The ride back to the mountain house seemed to last hours. From the moment Ben kissed her, every feminine part Sloane possessed had zinged to life, making her breasts ache for his touch and her sex hot, wet… wanting him.

Only him.

“Finally,” Ben said when they arrived at the house and made their way inside the kitchen. He shrugged off his coat and pulled her to him, unzipped hers, and the jackets landed in a heap on the floor.

She kissed, nipped, and tasted while he lifted her and anchored her to the wall. Wrapping her legs around his waist, she held on, deepening her kiss. Hungry, craving him, desperate for relief from the tension building in her core.

He broke away from her mouth and pressed warm kisses down her neck that fired electrical charges through her body. Then he made his way back to her lips. His mouth hovered over hers, the heat of his breath tantalizing her.

“You’re so goddamn sexy. I don’t know how I kept my hands off you for so long. Good thing I’ve got a box full of condoms.”

“Not necessary,” she rasped. “I’m on the pill.”

“Excellent news. I passed my last physical, so we’re in the clear.” He sucked in her lower lip and released it with a pop. “Now I want you naked in my bed. I can’t wait to lick every inch of your gorgeous body. I plan to spend a long time here.” He caressed her breasts through her flannel shirt and her nipples pebbled.

The hard ridge of his erection ground into her. She instinctively molded her body to his, itching to touch and explore every inch of him. Ben’s desire did crazy things to her, stroking her ego and her feminine pride. His obvious attraction turned her on as much as his kissing and touching.

Her clit tugged low and she got even wetter. “Then take me there.” She coiled her arms around his neck and trailed her lips along his jawline. “Now.”

Ben turned her away from the wall, carried her through the sunlit great room and down the hallway, and lowered her until her feet touched his bedroom floor.

She grasped his shirt, slid her hands under it, and skimmed them over the hard firmness of his abdomen while he tugged hers open one button at a time and pushed it off her shoulders. Within seconds, she stripped his off too.

“This has to go.” He pulled her new thermal underwear over her head. “And this.” With a quick snap, he liberated her breasts.

He looked at her, his eyes dark and filled with a craving she’d never seen before. “Do you know how much I want you?” He cupped them and flicked her tight nipples with his thumbs.

His low, husky voice echoed his words. Goosebumps popped on her skin, and her legs turned to putty, making it hard to stand. Liquid heat shot through her, and her sensitive sex ached. The exquisite tingles increased in intensity… building more tension. “As much as I want you.” She arched her back, pushing them more firmly into his hands.

His fingers made magic with every tweak, sending her senses reeling, and her tiny bundle of nerves pulsed with need. Ben captured her mouth with his. Somehow, they managed to finish stripping before tumbling naked onto the king-size bed’s down-filled comforter. He tightened his hold on her and deepened his kiss.

She gave herself over to his plundering lips, sinking her fingers in his hair and gripping his head to hers as they feasted on each other. The constant desire humming under the surface of her skin roared to life and held her with a savage intensity. She had to have him… all of him. Sloane reached for his cock and stroked its hard and thick length, bringing him closer as she wrapped one leg over his.

He cupped her soaking wet pussy and swirled her juices over her clit. Pleasure mingled with exquisite, tugging aches. Over and over, he stroked her until the tension coiling in her sex snapped, sending electrical tingles to every erotic pulse point she possessed.

Sloane moaned and writhed her hips, seeking the relief only he could bring, playing with his balls and pumping his cock until she reached the head. Precum pearled at the tip and she rubbed the moisture over the slit, circling the width.

He pushed into her hand while driving first one finger and then another inside her as he kneaded her breasts, playing with her tender, elongated nipples one by one. Over and over, he stroked inside her, teasing her sensitive clit with his thumb.

The pressure built, coiling tighter… tighter still until all coherent thought evaporated. There was only him. Only her. And only the incredible sensation of being thoroughly claimed.

She bucked her hips, desperate, clinging to the edge of reason, refusing to let go, but the tension spiraled out of control and whipped through her. “I’m… oh my God. Ben. Don’t stop…”

“That’s it, babe. Come for me.” Ben drove his fingers deeper, faster, harder. “I want to see you go crazy.”

Stars burst behind her eyes and she shattered, riding the incredible waves of her orgasm until she landed back into herself and into the shelter of his strong arms.

Panting, she rode the surge of energy coursing through her. More. She wanted so much more from this man. Wordlessly, she rolled him over onto his back and traced the line of his sculpted muscles. Sunlight streaming into the room highlighted every delicious inch of his bronzed skin and the sprinkling of dark hair on his pecs that trailed down into the narrow path bisecting his rock solid abs.

Later, she’d indulge in licking her way down the same path and lower still. But now, she only wanted one thing. Him. Inside her.

“Damn, girl.” Ben hitched his hips and palmed her breasts. “Go for it.”

“I am.” She impaled herself on his magnificent, hard cock with one stroke. And the perfection of him completing her nearly undid her.

Slowly, she moved on him, savoring the sensation of his length rocking into her. Ben met her stroke for stroke, ramming harder, faster, deeper. Her clit throbbed with another orgasm as she filled herself to the hilt again and again.

The tension coiling in her belly and sex whipped apart and another intense orgasm rocketed through her. She spiraled with the release until he plunged into her one last time, carrying her over the edge with the power of his own orgasm emptying into her.

She collapsed on top of him, spent, breathless, and yet she’d never been so alive.

Ben gripped Sloane’s hips, the last remnants of his orgasm pulsing into her, until he’d completely emptied himself. Still struggling to take a full breath, he glided his hands along her slick skin to hold her close.

Man. She’d destroyed him. Literally left him weak as a kitten.

Sloane traced her fingers lightly over his skin and followed their path with her soft kisses. “You were incredible.”

“Shouldn’t have waited to do this.” He played with her curly hair, twirling the wild strands in his fingers. “We’ll have to make up for lost time.”

“Truth.” She traced circles on his chest. “Want to tell me why you delayed the fun until now?”

Ben hesitated. He hadn’t even told his family about the mission that had gone so fucking wrong. But he’d been a prick to Sloane, and she deserved to know why. And he could use a friend right about now. “Just got crap news from my commanding officer,” he said.

She reached for a blanket at the bottom of the bed and scooted up again while covering them with the chenille throw. Edging closer and feathering her fingers across his shadowed jaw, she asked, “Does he want you to cut your leave short?” Sloane tilted her head and held his gaze.

He heard the concern in her voice and read the genuine worry in her dark brown eyes. His heart constricted. What would it be like to have someone like her in his life on a permanent basis? “More like he wants to extend it indefinitely,” Ben said. “And I’m not sure I want to go back after what happened in Afghanistan.” The invisible weight that had been pressing down on his shoulders lifted as he confessed his problem.

She tucked the folds of the blanket around him, cocooning him in the shelter. “So that’s why you came home unexpectedly,” she said. “No wonder your sister didn’t know you’d turn up here.”

“Besides the top brass and you, no one has a clue my last mission went FUBAR and I’m off active duty until the investigation about what happened during the sneak attack concludes.”

“FUBAR?”

“Fucked up beyond all reason.” Ben turned to face her, coiling the blanket around them. “Our informant betrayed us to the enemy and we took on heavy fire during a raid. Lost four of my troops. Good men, all of them.”

“Oh. God. I’m so, so sorry.” She hugged him harder and held his gaze with hers.

A lump lodged in his throat, and his jaw ached. The futility of fighting hostiles overseas seemed never-ending. “Yeah. I am too.” Sorry for the unnecessary losses. Sorry for the pain those losses caused his fallen comrades’ families and sorry he couldn’t get past the red tape making it next to impossible to go after the people responsible for their deaths. But he didn’t articulate that thought.

He had a potential game-changing option on the table. One he’d keep beneath the radar until he figured out all the moving parts.

“Do you want to go back?” she asked.

“Yes and no. I’m at a crossroad and I’m not sure what direction to go,” he said. “Just another reason why I can’t commit right now. Wouldn’t be fair to anyone.” Though another time, another place… Sloane would have been perfect.

She didn’t speak for several seconds, looking away for a moment before returning her gaze to his. “Then it’s a good thing I’m not looking for a commitment.” Sloane snuggled closer. “But we can enjoy each other while we’re together.”

His skin prickled and he had the distinct feeling he’d fucked up when he’d told her he wasn’t ready for a long-term deal. But she did say she didn’t want one either. Why overthink things now? “Beats the hell out of worrying about the future.” He’d dodged plenty of bullets overseas, but the top brass had blindsided him with their investigation when he’d stepped back on American turf.

Ben trailed a hand down Sloane’s back and over her bottom. Her nipples tightened against his chest, and the musky aroma of her arousal filled the air. His cock stirred to life again.

Good. He didn’t want to think about his problems anymore. Or what he’d do about them. Not when he had a gorgeous, sexy woman in his arms and in his bed.

He stroked her butt cheeks, kneading them and bringing her closer to him. “You’re a great distraction.” He rocked his hips forward. “So fucking hot. I can’t get enough of you.”

“Ben… my screenplay…” Sloane moaned, arching her back and thrusting her full breasts into his chest.

He rolled the peaked nipples between his fingers and then lowered his head to lick the tips one by one. She tasted like sweet vanilla and cream with a hint of salt, making him even harder.

“Oh, what the hell?” She gripped his hair and anchored him there. “I’ll catch up later.”

His blood rushed south. Hell yeah. “Way later if I have anything to say about it.” He rolled her onto her back and she spread her legs. “Because I’m not rushing this time.”

Her mouth formed a perfect O before he caught those delectable kiss-swollen lips with his. She sighed as she welcomed him in once more. Slowly, he rediscovered every delicious part of Sloane’s incredible body… kissing his way down her throat to her breasts while playing with her soaking wet pussy, swirling her hot honeyed heat over her clit.

She clutched his head, moaned his name, and when he slid his cock into her with one long stroke all the way to the hilt, the only thoughts remaining in his brain centered on Sloane.

Moving inside her, feeling her pussy walls contract around him and draw him deeper, electrified him and made him want to lose himself in her. Somehow, here in this moment, he’d found what he needed.

He slammed into her over and over. The sound of their bodies slapping together reverberated through the sunlit room. The pressure building in his groin intensified, and his balls contracted with his release.

Ben twined his fingers into Sloane’s, holding on… and plunged into her one last time, his orgasm exploding through him and into her with powerful bursts of energy.

Here was where he belonged… the hazy thought zinged through him as he collapsed on top of Sloane.

But would she ever let down her guard and let him in on a permanent basis? And asking her to trust him without knowing everything he’d put into motion? He wanted to believe she’d give him the go-ahead.

Yeah, right. Keep fooling yourself and maybe your brain might believe you.

Two days later, Sloane held onto Ben’s hips, laughing, as he rounded the next grove of trees, his snowmobile cutting through the pristine powdery snow in the open valley between the mountains. “You’re right,” she said, her helmet’s Bluetooth headset allowing her to communicate with him. “This is a blast.” She’d never once considered winter sports as a fun activity, preferring her LA lifestyle of sun, surf, and more of the same. But Ben made everything fun.

He jumped a bank, spraying snow over them. “Huzzah,” he yelled. “Almost there.”

They’d been riding through the Montana backcountry for over an hour. She gripped his waist and peered through her visor at the stands of trees, their branches heavy with freshly fallen snow. The roaring engine sounded like a buzzing saw, cutting into the otherwise silent landscape.

He maneuvered the top of the line two-seater around a cropping of three tall pines, the blades kicking up more snow. But the ultra-high windshield kept the wind and snow at bay. The extra bells and whistles included heated seats, but the fire flaring low in Sloane's belly warmed her plenty.

And now that they’d gotten Gavin to back off, she could just enjoy being with her big strong Marine.

Or former Marine. But whatever he chose to do, Sloane had no doubt he’d excel in his role.

“You’ve been pretty cagey about what you’ve got up your sleeve,” she said. Still, he had a natural ability to just do what needed to be done without asking questions.

“You’ve been busy,” he said matter-of-factly.

During the last few days, when they weren’t indulging in each other’s bodies, he’d been 100 percent supportive of her while she slogged hours at a time to complete the screenplay by the deadline.

He cruised through the snow banks, weaving in between the tall pine trees. “I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“Ha. Still smarting over my barking at you when you checked in on me Thursday?” He’d learned very quickly not to interrupt her midstream when she’d snapped at him for opening her door to ask if she needed anything.

“Nope. Figured my time would be better spent planning a reward for all your hard work this week.”

Her heart filled and sent warmth radiating throughout her chest. Rather than sulk like her ex-fiancé, Ben understood. He’d merely kept clear during her writing time. He spent her free hours making her feel incredibly adored… sexy… as if she were the only woman in the world for him.

Ripples of anticipation threaded through her skin, warming her even more. She could get used to his kind of attention. He’d certainly gone to great lengths to show her a side of Montana that might lure her back. Not that she needed much of a lure if he continued to live on and off in Eagle Rock.

The view blurred, swam in her vision for a moment. Don’t go there. You’ll be too busy chasing your next contract to come here again… or maybe not. She didn’t know. She didn’t want complicated, and thinking about possible futures with Ben definitely muddled her mind.

“Just about there,” Ben said, cruising at a high speed but with total control over the machine roaring between her thighs.

“Where?”

“It’s a surprise.”

Her belly fluttered. Ben had promised to show her how to love his home state, but she didn’t need any more encouragement. Not when she held the greatest reason to return to Montana in her hands.

She snuggled in closer, her legs bracketing his powerful ones. “As long as you’re the main attraction, I’ll be happy.” Sloane smiled as joy bubbled through her veins, making her feel light as a dancing snowflake. No matter what happened after they parted ways, he’d given her something immeasurable. He’d refilled the emptiness Gavin’s betrayal had left behind.

A crack sounded. Then another popped like a firecracker. “What the fuck?” Ben fishtailed the snowmobile and managed to right it. “Someone’s shooting at us.”

Cold sweat broke out on her forehead and at the nape of her neck. She tucked her head and anchored herself to Ben. “It’s got to be Gavin.” But how? After the incident at the diner, Ben had contacted the sheriff to give him the heads-up about Gavin. Though there wasn’t much the man could do unless Gavin threatened her. Meanwhile, she’d let her former producer and so-called friend Deirdre know about her concerns. She’d laughed them off but had promised to keep Gavin too busy to bother Sloane.

“Damn it. I thought we were rid of that asshole.” Ben accelerated, ducking low while swerving the machine beneath them in and out of the trees to avoid getting hit. “Hold on. I’ll shake him. Then we’ll contact the sheriff again and Hank Patterson after we get to the cabin.”

Fear wove through Sloane's ribcage and slithered into her throat. Taking even the shallowest of breaths seemed impossible. “You sure you can get him off our tail?”

“I know these mountains better than your ex pretty boy. He’s an idiot.”

Ben gunned the engine and the snowmobile flew over the snow at breakneck speed until he reached a hidden alcove surrounded by pine trees. “Heavy snowfall will cover our tracks, so we’re hanging here for fifteen minutes.” He shut down the power, climbed off the machine, and motioned for her to do the same. “If he finds us, I’m shooting first and asking questions later. Got it?”

Her breath bottled in her lungs, and she gulped in the cold air. “Got it,” she said through chattering teeth.

The telltale buzzing of another snowmobile sounded in the distance. She heard a faint curse. Sloane swallowed down her fear, her anger even… how dare he risk all their lives because of his obsession with her? She didn’t want anyone to get hurt, not even Gavin, but he’d give Ben no choice if he found them in this secluded alcove of trees next to a high hill covered with snow.

Silently, Ben removed his gloves and withdrew his Glock from its concealed holster. He loaded the bullet cartridge and laid flat on the cold snow, aiming dead ahead at the only opening to their hideaway.

Her fingers turned to ice despite the heavy gloves she’d put on earlier. A cold emptiness hollowed out her stomach. Death hadn’t been on her radar when she’d first climbed on board the snowmobile with Ben. But if Gavin didn’t leave them alone, all bets were off.