Christmas on the Last Frontier (Last Frontier Lodge #1) (17 page)

She knelt between his knees and took him in her mouth. His cock pulsed when she pushed down, bringing him fully into her mouth. She settled in to enjoy driving him to the brink. She dragged her tongue up, down and around his cock. She brought him into her mouth again and again, stroking, licking and sucking. She curled her hand around his wet length as she moved up and down. With a guttural cry, he pushed her back, pulling her to standing. He took her mouth in another overpowering kiss, his hands roaming over her body. He shoved her jeans down over her hips, his hands roughly cupping her bottom and pulling her against his arousal.

He tore his lips from hers, turning her in his arms. His hands curled under her breasts from behind as he nipped her neck. Her hips moved reflexively back, need clawing through her. She still wore her panties, the feel of his heated shaft through the black silk ratcheted up the liquid heat spiraling inside. His hand traveled down her abdomen and cupped her mound through the silk, damp from her desire. The stroke of his roughened skin against the silk brought her rapidly to the edge. His touch, rough and soft at once, coaxed her closer and closer as he dragged his fingers back and forth over the silk between her thighs. Desperation built as she clung to the delicious edge.

Her knees gave way and she fell against the couch. She felt him fumble and then swear and go still. Marley glanced over her shoulder. His expression bordered on pain. “Thought I had a condom.”

“I’m on the pill. There’s nothing to worry about either…I trust you.”

Gage stared at her. The moment lengthened, and she began to wish she hadn’t spoken. He cleared his throat. “Are you sure?”

She turned again and held his eyes. When she nodded, he closed his eyes and his shoulders rose and fell with a deep breath. When he opened them again, his gaze burned into her.

He hooked a finger over her panties and dragged them down. Before she could speak, his knelt behind her and slid his fingers into her wet seam. A ragged moan fell from her as he stroked through her folds and dove into her channel, stretching her. His mouth joined his fingers, exploring every inch of her hot, wet core. Tremors built and heat twisted inside. She teetered on the edge of delicious madness.

He suddenly stood, his fingers slowly sliding out of her. She felt the hot brush of his shaft against her, barely nudging at her entrance. He held still for an electric moment. She quivered and pushed her hips back. Suddenly, she felt the lush surge of his cock as it filled her. He sank to the hilt, seating himself deeply inside her slick channel. One of his hands curled around her hip as he began to move while the other slid up her back, threading into her hair.

He established a steady rhythm, stretching her and filling her deeply again and again and again. Sensation took over. Marley didn’t know where her body ended and his began. All she knew was that she wanted more, her hips slamming back to meet his. Feverish need suffused her as she throbbed around him. She raced toward the ecstasy her body craved. His hand slipped between her thighs, his thumb caressing the center of her desire. Pleasure stormed through her as she flew apart, the only thing holding her up his strong embrace as he surged inside once more with a guttural cry. Shudders rippled through her. His hand loosened in her hair, sliding slowly down her back to rest in the small arch. Ragged breathing echoed in the room. She felt him relax against her before he slowly pulled out. She collapsed on the couch, her heart still pounding, pulses of her orgasm lingering.

He deftly lifted her in his arms. She was discovering he appeared to enjoy carrying her around. Though she’d never been one to think much of that, she savored it—the feeling of giving herself over to his strength. He strode quickly down the hallway into the bedroom. Though it was spare of decoration, his bed was piled high with pillows and a thick down quilt. He climbed in with her in his arms. She rested against his side, her head tucked into his shoulder. The cool sheets brought a shiver. His warm palm stroked up and down her back in slow circles.

Chapter 15

Marley slid into the booth across from Lacey who looked up from the menu she was perusing with a grin. “Hey! Can you believe it? I’m early!”

Marley giggled. “I noticed, what’s gotten into you?”

Lacey tucked a lock of chestnut hair behind her ear. “I’ve been craving pizza for days and I needed my Marley fix.”

They were meeting for lunch at Glacier Pizza, a longstanding restaurant in Diamond Creek and a local favorite. Marley glanced around and felt a sense of comfort steal over her. Glacier Pizza had barely changed over the years beyond creative additions to its menu. The restaurant was simple, low on frills and produced amazing pizza. Marley and Lacey had spent time here regularly when they were younger. Lacey had called this morning and demanded Marley meet her for lunch.

Marley met Lacey’s smiling green eyes. “It’s freezing out and pizza is perfect. So what’s up?”

Lacey shrugged. “Not much. I’m trying to decide what to do for the rest of winter.”

“Don’t you have some guiding trips planned?”

“Last winter, I signed on to lead a few trips through an outfit in Anchorage, but it’s rough in the winter. It’s too damn cold. I’m thinking about starting a small business here where I coordinate trips for others, but only lead a few myself every summer. What do you think?”

Marley squealed. “I think it’s perfect! You’ve always blown me away with what a badass you are, but sometimes I worry about you. I know Mom and Dad will be relieved you don’t plan to keep guiding in the winter.”

Lacey grinned and rolled her eyes. “I know they worry. I’ll always do some because I can’t stand not being outside for most of the summer.” She paused, her usually confident gaze looking uncertain. “Do you think maybe you could help me come up with a website and stuff like that? With your business and tech experience, you know what you’re doing. I definitely don’t.”

“Of course! Whatever I can do to help, I’ll be glad to do. When are you thinking of getting this up and running?”

“I was thinking if I did some planning this winter, I could maybe start next summer. Do you think I have enough time?”

Marley was so unaccustomed to seeing Lacey uncertain about anything, it was endearing. She grinned. “Sis, you’re already doing all of it. You’re just talking about being the one to make it happen. You can pull it off.”

Lacey’s eyes flashed with her grin. “If you say so. So, what’s up at Last Frontier Lodge? Mom said she’s been up for every local’s dinner that Delia’s hosted, and they’re amazing.”

“Delia’s doing a great job. The lodge is on track to open the day after Christmas. We have reservations almost completely booked from then all the way to the middle of January.” Marley couldn’t help the thrill of pride she felt. Gage was making his childhood dream a reality.

“We?” Lacey asked with a gleam in her eyes.

Marley flushed straight through. Their waiter arrived in time for her to gather herself. After they ordered, Lacey eyed her. “Don’t think you’re getting off the hook. Give me the goods on what’s going on with you and Gage.”

Marley sighed, fighting the blush that raced up her neck and face again. “Things are…going.”

Lacey rolled her eyes. “That doesn’t tell me anything.”

“Okay, okay. I don’t know. I guess we’re together. I just wish I knew what that meant. I’m horrible at the relationship thing. I mean, I see him every night and I need to figure out how to ask him what he thinks of us, but I don’t know how.”

Lacey’s teasing gaze sobered. “Well, how serious are you about him?”

Marley’s heart gave a hard thump. She’d been trying so hard
not
to think about how she felt deep down, but she was starting to worry that might be a bad plan. Beyond mind-blowing sex, Gage had crawled through the cracks of her defenses with his protectiveness, his warmth, and his kindness to everyone around him.

Marley met Lacey’s eyes and sighed. “I guess it’s pretty serious. Gage is…well, you’d have to be around him a bit to see it, but he’s a really good guy.” As Marley expounded, she eventually got to the part about his help with the issues around the emails and the investigation into the robbery in Seattle, completely forgetting she hadn’t told Lacey about it.

Lacey’s eyes widened. “What do you mean? How come you haven’t mentioned this to me? Mom and Dad are going to want to know too.”

Marley silently swore. She’d purposefully not been talking about it with her family so they wouldn’t worry. They’d already been through enough worry over her the last few months. “Lacey, I don’t want Mom and Dad to worry. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, but please don’t tell them. I’m fine. Gage is with me every night. His friend works in security in Seattle and is coordinating with the police on it.”

Their conversation paused when their pizza arrived. After the waiter moved on, Lacey eyed her, her expression hurt. “I understand why you don’t want Mom and Dad to worry, but maybe you could’ve let me know what’s going on.”

Marley felt a wash of guilt. She hadn’t purposefully been keeping this from Lacey, but she’d grown so accustomed to handling things on her own, she hadn’t reached out to her. “I didn’t mean to make it seem like I didn’t want your help. It’s just…the whole thing is weird. I promise I’ll let you know what’s going on. Right now, there’s not much to tell. It’s those stupid emails and a weird phone call. If it weren’t for the robbery, I probably wouldn’t think of it at all. I’ve been so on edge ever since that happened.” Marley fiddled with her fork absently.

Lacey set her pizza down and grabbed Marley’s hand. “Of course you’re on edge! It would be weird if you weren’t. And don’t think I’m mad. I’m just worried. If you ask me though, Gage must like you a whole lot. Guys don’t just do things like that unless they really care. When can I stop by and meet him?” she asked slyly.

Marley’s heart lifted. She took a bite of pizza before responding. “How about you stop by the lodge tonight? Delia’s having another one of her local’s dinners. I was thinking of going.”

***

Gage stood at the doorway that led from the kitchen into the restaurant. He couldn’t quite believe what Delia had done, but it was amazing. Christmas was two weeks away, and her local’s nights were a rousing success. His hazy childhood memories of a busy restaurant and delicious food couldn’t compete with the reality of now. The lodge restaurant was packed. Marley had told him she’d be here for dinner tonight, and he was strangely nervous. Though they’d been spending every night together, she usually worked until he showed up at her place or vice versa. He wanted her to see how well things were progressing at the lodge and felt a thrill of pride when he thought about it.

Aidan had few updates for him the last few days, which irked Gage. He wanted movement on the investigation. He was reconsidering whether he’d head to Seattle next week to see if he could jumpstart things around Kent. According to Aidan, ever since Kent made the call to Marley, his emails and other online activity had gone quiet. The only thing holding Gage back was that he didn’t want to leave Marley’s side. The way he felt about her was starting to make him uncomfortable—not because he wanted it to go away, but because he’d never experienced anything like it. He was used to being in control in all situations. He’d considered himself immune to this kind of thing. He’d watched a few of his fellow Navy SEALs get tossed around in the storm of relationships and considered it a weakness.

Now, he realized he’d had absolutely no clue what they’d been going through. Marley had breezed her way into his heart, body and soul, and he couldn’t imagine how to manage how he felt. Every so often, the word
love
traveled through his brain and he swatted it away. Love meant commitment. Commitment was something he understood very well since he’d committed his life to the SEAL’s for years. But the kind of emotional commitment involved in relationships was something he’d purposefully steered away from because it conflicted with the commitment to his career before. With that part of his life in the rear view mirror, he felt unsteady and uncertain about how to handle the feelings Marley elicited. They were entirely beyond his experience and bumped against his desire to plan and stay in control. He didn’t know how she fit inside his life. And yet, he couldn’t imagine life without Marley. The idea of her not being a part of his life, even worse being with someone else, nearly unhinged him. His carefully controlled and planned life hadn’t prepared him for her.

His sisters, Jessa and Becca, would be up tomorrow. Which had him thinking a lot about Marley and how to introduce her to them. He’d never introduced any woman to his family. Jessa and Becca would be the warm up for the rest of his family who were arriving on staggered dates leading up to Christmas. He didn’t think of himself as sentimental, but as the reality of Last Frontier Lodge firmed in front of his eyes, he’d become determined his family would be here for the holiday as they used to do for so many years before the lodge closed. Gage was pulled out of his thoughts by a loud crash in the kitchen.

He turned and saw one of the kitchen staff had dropped a large glass jar of olives on the floor. Broken glass and olives dotted the floor. Delia was shaking her head and laughing. “It wouldn’t be right if something didn’t break on our first full night.” She stepped over to help, but Gage beat her to it.

“I got this,” he said, waving her away. “You’ve got food to serve.”

The young woman who’d dropped the jar was flushed red. ‘I’m so sorry…”

Gage glanced up and shook his head. “You heard Delia, nothing to worry about. Go do what you need to do, and I’ll get this.” She nodded with alacrity and turned away.

After he swept of the mess and mopped the area, Gage raced upstairs to change when he noticed he still wore the clothes he’d had on when he helped Don outside. When he returned to the restaurant, he saw Marley walking in with a woman who had to be related to her. She shared Marley’s hair though it had less red to it. He made his way across the room to Marley’s side.

“Hey, there,” he said.

Marley glanced up, her forest green eyes landing on his, and his pulse quickened. She affected him as no one ever had. All she had to do was be there, and it was as if she flicked a switch. He talked his body down. The last thing he wanted was to meet anyone related to Marley with an obvious hard on.