Night sounds filled the air as the sun set over the mountains. Stars appeared in the sky just as twinkling firebugs appeared in the forest. A soft breeze blew across the valley.

Core picked up a light blanket in case Avery became chilled. She was sitting on the lower level open deck. He strode along the platform walkway above a thick branch. It was the only access to this particular deck. Avery smiled at him when he held out the blanket.

“I was hoping you’d help keep me warm,” she teased.

“The only way to keep you completely warm is to cover you with my body,” he responded.

She lifted the glass of wine in her hand as he tenderly tucked the blanket around her bare legs, then sat forward so he could slide in behind her. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close so she could lean back against him.

“Here’s your wine. This is incredible. I feel like I’ve fallen into a Johann David Wyss novel,” she murmured.

He took his glass and looked at her with a confused frown. “Who is he?” he asked.

“He wrote a story called Swiss Family Robinson. It’s about a family who is shipwrecked on an island. They end up building a home in a tree and fighting pirates. It was always one of my favorite stories,” she explained.

He rubbed his chin against her hair and threaded his fingers through hers. “What makes this tale one of your favorites?” he asked.

She took a sip of her wine. He wasn’t sure she was going to answer him at first. Over the last few months, he had learned a lot about Avery. She was not someone who shared things about herself, even something as innocent as her favorite story.

“I liked that they worked together, and they all survived,” she finally replied.

There was a trace of sorrow in her voice. Unable to resist the need to comfort her, he carefully pushed against her mind—seeking entry. He was surprised when he met little resistance. He suspected the combination of wine and exhaustion was the reason.

A brief wave of guilt swept through him before he pushed it away. He would do whatever was necessary to keep her—even if it meant fighting dirty. She had pushed him away for months, refusing to allow him near her. The fact that she had come here, even with her outrageous proposition, meant that she felt the same connection with him that he felt with her. He was not above using every advantage at his disposal to keep her by his side. He only had three days to convince her that they belonged together forever, and today was almost over.

He remained focused as the faces of a man and woman flashed across her mind. They were laughing. Another image started to form, but it was quickly pushed away. The icy wall that he had grown accustomed to appeared and blocked him. He remained a shadow in her mind when her thoughts changed again. This time she was remembering them making love.

“It is so peaceful here,” she sighed.

He looked across the sparkling river, seeing it through her eyes. It was easy to take for granted the things he saw every day of his life. It had always been a pleasure to live in the Eastern Mountains.

“I ran wild as a boy through these mountains. There is not a tree, cave, or river that Merrick and I have not explored. Our parents finally gave up on keeping track of where we were,” he mused.

“Are… your parents still alive?” she hesitantly inquired.

Core smiled and nodded. “Yes. My father and Merrick’s parents have traveled to Caldara Four to trade. My mother remained here with my younger sister,” he explained. “What about you? Do your parents still live?”

“No, they died a long time ago,” she answered.

He frowned when she pulled away from him and stood up. She walked over to the edge of the deck and stared out across the mountains.

He rose to his feet, his wine in one hand, the blanket in the other. She turned and held his glass of wine while he wrapped the blanket around her shoulders. She gently gave the glass back to him. For a moment they looked into each other’s eyes as he stroked her fingers, then she turned around and leaned her back against his chest.

“Tomorrow, I will show you my world,” he promised.

“I would like that,” she said.

They stood staring out at the night. She was lost in her thoughts, and he was trying to unravel the kaleidoscope of images flashing through her mind. At one point, he moved his hand down to the long scar on her left side.

She had stopped him earlier when he tried to run his lips along the scar during their lovemaking. When he had asked her what happened, she replied that she had been in an accident when she was younger.

She grabbed his hand and pulled it away from the area. A wave of protectiveness swept through him when he felt her brief flash of intense sorrow. The accident that she’d spoken of and the death of her parents were related, he could feel that much through their connection. He would have to be patient until she was ready to share with him. He lowered his head and pressed his lips against a spot near her ear.

“We still have an hour left of the day if you are not too exhausted,” he murmured with a hint of hope in his voice.

She softly snorted and turned in his arms. “Almost an hour! Well, I guess we can’t let that go to waste,” she replied, sliding her hand up his chest. “How would you feel about adding a little more spice this round?”

Avery moaned in her sleep. She stretched and smiled. This had to be the absolute best way in the world to wake up.

“I know you are awake,” Core’s deep voice murmured.

“No, I’m not. I’m having a marvelous dream,” she replied.

She slowly raised her eyelids when his hand paused on her stomach. A moment later, he was leaning over her, his soft, sexy mouth inches from hers. She ran her hand up his hip and over his firm buttock.

“It can become a reality,” he murmured.

She gave him a brief smile, then pushed him away. Before he could stop her, she had thrown the covers back and slid from the bed. She looked over her shoulder at him with a raised eyebrow.

“This is reality,” she replied.

His expression hardened at her response. Turning away, she walked to the bathroom. She focused on her morning ritual, finding a measure of calm in the routine. She had finished brushing out her hair and was winding it into a ponytail when he stepped into the room.

She released a startled gasp when he wound his arm around her waist and picked her up. She looked up at their reflection in the mirror, and their gazes locked. He gave her a sharp-toothed grin.

“I have two days left of hot, mindless sex. I think it only fitting that we start the day right,” he announced.

“I do love a man who honors his commitments,” she purred.

Looking in the mirror, she watched as he bent his head and ran his lips along her throat. A soft moan slipped from her when she felt the scrape of his teeth. She hissed when he sank them into the curve of her neck. Her body’s reaction to his bite was strange. It felt like he’d flipped a switch that heated her blood and sent her desire for him into hyper drive.

“You have no idea what you do to my insides when you bite me like this. I need to bottle whatever it is,” she moaned.

His soft, warm breath swept over her skin when he chuckled. Goosebumps formed, and she moaned again as the fire built inside her. If she thought three days was going to be enough to get him out of her system, she must be nuts. She had never felt this type of intense desire for a man before.

He withdrew his teeth and ran his tongue over the mark he had left. She would have a nice assortment of marks before he was finished with her today. Thank goodness the marks faded quickly or she’d have to come up with some serious stories to explain them away. She gritted her teeth when she felt the hot flush building and her skin became super sensitive.

“You don’t need to bottle it as long as I am here,” he promised.

“Damn you! You know that you aren’t playing fair,” she groaned with a shake of her head.

His chuckle told her that he knew very well what he was doing to her. Their gazes locked in the mirror. For the first time since she’d erected the ice wall around her heart, it was beginning to melt. The fire in his eyes and the feel of his hands and mouth against her skin were threatening to break down the fortress she had created to protect herself.

“Don’t, Core… don’t fall in love with me,” she whispered.

It is too late, Avery. You captured my heart the first moment you held your weapon to my head, his voice whispered through her mind.

She tore her gaze away from his and looked down at her hands as they gripped the edge of the sink. This is what she had been feeling inside her head—he had been there— a faint mental caress that felt so loving and masculine and… it was Core, inside her in a completely different way. She breathed in through her nose and slowly turned to face him.

The burning need inside her was growing along with the despair. She embraced the first emotion and hoped that she hid the second. Lifting up on her toes, she pulled his head down to her for a kiss that begged him to just accept what they had now.