I turned in his lap, arms going around his neck, my kiss telling him everything I couldn’t put into words—how much that near-miss worried me, how badly I didn’t want to come between him and the club, or him and his father, but how badly I didn’t want to lose him, either.

I said all that in the kiss, and when it deepened, urgency and hunger and fear igniting as he pulled me down onto the rocks, I showed him exactly how much he meant to me, and how glad I was to have him.

—

I lay under Ricky as he caught his breath, his eyes threatening to close. When I made a move to slide from under him, he put one hand between my shoulder blades, the other on my rear, and flipped onto his back with me atop him. Then he pulled me down in a slow kiss. When it broke, I tried to back away again. His arms tightened.

“Eager to escape this morning, aren’t you?”

“No. Just thinking I should probably pour us some coffee before we drift off to sleep, half naked, in a public park.”

A languid grin. “Anyone spots us, they’ll steer clear.”

He pulled me back down into a kiss, and I started thinking maybe he had a point. The sun was bright and warm, and it felt so quiet and peaceful. Right up until we heard the distant sound of voices. Kids’ voices. He rolled me over onto my back, saying, “I’ll get that coffee.”

“No,” I said. “I’ll get it . . . along with my jeans.”

While I pulled on my clothes, he propped himself up to watch. I had my own view to enjoy. As fine as Ricky Gallagher looks in clothes, he’s even better without them. He had his jeans still on, pulled up now but unbuttoned, his shirt off as he reclined on his elbows, his sweaty chest glistening in the sunlight.

He smiled. “You keep staring at me like that and I’ll put you on the bike and spirit you off to the cabin early.”

“Spirit away,” I said, bringing back two cups of coffee. “I have the day off.”

He buttoned his jeans. “Seriously?”

“Seriously. A gift from Gabriel, though I suspect he wants me out of his hair so he can get some actual work done. If you have things to do, you can drop me at the office and Lydia will play bodyguard until—”

“My day’s plan was killing time until you’re free.”

“So you want to head up early?”

“Hell, yeah.”

“Anytime you’re ready, then.”

“Not so fast.” He caught my arm as I began to get up. “I want to hear about last night first.”

He sat, and I leaned against his shoulder.