That Thing You Do (Crystal Lake 2)

He clamped his teeth tight so tightly, an ache spread across his jaw. He’d never been so damn confused in his entire life.

She smiled when he approached, and instantly, the tension inside him decreased. “Hey,” she said.

“Hey yourself.” He took a good long look and liked what he saw. Her cheeks were flushed a rosy pink, her eyes sparkled, and when she smiled at him like that, he was DiCaprio on the Titanic—the king of the world. And as king, he made things happen.

“Let’s get out of here,” he said, moving closer, all pretense of being polite long gone. He was done making small talk and skirting whatever the hell this was between them. He had one last night to right this ship, to have Molly to himself, and he wasn’t going to waste it at a wedding reception, even if it was Zach’s.

Molly’s eyes darted behind him, and her pulse rocketed, beating wildly at the base of her neck. “We shouldn’t, Nate.”

He looked her in the eye so she knew how serious he was. He wasn’t turning back. “We should.” He took her hand and met zero resistance. The two of them cut through the crowd and didn’t talk to a soul as Nate led the way outside to where the queue of fancy limousines waited to transport guests home. They hopped inside the first one, and he slid an address he’d printed on a piece of paper to the driver.

There were no words, but he held Molly close until they arrived at their destination. The sprawling resort on the lake had been owned once by the Edwardses, but a few years back, Hudson Blackwell bought it and ran it with his wife. Simply called The Lodge, the Blackwells lived on the property in the sprawling main house, while guests stayed in cabins on the water.

Nate had the key on him, and he took Molly to one of the cabins farthest away from the main house. It was secluded and private and exactly what he wanted for his last night with Molly.

Once inside, he was relieved to see the fire had been lit and it was cozy. Already, the nights were colder.

Molly stood in the shadows, her expression unreadable. It made him nervous as hell, and he didn’t know why. Being here with her felt so right, but also wrong, and that made no damn sense whatsoever.

“Molly,” he said, taking a step toward her.

She shook her head. “I don’t want to talk right now, Nathan.” She turned around and presented her back. “Deal with this zipper, won’t you? Then we can do what it is we came here to do.”

The tone of her voice, the sight of her bare shoulders and wild and wispy hair, made Nathan crazy with desire. So crazy that he didn’t pay attention to the words she didn’t say. He pulled down that zipper, and less than a minute later, they were both naked on the bed.

The air was thick and hot and electric, with an intensity that sizzled along their skin and lit up his insides like a damn Christmas tree. Nathan could never remember wanting a woman as much as he wanted Molly right now.

She was like a goddess on steroids as she pushed him onto his back and straddled him. She raised her arms and stared down at him while taking the pins out her hair. He might have groaned when the silky tendrils fell down her body.

He slid his hands alongside her hips, and she smiled wickedly at him, easing her body down as she took him inside her. When she slowly began to ride him, Nathan just about lost his mind.

And still there were no words. There was touch and feel and anticipation. There was need and want and, finally, there was release.

Nathan shuddered against Molly and rolled over, taking her with him and cuddling her against his body. He pulled the covers up and settled her, their fast-beating hearts the only thing he could hear.

“That was,” he finally managed to say. “Amazing.” He nipped her shoulder and waited, but she said nothing. “Moll? We good?”

For a moment, he thought she wouldn’t answer him, but then she tilted her head and maneuvered her body so he could see her face.

“We’re good,” she said softly.

“I’ve got to leave in a few hours.”

“I know.”

“What are we going to do? Where do we go from here?”

Her eyes fell away from his. “We go back to our lives and live them just like we did before this happened. I think that you being away from here will g

ive us some clarity, you know? It’s not like we can be more than whatever this is, right?”

Nathan wasn’t entirely sure what he’d expected to hear, but it sure as hell wasn’t that. He propped his head up and shook his head. “What about when I come back?”

“Nate, you come back to Crystal Lake about as often as I leave it. Which is hardly ever.”

He couldn’t argue with that, so he said nothing.

“Let’s just have these last moments, and when we run into each other down the road, we’ll play it by ear.”