Chapter 30 #2
“Then let’s go.” She backed him up to his truck, ravaging his mouth. When she’d had enough, she drew back, breathless. “Will your dad mind?”
Took a beat to collect himself after such a robust kiss. “He’s uh, he’s at a cattle auction in Bozeman, and his place is on the other side of the ranch.”
He paused. “We’ll be alone until you go.”
“Gee, that’s a shame.” Her eyes danced.
The majestic Pintler Mountains formed the western horizon, bright alpenglow in the late afternoon light.
The drive east from Anaconda to Butte took twenty-five minutes on the interstate, then another fifteen on a two-lane road south of town that wound through ranch land and open meadow.
Fire-scarred timber gave way to green pasture, relaxing Colton for the first time in weeks.
He turned onto a gravel drive flanked by lodgepole fence posts. A modest log house sat at the end, with a wraparound porch and a red barn behind it. Two horses lifted their heads from a corral as he stopped the pickup.
“This is all yours?” Deanna whispered.
“Forty acres.” He cut the engine. “The mare is Athena. The gelding is Spunky. He’s lazy but lovable.”
She climbed out, breathing in the calm evening, glancing around. The Rockies filled the western sky, indifferent to what had happened in the past month.
“No helicopters, no fire orders, no radios. Only the wind through the grass,” she said softly. “I like it.”
“And the nickering of horses,” he said.
“It’s so beautiful, Colton.” The look on her face made him want her. Badly.
He came around the truck and took her hand. “Come inside.”
The house smelled of pine and dust, untouched by daily life for weeks.
Colton opened windows to air out the place while Deanna wandered through the rooms, taking in the details.
She lingered over the worn leather furniture, the big stone fireplace, and the flight charts pinned to a corkboard in the kitchen.
On the mantel sat a framed photo of a younger Colton with another pilot, both grinning in front of a tanker.
“Is this Mack?” she said. “I recognize the camaraderie in both your faces.” She touched the frame gently, straightening it on the shelf.
His arms came around her. “He would have liked you. He always said I needed someone who’d argue with me.” His lips found the spot below her ear that drove her wild. “I’ve wanted this all day. Every time someone flirted with you, I’d say to myself, she’s comin’ home with me tonight, buddy.”
Her hands found his buttons, working them open with unhurried fingers. “Less talking, Sky King. We’re finally alone.”
“You know me. I prefer action.” His eyes flared hot as the last button gave way and she pushed his shirt off his shoulders, her palms trailing over his chest.
He lifted her shirt over her head, and when he glimpsed the tops of her breasts spilling over the lace of her bra, his brain fogged.
“You’re staring,” she said in a provocative voice.
“No, I’m appreciating this lovely vision.” He skimmed his fingers along her collarbone, her pulse beneath his fingertips. “There’s a difference.”
She laughed, the sound filling the room the way sunlight warmed the valley in the morning.
They undressed without the urgency they’d grown accustomed to. Time was finally on their side. Tonight wasn’t about surviving another close call or burning off adrenaline. The fire season had given them enough of both.
Tonight belonged to what came after.
He unhooked her bra, and she let it slip to the floor. Her hands found his belt, eased the buckle free, and pushed his jeans over his hips. When he stood before her with nothing between them, her lips parted, telling him everything he needed to know.
Colton lifted her into his arms. She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck as he carried her to the bedroom, pausing in the doorway for one lingering kiss before laying her gently on the bed.
She tugged him down, and he lowered himself over her, resting on his forearms.
“Wait.” She reached up to cup his face. “I need to say something.”
“Now?” His body ached for hers.
“Now.” Her forefinger ran along his brow. “I said I loved you at the brewery. I meant every word. No holds barred.”
He kissed the center of her palm. “Good. Because you’re stuck with me now. About all I know how to do is fly airplanes and love you.”
Her smile softened. “Those happen to be two of my favorite things.”
He kissed her, savoring the kiss that promised tomorrow instead of fearing it. Tomorrow now belonged to them. No dispatches. No sirens. No interruptions. Only their breathing, and the distant nicker of Athena answering Spunky outside the open window.
His hands rediscovered her, lingering where they once hurried. He traced the scar along her ribs where a shattered branch had nearly taken her life, then followed the scattering of freckles across her shoulders, committing them to memory.
“Colton.” She said his name as though the sound of it had always belonged in this house. Only he hadn’t known what was missing.
The world faded away. Only Deanna remained, meeting his gaze with a trust she’d offered no one else.
Neither of them rushed. They no longer had to.
She arched into him, and a raw, feral sound escaped her throat.
He eased himself inside her, their bodies moving as one.
The arguments, the near-death moments, all the smoke and fire had brought them to this.
Two people who’d survived their own wreckage and connected on the other side.
He loved her fingers digging into his shoulders, and how her breath hitched when he pushed deeper. He kissed the curve of her throat, the corners of her mouth.
“Don’t stop,” she breathed. “Don’t you dare stop.”
He had no intention. Not tonight, not tomorrow, not any night they’d make love.
They found an easy rhythm, like fire and wind moving across uneven terrain. She lifted her hips to draw him in deeper, the old bed frame protesting while neither of them cared. When she stiffened under him, her lips parted in a gasp.
Pleasure rippled through her, fingers gripping the sheets, his name torn from her in a cry that he captured with his mouth. He followed seconds later, her legs wrapped around him, as waves of ecstasy rolled through their bodies.
Afterward, they let the cool air from the open window drift across damp skin.
Deanna played with his chest hair. “I have an observation to share.”
“Hmm?”
“I’ve had sex before.” She propped her chin on his chest to look at him. “But the first time I ever made love was with you.”
“Same for me,” he said, kissing the top of her head.
“Really?” She nestled into the crook of his arm and let the stillness hold them.
Outside, Athena nickered, and a coyote howled somewhere down the valley. Through the window, the first stars appeared over the Rockies, bright and cold in the darkening sky.
“I should forewarn you,” he said, matching her tone. “I’m going to ask you an important question tomorrow.”
“If it’s about getting married in a tanker, the answer is no.”
He laughed. “Not that question. Not yet, anyway.”
She slid her lips along his collarbone. “Good. I need to get used to being loved this much.”
“How does it feel to be truly loved?” he asked.
“Like I’ve died and gone to heaven.”
“Good.” He kissed her temple. “Because Sky King has heaven on earth with his Wonder Woman.”
She made a face and chortled. “That’s the cheesiest thing you’ve ever said.”
“And you’re still in my bed, so you must’ve liked it.”
“Your bed is comfortable. Don’t flatter yourself.” She fell asleep, her breathing going deep and even.
Colton stayed awake a while longer, staring at the ceiling of the house he’d helped his dad build three years ago. It appeared different now that Deanna was there to share it with him.
Athena and Spunky drowsed in the corral, their soft nickers floating through the open window. The coyotes yipped their evening ritual as the stars wheeled overhead.
Tomorrow, they’d begin building a life together. But tonight, the only thing that mattered was her body tucked into his, knowing he never wanted to wake up without her for the rest of his life.
He’d stopped chasing horizons. For the first time, simply being with someone was enough.
He closed his eyes and let sleep take him, the woman he loved breathing beside him, the mighty Rocky Mountains standing guard outside.