My mind screams idiot the second he freezes.

Fuck it all to hell. I should have lied. Or just pretended otherwise.

But he’s experienced. Vastly more than me.

The way my body reacts proves that, and he’ll soon discover I’m not. It’s been easy so far. Just going with the flow. He’s made it that way. Sooner or later, he’ll expect me to do something, and I won’t know what. How can I? I’m a freaking virgin. And just told him so.

I close my eyes as his fingers, the same ones giving me unimaginable pleasure only seconds ago, slip out of me. He lies down, stretching out beside me and lays a hand on my stomach.

“You're honest. Shit,” he says. I wonder if he's amazed anyone would be this stupid.

It’s over. Me and my big mouth have screwed me out of getting screwed. Heat burns my face as I whisper again, “Sorry. Rex, I didn't mean –”

“Wrong. There’s nothing to be sorry for, Cupcake.”

I look up, catch his sky blue eyes, and fall into his trance for the millionth time.

I’d dreamed of this. Of an amazing man coming to stay at the lodge and taking me, taking my V-card, making love like I’d only read about in dirty books. The dream was so close, but now...

“I had to tell you,” I admit. “Just didn’t want you to be disappointed. And now, I…”

He leans over and looks me in the eye, his gaze going nuclear. “You actually think I’m disappointed?”

I shrug. I don't know what he means.

He shakes his head. “Fuck that, Cupcake. I’m honored. I’m excited. I'm lucky as hell no man's ever been inside you and I don't have to fuck so hard you'll forget them.”

A chill sweeps up my spine. He's serious.

I think. Holy hell.

I’d love to believe it, but I've been disappointed too many times in life to even hope.

“Need to know one thing before we continue,” he says, lifting my chin with a finger. There's no escaping those bottomless blue eyes.

My heart skips a beat at the idea of starting up where we’d left off. “Continue?”

“Fuck yes.” He strokes my stomach with his hand, then trails it to my hip. “I have to know this is what you want before we go any further. You have to say you want this, want me owning every inch of you.”

“It is!” I blurt out. “More than you can know.”

“Cupcake,” he growls my name, waiting for the rest. “Word for word, Tabby.”

“I want you owning me,” I say, a new fiery blush mingling on my cheeks. “Every inch, Rex.”

He kisses my temple. “How old are you, anyway, Cupcake?”

It's funny. I’ve always hated nicknames before him. Foolish, maybe, because even though I bake them regularly, I don’t like eating cupcakes all that much. Chiding myself for letting my mind wander down such stupid paths, I answer, “Twenty-five.” Heat rushes my cheeks again. If we weren’t lying on top of them, I’d crawl under the covers to hide. I’m probably the oldest virgin in the state. And I'm naked in bed with this tiger of a man, not having sex.

“Perfect. Then you're old enough to appreciate every-fucking-thing I'll do, darling. You're beautiful, amazing, and so damn mine. Tonight. Tomorrow. Long as I'm here, this bed is ours. Shit. I find it hard to believe another man –”

“There’s never been another man I’ve wanted,” I interrupt. There’s no need for me to tell him about Gramps. He’s met him. But what I'd said is a hundred percent true. I’ve never stood up against Gramps over a man before Rex. Or had a man willing to fight for me like him.

I’ve never invited a man to my cabin, either. Completely, deep down, wanted to invite one. Until he stormed in and brought the stars to my world.

He leans in, brushing his lips over mine. “You still want me, Cupcake? You want me inside you?”

“Yes!” It's a whimper. Brutally honest.

“Good. Because now that I've heard the truth, I want you even more.”

I want to believe it's stupid surface flattery, trying to make me feel better, but his face says otherwise. The honesty in his voice, in his twinkling blue eyes, makes me smile. It's true.

“But Cupcake, I have to know it’s really what you want, because we're not stopping again.”

I lift his hand off my hip, pulling it toward my right breast. “This. This is what I want, and I don’t want you to stop. Not even for a second, Rex. I’m just not sure what to do. Show me.”

He grins. “I’ll teach you everything, Ms. Danes. Proud to.”

“I think I’ll like that.”

“Fuck yeah, you will.”

His hand folds around my nipple as he kisses me, adding a delicious pressure. At first, I’m hesitant, having just admitted so much, but the anxiety doesn’t last long.

I can’t control myself when it comes to him. His touch, his smell, the hard inked canvass hiding his soul makes me come undone.

Rex Osborne, I surrender. His hand, his lips, his touch, his kiss, delivers a sweet amnesia, wipes away everything except the here and now. And this present with him is the best place I’ve ever been. It's wonder, ecstasy, and it's so damn real it hurts in all the right ways.

His mouth adds its heat to my nipple and I sigh, melting into him. Rough stubble teases my skin, a soft, scratchy sensation I never thought I'd love. But I thought a lot of things before Rex turned what I knew upside down.

More hands roam free, his fingers stroking my hips. I arc upwards, inviting him to touch me there again. To enter me.

He does just that, and in no time has me focused on nothing but how amazing it feels.

Oh. Dear. God.

I've lost my grip on earth. The bedspread bunches in my hands as he starts teasing my clit like before. That burn is relentless, intense and all consuming, and I spread my legs wider, giving him all the room in the world to continue. He sucks my other nipple, growling into my flesh, teasing fresh blazing fire through me, this time with his teeth.

Mercy. I'm throbbing in places I’ve never imagined.

“More, Cupcake?” he says, lifting his head, a glimmer in his eye that says, beg.

“Please!” It comes out shamelessly. I'm too addicted to his touch, his lips, to be dragged down by anything.

Narrowing his eyes, he kisses me harder, running his fingers tight through my hair. Then he leaves a trail of kisses down my stomach as he slips down the bed, down the sheets, down my body to – oh, no. “Easy, woman. You like what I just did, you'll fucking love this. Bite your hand if you need to scream.”

Shit, he's right. We can't wake the boys.

My wrist hovers over my lips as I watch his gorgeous face sink between my legs, move to my core, and –

His tongue engulfs me. Tongue and lips and holy hell, heat!

He sucks and licks my pussy open, and I feel my clit swell like never before. It's a pulsing trigger for the fire igniting in my veins. The fire that may well kill me, but I can't bring myself to care. How can I give a crap what's right or wrong or deadly when it feels so good?

My hips rise off the bed. I spread my trembling legs wider, giving him access to every part of me. He grabs my butt and holds me tight against him as his tongue slips in and out of me several times and then adds more teasing licks to my clit.

Circles. Swirls. Driving me half-insane.

I bite down on my hand gently. And then not so gently.

I’m making noises I never knew I could make, heart beating out of my chest, overwhelmed in the very best ways. Pleasure builds, warning and relentless. I curl my toes and clutch the bedspread tighter.

“Rex,” I finally gasp. “I’m not sure – I –“

He stops long enough to quickly say, “Go, Cupcake. Come for me.”

His finger slips in while he tongues my clit again. Muscles inside me clench, flutter, promise an explosion, lost in several more long, glorious licks.

“Come the fuck on,” he urges, lifting his head for just a second. “There's always round two. Only gets better from here, darling.”

Better? Round two?

He’s sucking again, and this time, I know he won't let up until I let go. The idea of round two sends my virgin brain to the brink, the edge, the end and the beginning.

Holyyy shit. Coming!

I shove my wrist into my mouth to keep from shouting, sinking my teeth in as my back arches completely off the bed. Something explodes. Many somethings.

There’s no way to describe it. It's like fireworks erupting inside me, soaring to every nerve where they kiss and spark and go nova, bathing me in sugar.

Forget the words. I can't even remember my own name. The pleasure waves intensify.

One long convulsion wracks my whole body. The O lasts forever, hurling me ever higher into bliss, and just when I think I'm about to pass out, it eases its grip, lets me fall back to the mortal realm, back to him.

I flop against the pillow as my body shudders, releasing the last bits of an O so fucking amazing I’m in shock. It doesn't even exist in the same universe as the messy, repressed quickies I've given myself over the years after long work days.

Nothing could have ever prepared me for that. Nothing describes it. And nothing compares.

I just know I already want more.

My lungs work overtime, desperately replenishing air and oxygen. I'm drained. Can’t even lift an arm. “Holy hell,” I whine.

“That good?” Amusement flicks in his blue eyes. Like he doesn't know.

It takes all my effort to lift my head enough to stare at him, still crouched between my spread, bent legs. “Do I have to answer?” I let out another sigh and drop my head back on the pillow, dragging my arms over my face.

Rex chuckles sweetly and gives my pussy a parting lick before climbing up beside me. “It'll be even better next time, Cupcake.”

“Better?” I shake my head. “I don't know. That one almost killed me.”

“Wrong, darling.” He kisses the tip of one of my nipples. “It made you come alive.”

I smile. He might be right because just that little movement, him kissing my nipple, has a ripple renewing itself inside me.

It's impossible but it's happening. I thought I was spent. That there was nothing left, but of course, there always is.

After another kiss, he climbs off the bed. I'm still fried, but excitement has me licking my lips as he unbuttons his shirt. My pussy heats, wetness oozing out as I watch him undress.

It's the same chiseled body I'd seen in the pool room, but never so close.

Hard. Bristled. Dark bursts of roses, eagles, and wild beasts inked all over him.

Blue flowers with thorns that almost match the midnight shade of his eyes.

A work of raw masculine force. A storm in a human body, trying to break free.

Rex looks me dead in the eye, hooking his hands in his waistband. When the boxers come down, I can’t look away to save my life.

His cock stands tall, rigid, and of course it's fucking huge. I expected it to be, but seeing it in the living, pulsing flesh sends my heart into my throat.

Okay, no. Whatever I imagined, this is bigger.

Almost scary big. But I still can’t wait to touch.

Disappointment washes over me when he bends over and I lose sight of it. I scramble to the edge of the bed, eyes searching.

He laughs. “Easy. I’m just getting a rubber. Guessing you don’t have any?”

“No, sorry.” The crinkle of the condom's wrapper reminds me this is really happening.

“Quit saying sorry.” He tosses a small package on the bed. “Here we go.”

“Only one?”

His laugh is as amazing as the rest of him. “Had like five in my emergency stash. I'll pick up more this week.”

Oh, yes, he will. Because I have a feeling I’ve just found something I could get addicted to very quickly.

“Do the honors, Cupcake,” he says, ripping the foil with his teeth, grabbing my hand and putting the small rubbery thing in my palm.

“I'll try,” I answer, suddenly a little nervous. I flip my legs over the edge of the bed. He’s now standing between them like I was his earlier, and an idea hits me. I set the package aside and wrap one hand around his cock.

It’s hard, yet almost velvety, and the way he sucks in air when I hold it is encouraging. I lean forward, licking the tip. His taste is earthy, all man, all powerful. I lick again. And again. Then open my mouth wide, taking him inside like I’ve only seen in X-rated movies.

He lets out a low groan. “Cupcake, fuck!”

“Mmmm-hmmm,” I purr, sucking him deeper. My tongue trails the ridge of his cock, focusing on the crown, the soft underside that makes his huge body twitch.

I feel his body vibrating as he leans closer. Hoping it feels as good for him as it does for me, as everything he just did, I suck harder.

He pumps forward again, and then draws back slightly. I love this to my soul.

Heat pools inside me, another climax creeping closer, begging to come out. I know it, I love it, and I'm hooked.

As much as I love sucking on him.

After a few more pumps, he grasps my head. “Cupcake,” he breathes again.

“Hmm?”

He steps back, withdrawing his cock all the way out of my mouth. “Tonight’s for you,” he says. “We’ll save that for another time. I need that pussy.”

I’m not disappointed. How can I be? I glance up at him and smile.

I feel for the condom, get ready to roll the rubber on his cock, but plant a kiss on the end first.

He growls. “Careful. You’re driving me to the edge and I still need to fuck you over it.”

“Join the club,” I say.

“Put that fucking thing on,” he snaps.

His whisper is so gruff I laugh. “So you can fuck me?” I whisper, cheeks heating, rolling the rubber slowly over his cock.

“Yeah, darling, yeah.”

He grabs me under the arms and tosses me backwards, onto the bed. It's dangerously easy for him to bend me around however he likes.

Smiling, I spread my legs, opening my arms. “Show me how it’s done.”

He climbs onto the bed. “I'll show you lots of things, Cupcake.”

And he does.

Using one hand, he guides his cock into me. It feels so good, so sudden, so – I gasp.

A sharp sting stiffens my body. A faint sensation of something ripping.

“Darling, relax,” he orders. “It'll only hurt for a minute, promise.”

The virgin sting fades the more we settle in. I let the air out that was caught in my lungs. The concern on his face is so tender, so sweet. I smile and nod. “Okay. Ready.”

He glides the rest of the way in, leaning down, barely kissing me, but more just sharing the air we breathe. There’s something intimate about that, breathing together. The smile on my face grows as he starts moving, in and out, but not all the way. His thrusts are slow and steady and the momentum builds something inside me.

A natural instinct has me moving with him, increasing the pleasure and the indescribable, fascinating pressure inside me. It’s like watching a cake rising in the oven. Or maybe it’s more like inflating a balloon. Knowing if you keep going it’ll explode, and that’s exactly what will happen here, to both of us.

I wrap my arms and legs around him, match his heated kisses, twirling his tongue with my own.

We move faster, the heat between us turning hotter, the pressure becomes all consuming. I throw my hips into his, biting his bottom lip, begging him to fuck me harder, faster, however he wants.

I want this man to break down, let go, and come. I want him uninhibited.

It’s all I can think about, pumping against him harder, nails digging at his back. He gives me exactly what my body asks for, his thrusts quickening.

His cock slams deeper, rattling my bones, a fierce, delicious friction every time his pubic bone mashes my clit. He grinds there a second longer than I think he should, until I moan, whimper, look him in the eye.

Then, when his hand slides into my hair, catching it in a fist and holding me down, the pleasure doubles, and I can't see anything at all.

Ecstasy-vision is white hot. Blinding. My eyelids fly open and I pull my mouth off his as I peak, muscles I never knew I had fused to the fireball in my belly.

My body goes stiff, wracked with pleasure, convulsing, and he gives a final thrust. The imaginary balloon snaps in a thousand tiny bits, pleasure confetti sparking through both of us.

“Yes, yes, amazing!” I whimper, but it's hardly enough.

Amazing, amazing.

His body goes rock hard, swells, and his hips reach frantic, a guttural cry pouring out his throat. I hold on tighter, keep my hips pressed against his, aftershocks ripping through me.

They quicken again when his fist pulls my hair, his lips engulf mine, and his face scrunches. He doesn't have to say it to know.

I feel his cock bulging. Feel his muscles go rigid, feeding their energy into his ass, which throbs against my ankles every time his balls pulse fire.

He's coming, fucking another O into me, and our heat collides.

It's forever before it ends, soft and slow, sending us gently off our highs. I sink deep into the mattress as he softens finally. Rex lowers himself on top of me. His weight isn’t heavy. More like a comforting blanket.

I kiss his shoulder and a sigh empties my lungs.

He kisses the tip of my nose. “Now, that, was fucking amazing. For real.”

“Maybe you're just a good teacher.”

“Nah, Cupcake, I had a damn good student.”

I'm starting to think he's learned to make me smile almost as easily as he makes me come. More content than I’ve ever been, I wiggle slightly, still enjoying the feel of him inside me. “So, teacher, is there a third lesson tonight?”

“Third, fourth, and fifth.” He brings his lips to mine for another long, slow kiss. “Only price is sleep, Cupcake.”

Sounds fair. Heck, I think I'll trade the whole night if the next few times are even half as good as this.

* * *

I’m trying, but I can’t pull my eyes open. Yet, something tells me I have to.

I finally yank them open and glance around. A smile tugs at my lips as I see Rex, his glorious body stark naked. I should be embarrassed after all the things we did last night.

But I’m not. I’m anxious to do them all again. I’m anxious for him to go buy a box of condoms. Or two. We've spent everything he had, and spent them gloriously.

There's a sound. I sit up, listening intently, trying to make it out.

Then my heart stops and leaps into my throat.

“Crap!”

I jump out of bed.

“What –” Rex stops as his eyes meets mine.

He hears it, too. The pounding on the front door. It's loud, incessant, the kind that won't go away.

“Stay here! Let me.” I grab my bathrobe off the hook on the open bathroom door and run for the bedroom door.

My feet slide to a stop as I enter the living room. I'm too late.

Adam and Chase are there. The cabin door is open. Gramps is standing in the doorway.

I'm dead.

Gramps levels a glare like I’ve never seen before, the lines in his face sharpening like pitchforks.

“So, I was right all along,” he growls.

I simply shake my head at him, not willing to argue in front of the boys. They're probably nervous enough by this screwed up, surreal scene.

Gramps turns around and walks away.

My stomach sinks clear to my toes.

“What’s wrong, Tabby?”

“Didn’t...didn't you want us to get the door?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” I say to the boys. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I did.”

I spin around and shake my head at Rex. “No way. You didn’t do wrong either.”

He walks out of the bedroom, shrugging into his shirt. “I’ll go talk to him.”

“No.” I grab his arm. “No, I’ll talk to him. I can handle him. Smooth this over. Make sure he doesn't –”

I don't want to even say it. There's so much at risk if Gramps decides to be a royal bastard. He could fire Rex on the spot and send him packing, ban him from the lodge. And there's nothing I could do.

“You shouldn’t handle this alone,” Rex says, frowning. “It's more than half my fault. Hell, almost all of it.”

I wish he'd stop. I don't want our wonderful night overshadowed with this, so I kiss his cheek, trying to pretend it's no big deal. In fact, it couldn't be bigger. “I’m used to it. Really, Rex, don't worry. Please, don’t talk to him. Let me. I know how to talk him down.”

There’s skepticism in his eyes, but he nods and kisses my forehead. Then he turns to the boys. “Get your boots and coats on.”

I tighten the hold I still have on his arm. “I have to get dressed, but I’ll see you later.”

He nods, suddenly silent, but he stops to kiss my forehead again.

It’s not until I’m in the shower, later, that I realize how different the second kiss felt. Stop imagining things, I tell myself.

It's nerves. Ridiculous, overtaxed nerves.

I shake the foolish worries off and step out of the shower to get dressed. I blew my hair dry enough that I won't have to worry about pneumonia outside, pulling it into a ponytail. Then I grab my coat and head for the lodge.

I take a moment to catch several deep breaths outside, collecting my thoughts before walking into the kitchen. For all I know, Gramps might be back here.

And so what? I'll stand my ground, wherever he is.

“Good morning,” Marcy says as the door swings shut.

“Morning.” I glance around the empty room. “Where is he?”

She continues to load the dishwasher. “Doing exactly what I told him to.”

“And what is that?”

“Shopping.”

“Shopping?” I repeat, confused. “He never goes shopping.”

“About time he learns, isn’t it?”

I shake my head. “Some things, I don’t think he’ll ever learn.”

“Ever come to grips with the idea that you need your own life? Rather than worrying what that old man's thinking?”

“Yes.” Funny timing.

Marcy doesn't have a clue what just happened. I think. But the truth in her words couldn't be clearer.

“He’ll have to when there isn’t another choice, but that’s up to you,” she says.

I sigh, absorbing her wisdom, but not knowing what to do about it. A ding – the signal from the sensor that tells us when someone walks into the dining room – tells me I don’t have time to ponder logistics right now. More, the sound makes my heart skip a beat, thinking it might be Rex and the boys.

It's not. The older couple is as pleasant as they were last night, going on about how much they’d enjoyed staying here, how much they liked the food, and how they regret leaving today. I thank them sincerely and take their breakfast order.

That sets the morning's pace. They leave, another guest checks in.

This time, it's a journalist with an eight-year-old son. Late twenties or early thirties. Dark eyes and darker hair. Tall. I don't really care. He's very talkative.

The man goes on and on about how much he’s heard about the lodge, and apparently, he's interested in writing a history piece on it for some newspaper near Detroit. Weird.

I try to listen to his spiel, eyeing the clock every so often because it’s already after noon. I haven’t had a chance to go get the boys from Rex yet. Haven’t seen them at all, actually.

Marcy said Gramps fed the horses before he left, which is probably how he knew Rex wasn’t out there. Naturally, we'd overslept by a few hours. If I hadn't forgotten to set the damn wake up alarm on my phone...

Finally, the new guest, Alan something or other, stops talking, sensing my disinterest. I promise him an interview with Gramps sometime later, maybe Marcy, too. Him and his son head upstairs, and I hurry down the hall for my coat.

I hadn’t realized how nice it is outside today, smiling at the sunshine, until I open the barn door. It’s empty. The tools are put away like Rex hasn't been here since cleaning up last night.

I stop, frown, shake my head. Something's wrong.

So wrong.

My heart skips another beat and I run for the lodge, scanning the parking lot along the way. No old pickup, either. His truck is gone.

Now, I'm scared. What the hell is happening?

I’m breathing hard, dragon smoke curling from my lips in chill puffs, nerves shaking every limb by the time I barge back in, run up to the second floor, and pound at his room's door.

Nobody answers 205. It's unlocked. Throwing open the door, I practically rip the safety stopper off the wall.

Empty.

No duffel bags.

Nothing except an envelope on the table.

With my name on the front.

I don’t want to read it.

But I rip it open.

Cash falls out, wrapped in a slip of paper with few words.

He’s left without a goodbye.

A heavy wave washes over me.

That’s why our last kiss felt different. It was our farewell.