Hunter was released from the hospital late the next afternoon with orders to take it easy for a week while he recovered from the concussion. The fractured elbow would take longer to heal, but at least he was in a soft cast that could come off for showers. Every inch of his body hurt, but he kept quiet about that so they’d let him go home.
Megan had been by his side since the night before, but he’d been painfully aware of the distance between them. It seemed she was there because she felt she should be rather than because she wanted to be. She hadn’t said a word to that effect, but he’d felt the vibe just the same.
He understood why his accident had hit her so hard. After years by herself, she’d finally taken a big chance and allowed someone new into her life and her heart. Just when she’d begun to have some faith in their relationship, his accident had her reconsidering everything.
That was all right. As long as he understood the why of it, he could figure out the next steps.
Megan drove him home in encroaching darkness in his SUV with Hannah and Nolan following behind. Hannah had insisted on coming with them to help him get settled, and Hunter hadn’t protested because he knew she needed to fuss over him. He’d give her an hour and then send her on her way. He wanted to be alone with Megan.
However, a short time after they had him settled—painfully—on his sofa, propped up with pillows and covered with a warm blanket, Megan announced that she had to leave.
“Where’re you going?” Hannah asked her with noticeable hostility.
“Home.”
“How come?”
“Because I live there.”
“It’s okay, Han.” Hunter reached out to Megan. When she reluctantly—or so it seemed to him—took his hand, he drew her down for a kiss. “See you tomorrow?”
“Uh-huh.”
He released her and watched her every move as she gathered her things and scurried out the door without another word to anyone.
“What the hell is her problem?” Hannah asked, visibly annoyed.
“I know exactly what her problem is, and it’s not your problem.”
“It shouldn’t be yours either.”
“Let me worry about me. You worry about you. In fact, you should go home and get some rest. You look like hell.”
“Thanks a lot. Let’s see how you look when I fall off the side of a mountain and nearly crack open my skull.”
“Are you planning to do that any time soon? I wouldn’t recommend it in your delicate condition.”
For the first time in their lives, Hannah seemed genuinely furious with him. “Wake up, will you? She’s being a shit, and you’re acting like it’s no big deal!”
“It isn’t. I understand completely why she’s upset, and as soon as I’m able to, we’ll deal with it. In the meantime, butt out. That’s an order.”
“Hannah,” Nolan said, “maybe we ought to go and let Hunter get some sleep.”
“I’m not going anywhere. He can’t be alone.”
“Yes, I can. I’m fine, except for my blood pressure, which is rising by the minute.”
“His girlfriend should be with him tonight. That’s where she belongs.”
“Hannah,” Hunter said again, the warning unmistakable to everyone except her, apparently.
“Don’t ‘Hannah’ me. You know I’m right.” She plopped down on the other sofa, kicked off her shoes and put her feet up. “I’m not going anywhere,” she said with a mulish look for her husband, who sighed as he sat in the rocking chair. “You don’t have to stay. I can handle him.” She used her thumb to gesture at Hunter.
“Where’s Mom when I need her?” Hunter asked. “She could get you out of here.”
“She’s exhausted from worrying about you, so Dad took her home to get some sleep. I’m sure she’ll be here to hover first thing in the morning.”
“Excellent,” Hunter said, resigned to being fussed over by everyone other than the one person he wanted fussing over him. If only he weren’t so damned exhausted and still drugged up. He’d be at her place by now, fighting for them the way he always had. That wasn’t in the cards tonight. But tomorrow … Tomorrow he’d get someone to take him to her so they could fix this before it got any worse.
Megan was relieved to see the lights off in Nina and Brett’s house, where they were camping out on an air mattress for their final nights in Butler before they left for France. The house was empty and would be turned over to the new tenants at the end of the week. Nina had told her they were a newly retired couple who were thinking of relocating to Vermont but wanted to experience a winter before they committed to anything permanently.
Nina assured her they were nice people. Megan was sure they were, but what did it matter? They weren’t Nina and Brett, who would be living thousands of miles from her by this time Wednesday. She trudged up the stairs, unlocked her door and nearly jumped out of her skin when Nina appeared on the other side.
“What the hell, Neen? Are you trying to give me a heart attack?”
“Nope. Just waiting for you to get home.”
Megan flipped on a light, which made both sisters wince from the sudden brightness. “How did you know I was coming home?”
Nina gave her that knowing look she did so well. “You were primed to bolt before he ever left the hospital. When we went to see him this morning, he told me you’d be home later and you’d be upset. I promised him I’d be here for you.”
“It’s irritating that he thinks he knows me so well.”
“He does know you that well. He knew you’d be out of there the minute you could.”
Megan flopped down on the sofa. “I’m a horrible person.”
Nina sat next to her. “No, you’re not. You’re reeling from what happened, which is understandable. To a point.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means it’s okay to be upset about what happened to him. It’s not okay to walk away from him when he needs you. That’s not okay, Megan, and if you care about him, which I think you do, you need to be with him right now. Not hiding out. I thought those days were over.”
“So did I until I heard he got hurt and I was suddenly right back there.”
“You had a scare, and you reacted emotionally. I get it. But now you have to ‘man up,’ so to speak, and do the right thing. He’s in love with you, Meggie. How do you think it made him feel to see you leave tonight?”
Megan pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes. “It’s all too much for me. I knew it would be. I told him that. He overwhelms me.”
“He loves you.”
“I didn’t want him to.”
“You love him.”
“I didn’t want to.”
Nina laughed and put her arms around her. “Tough shit, kid. You’ve fallen in love with a wonderful guy who loves you right back. It’s time to step up for him the way he would for you. Where do you think he’d be right now if you’d been the one who got hurt?”
Megan knew exactly where he’d be, and the realization had her standing to go into her bedroom.
Nina followed her. “What’re you doing?”
“Packing.” She threw clothes and pajamas and some of the silky underwear Hunter had bought her into a bag. From her bedside table, she grabbed her e-reader and tossed it into the bag. “I’m going back over there.”
“He’ll be happy to see you.”
“I know.” Megan hugged her sister. “Thank you.”
“It’s okay to love him, Meggie.”
“I’m starting to believe you might be right about that.”
“I can delay my flight for a few days if you think you’ll need me.”
“Absolutely not. There’s no need for that.”
“Are you sure?”
“Positive. Go. Have a wonderful adventure, and don’t worry about me.”
“Right … That would be like telling me not to breathe.” She hugged Megan again. “We sign the papers for the sale of the diner first thing in the morning, and then we’ll stop by Hunter’s to see you on our way out of town.” They were going to Boston tomorrow and would fly to France from there on Wednesday.
“I’ll be there.”
Megan followed Nina down the stairs, said goodnight to her sister and got into her car to drive the short distance to Hunter’s house. She knew he’d be glad she’d come back, but beyond that she didn’t know what to expect. All she knew for certain is that she needed to be with him. With the world spinning wildly out of control around her, one touch from him calmed and quieted the chaos in her mind.
She could do this. She would do this. She would try her best to be what he needed and deserved. Using the key he’d given her, she let herself into the house, which was lit only by the light he left on all the time in the kitchen. The living room was deserted, so she started up the stairs only to encounter Hannah on her way down.
“So you came back.”
“I did.”
“Good.”
“You’re pissed with me.”
“I’m baffled, Megan. Truly.”
“I … I care about him. I really do. I’ve never cared about anyone the way I care about him. I’m sorry if I’m not handling it the way you would.”
Hannah sighed, and some of the rigidity seemed to leave her posture. “It’s good that you came back.”
“Is he … He’s okay?”
Hannah nodded. “He was in some pain, so we gave him another pain pill before we got him up to bed. He’s likely to be out of it for a while.”
“That’s okay. If you want to go home, I’ll be with him if he needs anything.”
“And you won’t suddenly decide to leave in the middle of the night?”
Megan shook her head. “I’m not going anywhere for as long as he needs me.”
“That could be a really long time. Are you prepared to stay that long?”
Megan looked up and forced herself to meet the challenge in Hannah’s direct gaze. “Yeah, I am.”
“Fine, then we’ll go, but we’ll be back in the morning.”
“I’ll be here.”
“Megan … You don’t have to handle this the way I would, but I’m asking you, as someone who loves him with every fiber of her being, please be kind to him. He’s one of the best men I’ve ever known, and if he loves you, that makes you very, very lucky.”
“I know that, Hannah, and I will be kind to him. I’m sorry if you thought I wouldn’t be. Hunter’s accident triggered some unpleasant memories for me, which isn’t his fault. That’s all on me. I’m dealing with it.”
“I understand all too well how the past can overshadow the present, and I’m here if I can help.”
“That’s very nice of you. Thank you.”
Hannah went back up the stairs so Megan could get by. “I’ll see you in the morning. Feel free to call if you need us during the night. Hunter has the number.”
“I will, but we’ll be fine.” As she left Hannah in the hallway and went into Hunter’s room, a sense of calm came over her. They would be fine. All she had to do was stop teetering on the edge of the cliff and just jump. The thought nearly made her laugh. All she had to do …
A night light cast a warm glow over the room, which was how she could see Hunter sleeping on a pile of pillows with one propped under his casted left arm. His other arm was thrown over his head, leaving his magnificent chest bare to her greedy stare. He was so beautiful, inside and out, and Hannah was right that Megan was lucky to have won his heart.
She went into the adjoining bathroom to change into pajama pants and a tank. After brushing her teeth, she moved gingerly to get into bed next to him, wanting to be nearby if he awoke during the night and needed her.
He never stirred as she got settled.
Lying on her side, she watched him intently, each rise and fall of his chest a reminder that he was alive and well, if a bit battered at the moment. Unable to resist the need to touch him, she rested her hand flat against his chest, the steady beat of his heart serving as further proof.
Reassured, she snuggled closer to him, mindful of his injuries but needing the warmth of his body to further remind her that he was there, he was fine, he loved her. She released a deep breath along with all the tension that had knotted her up since the minute she heard he’d been hurt and drifted off to sleep.
The second the pain pill wore off, Hunter was awake and aware of every one of his injuries, especially his head and elbow, which throbbed relentlessly. Shifting to find a more comfortable position only made things worse until he realized he wasn’t alone in bed.
She’d come back to him. The realization nearly trumped the pain that had woken him in the first place. He wrapped his uninjured arm around her, willing to bear the fiery blast of pain to bring her closer to him.
Her eyes popped open. “Are you okay?”
“I’m much better now that you’re here.”
“I’m sorry I left before. I’m sorry for everything that’s happened since you got hurt. I should’ve come to the hospital with your mom, and I should’ve stayed with you tonight, and I should’ve—”
“Stop, sweetheart. You don’t owe me any apologies. I know it was hard on you to hear I’d been hurt, and the fact that you freaked out actually makes me happy.”
“How?” she asked, baffled.
“It means you care.”
“Hunter,” she said on a long exhale, “of course I care. I care too much. That’s the problem.”
“It’s never a problem to care too much about someone.”
“It is if you’re me and live in constant fear of the people you love disappearing in the blink of an eye.”
“The people you love … Does that include me?”
“Are you fishing?”
“Damn right I am.”
“It does include you. I figured that out right about the time your mother told me you were hurt.”
“Then it was well worth falling down the side of a mountain if it moved things along for us.”
“I’m going to pretend you didn’t just say that.”
He laughed and then grimaced. “Laughter is not my friend. Makes my brain feel like it’s exploding.”
“Can you take another pain pill?”
“Not for a couple of hours.”
“Shouldn’t they last longer than they do?”
“You would think.”
“So what do we do until you can take another one?”
“Talk to me?”
“What do you want to talk about?”
His eyes closed, and for a second she thought he might be drifting off again. “Let’s talk some more about the moment you knew you loved me. Tell me that story again. I love a happy ending.”
She chuckled at his shamelessness. Even when injured and in pain, he was all about her. But thinking about Molly coming into the diner, her face bleached of all color, her eyes wide with fear and panic, had Megan spiraling down the rabbit hole again.
“Hey,” he said, squeezing her hand, “where’d you go?”
“I took one look at your mom, and I knew something had happened to you. I dropped the coffeepot on the floor and it smashed into a million pieces. I remember thinking my heart was doing the same thing at the thought of you being hurt. I reacted badly. Molly wanted me to come to the hospital with her. She said you were asking for me, but I couldn’t move. I couldn’t bring myself to go there, to see you hurt or worse … I couldn’t do it. Your mom was disgusted with me, and for good reason.”
“Don’t worry about her. I took care of it.”
“What do you mean, you took care of it?”
“I explained to her that I’d promised I wouldn’t get hurt, and you were right to be upset with me for breaking my promise.”
“Hunter … It wasn’t your fault you couldn’t keep your promise. It’s not like you fell off the side of a mountain on purpose.”
“Definitely not.”
“Your mom got to see a side of me I’m not proud of. Hannah saw it, too, so now they’re both filled with doubts about whether I’m good enough for you.”
“All that matters is that I think you’re good enough.”
“Even after I nearly bailed on you when you needed me?”
“You didn’t.”
“I thought about it.”
“But you didn’t do it. You’re right here, which is exactly where you belong.”
“I’m starting to believe that might be true.”
He kissed the back of her hand and the inside of her wrist, his rough whiskers against her sensitive skin sending a tingling awareness rippling through her body. “It is true. I’m sorry my fall upset you. I’m sorry you had to hear that kind of news and that it caught you off guard. I’d never do that to you intentionally. I hope you know that.”
“I do.”
“What’re we going to do about all these fears that are holding you back from enjoying life to the fullest?”
“They’re not doing that.”
“Yes, they are, and I want you to be able to enjoy every single minute we spend together without worrying all the time about how it’s going to go bad. It doesn’t always go bad.”
“It does for me.”
“Not this time.” He continued to kiss her hand and wrist, setting her on fire with only the touch of his lips and the brush of his whiskers. “This time you’re going to get everything you want and need. All you have to do is stop being afraid and let go of the things you can’t control.”
“That’s easier said than done.”
“You’re right. It is. But things are going to happen, upsetting things, difficult things, sad things. That’s life. The good news is there’re also plenty of happy things and joyful moments. I want to experience all of them with you—the highs, the lows and everything in between. I want you to have faith that I’ll always be right there with you. And I want you to have faith that I’ll always love you no matter what. I want us to live together and sleep together and work together at the diner and make beautiful babies together and watch them grow up together and then grow old and cranky together.”
Megan laughed even as a sob erupted from her throat. His incredible words had her emotions spinning out of control again. “Are you proposing to me?” she asked, teasing.
“Maybe I am.”
She gasped. “Hunter … Don’t. You’re high on pain meds. This is no time to be having that kind of conversation.”
“Maybe it’s the perfect time.”
“Stop it. You should try to go back to sleep for a while.”
“Megan, look at me.”
She forced herself to make contact with those beautiful brown eyes that looked at her with nothing but love.
“I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you spend the rest of yours with me?”
There she was again, hovering on the edge of that cliff trying to decide whether to take the leap. She thought about what he’d said about the highs, the lows and everything in between. Life would happen whether she was with him or not, and if she had to go through it, she’d much rather go through it with him by her side, always assuring her that it would all be okay.
He studied her intently, probably trying to gauge her reaction to his question. “Megan?”
“Yes, Hunter. I want to spend the rest of my life with you.”
“Really?”
She bit her lip and nodded.
“Why?” he asked with that small sexy smile that left her breathless.
“Because I love you, and I don’t want to be anywhere but where you are.”
“Good answer, my love.” With his hand curled around her nape, he drew her into a sweet, lingering kiss. “Do me a favor?”
“Anything.”
“There’s a small silver bag in the top drawer of my dresser. Will you get it for me?”
“Now?”
“Right now.”
“Okay.” She moved slowly to disentangle herself from him and get out of bed without jostling him. In his dresser she found the bag but couldn’t make out the words on it in the faint glow of the nightlight. She delivered it to him.
“Thanks. Now come back to bed.”
Curious about what was in the bag, she got back into bed the same way she’d left—carefully.
“Closer.”
She scooted over until she was pressed against his side.
He put his arm around her and handed her the bag. “Help me out, will you? I can’t do much with only one hand.”
Her heart beating fast, she withdrew a small velvet box from the bag and looked at him. “What is it?”
“Open it and find out.”
She flipped open the box and let out a gasp at the incredible ring nestled in dark velvet. “Hunter … what … when did you … Oh my God!”
“Turn the light on so you can see it.”
Her hands were shaking violently, but she somehow managed to turn on the bedside light. That was when she saw that the diamond was yellow. Her favorite color. He’d remembered that. Of course he had. Tears streamed down her face as it settled in on her, finally, that he really did love her as much as he said he did. And looking down at the incredible ring he’d chosen for her, she believed, really believed, that he always would.
“Do you like it?” he asked hopefully.
“It’s … yellow! Oh my God, Hunter. It’s the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen.”
“Put it on.”
She looked over at him. “Are you sure?”
“Never been more sure of anything in my life. You?”
“Same.”
“Then allow me.” He held out his hand.
With trembling fingers Megan freed the ring from the velvet and handed it to him.
He slid it onto her ring finger and then brought her hand to his lips to kiss the back. “Perfect. I knew it would be.” He looked up at her. “You’re really going to marry me?”
“You really want me to?”
“So bad. So, so bad.”
“Then how could I say no?”
Smiling, he kissed her like a man who was perfectly healthy rather than recovering from serious injuries. He kissed her until she pulled back from him, reluctantly, and only because she was concerned about him overexerting himself.
“The minute I feel better, we’re celebrating. You got me?”
“I got you. We’ll definitely celebrate.”
“Every day for the rest of our lives.”
Megan had taken the leap and landed exactly where she was always meant to be.
The following Saturday, Hunter and Megan made their first appearance as an engaged couple at the grand opening of Guthrie House. His arm was still in a sling, but he was feeling better every day, and he had Megan to thank for his speedy recovery. They’d spent just about every minute of the last week together, holed up in his house, watching movies, eating the staggering amount of food his family had brought over and playing board games. Citing his unfair advantage, she absolutely refused to ever play Monopoly with him again after he thoroughly kicked her ass.
They laughed, they talked, they whispered deep into the night about their plans for the future. They celebrated her twenty-eighth birthday with a cake they made themselves and fought endlessly about the newly renamed Green Mountain Diner, which was closed for two weeks while his cousin Noah completed the renovations. Hunter let her win every argument because, for the first time in his life, he didn’t care if the business was ever profitable. All he cared about was her happiness.
And she fairly glowed from happiness. In the time they’d spent together, just the two of them, he’d watched her let go of the worries that had dogged her for so long. The ring he’d given her and the promises he’d made seemed to have freed her from the past.
One afternoon, while he took care of paperwork Will had brought him from the office, she had done some writing, and he’d found himself staring at her as she lost herself in one of her stories. Watching her was far more interesting than concentrating on work.
Now, surrounded by his family and Caleb’s as they celebrated the opening of Guthrie House, Hunter felt like things were getting back to a new version of normal that included Megan, which was the best kind of normal.
Hannah came in from the backyard where Caleb’s Sultans had gathered around the fire pit. “I haven’t even gotten to talk to my own family today.”
“Everything’s been great, Han,” Will said. “You and Cameron throw one hell of a party.”
“Yes, we do,” Hannah said.
“Couldn’t agree more,” Hunter said.
His sister came over to kiss his cheek, and then she did the same to Megan. “How’s our patient today?”
“Much better,” Megan said. “Full of piss and vinegar.”
“Just the way you like me,” Hunter said.
“Yeah, he’s fine,” Hannah replied. “Good job, Nurse Megan.”
She smiled at Hannah. “Thank you.”
Molly came into the kitchen. “Anyone still need a tour of what Hannah has done with the rooms upstairs?”
“I’d love to see it,” Megan said. To him, she said, “Can you live without me for a couple of minutes?”
“Only a couple.”
Megan kissed him and patted his chest. “Be right back.”
His mother watched them, her expression unreadable. Hunter wondered what that was about.
Megan followed Molly upstairs where the doors to the bedrooms were open for visitors to tour. She ducked her head into the first room, which had been decorated in shades of dark green and burgundy with an antique four-poster bed and matching vanity. “This is lovely.”
“Hannah decorated that room herself from items she kept from when Caleb’s grandmother owned the house,” Molly said.
“It’s beautiful. This is a wonderful thing she’s doing here.”
“We’re very proud of her, but then we’re proud of all our children.” Her tone was polite, as always, but Megan noted a hint of frost and couldn’t blame Hunter’s mother for being annoyed with her. She’d be annoyed with her, too.
“Mrs. Abbott—”
“Molly.”
“Molly … I want to apologize for what happened that day in the diner.” Megan clasped her hands together and forced herself to look her future mother-in-law in the eye. “Hunter’s accident … It was … I was …”
Molly put Megan out of her misery by squeezing her arm. “I know. It was for me, too. For all of us.”
“I behaved badly and gave you the impression that I didn’t care enough about him to go to him when the opposite is true.”
“I know that now. I can see how happy he is with you. We’ve all seen that.”
“I’ve been hoping for a chance to tell you how sorry I am for the way I reacted.”
“Thank you for that, and you were forgiven the moment you came to the hospital. You should know that when we told him you weren’t coming, he immediately understood.”
Megan smiled. Of course he did. “He gets me. He might be the only person who does.”
“I’ve never seen him so happy. Thank you for that, too.”
“It’s always going to be important to me that he’s happy. And safe. No more rock climbing.” Megan shuddered at the memory of that awful day.
“Good luck with that one, honey,” Molly said with a laugh. “I’ve been trying to get them all to stay off the rocks for as long as they’ve been old enough to climb them. Abbott men need to climb things. And ski down things. And rappel from things.”
“Ugh, stop. You don’t want me to change my mind about him, do you?”
“No, I certainly do not.” Molly hooked her arm through Megan’s. “Come on, let me show you the rest.”
Walking home from Hannah’s party, his arm around Megan, Hunter was as happy as he’d ever been, despite the emotional event they’d just attended.
“What an incredible thing Hannah is doing there,” Megan said. “It’s hard to believe everything she’s been through when she seems so happy and at peace now with Nolan.”
“It’s been a very long journey to get there. You can relate in many ways.”
“Yes, I guess I can. I give her tons of credit for channeling her grief into something so productive.”
“I do, too. And Caleb’s parents as well. I think it’s amazing that they’ve stepped up to run the inn for Hannah. I haven’t seen them so excited about anything since we lost Caleb. It’s good to see everyone moving on.” During the last week, while he recovered from his injuries, the rest of the family had helped Hannah move out of the home she’d shared with Caleb and into her new home with Nolan.
“Your family was really nice to me today,” Megan said.
“Why wouldn’t they be? You’re going to be an Abbott before too much longer.”
“I wasn’t sure if they’d be happy for us or worried for you.”
“They’re happy, sweetheart. They’re happy because I’m happy.”
“Are you?”
“How can you even ask me that after the best week of my life?”
“Only you would say that after suffering a concussion and a fractured elbow, not to mention stitches.”
He pulled her in tighter against him, kissing her temple. “My fiancée made me all better with her company, her excellent nursing skills and her sponge baths.”
“Ha ha, very funny. What sponge baths?”
“Maybe I just dreamed that. My dreams have been pretty vivid since my fiancée has denied me access to her delectable body this week.”
She giggled from the kisses he rained down on her neck without missing a step on their walk. “Only because you were recovering.”
“I’m all recovered now, but I’m about to have new injuries if I can’t make love to my fiancée. You wouldn’t want that, would you?”
“Definitely not. I like you healthy and available to me on a moment’s notice.”
His low growl set her on fire. “Walk faster.”
They arrived at his house a short time later, and Hunter directed her straight up the stairs to the room that had become theirs, rather than his, over the last week. “Get naked,” he said without preamble.
“Tell me what you really want.”
“I want to be inside you. Right now.”
Her face flushed with the color he’d come to expect when he spoke bluntly to her about what he wanted from her in bed. “Well, then …” She drew her dress up and over her head, leaving her only in the matching silk bra and panties he’d bought for her. “You were right about the silk, by the way.”
“Told ya.”
“You didn’t have to buy out the store to prove your point.”
“It was an excellent investment, and as beautiful as you are in red silk, that’s not naked.”
“I don’t see you getting naked.”
“I’d rather watch you, and besides, I need help.” He gestured to his arm in the sling.
“You’re milking this injury.”
“For all it’s worth.”
Still in her bra and panties, she approached him with a playful glint in her eyes and began to unbutton his shirt. Her nearness was making him crazy, as it had earlier in the day when she’d helped him shave off a week’s worth of whiskers. He hadn’t had time then to fully indulge in his desire for her. Now nothing would keep him from finally holding her and making love to her after a week of wishing he could. His head still protested when he moved too fast, but he was willing to risk it to be able to touch her.
She pulled his shirttails from his pants and helped him take it off around the cast that held his left arm immobile. Next came the T-shirt he’d worn under it. Then she was tugging at his belt and unzipping his black dress pants, which fell into a pile at his feet.
Hunter kicked off his shoes and stepped out of the pants before hooking his arm around her waist and drawing her in close to him. “Hey.”
“What’s up?”
“I am.”
She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck, bringing her entire body into tight contact with his.
He wanted to beg for mercy. “Megan …”
“Yes, Hunter?” she asked, her voice breathy and sultry.
“Don’t play with me. Not now.”
“I thought you wanted to play.”
“That’s not what I want and you know it. Get a condom.”
“No.” She backed him up until his legs connected with the edge of the bed, forcing him to sit or fall over.
The damned cast on his arm made him feel off balance all the time, but Megan decked out in red silk made him positively dizzy. Then her one-word answer penetrated his lust-addled brain. “No?”
“We don’t need a condom.”
“We most definitely do need one.”
“No, we don’t,” she said with a smug smile.
“Explain. Immediately.”
“The other day when I went to the store?”
“Uh-huh.”
“I also went to a doctor’s appointment where I received a three-month birth-control injection that’s effective immediately.”
“And you were going to tell me this when?”
“As soon as you were well enough to take full advantage of this development.”
“I’ve never had sex without a condom.”
“Never?”
“Not once. Ever.”
“Oh boy. This is going to be fun.”
“It’s probably going to be fast,” he said with a chuckle. Wrapping his arm around her, he nuzzled her belly. “I’ve never made love to my fiancée before either.”
“Mmm,” she said, her fingers sifting through his hair, “you do like saying that word.”
“It beats lover, right?”
She gave his hair a playful tug that drew a snort of laughter from him.
“Put me out of my misery, baby.”
“Let’s get you comfortable first.”
“There’s only one way that’s going to happen.”
She sat him up against a stack of pillows, placing one under his injured arm. “Good?”
“Getting there. Get these boxers off me.”
“Gladly.” She helped him out of his underwear, removed her thong and then climbed on top of him, straddling his lap, still wearing the bra. “Is this what you wanted?”
“You know it is. I feel like it’s been forever since I was able to hold you this way.” He ran his hand up her back, tangling it into her hair and bringing her down for a deep, passionate kiss. “I want you right now.”
She reached between them and guided him into her, sinking down on him slowly, going for maximum effect.
His head fell back on the pillow and his body arched into hers. “God, Megan … So hot.”
She moved slowly, trying to draw out the pleasure for both of them.
With his one free hand he released the front clasp of her bra, pushed it aside and cupped her left breast, running his thumb back and forth over her nipple. “Love you so much.”
Megan leaned forward to kiss him. “Love you, too.”
“I can’t get enough of those words from you. Say it again.” His hand moved from her breast to her ass, pulling her tightly against him as he surged into her.
“I love you, Hunter,” she said, her voice breaking on his name as his deep strokes triggered her orgasm. “I love you.”
He was right behind her, lifting his hips as he pushed down hard on her. He got a lot done with that one working arm.
She collapsed on top of his heaving chest and closed her eyes as his arm came around her, holding her close to him. “What do you think of sex without a condom?” she asked after a long period of quiet.
He immediately came back to life, hardening inside her. “Any questions?”
“None,” she said laughing. “All my questions have been answered to my extreme satisfaction.”
Hunter looked up at her, his gaze full of love. “Mine, too, sweetheart. Mine, too.”