He was cursing his sister as he and Emmie made their way up the gently sloping trail on Monday morning. He’d had days and days of teasing Emmie with no relief for him or her. He was trying to follow his big sister’s advice for once, and it was damn near killing him as he watched Emmie’s excellent ass sway in front of him. She was wearing jeans that hugged her hips, a long-sleeved thermal, and a heavy padded vest to ward off the bite of winter that was already descending in the mountains.

“Just do me a favor,” Melissa said. “Don’t sleep with this one right away. Just try it for once and see what happens.”

“Sexual chemistry is important. If we’re not compatible—”

“Be honest. Do you really think you and Emmie might not have chemistry?”

He hadn’t had an answer to that one. It was pretty obvious to everyone around them that they did.

“Just take your time and get to know her first. Sex is awesome, but it can cloud everything up. If you really like this woman, then spend some time getting to know her outside of bed, Ox. Trust me, it’ll be worth it.”

It better be fucking worth it. He wanted to pull Emmie off the trail, shove her against a tree, drag her jeans down her legs and—

“What is that?” Emmie pointed at something off the deserted trail.

Ox paused at her side. “The pinecone?”

“It’s as big as my arm!”

Ox grabbed it from the bushes. “It’s a sugar pine cone.” He held it up. It was a giant cone and nearly perfect. Ox placed it on a fallen log on the side of the path. “The squirrels need it. Winter’ll be here soon.”

“Is that why most of them are all torn up?” Emmie kicked a shredded cone with her foot. “Squirrels?”

“Yep. They eat the seeds.”

“I’ve never seen a pinecone that big.” Emmie took it and held it up. “Are sequoia pinecones huge like that?”

Ox smothered a smile. “Well, sequoias aren’t pines. So they’re called sequoia cones, not pinecones. And you really didn’t spend any time in the mountains as a kid, did you?”

Emmie shook her head and put the cone back on the log, brushing her hand off on her jeans. “Bookworm. I didn’t like the outdoors, and my mom was always playing gigs. My grandma was running the shop. We didn’t do mountains.”

“Tragic.” He grabbed her hand. “But we will remedy that.”

“My thighs are killing me.”

“You’re doing great.” He squeezed her hand. “You’re a natural. Once I got you looking up from the book, you haven’t tripped once.”

“That guide book was really good. It had all sorts of stuff about the history of the national park and the conservation efforts that—”

“But you would have missed that sugar pine cone the size of your arm if you hadn’t been looking.” He shook her arm. “Right?”

She sighed and kept walking. “I’ll read more later. I need to expand the outdoor section of the shop. I had a tourist in last week asking about hiking maps for the national park.”

They walked along the wide path for a few hundred yards, enjoying the silence and occasionally passing a fellow hiker, but for the most part the trail was deserted. Summer in the Sierras was crowded with tourists from all over the world, but in the fall and winter, most traffic died off. If they were lucky, the rain and snow would come early, and cut off much of the Sierra Nevada from casual visitors. The valley below depended on heavy falls of snow in the mountains to feed the lakes and rivers the farmers and ranchers would need for the hot, dry summers. It was a cycle Ox had grown up watching even if he had no desire to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps.

The rhythm of their footfalls was muffled by the thick layer of pine needles on the trail. Ferns and underbrush burst from the forest floor as they approached a grove of giant sequoias. It was one of Ox’s favorites. Far from the paved trails of the national park, this area was visited by locals more than outsiders.

He watched Emmie as they approached. Her face turned from interest to wonder as they grew nearer.

“Are those…?” Her smile grew. “Wow.” Her eyes went up. And up. And up. “Wow!”

Ox drew her into the center of the sequoia grove where a fire-scarred monarch dominated the clearing, surrounded by other mature sequoias. Light filtered through the tall branches above as Emmie wandered through the clearing, and Ox spread a blanket at the base of the monarch, kicking away a few of the rocks so they could eat lunch at the foot of the tree. He set down his backpack and walked around the massive trunk to find Emmie leaning against the thick bark on the other side, looking up at the giant trees. Utter and complete wonder was written all over her face.

“I’m in Narnia,” she whispered as he approached. “Middle Earth.”

Ox didn’t say a word, but he sat at the base of the tree and drew Emmie down to sit between his legs. She rested her head on his chest and looked up, her eyes still locked on the giant trees surrounding them.

They sat in silence as the sun warmed the bark at his back and Emmie warmed his chest. His arms were around her, her fingers knit with his. Neither of them broke the silence. They listened to the birds and the creaking of the branches above as they moved with the wind. A profound sense of peace fell over Ox, a peace that had eluded him since his grandfather’s death.

I could stay here—right here, with this girl—for the rest of my life if I had a chance of putting that look on her face.

His breath felt heavy in his chest as he bent down, placing a kiss on the top of Emmie’s head. She turned her face to the sun and laid her cheek over his heart, closing her eyes and letting the warmth kiss her skin. There were colors in her hair that reminded Ox of a campfire, red and gold threads that weren’t visible until the light hit them. She was little but sturdy, and the weight of her body against him was… satisfying. That was the word. He wrapped his arms around her more securely as she snuggled closer.

This is what it feels like to fall in love.

The realization was quiet and sure. This was what it felt like to fall in love. It wasn’t the lightning strike he’d been expecting. It wasn’t the big dramatic moment. It was this. This… solid feeling that crept into his chest like a root. Ox looked at the trees around him, thinking about the giant trees around them secured by such shallow roots. Sequoias grew on granite bedrock. Their roots couldn’t sink deep, so they spread wide. They couldn’t exist on their own. They grew in groves so their roots could spread out and tangle together, holding the whole grove up through centuries of fire and snow and wind and flood.

Groves were family.

He had family. He had a great family even if the responsibility for them weighed heavy at times.

Emmie didn’t have family though. How many years had she been standing alone? For most of her childhood, she was the responsible one holding her family together. Her idealistic grandmother. Her loving but flighty mother. Was it any wonder she looked for respect and dependability and routine? Was it a surprise she had a tendency to freak out at the unexpected?

The trust she’d placed in him—and his business—humbled him.

He ran a finger over her cheek until Emmie’s eyes fluttered open. Without a word, he bent down and took her mouth in a soft kiss. Emmie turned and put her arms around his neck, drawing him closer. He sank into it, tasting the sweet peppermint gum she’d offered him earlier. He unbraided her hair and ran his fingers through the waves while her mouth drove him crazy.

He trailed his fingers down her spine until his hand landed in his favorite spot. He palmed the curve of her ass, pressing her closer as he made love to her mouth.

Fuck yes, this was why his sister had told him to wait. He wouldn’t have missed the thrill of this slow fall for all the money in the world.

Emmie seduced him with her silence. He was intoxicated by her. He wanted to learn all her secrets and knew he never would. She drove him crazy and she didn’t even try. It was beautiful and addicting, and he couldn’t imagine ever getting enough.

Ox wrapped his arms around her, picked her up, and walked back to the blanket he’d spread out.

Maybe he wanted to wait for the full meal, but they both needed a little taste.