That wasn’t a situation she needed to be in, especially so soon after getting divorced. It also wasn’t the man he wanted to be. He’d chosen a mate once before, and it had brought out the very worst in him. His ambition. His greed. His anger. He’d made a vow to avoid getting that close to anyone ever again. He needed to remember that.
Not to mention that Jess wasn’t looking for anything serious. Even if he would allow himself to lose control and give over to his incredible attraction for her, with a passion so fierce it felt like it was stretching his skin, she wasn’t ready. She felt the electricity, she felt the pull, but she wasn’t ready to handle what came next.
He had to be the brakes. He needed to be stronger than this!
After a few more turns, the cart slowed as they reached the first plateau, the tracks about to curve around a corner and plunge deeper into the ground. He eased the brake forward until the cart stopped. Sunlight filtered into the tunnel from a partially covered grate above, dappling Jess as she twisted to look back at him, her beautiful face flushed with excitement and wonder.
How the fuck was he supposed to be the brakes with a woman like her?
“That. Was. Ah-mazing,” she said, beaming.
“Fun, right?” He smiled at her and unhooked his legs from hers.
“Tell the truth: you were planning that all along, weren’t you? The potential spies watching the house were just an excuse.”
“Can I lie and say yes?” He helped her get out before heading to a control panel on a pole sticking out of the rough-hewn ground. In no time the chains engaged under the cart and began pulling it back up to the top of the hill. He’d had that installed a handful of years ago, which was why he wasn’t the only one who knew about the mine shaft. But the few people who’d done the work were trustworthy. “So.” He helped her through a small exit in the side, over some wood and bricks and out of the natural canopy that concealed the opening. “Do you want to ride on me to our next destination, or would you prefer to fly? It’s about ten miles from here.”
“But…what about your car? Are we going to go back and get it?”
“Jasper will take my Jeep back to Ivy House. It’ll make it a little harder for your admirers to track you down. I can run us home afterward, or you can fly. Same choice.”
He paused, waiting for her decision. Her eyes flicked down his body and red infused her cheeks.
Heat pulsed through him with the knowledge that she was thinking impure thoughts.
“I’ll ride you—ride on you. If you don’t mind.” She put her hands to her hips and then slid them down, as though suddenly unsure what to do with them.
He pulled a plastic bag out of his back pocket and handed it to her. “Will you be the keeper of my clothes?”
“Sure, yeah.”
She took his phone next, and he started stripping. There wasn’t much he could do about the hard-on, especially since he got another shock of arousal when she glanced down at him and then released a slow breath while her eyes sparked fire.
She turned away.
“Sorry,” she mumbled. “Didn’t mean to look.”
“I should’ve warned you.” He laughed, not sure why. “I guess I don’t have to ask you to keep my shirt clean. The back is all dirty.”
“Why’d you wear white if you knew we were going in the dirty cart?”
He shrugged, handing his clothes over. “You always seem to notice and comment when I wear white shirts. I thought you might like this one.”
“I do like this one. Definitely. You look really good in white. But I notice and comment on the T-shirts because they are tight and show off your physique, not strictly because they are white.” She grinned mischievously. “If we’re being honest.”
“Ah.”
“But I do like the white, as I said.”
“Okay, ready?”
She nodded, and he shifted to his animal form, the discomfort short-lived and barely registering. He flattened onto his belly until she crawled onto his back, the only person he’d ever let ride him like a pony. Once he was up, he launched forward, reveling in her squeals of delight.
The ride was fast, faster than he might’ve expected, his focus less on his footfalls and more on her kneading hands, seeking out the soft inner fur in his coat and stroking it to distraction. The climb up the mountain was nothing, only worrisome when he basically crawled over a ledge to get to the rock shelf that was their destination. Finally there, seeing that Earl had set everything up as requested, Austin flattened to his belly again so she could get off.
Only she continued to sit there on his back, still kneading, utterly silent. Not able to ask her what was wrong, or to change—worried he’d burn her and her clothes with the release of energy—he just waited.