Page 7

7

Ryan

Hey, Ryan, why are you so bossy? Overprotective?

If you didn’t know before, now you do.

This was why. Why I growled and grumbled and reminded this girl she needed to have some self-preservation.

Because she had none.

The second she dropped beneath the ice, nothing but a splash of water where she used to fill my line of sight, my heart stopped. In the space where my heartbeat should have been rose a rush of dread that threatened to chain me down.

I forced it back by sheer force of will, the despair and extreme panic bursting out of me in a guttural roar. “Rory!”

Not giving two shits that the ice was weak or how dangerous this situation truly was, I lunged forward. The tip of my blades tried to catch in the softening ice, threatening to hold me back. I propelled forward, aware people were yelling behind me but not hearing their warnings.

Rory could barely swim. What little she could was because I forced her to learn and then made her occasionally practice. She could keep herself afloat, but in these conditions? In this breath-stealing shock of water so frosty it would paralyze her lungs and stutter her heart.

I hit my knees, grappling at the edge of the ice where she disappeared. Chunks broke off in my hands, and I tossed them away. The surface of the water was dark and slushy. Without thought, I plunged my arm into the depths, waving it around, trying to catch a glimpse of that fiery hair.

My arm came up empty, and I let out a yell of frustration.

Fuck this. I’m going in. I crawled forward, and the ice beneath my chest gave way. Splash. My upper body hit the water, instantly saturating my coat. I was used to cold water, but this was not that. It was so shocking that my body tried to hyperventilate instantly.

Something heavy and firm locked on to my ankles, and I twisted, blinking through the icy droplets. “I got you.” Jamie assured me. “We all do.”

My brain was too panicked and frozen to know what he meant, but I trusted him, and I dove back in, submerging my entire upper body, frantically searching.

Her white coat and the waving of her carroty hair was like a beacon. She was struggling but had somehow drifted beneath the ice and wasn’t sure which way to go. I went even farther into the water, feeling the pull on my ankles but fighting against it.

Reaching out my hand, I yelled into the dense liquid.

Rory stopped struggling and looked in my direction. The urge to gasp for breath was unbearable, the tightness of my skin painful. I could barely feel my limbs, and my vision was slightly blurred. She reached for me, her movements sluggish.

Hypothermia only takes five minutes to set in, and that’s when you aren’t submerged in fucking ice. It only takes a four-degree drop in body temperature.

The thought scared me so much that it set off a jolt of adrenaline, and I used it to strain forward, catching her sleeve and towing her in.

The second I had her, I moved fast, pulling out of the water, dragging her with me. Her head cleared the surface but rolled on her neck.

Her cheeks were white. Lips blue.

“Don’t you do this to me.” I grunted, hauling her farther up. “I got you, baby. I will not let you go.”

“He’s got her!” Jamie yelled. “Pull them up.”

I didn’t realize until then that I was completely submerged, the ice beneath me completely gone. The only thing anchoring me was Jamie. Clutching Rory, I glanced back. His face was red, eyes focused.

What if he falls in too?

The new panic didn’t have time to sink in its claws because I was towed back until I was on the ice again.

Body quivering, I hauled Rory with me, and then Jamie was there, grabbing her, pulling her completely out of the water.

I rolled the rest of the way onto the ice. A set of hands grabbed me under the arms and dragged me back.

I started to fight. “No!” I yelled. “Get the fuck off me. Rory!”

My body was weak, the wind fucking brutal. I fought anyway.

“Rory!”

“Christ, Walsh! We’re trying to help you.” Coach grunted overhead.

“Rory is safe. Jamie has her,” Max said.

“Jamie!” I roared.

The hands pulling me let go, and I fell onto the hard surface. I didn’t stay down. I lurched up onto my knees.

Jamie was there, carrying a limp Rory.

I started ripping off my jacket, thinking to put it on her, but it was soaked.

“Wes!” I yelled. “Rush!”

Jamie laid her down, and I practically fell over her, grabbing her chin, cursing the saturated gloves on my hands. “Rory,” I pleaded. “Baby, wake up.”

“Move back,” Jess yelled, pushing me aside.

I growled, but more hands grabbed me, pulling me away.

I cussed and kicked as Jess dropped to her knees and started CPR.

I went limp, watching. Praying. “Come on, baby. Breathe.”

Gurgling sounds erupted, and Jess pulled Rory onto her side. I watched her spew water and cough.

Lurching forward once more, I crawled to her side and pulled her into my lap. She was coughing and gasping, the best fucking sounds I ever heard.

“Get that coat off her,” Coach said. “She needs something dry.”

Her teeth were chattering as I ripped the coat away and then her drenched sweater too. Her skin was so pale you could see the blue veins just beneath. It was morbid and turned my stomach.

“Here,” Wes said, tossing me a hoodie.

My fingers were so cold they fumbled, lacking the ability to dress her.

“Let us do it,” Rush said, tugging Rory from my arms. I couldn’t even argue. She needed help and warmth immediately.

The guys closed in around her, pulling off their layers and covering her.

Bodhi, Coach, and Max appeared, pulling off my coat and sweater to jam theirs on me.

“Emergency responders are here,” Landry said, and the crowd formed around us parted.

“R-r-yan.” Rory’s wobbly voice reached me. When her wide gray eyes met mine, I blew out a breath and reached for her hand. I was so fucking grateful she was okay. I couldn’t even find it in me to yell.

Rory managed to walk away with only a mild case of hypothermia and no other injuries. They didn’t send us to the hospital even though I wanted them to. Not for me, for her. They promised there was nothing they could do at a hospital that couldn’t be done at home.

So here we were, back at the chalet and buried under blankets, trauma lattes in hand, and in front of the massive fireplace that Coach kept piling wood into. Frankly, I was beginning to wonder if he was trying to melt the walls.

Oh, what about me?

Bro, thanks for asking.

I was currently suffering from a bad case of fuck-around-and-find-out.

Or maybe it wasn’t me suffering but anyone who looked at my girl, touched my girl, or potentially breathed too much around her.

The adrenaline had long worn off, but my mind had yet to get that memo, still stuck in fight-or-flight. But cross out the flight part.

“Soup is ready,” Jess announced, coming into the great room from the kitchen, a small towel slung over her left shoulder. Her dark hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and there was flour smudged on her cheek.

“I told you it isn’t your job to be cooking for everyone. It’s your wedding week,” Kruger grumbled, trailing in behind her.

She waved her hand. “Ordering in would have taken forever with so many of us. And baked potato soup is easy. It basically cooks itself.”

“It smells really good,” Rory said from beneath my arm. “I can make a salad to go with it.”

I growled, pushing her into the cushions. “Don’t even think about getting up.”

Her side-eye game was strong but still no match for my mood.

“I’ve been sitting on this couch for hours.”

“Not long enough.”

“Madison made a salad already,” Jess told her. “And Landry put some rolls in the oven.”

Jamie appeared with a plate in his hand. “There’s cake too. Better get some before we run out.”

“Jamie!” Madison appeared. “Did you seriously just cut into that cake right before dinner?”

He shrugged. “Feeling downie, eat a brownie.”

All three girls made sympathetic sounds, and Madison rushed over to lean up on her toes. Both hands grabbed his cheeks, and one went to his forehead. “Are you cold from earlier? Did you get hurt after all?”

Bro was such a player.

“That’s not even a brownie,” Kruger accused. Guess he knew the game too.

“Leave him be, Ben. He said he feels bad,” Jess scolded.

Kruger glanced at me, and I shook my head.

Lars came in from the kitchen, carrying a mug, with Win trailing behind him. “For me, it’s more espresso, less depresso,” he mused. Bro drank so much espresso that his blood was probably diluted.

“Good one, bro,” Jamie said, still chomping on cake.

Rory stirred again, sliding from beneath my arm to the edge of the couch. She was so small and this sofa was so big that her feet just hung off the edge with no hope of touching the floor.

It infuriated me.

What the fuck had she been thinking? Racing into a no-skate zone where the ice was clearly fragile and putting herself in danger. She could barely swim, for fuck’s sake. And what does she do? Almost drowns herself. Again.

Didn’t even listen when I told her to stop. When I told her to come back.

Disobedient. Careless. Nothing but trouble.

But goddamn, did I love her.

I couldn’t imagine life without her in it, and today, for a brief moment, it was forced upon me.

“Come here, Jamie. Let me see,” Rory said, making it to her feet.

Shoving the blanket off my legs, I lunged forward, snatching her off her feet and into my lap. “Woman, I’m about to superglue your ass to this couch.”

“Go ahead and try.” She smarted off. “I’ve been sitting here all day. Enough is enough. Everyone was so busy fussing over us that we didn’t even check in on them. They created a human chain to pull me out of that lake. What if they got hurt trying to help us?”

“No one’s hurt,” I protested.

“Well, Jamie is!” she said, wiggling her little ass in my lap.

My eyes fired to Jamie. He blanched.

“I’m not hurt, camera girl. I might have been exaggerating. I just wanted a piece of cake.”

Madison smacked him in the stomach, and Jess hit him with the towel. “After such a stressful morning, you should be ashamed!”

“Yeah, you’ve lost your dessert privileges,” Kruger said, trying to snatch the plate from Jamie.

They ended up in a tug-of-war. Over a piece of cake. Rory started to get up again, and Jess was swinging her towel around.

“This is why I stick to espresso,” Lars murmured.

Phweeeeeeeee!

The high-pitched squeal cut through all of it. “What kind of cockamamie bullshit is going on in here?” Coach demanded.

Kruger snorted. “Cockamamie.”

Coach’s face darkened.

Jamie used Kruger’s distraction to take back his plate and shovel another bite of cake into his mouth.

Rory stood up. I growled. “Emmett, could you please call a team meeting?”

Coach glanced at Rory. “Is everything okay?”

“That’s what I’d like to ask.”

I groaned. “You need to sit down.”

She glanced over her shoulder at me, gray eyes challenging. “I will. As soon as Emmett calls a meeting.”

Phweeeeee!

Phweeeeeeeee!

Footsteps sounded on the stairs.

“That should do it,” he said, going to put some wood on the fire.

Bodhi came in from the kitchen. He had a plate of cake too. “That bakery in town is pretty good.”

The girls groaned.

Jamie used his fork to eat a bite off Bodhi’s plate.

“Get your own!” Bodhi protested.

“It’s not me you gotta watch, bro,” Jamie said. “Kruger will snatch the whole plate.”

Landry and Rush were first in the room, followed by Prism and Arsen, then Max and Wes.

“Is everything okay?” Prism asked, glancing around.

“Everything’s cool, bro,” Kruger replied. “Rory wanted to see everyone.”

“How are you feeling?” Landry asked Rory.

“I’m fine.” She assured us. “But I wanted to make sure all of you are too.”

You know, everyone called me the fixer. Seemed to get it in their head I was the one who knew what to do when things went to shit.

For the first time, I doubted the title. Because for the first time, I wasn’t worried about everyone in the room. The only person I cared about just then was my girl. I had no room to “fix” anyone else. Just her.

“It’s DIY night,” I muttered.

Rory glanced at me. “What?”

“Nothing.”

“Bro, you feeling a little downie? Have some brownie.” Jamie’s half-eaten plate appeared beneath my nose.

I rolled my eyes upward, pinning him with a scowl.

“Not downie, then,” Jamie muttered, pulling the plate back. “Just straight hostile.”

“I’ll try it,” Rory told him.

My eyes damn near fell out of my face.

“That’s what big brothers are for,” Jamie said, scooping up a massive bite that would probably choke her. And then I’d have to give her the Heimlich. Jess would have to do CPR for the second time today.

Whose idea was this vacation again?

Oh, right. Mine.

I caught Jamie’s wrist as it passed my face. Squeezing, I said, “You feed my girl off your fork, and I will stab you with it.”

“Brooo,” Jamie drawled.

“Ryan Stephen Walsh!” Rory gasped. “That was completely uncalled for.”

Phweeeeee!

“Do you think that whistle would burn if I threw it into the fire?” Max asked Win.

“Would probably squeal as it melted. Then Coach would cry,” Win replied.

“Enough. Rory has something to say,” Coach snapped, sitting on the raised hearth.

Bodhi dropped into his lap and offered him a bite of cake. Coach parted his lips, sliding his hand beneath the white crop top up Bodhi’s back.

I thought it might be weird to see my coach with someone, especially someone my age, but it wasn’t. They were just part of the family.

“Please ignore Ryan’s raging bad mood,” Rory told the room, and I grunted. She picked up the trauma latte I’d abandoned and handed it to me with a biting look. Turning back to the room, she went on. “I wanted to make sure everyone was feeling okay. No one got hurt this morning while ice skating?”

“You mean besides you,” I muttered darkly.

She did not acknowledge my words except for the brief narrowing of her eyes.

Around the room, everyone shook their heads.

“We’re all okay,” Arsen told her. “What about you? Are you doing okay? Warmed up?”

“I’m fine, really.” She assured the group. “And I wanted to thank everyone. Everything happened so fast and was so chaotic.”

More like slow and disturbing .

“I didn’t really know what fully happened until later, but Ryan told me that you all formed a chain of sorts… to help him pull me out.”

“Well, almost all of us.” Jess spoke up. “I tried, but Ben threw a fit.”

Kruger made a rude sound. “Final girl, we’re getting married in three days. I’m not putting you at risk.”

Finally, someone with some sense.

Fuck, did I really just call Kruger the sensible one?

“But you gave me CPR,” Rory said.

“Well, I keep up on my certification,” she explained.

“The point is you all did something to help today, and I wanted to let you know how grateful I am. You risked your own safety for mine.”

I heard the catch in her voice. Felt the slight tremble in her body. Throat tight, I palmed her hips and tugged her into my lap, sealing her body against my chest.

“That’s enough,” I said, gruff, pushing her carroty head onto my shoulder.

“Since everyone’s here, let’s have dinner,” Madison said, standing up to usher everyone into the kitchen. Except Carrot, of course. I made hers and brought it to her. I was like Uber Eats but better looking.

A few minutes later, the great room was filled with the entire fam, everyone with bowls of cheesy baked potato soup, salad, and bread.

“This soup is so good my taste buds are gonna need a cigarette after eating,” Win told the room, groaning around his spoon.

Lars muttered something in Swedish that made Win smile.

“Bro. My wife made this,” Kruger quipped.

“She’s not your wife for another three days.” Max reminded him.

“About that,” Kruger said. “Your invite has been revoked.”

“Ben!” Jess snapped. Then to Max, “Of course it hasn’t.”

“So me, Lars, Wes, and Max are going to Midnight Madness tonight.” Win changed the subject. “Anyone wanna join?”

“What’s Midnight Madness?” Rory asked.

“You aren’t going,” I told her.

She sat forward, plunking her bowl on the giant wooden coffee table. Pushing to her feet, she pressed her fists against her hips. My heart clenched just looking at her. “I’ve had just about enough of you.”

“Yeah?” I said, pushing to my feet. “Well, too bad for you. I haven’t.”

She squeaked when I picked her up, tossing her over my shoulder and anchoring my palm against her ass. She smacked my back. “Put me down.”

“No,” I said, stepping over blankets and people on my way out.

“We’re using the hot tub on the middle deck,” I told the group. “It’s DIY night. Do it yourself. See you guys tomorrow.”

“So that’s no to Midnight Madness?” Rush called.

“That’s a hell no,” I said and left them all behind.

“Ryan Stephen Walsh.”

“Keep on saying my name like that, baby. I like it.”

“Well, you aren’t supposed to!”

I didn’t mean to smile, but damn, how could I not?

In our room, I didn’t bother putting her down, just walked into the closet where our open suitcases resided. After plunking her down, I grabbed the bikini she’d brought and then frowned. “Don’t you have a bigger bathing suit?”

“I thought you liked that one.”

I pursed my lips, considering what I planned. “Are you cold?”

She gasped and pressed a hand to her chest. “You mean I get to decide how I feel on my own?”

“Never mind. The hot tub is a bad idea.”

Her wide gray eyes rolled, and she tugged the bikini from my hand. “I can handle the hot tub.”

“It’s outside.”

“The water is probably at least a hundred degrees.”

I spread my legs, dropping my height so I could look into her face. “Would you tell me if you didn’t feel up to it?”

She sighed. Both her hands cupped my cheeks, her bathing suit still dangling from between her fingers. It smelled like chlorine from the last time I’d coaxed her into the pool for a lesson.

What if I hadn’t taught her how to swim at all…?

“Ry.”

My eyes refocused on hers, which were much softer than before.

“I’m sorry I scared you.”

I whispered. “You did.”

Her head bobbed, strands of wild, fiery hair brushing her cheeks. “I know, baby. I’m sorry. But I’m okay. I promise. You came after me, and I’m here. Let’s get in the hot tub. The water will feel good.”

“If you get cold, you’ll tell me.”

“I swear.”

Gripping the hem of her hoodie, I pulled it over her head, bringing the shirt under with it. She pushed her sweats down, revealing her small frame. Her underwear and bra were black, and I wasn’t sure if it made her skin look paler than normal or if it was because she still wasn’t warm enough.

The concern must have shown on my face because she caught my hand and pressed my palm against her belly, flattening hers on top. Her skin was soft and supple, warm to the touch.

“I’m fine,” she whispered. “See?”

Groaning, I reached for her with my other hand, circling her waist with my grip. Having her in my grasp unleashed warring feelings: satisfaction and hunger.

Both were powerful, and both created insatiable need.

She was so alive in my palms, and it was such a relief. But that dark desperation in me whispered it wasn’t enough. That I came too close to losing her, and feeling her in my hands wasn’t enough proof of life.

I needed more.

Her feet left the carpet when I lifted, and her thighs locked around my waist. Her arms wound around my neck, and I was kissing her with the kind of desperation only a close call like the one we had earlier could inspire. I drank her down, feasted on the life in her mouth, and tangled my tongue with hers.

Cradling the back of her head, I scratched into her hair, and she purred against my lips. Her fingers pushed into my hair and tugged as we continued to kiss, only parting once so I could change the direction of the kiss and assault her all over again.

Still kissing, I carried her out into the bedroom and laid her out on the bed. She clutched at me when I tried to pull away, so I pressed her into the mattress, using my body as her blanket. Her nails scraped down my spine and dipped below the waistband of my sweats.

Ripping my mouth from hers, I kissed over her jaw and into her neck. My nose nudged at her steady pulse, and then I kissed the spot, fucking thankful her heart was beating.

She turned her face farther, baring more of her neck. I latched on and sucked hard, harder than I needed to, and her legs wrapped around my hips as she whimpered while I marked her.

I didn’t lift my head until I was sure she would wear my mark the rest of the week, and when it was there, I stared at it with animalistic satisfaction.

Her fingers carded through my hair, and her soft eyes found mine. My heart tripped, threatened to seize, but I held it off, pushing out of her embrace and off the bed.

“Ry?”

“Stay there,” I told her.

She frowned, and I gave her a hard look. “I mean it, Carrot.”

She nodded.

I went out onto the deck to take the cover off the hot tub, turn on the lights and jets, and make sure it was hot. When that was done, I came back in to note she hadn’t moved an inch.

“Good girl,” I praised and then headed back for the closet.

She made a sound, and I stopped in the bathroom doorway. “Don’t get up.”

She settled back, and I rushed into the closet to grab a bottle of lube out of my bag and carried it out to the bedroom.

Her eyes went right to what I was carrying, and the tip of her pink tongue swiped over her lower lip. “Pretty sure we don’t need that.” Her voice was husky.

I laid the bottle beside her hip and hooked my fingers into the waistband of her panties. “Tonight we do,” I told her. “Tonight I’m going to have you as many times as it takes to wipe the memory of you falling through that ice out of my brain.”

I pulled the fabric down until it was around her thighs.

“Tonight I’m going to bury myself so deep inside of you I can feel your pulse. Your body is going to hug me tight, promise you’re still mine, and apologize for scaring the shit out of me.”

“ Ryan .”

“I mean it, baby. The only one who can make it better is you.” I yanked the underwear the rest of the way off, tossing them aside. Then I reached for the clasp on the front of her bra and unhooked that too.

Fuck, she was a sight lying there completely bare, completely mine.

“Can you do that for me, sweetheart?” I asked, dragging a finger down the inside of her thigh, all the way to her knee. “Can you let me have you as many times as I want tonight? Can you give me what I need?”

Her legs fell open, revealing the most intimate place on her body. Her pink skin was already glossy, her desire obvious. “Yes.”

“Yes, what?” I rasped, still staring at her entrance.

“You can have me however you want,” she answered. “Take me.”

Splaying my palms on her thighs, I licked up her middle, making her jolt and cry out. She settled, but I didn’t, burying my face in her core and lapping at her with my tongue. I licked and sucked until her legs trembled and her back arched off the mattress. She cooed and whimpered while I feasted and slowly slid two fingers into her soft, pliant entrance.

“Oh,” she murmured as I pulled them out and speared her again and again.

Her fingers tightened in my hair, holding my head as I finger-fucked her and flicked my tongue over her clit. She gasped, and I lifted my lips.

“Come for me, baby,” I coaxed, burying my fingers deep and curling them in. “Let me hear you cry my name.”

The second I put my tongue back on that sensitive bud, she splintered, body arching so far I had to follow.

“ Ryyy …” she panted, twisting her fingers in the blankets.

I kept at her until she was drained and limp on the bed. Only after did I slide my fingers out and reach for the lube. She lifted her head and furrowed her brows when I popped the cap. I said nothing, just poured a generous amount on my two slick fingers and then reached between her legs, pushing them back inside her.

She made a sound of surprise, and I swirled my fingers around before pulling out and doing the same thing again, making sure her channel was full.

When I was done, I tossed aside the bottle and took off my shirt, using it as a towel for my chin and hand. After pulling off the rest of my clothes, I reached for her.

“What are we doing?” she asked, complete trust in her eyes.

“Do me a favor and keep that in there,” I said, pointing to her thighs.

Her head bobbed, eyes glued to my rigid dick, which was so hard it was fucking painful. The second I got in her, I was going to fucking blow, but I didn’t even care because once wouldn’t be enough tonight and I’d last longer the next time.

I lifted her off the bed, carrying her bridal style out onto the deck.

Cold wind slapped our naked, heated skin instantly, and she shrieked. A fissure of worry hit me, but I quickened my steps to the hot tub where I gently placed her on her feet.

Steam rose off the water that was glowing blue. Bubbles filled the surface as the motor purred. The second I was sure she was steady on her feet, I leaped in, my skin stinging a bit from the change in temperature. Without hesitation, I sat down and then palmed her waist, tugging her forward.

“Sit on my dick, Carrot. I want to be inside you.”

She sank immediately, her warm, wet channel molding around me perfectly. I spasmed inside her, and I breathed deep, trying to get control.

“I guess that explains the lube,” she murmured as water swirled around us. It was hot and soothing, and snow floated from the star-dotted black sky.

I couldn’t even appreciate the view, though, because everything was reduced to my body being cradled inside hers.

She rolled her hips, and I hissed, grabbing her waist to still her.

“You poor baby,” she crooned, brushing her palms across my chest. “So worked up.”

My hand shot out of the water, grabbing a fistful of her thick, wavy strands. As I held tight, my stare bore into hers even as my dick jerked inside her. “How many times are you going to do this to me, huh? How many times am I going to have to dive into water, into any dangerous situation, to keep you safe?”

“Ryan—”

“It doesn’t matter.” I cut her off, not really wanting an answer. “You know why?”

She said nothing.

“Because I’ll do it as many times as it takes. I’ll do anything to keep you with me. I have a lot planned for the future, baby, and all of it involves you.”

“I’m not going anywhere, Ry,” she whispered. “My future is yours.”

“Prove it,” I growled.

Hands on my shoulders, she started to rock, undulating her hips in my lap like the little expert she was. I don’t know how she did it, but this woman bewitched my body and heart and it danced for her and her alone.

She started to lift, but I caught her hips, pulling her back down. “Keep that lube in there.” I reminded her, and she nodded, rolling her hips.

Grunting, I dropped my head on the edge of the tub, and my eyes fluttered closed. The squeeze of her body, the tight fit of her walls, and the way she plucked and pulled at my nipples drove me out of my mind.

Water splashed, but I barely noticed as her rhythm increased and her fingernails bit into my shoulders. I jolted a little when I felt her lips on my ear. Moaning, I turned my head so she could suck. I floated in ecstasy while she worked me over. It took too short of a time to bring me to near snapping as I was already tied tight.

Fingers digging into her ass cheeks, I slid farther into her crack.

She moaned and laid her lips against my ear. “Fill me up, Ryan. Mark me as yours.”

I surged up, sending a wave over the edge of the tub. She bore down, and I shot off, moaning as I spilled inside her, the orgasm going on and on. Even when I was finished, aftershocks quaked my body and left me feeling wrung out and oddly vulnerable.

Wrapping my arms around her, I hugged her close, sinking my teeth gently into her shoulder.

Her muscles tightened around my dick, which was still buried deep, and I hummed in satisfaction.

“How about we stay like this a while?” she suggested.

“Oh, baby, I’m not leaving your body until I get off at least twice more.”

She giggled quietly, and my heart pinched.

“I love you.” My voice was suddenly hoarse.

She pulled back enough so our noses could brush. “I love you too.”

Grabbing her head, I held her tight. “Don’t ever do that to me again.”

“I just heard that little boy cry out and had to help. We were the closest to him.”

“You should have let me go.”

“I weigh less than you.”

“And the ice still broke.”

“But the boy is safe.”

I jerked back. “You think I give a damn about that kid?”

Her eyes widened, and then she tilted her head. “Yes, I do. Because that’s the kind of man you are.”

“You give me too much credit, shrimp. The only person I care about is you.”

“So why is tonight only DIY night?”

“What?” I asked, baffled.

Her lips curled upward. Her cheeks were nice and rosy. Steam rose around us. My dick started to perk up.

“If you only care about me, then tonight wouldn’t be do-it-yourself night. Every night would be that.”

“It’s just a saying.”

“One you mean,” she emphasized.

“They’re our friends.”

“And you love them.” She goaded me.

“What’s your point?” I asked, surly.

Her arms twisted around me. “That you care about more than me.”

“But you most.”

“Well, I care about you most too.”

Who’s the man? It’s me. She said so.

I leaned my head back again, gazing up at the stars peppering the black night. You could see so many of them out here.

“Ryan.”

“I’m gonna marry you someday.” I lifted my head to look into her beautiful eyes. “You know that, right?”

She sighed, her eyes glimmering in the light. “I know.”

“So do me a favor, huh? Could you have some sense of self-preservation? For me?”

“For you?”

“Well, not for anyone else,” I grumped.

She gave me a stern look.

“I’m a selfish man, baby.”

“Over-protective. Bossy. Archaic.”

“Tell me you love me,” I commanded.

“As long as you understand that you are not the boss of me.”

“Well, you’re the boss of me.”

Her lips parted. “What?”

I grinned lazily. “You completely own me, Carrot, and you know it. The least you could do is pretend I have some say in your well-being.”

“I love you,” she confessed.

I mean, this girl was a lot of work. I had to tell her she owned me just to get an I-love-you.

“And of course you have a say,” she asserted. “Thank you for jumping in after me today, Ry. I promise I’ll try to be more careful from now on.”

“Give me some sugar.”

She leaned in, and I kissed her long, languid, and deep.

We didn’t talk again for a long time.