All the more sexy because every time he looked at it, he thought of his fingers in her hair, his right to touch her. The way she granted him that right without pulling back. It was something to hold on to in a day where frustration chewed through him over saying good-bye, over the secrets she still held.
Her lips parted.
He waited for her, taking her with his eyes while he waited for her to take him right back.
“Wade?”
“Yeah, babe?”
“Babe?”
“Sorry. Gorgeous babe?”
She rolled her eyes. “Have you ever had a moose burger?”
Not the pillow talk he was expecting, but then when had this woman ever done the expected? He gathered her ponytail in his hand. “Can’t say that I have.”
He lost himself in the slide of her hair between his fingers while waiting to see where she would go with this line of conversation.
“Moose burgers are amazing. They have less fat, with the gamey kick of deer, but the high-quality taste of a prime cut.” Her eyes held his, unflinching as they sat mere inches apart in his truck cab, connected by his hold on her hair. “There are no artificial growth hormones. It’s healthier all the way around.”
“Makes sense.”
She reached toward him slowly, deliberately, almost touching, then her hand shot past him to snag his candy bar and pitch it in the tiny trash bag. “You shouldn’t eat so much crap.”
Okay, he was having serious trouble following her train of thought. Had seeing the pictures of all those dead friends rattled her seemingly unshakable grip? “What does the fat content in my diet have to do with anything?”
“If you come home with me, you could have a moose burger at my place.”
Her question stunned him silent. She was really, no shit, inviting him to follow her to the inner sanctum of her sacred little community.
Suddenly her conversation made perfect sense, a simple offer in keeping with the more subdued tone of the day. Once that settled into his brain, he realized… Finally, she’d made a real step in admitting they had something going. He should be rejoicing.
Except hiking back up that mountain was the last thing she should be doing.
“Stay here, Sunny, just until your dog’s better, and then we can all three go together. I’ll take leave before my deployment.” Something he did not want to discuss right now and risk sending her running.
“I don’t just want to go home, I need to go home.”
He clasped her shoulders. “Tell me what’s going on. Why all the secrecy? I think we moved beyond superficial when I tossed your panties into the fireplace.”
She looked away quickly, staring out along the frozen bay and nibbling her bottom lip. “I’m freaking out over all my dead friends, okay?” She shook her head. “I can’t accept that this was a random act. Why did some get away? Are they dead out there too? And what about those families that haven’t been notified yet? The authorities aren’t interested in me taking them up there until they finish their investigation here, and quite frankly I’m not sure I want them there. Just inviting you is a huge deal for me. I don’t think you realize how big it is to bring a new person in, especially one who doesn’t intend to stay.”
Her arguments had meat to them. Almost too much. He covered her hand with his. “You know all of this only makes me want to tuck you away some place safe all the more. Let the authorities do their job.”
Slipping one finger out from under, she stroked the top of his hand, a simple touch, strangely personal. “I don’t mean to be insensitive. I’m just not used to…”
“Relationships?”
“Sharing, being open.” She twitched, a small flinch, but telling. “I have a sister…”
Her words trailed off and he waited, letting her take the lead. “Our family lives remotely. A lot of people in Alaska live off-the-grid because it’s just too far or too expensive to hook into a power plant. It’s easier, cheaper even, to make use of what’s here.”
“And that’s what your family has done.” He’d already deduced as much, but she was talking and he didn’t want to interrupt the flow.
“Hydropower from hot springs works year-round as long as you can keep the pipes from freezing. It’s effective—”
“Why are you worried about your sister?”