Under the Magnolia by Moira Rogers Page B

his
leather reading chair by the window and watched her sleep.
    He'd come close to losing her before
he even had her, and to say that didn't sit well was the
understatement of the century. To make matters worse, she regularly
put herself in harm's way when she went tearing off across the
countryside, chasing storms or chasing visions. If she kept doing it,
his nerves would be wrecked.
    But if he tried to stop her, to
change her, then their budding relationship would be destroyed. He
knew that much. He just needed to find some way to deal with it.
    Finally, Wes pulled off his boots
and stretched out beside Addie, still watching her, one hand stroking
through her hair. She made a quiet noise and shifted closer to him,
her eyes fluttering open. "Wes?"
    He trailed his thumb over her cheek.
"Rest, baby. I'm here."
    She turned her face into his hand to
kiss his palm. "I would kill for a hot shower right now."
    Wes gave her a soft smile. "No
need to kill anyone. Come on."
    He rose with her in his arms and
made his way into the bathroom. He didn't put her down until he'd
turned on the shower, and steam billowed out of the tile stall as he
started to undress her. "Can you make it by yourself, or do you
need some help?"
    Addie seemed more bemused than
anything else by his careful attention. She waited until he'd coaxed
her shirt over her head then smiled up at him. "I could make it by myself...." Her hands fell to his shirt, and she
started to unbutton it. "I don't really want to, though."
    Her smile made his chest feel tight
even as he returned it. "You've got a dirty mind, Addie Jo."
    "Mmm. You like it." Her
fingers were gentle as she freed the last button on his shirt and
pushed it open. He knew how bruised he was likely to be, but Addie
sucked in a breath as her hands hovered over his chest. "Oh God,
Wes…"
    He looked down at the three ugly
bruises that bloomed on his chest, her fingers skating over them, and
he covered her hands with his. "It's okay. They don't even
hurt."
    The look she gave him was
disbelieving. "You got shot ,
you absolute idiot. If you ever get shot again, I will…"
She didn't finish, choosing instead to curl her fingers around his
shoulders and drag his mouth to hers for a desperate kiss.
    His heart stuttered and raced as he
slanted his mouth over hers. It wasn't gentle or easy, and he opened
her mouth with one hand on her jaw, then drove his tongue past her
lips. He needed to touch and explore, to learn all of the tastes of
textures of her, the things he'd barely begun to know.
    He lifted her against his body with
one strong arm around her waist, his other hand loosening her hair.
It had dried into a heavy mess of tangles that fell around both of
them. The scent was one he'd always associated with Addie—the
earth and rain, the smell of the outdoors. She was wild and
untamable, but he didn't need to tame her. She'd chosen him.
    Addie's hands slid to his back, her
fingers stroking his skin with a gentle patience that was
contradicted by the frantic noise she made when his tongue found hers
again. He felt the prick of her fingernails against his lower back as
his mouth muffled her low moan.
    He broke the kiss as he reached for
her pants. "Shower?"
    She was breathing heavily, her eyes
a little glazed as she nodded. "Shower. I want to be clean this
time before I have dirty, naughty sex with you."
    His hands flew as he divested her of
her clothing, lingering only over the bruises and scrapes she,
herself, bore. "I'm not the only one who got a little banged
up," he reminded her sadly. "I'm sorry, Addie."
    "Don't you dare." She
caught his face between his hands, staring up at him firmly. "Rule
number one, Wesley Lee Saxon. I am not going to be your damsel in distress. I got myself into trouble, and
you got me out, and I'm really damn glad you did. But you've got nothing to be sorry for."
    It took him a moment to answer. "I'm
supposed to take care of you."
    "No." Addie's fingers
tugged at the button on his pants,