Chapter 81 Turbulence Expected
Turbulence Expected
Ryder
By the time the movie credits finished, Tessa's laughter had softened into something quieter.
She was curled into my side, warm and loose against me, her hair tickling my chin. One hand was fisted in the front of my shirt, like she'd grabbed it while laughing and never let go.
Popcorn littered the truck bed around us, with a few stray kernels tangled in the blanket. With a smile in her voice, she said, "Best date ever."
I chuckled. "But you already said that."
"Yeah, but that was like two hours ago." She snuggled closer, her thigh sliding over mine. "It bears repeating." But then she pulled back to say, "Next time, I'll surprise you with something."
"Me?" I laughed. "I'm already surprised."
"By what?"
I slid my thumb over her knuckles, savoring the way she leaned into my touch. "You."
"What about me?"
Confession time. "I think I'm obsessed."
"Oh, please," she laughed. "I'm the one obsessed. Do you know, I can't stop thinking of you naked?" She waited for half a beat before giving a theatrical gasp. "I can't believe I said that. And right here, at the movies, too."
She was being ridiculous, and I loved it. "If it helps, I'm not exactly offended."
"Not exactly?"
I smiled into her hair. "Okay, fine. I'm not offended at all."
A new warmth crept into her voice. "I'm not sure I believe you."
At something in her tone, my body reacted before I could stop it. "Why not?"
"Hang on." She shifted, pressing her pelvis tight against mine. "Wow. Okay. Never mind. I stand corrected."
My breath caught. Funny or not, she was undoing me, one comment at a time. "Even though I'm not naked?"
"What you mean to say is…you're not naked yet."
She made it impossible not to smile. "Yet, huh?"
"Can I confess something?"
"Anything."
A note of mischief crept into her voice. "I've always wanted to do it in a truck bed."
I almost snorted. "So it's about the truck, huh?"
"Not only the truck." Her voice softened. "The guy driving it's pretty special, too."
If I wanted to tease her, I might've pointed out that I wasn't currently driving, and that the truck was old enough to be her dad.
But what I really wanted was more of this – her fingers curling tighter in my shirt, her knee nudging between mine, her breath brushing my jaw like she wanted to be even closer.
She wasn't bluffing.
I knew this.
She knew it, too. I could feel it in the press of her hips and the tempo of her breathing, in the way her body stayed poised as if waiting for my next move.
She didn't need to wait.
With my hand steady at her back, I turned my face to hers and kissed her – slowly at first and then deeper. Her fingers slid up my chest as our mouths moved, and my pulse surged in all the right places.
Somewhere outside, crickets chirped and the night wrapped around the barn. But all I could feel was Tessa – warm and willing – molding herself against me in a perfect fit. I slid my other hand along her side, tracing small, lazy arcs that made her breath stutter.
She pulled back to whisper, "A question…"
"Yeah?"
"The popcorn gremlins – they're not coming back, are they?"
I chuckled against the smooth skin of her neck. "Not if they know what's good for them."
"I'm serious," she said. "I mean…I want to see you naked, but if they see you naked, I'm pretty sure I'll have to kill 'em."
I loved her voice, especially at times like this when she was soft and unguarded. "And why's that?"
"Maybe I don't wanna share."
"Me neither," I laughed. "And those gremlins of yours?"
Her voice was a near whisper. "Yeah?"
"They're not coming back 'til morning."
She let out a soft, relieved laugh and tipped her head to study my face. "You're sure?"
"Very."
Her smile turned slow and knowing as my thumb dipped just beneath the edge of her shirt. She leaned into my touch, and her breath hitched before she said, "Good thing. I'm not sure the gremlins could've stopped me." And then, as if to prove it, she set about removing my shirt.
She tugged at the fabric with more enthusiasm than strategy, and when the shirt snagged at my elbow, she gave an adorable huff. "Hold still."
"I am holding still."
She giggled. "Then hold stiller."
"Are you sure you don't want a flight attendant to walk you through this?"
She snorted as she finally yanked the shirt over my head. "Like I'm gonna share you with a flight attendant." She ran a hand over my bare chest. "And besides, it could be a dude."
I laughed. "Then forget it, because you know what?"
"What?"
"I'm not gonna share you either."
"That's a relief." Still smiling, she leaned in again, kissing me like she meant it. Her fingers slid into my hair as she pressed closer, and the truck rocked slightly beneath us.
"Just so you know," she murmured against my mouth, "if we roll out of this thing, I'm totally blaming you."
The idea was so ludicrous, I had to laugh. "What, you're expecting turbulence?"
"Hey, you never know."
"How's this for turbulence?" I said, tipping us sideways until she was laughing beneath me.
"It's a good start," she giggled. "But it'd be even better if we were naked."
"Hey, I'm half naked already." I pulled back to meet her gaze as my hands slid down her sides. "You know what this means?"
"What?"
"I've got some making up to do." I skimmed my fingers beneath the hem of her shirt, savoring the warmth of her skin and the way she arched into my palms as my hands followed her curves.
Her eyes smoldered into mine as I eased the fabric upward.
"Arms," I murmured.
She lifted them without hesitation, and I slid the shirt free, tossing it aside. For a long moment, I just looked. The lacy white bra was delicate and unexpected – simple and somehow devastating against her skin.
My breath caught at the sight of her. "Well…this feels wildly unfair."
She smiled. "To whom?"
"Mostly my self-control?"
"Mostly?"
"Okay, all my self-control."
"Oh, I dunno…" she said. "You looked pretty controlled to me."
Sure, I looked it. But I didn't feel it – not when she lay there beneath me, watching me watch her, not when the heat between us pulsed with every rise and fall of her chest.
I let out a low breath. "You realize you're doing this on purpose."
"Hey, I'm just laying here, minding my own business." But then, a moment later, she wasn't.
Her hand slid down my stomach until her fingers found the button of my jeans. Her touch was fumbling but determined, and the instant the button gave way, the urgency between us sharpened, like we'd just crossed the same invisible line.
I shifted closer, kissing her again as laughter gave way to heat, and our hands moved everywhere, tugging and fumbling and not caring how graceful it looked.
The blanket twisted beneath us. Fabric slid away. And a zipper might've protested. It didn't stop anything.
It wasn't elegant. It wasn't coordinated. It was urgent and clumsy and exactly right. Soon, both of us were naked, skin to skin. Her hands were everywhere – warm and exploring – while mine followed instinct more than thought.
I traced her curves, as if I could relearn her body by touch alone. She responded by pulling me closer and rolling us again, this time so she was on top. "If we don't hurry, I might lose my mind."
I reached between us, feeling her heat and slickness, proving the truth of what she'd said. And already, she was guiding me into her, lowering her hips until our bodies finally met.
For a moment, she stayed there, her forehead resting against mine as we savored the moment like the calm before a storm.
I lifted my hands to her back, smoothing over warm skin, memorizing the way she felt beneath my palms, warm and sweet, and very real. She shivered at the touch while her hips slowly rocked and mine rose to meet her.
As our gazes held, something shifted between us. It wasn't the heat of it. That was still there, pulsing and demanding. But there was something else – deeper, better, and inevitable.
She kissed me, slower this time, not frantic, but certain.
When she moved her hips again, it wasn't rushed. It was intentional – the kind of motion that invited me to follow.
So I did.
My hands slid along her spine, guiding and holding, the rhythm between us built – steady at first, then stronger – until sensation blurred into something heady and overwhelming.
After that, there was no pretending to take it slow.
As our hips moved and lips met and hands explored, the world narrowed until nothing existed beyond the girl in my arms.
Nothing else mattered – not the barn, not the truck, and not the way time seemed to fall away.
Oh, yeah, I was definitely in trouble.
And I liked it.
With a breathless laugh against my ear, Tessa said, "That was incredible. And you know what?"
I felt almost too dazed to think. "What?"
"We should do this again."
I brushed a kiss against her shoulder. "Yeah?"
"Definitely. But you know what else?"
I ran a slow hand over her smooth back. "What?"
She gave my ear a playful nibble. "We're still not watching Rambo."