Page 67 of The CEO and the Mountain Man

“It wouldn’t feel right to wear bright colors right now,” he admitted. “I wouldn’t feel comfortable in them. But maybe a little color now and then?”

“Like a highlight?”

“Yeah.”

“Not that you need my approval for anything, but I think it’s emotionally mature of you to let your outsides match your insides, and for that to change over time.”

He nodded along. “And not that you need my approval for anything … but I noticed you’re spending as much time with Beau as I’m spending with Miguel.”

Even as he said I didn’t need his approval, I understood that I had it. Which …fuck these goddamn tears.

I tapped my forehead against his shoulder. “Yep. He’s a real special guy.”

“So, it’s not just sex with you two?”

“Iwish.”

He scanned me, head to toe, in that way that only teenagers can. “No, you don’t. You don’t want it to be casual any more than I want this thing with me and Miguel to be casual.”

Who let him get so smart?

My shoulders slumped. “No, I do not. And I have no idea what to do with that.”

“You always say that long-distance relationships are really stupid.”

“I do say that.” The dry laugh that scraped my throat raw wasn’t fooling anyone. “Who would torture themselves like that?”

“Idiots,” he said, dumping coffee into the filter. “Stone-cold idiots.”

Riverand I spent the rest of the day together. We had to attend a first-aid class with Colt and Jake, who was as grumpy as ever. We also volunteered to help pack the supplies. It was just lucky, then, that Beau and Miguel happened to be the ones in charge of supplies.

A complete coincidence.

After a full day of prep work, Beau kissed my temple. “I’ll clean up and see you at the cabin.”

River, holding hands with Miguel, sent us a grin. “I’ve already got my stuff over at his cabin.”

Miguel looked at my son like Miguel was the earth, and River was his moon.

“See you in the morning for the trail ride?”

“Yep.”

I watched them walk away, turning over in my head the logistics of the two of us falling for Colorado men. Maybe it didn’t hafta be so impossible.

“Oh, fuck,”Beau moaned to the bathroom tiles.

I was kneeling behind him, exploring his asshole with my tongue. I thought it might be weird. I thought … maybe it wouldn’t be for me. Maybe this was the line. The place where my experiment with men came to a screeching halt.

As it happened, my love of giving pleasure was evergreen. And making Beau’s back arch was becoming my favorite thing, ever. More than that, the musky scent of man and ass formedthis chemical reaction in my brain. I was instantly hooked from the first time I pushed my tongue into that tight, tight space.

He was close, and we had already decided that we wouldn’t try for marathon sex tonight, since we had two long days ahead of us. That didn’t mean I wanted things to be over quickly, so I pulled back.

“You’re killing me, Clark.”

I stood and wrapped my arms around him, kissing his shoulders. “I was thinking about fucking you, actually.”

He stiffened, then slowly turned his head to look at me over his shoulder. “Are you serious?”