Carlise grinned. “Yeah.”
“I want you, Carlise,” he said baldly. “I don’t think I’ve ever wanted a woman as badly as I want you. But not for a one-night stand. There’s something about you that’s gotten under my skin. I can’t stop thinking about you. Wondering what I did right in my life to have you appear as if out of nowhere.”
“I shouldn’t have been on that road,” she whispered. “My plan was to stay on Route 2 to Bangor.”
“But you didn’t. You drove to me. To my mountain. My cabin.”
“Yes.”
This was an important moment. Carlise could feel it. She wasn’t sure what it meant, if things with her and Riggs could ever work out, but she wanted them to. So damn bad.
“We aren’t making love today,” he said finally.
Carlise frowned as she stared up at him.
“I want to. You have no idea how much. But I want to prove that you’re more than a passing fancy. I want you to get to know me. I need you to be sure, because once you let me have you . . . that’s it. There’s no going back, Carlise. Do you understand?”
She did. As much as she wanted to be with Riggs, a tiny part of her was worried that once they made love, he’d want her gone. Taking time to get to know each other better was the smart thing to do. The adult thing. But it still kind of sucked. Because damn, the man could kiss. And if he could kiss as well as he did, she had no doubt making love with him would rock her world. “Yes.”
“Yes what?” he asked.
“We should wait. I don’t want to, but it’s probably smart.”
“And the other? I was serious, Carlise. Once you let me inside your body, you’re mine. Just as I’m yours. I need you to understand that.”
The thought of this man being hers made longing course through her veins. “Yes.”
He stared at her for a beat before taking a long breath in through his nose. “Okay.”
“Okay,” she echoed. After a minute or two, she smiled. “So, are we gonna stand out here all day or go back to the cabin?”
“I can’t move,” he admitted with a small frown.
“What? Why not? Are you all right?” Carlise asked in concern.
He huffed out a breath. “I’m fine. I just don’t want to let go of you. And for the record, just because we aren’t making love doesn’t mean you aren’t sleeping in my bed, in my arms. That still stands.”
Carlise smiled again. “Good. Because your bed is really comfy.”
Riggs growled. “That’s the only reason you like it?”
He was fun to tease. “Maaaaaybe. I also like the way your sheets smell.”
“And?”
“Your pillows are awesome. And I’ve never met a man with an obsession for blankets like you have.”
“And?” he asked again, yanking her against him roughly. She could feel his erection against her belly. Desire shot through her once more.
“And sleeping with a man has never made me feel as safe as when I’m in your arms,” she admitted softly.
He smiled gently. “Damn straight. When you’re with me, you are safe.” He took a deep breath, then let his hand fall from the back of her head.
Carlise immediately missed his touch.
But he made it better when he turned and wrapped an arm around her waist, keeping her locked against his side. “Let’s get you back and warmed up.”
“You were the one who was sick, not me,” she reminded him.
“And I don’t want you to get sick,” he retorted. “It’s no fun, believe me. Although I did have the best nurse.”
Carlise smiled all the way back to the cabin. Things had changed between her and Riggs out at that bunker . . . and she was thrilled. Susie would tell her she was completely crazy and moving way too fast, that she needed to slow the hell down, that she didn’t even know the man. But Susie would be wrong.
Riggs treated her better than anyone ever had, and she knew deep in her bones that he was exactly the kind of man he’d shown her so far. Honorable. Good. Protective. Safe.
At some point, she was going to have to deal with the reason she’d left Ohio in the first place, but she was too busy living in her own romance story at the moment. Maybe she’d write a book about a heroine who gets lost in the Maine wilderness and ends up at a mountain man’s cabin and lives happily ever after.
Butterflies swam in Carlise’s belly. She felt giddy. Excited. Happy.
And it had been a long time since she’d felt any of those emotions. Lately, she’d been filled with apprehension, fear, worry. It was a nice change. A great change.
Her attention was caught by Baxter when he chased some small animal ahead of them as they walked, but he didn’t run off. It didn’t seem as if he wanted to get more than twenty or so feet away from the humans he’d apparently claimed as his own.
“How does salmon sound for lunch?” Riggs asked. “I’ve got some in the icebox that I could cook up.”
“Sounds good. I could make a green-bean casserole to go with it?” Carlise asked.
“Perfect,” Riggs said.
Glancing at him, Carlise saw he was staring at her as he said that word, and somehow, she had a feeling he wasn’t talking about the food.
She returned his smile and snuggled into his side. She was the luckiest woman in the world. She’d go through all the crap she’d experienced in her life all over again if it meant ending up right here at Riggs’s side.
Chapter Nine
The last three days had been both heaven and hell for Chappy. Heaven because he’d never gotten along with a woman so well. Hell because he wanted her so damn badly, and he was doing his best to be a gentleman. To give them both time to be completely sure before he claimed her.
Carlise was funny and smart. She laughed a lot and made him laugh as well. She was also beautiful, she smelled amazing, and she kissed like she was starving for him. He wished they were in a tropical locale so he could see more of her curvy body, but then again, having her curl into him on the couch under one of his blankets was almost as wonderful.
There was something electric about the steadily building anticipation and sexual tension in the cabin. It was an incredible turn-on. Chappy masturbated every time he showered, although it barely touched the lust he felt coursing through his veins.
Yesterday morning, he’d also heard Carlise moaning quietly in the shower, and it took every ounce of his control to keep from joining her in the bathroom.
When they did finally make love, it was going to change his life. Chappy knew it. Carlise was going to ruin him for any other woman—and he was all in for that.
As much as he enjoyed sitting on the couch and reading while Carlise worked on one of her translations, enjoyed talking with her about nothing and everything, Chappy was a little relieved his friends were coming up to the cabin today. They claimed it was to make sure he was truly all right after being so sick, but he knew they wanted to check out Carlise.
They were his best friends, and he couldn’t be upset that they wanted to make sure she was good enough for him. That she wasn’t some user or gold digger. He wouldn’t have the privacy he needed to promise his friends that Carlise wasn’t anything like some of the bitches they’d met during and after their days in the military.
He was actually eager for them to meet her because he knew without a doubt that within minutes of being in her presence, they’d know he was one lucky son of a bitch.