t so bad,” East said. “Having some roots and a nice girl to come home to sounds great to me.”

Gage snorted. “Says the town playboy.”

“Why do you think I stay? There’re a lot of pretty women around these parts.” He winked. But Gage didn’t miss the way East shot a glance to the chatting brunette in glasses across the bonfire.

Despite his best intentions, Gage knew one thing still to be true: he was capable of committing to a woman, but not a place. But between their sexy mock search and rescue and her inviting him to her restaurant, he had to hope he was gaining ground.

Chloe finally tossed him a smile, then quickly glanced away. So he was in her mind. He was in her thoughts. And if the way she’d begun to open up to him was any indication, he was close to being in her heart.

That was enough to work with.

There had to be a way to have Chloe and freedom.

“Hottie McSearchy keeps staring at you,” Natalie said to Chloe.

Michelle leaned into the huddle they had going on and peered over the fire. “Which one is he?”

“He’s the one in the black T-shirt with the black hair and black eyes,” Natalie said. “Basically, he’s the tall, dark and buff one.”

“Thanks, Nat,” Chloe mumbled and sipped her beer.

East’s summer bonfires were casual and frequent, and Chloe hadn’t expected to see Gage. But…she was kind of happy to see him. The last couple of days since their date had left her thinking about a lot of things she shouldn’t. She was trying to focus on preparing for the anniversary event, yet her mind always drifted back to Gage.

How he made her feel safe whenever he held her. How he mastered the art of being intense and casual all at the same time. How he made her think…made her want. Yeah, Gage made her want a whole hell of a lot. Like more. Not that she’d ever really admit that to him, or herself even.

“And who is that?” Michelle pointed at the guy next to him.

“Easton Ambrose,” Natalie said with a huff. “He’s annoying.”

“And handsome,” Michelle said.

Natalie’s head snapped up, almost like she cared. Interesting. It was no secret East had a reputation with the ladies, and Natalie had…her cupcakes.

“Well now that we’ve addressed everyone’s staring problem…” Chloe nudged Natalie’s shoulder.

“Hey, as far as I can tell, the guy drooling at you from the other side of that inferno is the one with the problem,” Natalie said.

Yeah, Chloe was aware of that problem, because she was having some herself. Like thinking too much about him. Which needed to stop. Though the other night had been more real than any she’d ever spent with another man, and her dress had stayed on the whole time. Their date hadn’t been a fantasy. It’d been…normal. Like a relationship. And she’d actually liked his company.

She shook her head and tried to get her thoughts clear.

Keep it fantasy, not reality.

“Oh no…” Michelle said softly as a big fat raindrop beaded Chloe’s hair.

There was little more warning than that. The clouds unleashed gallons over all of them and beat down on the fire, sending everyone scattering to their cars or inside East’s house.

“I was going to take off anyway,” Natalie said loudly, unconcerned about the rain.

Michelle ran up to them, the poor girl’s perfect hair now a soggy mess. “Can I get a ride with you?” Michelle asked, and Natalie nodded. Chloe tossed her empty beer bottle onto the extinguished fire and headed for the car.

“Not afraid of the rain?” Gage asked from behind her. He held up his jacket like an umbrella and covered her head with it.

“It’s water. Nothing scary,” she said.

Water she wasn’t worried about, but Gage getting closer? Much more nerve-wracking. He was the one man who made her heart shake in her chest, and the closer he came, the less she could deny how she felt about him. And that terrified her.

She looked into his intensely dark eyes. With the orange glow of the fire gone and the clouds muting the light of the moon and stars, Gage’s gaze slid over her skin like a touch she wanted to get lost in.

She knew better, but he was her drug, and with him in front of her, she couldn’t say no.

She took a step forward, stood on her toes to kiss him—

“Ah!”—and fell right on her ass in the mud. “Oh, God.”

Gage smiled and bent to help her up. Mortification surged through her like hot water. This was nowhere near a fantasy. This was real and embarrassing, nothing sexy about it.

She moved to run away, but Gage caught her arm. “I thought you weren’t afraid.”

Right then, with his hand on her skin and his gaze searching hers, fear buzzed in her chest. But it wasn’t the rain, or even him setting it off—it was something deeper, something she’d been denying for weeks.

She couldn’t do this. She couldn’t stay. It was getting too real.

“I’m not. I’m fine,” she fibbed and hustled away. Gage caught up with her near the tree line before she reached her car. Everyone had left. A few people were inside East’s house. Gage closed in, the splattering sound of his boots tromping through the mud made her skin buzz. His entire presence was engulfing her.

He pressed against her. “When are you going to stop running?”

“When are you going to stop chasing?”

He stared at her for a long moment, uncertainty in his normally confident gaze.

“What if I said I wanted to keep chasing you for as long as I was in town?”

“I’d say you’re crazy.”

He dropped his coat, and the rain pelted them both. Even beneath the tree and in the darkness, she felt him. Smelled him. Wanted him.

“You come in and out of town,” Chloe said. “Anything longer than a weekend complicates things. Don’t you see that?”

He nodded, and Chloe arched an eyebrow. He was agreeing with her?

“What if complication was a consideration?” he asked.

“It doesn’t work that way, Gage.” She wiped her brow and moved her hair off her face as rain streaked down from the top of her head to her neck. “You come in for a weekend, we have a good time, and you leave. That’s worked well for us, but anything longer comes with…”

“Strings?”

Truth was, she was more attached to him than ever—and it terrified her. The more she felt for him, the more power he had over her emotions. Her heart.

Distance had provided an excuse before, but now he was standing in front of her, in her town for a few weeks, and she wanted to touch him all the time. She could think of little else—which was a problem. She was dangerously close to handing her heart over to a man for him to do as much or as little with it as he wanted.

And then, after everything, he would leave.

“We have great sex,” she hedged.

Gage frowned. “Can you look at me right now and say this is still just sex to you?”

She pursed her lips. No, this was absolutely more than sex, but she couldn’t say that.

“This is why I don’t date,” she whispered.

He ran his fingers over her cheekbone. “It’s only been a week.”

“It’s more than that.” It was the past two years. It was the way he looked at her, the way he tapped into every fantasy she had, the way he gave a damn. The way he made her cave.

She’d given in to him, and deep down, a raw part of her heart was already at his mercy. But there was no way she’d admit it.

No, she needed to get out of this wet, increasingly real moment. Now.

But when she tried to pull away, he grabbed her arm and stopped her.

“Don’t look at me,” she said.

He cupped her chin and lifted her face. “Why?”

“I have makeup everywhere and I’m all muddy and—”

“And you’re still gorgeous.” He took her hand. “Stop running, Chloe. Let go so we can fall together.”

She didn’t know exactly what he meant, but he took her several yards away from the house and down a small hill as the rain pounded on their shoulders. When they reached the crest, he tugged her with him and slid down the muddy hill.

She screamed and laughed, and Gage was right there with her.

He rolled over to face her, covered in mud and grinning ear to ear. “See, dirty isn’t so bad.”

“Maybe you’re right.” She scooped up a big handful of mud and slapped it on his cheek.

“Oh, you’re going to pay for that, sweetheart.” He smeared mud on her thigh.

“Oh, it’s on now,” she said and leaped on him.

He hit his back on a thick patch of grass. She straddled him, but instead of searching for mud, she gripped his shirt and kissed him hard. The thick scent of rain and grass surrounded them. Her clothes were plastered to her body, and she wanted to peel them off and feel his skin.

The heat was too much to bear. It burned up every ounce of willpower she had. She wanted—needed—to feel him closer. Experience him again, because he was better than any roller coaster and gave her an incomparable adrenaline rush.

Gage caught on real quick and kissed her back. There in the sopping grass, she tugged on his shirt, and he hiked up her skirt. His hands slapped against her ass and flecks of water tickled her skin as he ground her body against his.

“Is this still reality or fantasy?” He pulled her bottom lip into his mouth.

“Both,” she murmured. She floated somewhere between the ground and sky, between emotions and lust. She couldn’t stop, and she didn’t want to—she needed him.

He ran his hands from her thighs, up her back, and then cupped her neck. He tilted her head and kissed her hard. Plunged deep to taste her, worked her lips with his powerful tongue. He relaxed further into the grass, grinding against her and sampling every inch of her mouth. His every muscle was straining and taut beneath her. The ridge of his hard cock pulsed between her legs while his biceps and abs flexed and cut out of his skin.

He was fighting something within himself. She sensed it. Felt it. As if content with having her stay right there with him, while also fighting the urge to push. But push for what? Push her for more? Or push her away?

She slowed her kiss, ready to ask if what she was reading from his body was right, but he didn’t let her get a fraction from his mouth before he yanked her back.

“Don’t move away from me. Not tonight.”

“What’s happening, Gage?” she asked. Because something was happening. With him. With her heart. With their relationship.

“I’ll have to leave at some point.”

“I know,” she whispered against his mouth. He had missions to go on. But he held her like maybe he’d come back. Like he’d just travel for work for a few days and that was it. Not the end of the world surely. Or maybe she was reading into his hold on her. Maybe she wanted him to stay more than she’d realized.

“You’re here now,” she offered.

“Yes, and this is where I want to be.”

That was all she needed to hear. Gage wanted to be here. With her. That was something, right?

Chloe nodded and found his mouth with hers once more. She wasted no time unfastening his pants. Keeping his hot kiss on her, he reached between their bodies, grabbed a condom from his pocket, and slid it on. She couldn’t wait any longer. She was starved for him, and he wanted her, too. Wanted her to stay.

“Gage,” she whispered. She moved her panties aside and surged down on him, hard and fast and dirty.

So dirty, and she loved every single second.

“Fuck, baby, yes,” he groaned. With one arm wrapped around her middle and fusing her to his body, the other reached up and yanked down the top of her dress. Cool rain pelted her sensitive breasts, hitting her nipples and beading them so hard she moaned.

“Don’t you dare stop.” He pulled her down even further on top of him until her breasts bobbed above his face. He latched on, sucking the entire peak into his mouth. She gripped the grass on either side of his head and bore down. Rocking back and forth in hard, distinct thrusts, keeping him deep while hitting every internal nerve.

“Stop?” She whipped her hips again. “I’m just getting started.”

He grinned and bit her nipple gently. She gasped—the sting of his teeth and the rain pelting her skin lit her up like a bolt of lightning hitting the ocean.

Her knees dug into the soft wet ground as she moved over him. She shifted her hips to take him deeper. Everything fell away when she ground down so hard the tiny bundle of nerves pressed against his pelvis and his cock rubbed that perfect spot inside.

“Oh God.” She whipped her hips again. “Oh yes, right there.”

“Making yourself come on me already, sweetheart?” He gave a final kiss to her breasts, then threaded his hand in the back of her hair, bringing her face to face until the tips of their noses touched. “Do it. Use me to make yourself come. Let me feel it.”

She was helpless not to. He was giving her power to take him. Use him. Feel him. And she would. Because reality or fantasy, she had him right now. All his strength and power was under her, and she was clinging to it. To him.

Her inner walls tightened, her stomach fluttered and tensed as thick lava climbed her spine…

“Thatta girl. I feel you. You’re right there. So fuckin’ sexy, sweetheart.”

His dark rasp was all it took to kick her release over the edge. Her body cracked and popped with an orgasm so intense it felt like she’d been shot from a cannon. Over and over she gripped him, seeking more but on the brink of too much.

This right here, as he looked into her eyes and they moved in sync, this was more real than ever before. This was the connection she’d been running from for so long—and now that she’d had a taste, would anything less be enough?

He growled her name and lifted her up, spinning her and pushing her back against the ground. Blades of grass scratched her skin while Gage’s hot flesh pressed against her front. His massive body mostly shielded her from the downpour, and his dark eyes practically glowed in the night, like a predator. Like a man on the brink of devouring her.

“Don’t you dare stop,” she said, repeating his command to her. She bit his ear as she threw her hips up to take his length in and out of her. “This is what I’ve wanted.” She grabbed his ass, digging her nails in, and he groaned to the sky.

“You make it hurt,” he said, so much pleasure lining his voice.

“So do you.”

“Do you like it as much as I do?” He thrust hard back inside her.

“Yes…maybe more.”

“Impossible,” he whispered into her hair, then kissed her. His wet chin scraped against hers and the prickle of him taking up every inch of her body was consuming.

In and out he took her, each surge inside more powerful than the last. He drove his arms beneath her shoulders and wrapped her in a hug, clutching tight as he worked faster and faster.

She gasped his name as another release spired through her body like pop rocks in soda. He held her so tight that she thought he might never let her go.

“Chloe…there’s got to be a way.” He groaned as his body stiffened, and he gripped her even tighter as his release flooded him. He shuddered against her.

There’s got to be a way?

What was he getting at? Was he saying there must be a way for them to be together? To make this work? To date?

She wasn’t sure, but as his strong chest rose over her, she knew no matter what was possible, reality always won out.

As they caught their breath, she opened her eyes to rain crashing down on them. This wasn’t a fantasy. This was real. And she had no idea how to get out.

Gage unlocked his front door and ushered Chloe inside. They were both caked with mud. He’d never felt more alive than when he was inside her, surrounded by nothing but nature and her skin. His back still hummed from where the rain had hit him as he drove in and out of her.

Elemental, primal, wild.

Everything he experienced with her tapped into the next level of need. Any time, any place, he wanted her—and he didn’t want to give her up.

His plan was becoming heavier by the second. His team was out there without him when he ought to be out there helping them find those people—how was he supposed to give that up?

Gage shook his head—he’d deal with it later. Every moment spent with Chloe pulled him deeper and deeper into a situation he wasn’t sure how to tackle—but he couldn’t stop. Not now. Not when he’d already come this far.

He needed to show her they could work while he was here. That even when he left, they could still have a relationship of sorts when he was away. He’d visit more often, stay for longer periods of time. Surely he could make that good enough and have it both ways…

“Come here.” He walked her into the bathroom, turned on the shower, and faced Chloe. “I really want to say something about you being such a dirty girl…” He smiled and tugged on her sodden dress. Mud streaked all over her legs and in her hair. She looked like a wild Amazonian goddess.

“If you did, I’d counter with you’re the one who makes me dirty,” she said lowly.

“Is it bad that I like that?”

She shook her head. “No, I like it, too.”

He took off his shirt, then his jeans, and when they were both naked, he led her under the spray of the water. He lathered up soap in his hands and washed her neck. His thumbs slid along her jaw, massaging and cleaning away the mud.

It was incredible how she responded to him. They were naked, yet this wasn’t sexual. It was almost…nurturing. He was happy to just touch her. Revel in her beauty and wash her. Keep her close.

“So, we both want to be dirty together,” he started. “Why don’t we?”

She peeked open an eye. “What?”

“Give in to me,” he whispered.

“I gave you your date. And romance.”

“I know. But I want more.” His hands roamed from her chest to her arms, spreading the bubbles. “I don’t know when I’ll be called out on the next mission, but I want you to spend however long I have left here with me. We can—”

“Pretend there’s more between us than there actually is?” she snapped.

“That’s where you and I differ. I know there’s more between us.”

“There can’t be,” she said. “You know how bad that’d be.”

“So you want to keep doing what we’re doing without ever exploring more?”

Her wide eyes searched his face. She wanted to say something—it was on those pretty lips, but she held it back and glanced away. He grabbed the soap and placed his lathered hands on her chest.