“Did you explain to him how to play nice in the house?”
“Yes. He said he’d try to be more careful, though not in those words.” Jax’s ability to communicate wasn’t as advanced as Emily’s.
Cord set him down, and for once Jax just stood there. She wished she had her husband’s magic touch around the kids.
“How would you like a weekend away from all this?” he asked.
She shoved the casserole in the oven and closed the door. “What planet do you live on?”
He moved closer and nuzzled her neck again, not seeming to care the kids were now silently watching them. “I’ve missed you so much. Missed this so much,” he telepathed as he kissed her neck again.
“Me too.” The desperation in his voice made her want to run away with him this minute. When he sucked on her earlobe, she was close to dragging him into the bedroom, but she didn’t dare leave her babies unsupervised again.
Piper wanted the romance and the passionate sex as much as Cord did. She might not be a shifter, but his bite had brought on all the same urges.
Cord spun her around. “I have a surprise for you.” He told her about some amazing cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains. “The best part is that Jackson and Selena want to babysit.”
Her knees weakened, and she planted a palm on the counter to keep from collapsing. “Are you serious?”
“Yes. Everything is set. We leave tomorrow morning.”
Piper threw her arms around Cord and hugged him tight. Over his shoulder two sets of big eyes watched. As much as she would miss their sweet smiles and cuddling with them at night, she needed to delve into her husband’s body more.
***
Cord was barely able to keep his hands on the wheel during the two-hour drive up to the cabin. The bear in him—or maybe it was his panther side—was urging him to pull off the road and claim Piper since her scent was making him wild with need. He glanced over at her with what he was sure were lust-filled eyes. Piper had on a pair of body-hugging jeans and a tight, red pullover top that was making his feral side go crazy. “I can’t wait to get you naked.”
Piper laughed. “Keep your eyes on the road. I want that too, but I thought we’d relax first. Light a fire, and then afterward sit in the hot tub you said he had, before we rip off each other’s clothes.”
“Spoilsport.” He lightly growled at her, and she laughed just as he’d hope she would. “We’ll do those things, if I can wait that long.”
“Be good. By the way, the turnoff is the next right,” Piper said with the written directions on her lap. She acted as if she wasn’t bursting at the seams for them to have wild, passionate sex, but he’d spotted the quick upturn on her lips when he told her he wanted her naked. She never could hide her desire from him.
He’d hold back rushing her because his wife deserved more romance and some downtime, and he was determined to give her what she needed even if it killed him.
Ten minutes later, they pulled into the driveway of their weekend retreat and his heart beat fast. The cozy log cabin with the two-seater swing on the front porch screamed romance. The single-story house sat on the steep precipice with a spectacular view of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
No other cabins were in sight, affording them total privacy. Yes! He’d be writing a thank you note to the owner as soon as he returned to Hidden Hills.
“Wow.” Piper pushed open the door despite him rushing to her side to help her out. She jogged over to the fence that separated the drive from the dramatic falloff. “It’s spectacular, isn’t it? I love how the rolling hills are all different shades of blues and purples. It’s pure magic.”
He moved behind his wife and wrapped his arms around her waist, her long, auburn hair cascading down her shoulders. “It is.”
She might be speaking of the view, but he was looking at her, still enamored by her silky smooth skin and trim body even after two kids. Everything about her excited him.
She twisted in his arms. “I can’t wait to see the inside.”
Forget the inside. Drinking in her beauty was all he needed. With the hint of fall in the air, he leaned over and kissed her. The moment their lips touched, his cock pressed against his zipper, and his hormones flooded his system. Holding her this close after their long ride might have been a mistake, but he was powerless against his mate’s allure.
Piper groaned, and his promise to keep his hands to himself disappeared. He swept her off her feet and carried her up the gravel drive toward the cabin.
“Cord, what are you doing?” Her laughter made him want to love her even more.