Chapter 8 #2
“I’d rather talk to you.” A beat later, I realize that doesn’t sound very complimentary towards his sister. “I like Eden. She’s really nice. But… I guess I just feel more comfortable with you.”
In the silence that follows, self-doubt sweeps through me.
Then Indy says, “I feel comfortable with you, too.” His gaze moves from mine, scanning the thick clusters of trees around us.
A yellow bird bursts from the branches of a large pine, streaking past us and up into the sky.
When he looks back at me, emotion darkens his eyes.
“I don’t talk about my prosthetic very much.
Or those years… after. But with you, I don’t mind. ”
My heart flips again. Flutters.
“You can talk to me about anything,” I tell him.
“Anything?”
“Anything.”
“What if it’s something I shouldn’t be thinking?”
“Like what?”
“Like—” He stops along the narrow dirt path and turns me to face him.
Then he just looks at me, his gaze moving across my face, lingering first on the healing cut on my forehead, then to my lips, and finally, my eyes.
“I know I shouldn’t. It’s not the right time.
And even if it was, I’m not the right man—”
Hope sparks inside me. “Right man for what?”
His features go still. “The right man for you, Bea. After everything I’ve done… Shit. I have no right…”
I take both his hands in mine. He flinches as my fingers wrap around his prosthetic ones, but he doesn’t pull away. “A right to do what?”
As he looks deep into my eyes, time seems to stand still.
“Kiss you.”
The spark of hope ignites.
Jenna’s voice echoes in my head.
Maybe he’s the one you’ve been waiting for. How can you not see where it leads?
Maybe.
Maybe something good could come out of this.
“What if I said I thought about kissing you, too?”
Indy blinks. Vulnerability appears, just for an instant. “You have?”
“Maybe I shouldn’t,” I reply. “With everything else going on. But… I’ve thought about it. Wanted—”
His mouth crashes onto mine, cutting off the rest of my words.
One hand cups my cheek, big and warm, with a hint of roughness to it.
The other comes to the small of my back, holding me tightly against him.
Heat explodes through my body.
My breath catches.
Desire coils deep inside me, throbbing with a desperate need I don’t think I’ve ever felt before.
It’s not a tender kiss, like I might have expected for our first.
No, this is hungry. Passionate. Racing past tentative strokes and slow explorations. Indy’s tongue plunges inside my mouth, tangling with mine.
He bites my lower lip, not hard enough to hurt, but to bring a sting of pain that’s a perfect complement to the pleasure surging through me.
I cling to his biceps, memorizing the feel of them.
The cold is a forgotten thing as my skin catches fire.
All my worries disappear.
It’s just me and Indy. Alone in the woods. Giving ourselves over to this raging desire.
And in this moment, I know.
The attraction I felt towards him from the start never went away.
But now that I’m kissing him, I know it’s so much more than that.
By the time Indy breaks the kiss, I’m lightheaded and wobbly on my feet.
He looks down at me with a heated gaze, his desire a visible thing. And a stolen glance below his waist shows he’s just as affected by our kiss as me.
“Are you okay?” he asks. He adjusts my knit cap, making sure my ears are covered. Then he strokes my sensitive lips with his thumb. “That wasn’t too much, was it?”
“It wasn’t too much.” I hold his gaze. “And I’m more than okay.”
“Okay.” A satisfied smile curves his lips. “Good.” He kisses me again, this time much more tenderly. “I’m more than okay, too.”
As we look at each other, there are so many things I want to ask.
What does this mean for us? Was it a one-time thing? Or will it happen again?
While I’m sorting through my thoughts, the trill of a phone ringing breaks through the silence.
“Shit,” Indy mutters. He unzips his fleece to reach into the inside pocket. “Sorry, Bea. It’s our team ringtone. So I know it’s one of the guys. If it were anyone else…”
“It’s fine.” Honestly, I’m happy for the reprieve, so I can try to make some sense of my feelings. “If it’s someone on your team, of course you should answer it.”
Indy shifts me to his side, still keeping his arm around my waist as he answers his phone with the other. He listens for a few seconds, then says, “Shit. Sorry. I’m out in the woods with Bea, and I—”
Stopping, he listens again. “No, I’ll head back now. See you soon.”
Once he ends the call, he gives me an apologetic look. “I’m sorry. We have a team meeting, and I lost track of time.”
“It’s okay.” I start heading back towards the house, my gaze focused on the path while I try to fight back the disappointment pushing at me. “If you have a meeting—”
Indy hurries to catch up to me. “Bea. I’d rather be out here with you.”
“I get it.” And yes, I know I’m being irrational. He has a meeting. For work. It’s not a personal insult.
It’s just… we had our first kiss. And now…
His arm comes around me again. “It shouldn’t take long. No more than an hour. And after, how about we sit by the fire, watch a movie, maybe order some pizza?”
The weight of disappointment lightens a little. “Are you sure you have time?”
Indy kisses my forehead. “For you? Absolutely.”
Oh.
As we walk back to the house, talking about what movie to watch and the toppings to have on our pizza, I decide an hour break isn’t a bad thing after all.
I can freshen up. Fix my hair, which will undoubtedly look a mess after wearing a hat for the last hour.
I can put on something cute, maybe whip up a batch of cookies for later…
Yes. I can make cookies for Indy. Or actually, I can make a double batch so there’s enough for his entire team.
Something quick, like chocolate chip or peanut butter.
I’ll run a brush through my hair, put on a little mascara and lip gloss, change into something cuter than jeans and a sweater with long underwear beneath it, and be ready for our movie by the time Indy’s done with his meeting.
At the door to my apartment, Indy apologizes again. “I’m sorry, Bea. Really. I don’t know how I forgot about the meeting. I—” He stops. Smirks. “Actually, I do know how I forgot.”
“Sorry—”
“Bea.” He strokes my cheek. “I’m very glad you made me forget.”
Very glad.
His words keep repeating while I do my hair and brush my teeth and debate between the pale blue V-neck or the coral wrap-around shirt.
I keep turning them over in my head as I measure out the ingredients for the cookies.
Very glad.
Could something good come out of this?
Could this thing between me and Indy develop into more than friendship?
If it does, how would my parents react? Would they refuse to accept Indy, knowing what he did? Or would they be thankful that he put his own neck on the line to help me?
I wish I could call Fiona and Aidy to ask for advice. But we—me and the team—agreed it was safer to leave them in the dark for now. Which sucks, and I feel bad making them worry, but—
“You’re going to be sorry.”
The gravely voice seems to come out of nowhere.
I spin around, searching for its source. But the apartment is still empty, except for me.
Heart pounding, I scan the apartment more carefully the second time. But there’s no one else here.
And why would Indy or one of his friends come in without telling me?
How could they, when I’m in the kitchen, with a clear view of the front door?
“You shouldn’t have run.”
The voice comes again from seemingly nowhere.
My lungs seize with fear.
Is someone hiding in here?
Indy said the place was secure. That no one could get in.
But what if—
“Turn yourself in. Now.”
The whisk I’m holding falls to the floor with a dull clatter.
“NOW,” the voice orders, rising close to a shout. “NOW!”
Tremors race through my body. My breath comes in rapid, uneven gasps.
Fractured questions attack me.
Who? Where? How?
“NOW!” the voice bellows. Then it dips to a sinister snarl. “Do it. Or your parents will die.”
“Who are you?” I croak. “Why—”
An explosive blast tears through my head.
It’s deafening. Painful. Terrifying.
A scream rips from my throat.
I drop to the floor and scuttle backwards, clutching my ears.
What’s happening?
Who’s yelling at me?
Where’s Indy when I need him?