“Where are we going?” I’d spent the night at Dane’s since it had seemed pointless to head home.
I didn’t quite know how long this thing between us would last, but I was now more willing to take it on a day-to-day basis, and not simply shut him out of my life once this thing with GTC was over. I might end up eventually regretting it, but for now, I was willing to see how this thing between us played out. We had once been amazing together. Maybe the stars would align and we’d find that same happiness once again.
“To the woods, babe.” He gave me one of his charming smiles that lit up his eyes and made my breath catch. “There’s supposed to be a meteor shower tonight and tomorrow’s a holiday. Figured we could go camping.”
Because he knew just how much I loved to go camping. It was one of my favorite things to do, even if I seldom got around to it these days, given my busy schedule. Snuggling up by the campfire as we toasted marshmallows, the smell of wood smoke and the pine forest, making love under the stars... He really was trying damn hard to win me over. “You’re being awfully sweet to me, Dane.”
He tangled his fingers with mine, bringing them to his lips. “You deserve so much better than me. But I can’t let you go. I need you in my life, Rae. You’re my everything.”
I mulled over the very thing that had been bothering me for so long. And though I should probably just bite my tongue, I didn’t. “Then why didn’t you come to find me, Dane? Four years, and it took some chance encounter for us to get back together.”
“Avery...” He let out a ragged breath with a shake of his head. “You have no idea how many times I climbed the steps to your porch, desperate to knock on your door to try to win you back. But what was the point when my family was still mixed up in all sorts of illegal activities? Even now...you’ve seen what I’m dealing with firsthand.”
I couldn’t believe he’d come to my door. Yet, I could see him doing just that...could see him struggling with his predicament, torn between what he wanted and a life he had little control over. And I could see him walking away, knowing that he was still in no position to promise me that he’d left behind that sort of life. “I still wish you had sought me out. So much time wasted, Dane...”
He shot me a sideways glance, taking his eyes off the road for just a moment, as if not quite believing what I’d just said. “Do you really think you’d have taken me back? Because I honestly don’t think you would have.”
“I don’t know. Maybe.” He might very well be right. “It’s just that at some point, my anger soured into bitterness. I think seeing you... It would have been painful and I’d have probably pushed you away, but...I think you would have somehow found a way to win me back.”
“I’m sorry, love. I really am. But I swear, all this just means I’m going to try harder to prove to you just how much I love you.” Despite driving, he pulled me close and kissed the top of my head.
We stayed that way, with me nestled against his side as he drove us out into the woods, and I did my best to ignore the fact that he was winning me over, my anger with him now replaced with simple caution. Now that I had Dane back in my life, it made me realize just how much I’d missed him. I’d been doing my best to ignore that little fact by telling myself that I didn’t need him in my life, but it was hard to keep up that charade now that he was back and things between us were good.
We decided to set up camp in a small clearing with a wide stream just ahead of us and the mountains at our back, with pines and maples towering over us. I didn’t know when he’d gotten the car packed, but he’d been up before me earlier that morning, and must have packed everything we’d need before cooking me breakfast.
I slipped my arms around his waist, looking up at him with a bit of disbelief. “I can’t believe you planned all this.”
He shrugged and stole a kiss, smiling against my lips. “Anything for you, love.”
“What about the pups?” I was sure he’d have brought them along if there hadn’t been a herd of them.
“Don’t you worry, babe. My mom’s already picked them up. They’ll be hanging out with her pack and playing in the pool when my mom isn’t spoiling them rotten.” He kissed me again, and again, trailing nips and kisses to my neck and ear, his words but a murmur that sent a shiver of need down my spine. “Let’s get this tent set up before I end up fucking you pinned against the nearest tree.”
I groaned at the thought, knowing just how rough and passionate he’d be. I loved seeing him lose all control when he let his need take over, so there was no holding back. But then he was pulling away, leaving me to groan in protest as he tossed me a knowing smile. “You’re teasing me on purpose.”
“Is that what I’m doing?” He laughed when I slapped his ass and then helped him grab the tent from the back of the car. “Keep that up, babe, and I’ll paddle your ass red right here in the open.”
“Will you now?” I flicked my eyebrows up in a teasing dare that had him pinning me to the side of his car, his muscular body pressed against me, his hard erection trapped between us.
With a rough hand, he yanked my jeans and panties down past my hips, and then freed his cock, before fisting my hair to yank my head back as he buried his hard length deep inside me with a single thrust. “You make me crazy, Avery... I refuse to live without you again. You’re mine, love...mine. I’m never letting you go.”
He fucked me against the side of his car, one brutal thrust after another—and I was loving every second of it. He ravished me, forcing me to surrender to this thing between us, and making it so that it’d be impossible for me to walk away from him.
And for the first time in a very long time, I just might be okay with that.