Chapter Twenty

“I’m so sorry,” Nate said for the what felt like the twelfth time.

“Please, stop apologizing. You aren’t to blame. Seriously, it’s not your fault the road down the mountain was blocked in not one, but two places. They both took time to remove. Then the restaurant had to close because of their plumbing backup. By the time all of that happened, there was no other place to eat but the burger joint—everything had closed.” She snuggled into his warm body as they lay in the back of his truck looking up at the stars. “Besides, I think this turned out pretty well.”

“Not exactly the romance I was looking for.” He wanted to give her something he’d never given her in high school—a fancy dinner with linen napkins—but there they were eating burgers, again, with paper napkins.

“Sometimes that’s when it ends up being the best kind. Look at this.” She waved her arm, showing him their view from the park on the outskirts of town. “What could be more romantic than spending time together, wishing on a million stars?”

“I’d wish for the same thing on every single one of them. You.” The words were out of his mouth before he could stop them. He didn’t want to scare her, but since the exact moment he’d seen her again, everything had come into focus. There was absolutely no way he was going to let her go. She was going to be his, and his plan was to take it as fast as she was able to handle, but he didn’t want to scare her off.

Mya sighed. “Why did we lose contact with each other?”

“I don’t know. I moved away to college, my class load was difficult to keep up with while working full time to pay for a place to live. Our calls got further and further apart. Then I couldn’t afford to come home that often. Then you left.”

“I never told you, but I took the bus to surprise you one weekend.”

Nat sat up and brought her with him. “What do you mean you came to see me? What happened?”

“I missed you something terrible. It was the summer after I graduated. My senior year wasn’t the same without you there. Everything I experienced during your senior year meant more to me than my own. I was going to be leaving in a few weeks for my freshman year, and I felt like everything was changing so fast. I wanted to hold onto something special from my past. I bought a bus ticket to Missoula. The bus left at night and we arrived the next morning.” She fell silent.

With his heart beating in his chest, he had to know the rest. “What happened next?”

“I went to your apartment, and you weren’t there. So I went back to the bus station and was able to change my ticket back home without having to wait too long.”

Nate shook his head. “There’s more. What aren’t you telling me?

“Nothing.”

“Don’t bring this up now if you aren’t going to finish. Tell me.”

“Fine. Your girlfriend answered the door. Let’s just say she wasn’t happy I showed up like I did, and told me you didn’t have time to babysit.”

“Why didn’t you call me?” His blood boiled at the thought of what she’d done to see him, only to be turned away. “When exactly did you come out?” He tried to remember the summer between his freshman and sophomore years.

“I didn’t call you because it was supposed to be a surprise. That kind of defeats the purpose.”

“What about after she turned you away? You could have called me then.” His mind spun, wondering if he would have had the same feelings as now if she had shown up then? Could they possibly have not wasted all this time?

“She said you were working double shifts trying to make as much money as you could before school started again.” Mya shrugged. “That made sense to me, so I left. I didn’t want to bother you.”

“You were never a bother—not now and certainly not back then. And just so you know, I didn’t have a girlfriend that summer. Shannon was my roommate, nothing more. At least on my part. Apparently she wanted something different, and had no issues going behind my back to get whatever she wanted. After a few months, she moved out and I decided to never have another female roommate.”

Mya buried her head in Nate’s chest and shivered. “I’m so stupid. I should have called you.”

“No, you’re just too trusting. And you’re getting cold. Come on, let me take you home.”

“I know a way you can warm me up.” She pulled back from him, and looked up and batted her eyelashes.

“Well, I do aim to please, ma’am.” He laid her back down in the bed of the truck. “God, you are so beautiful. I could spend days lost in your eyes—how their color adjusts based on your mood. Right now, for example, they are almost glowing.” Running his hand slowly up and down her body, he pushed her shirt up enough to sneak his fingers under it and feel her muscles tremble at his touch on her bare skin.

Leaning down, he kissed the base of her throat, flicking his tongue over her collar bone before moving lower, to the tops of her breasts. His fingers moved up from her stomach to gently gaze against her nipple through her bra. Feeling it harden under the tips of his fingers made his cock grow hard. It felt like he’d been waiting decades for her, not days. Using all his willpower, he deliberately slowed his movements, taking his time to discover and enjoy every inch of her skin.

When she arched against him and moaned, he took the opportunity to adjust them and slip his hand under her skirt. Dipping his fingers into her wet folds, he used his other hand to pinch her nipple while he captured her mouth with his. When she laced her fingers through his hair and held his head so she could kiss him senseless, he almost lost his mind.

With his cock aching for release, he slid two fingers inside of her. Feeling her walls contract around them, he wished he was inside her. His heartbeat rushed in his ears and their breathing was loud—so loud, in fact, they both jumped when someone rapped on the side of the truck and a light was flashed in their eyes.

“Break it up, kids,” the gruff voice said.

Instantly Nate assessed the situation to see what kind of danger they were in. “Who are you?”

“Sherriff Dollard, Mr. Robbins. Maybe you should move along home.” His voice was firm and there was no room for argument.

“Sure, sorry. No problem. We were just enjoying the view and having something to eat.” Nate gestured to the bags of food.

“Why don’t you have dessert at home then, instead of in public?”

“Sure. Come on, Mya.” Nate held his hand out for her and smiled as she wouldn’t meet either one of their eyes. Helping her out of the bed of the truck, he nodded to the sheriff. “Goodnight.”

“Excuse me a moment.” He put his hand on Nate’s shoulder to make him stop. “Ma’am?” He waited for Mya to look at him. “Are you okay?”

She frowned and nodded. “Besides being embarrassed, why wouldn’t I be okay?”

“I needed to make sure. You’re free to go.” Sherriff Dollard took a step back.

With the mood effectively killed, Nate helped Mya into her seat and caught her biting her lip, trying not to laugh. Once they were both in the truck and out of sight of the sheriff, they both broke into laughed at getting caught making out in a park like a couple of horny teenagers.