Stranded with Desire by Vivien Dean

Author:Vivien Dean [Reed, Vivien Dean and Rick R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: gay romance
ISBN: 978-1-63477-256-3
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 2016-08-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

MAINE had to be dreaming. Or dead. Those were the only possible explanations for how he could be squinting up into the face of a man he hadn’t really expected to see again, clinging to the other man who’d upended his entire worldview. But the glacial bite of the wind felt all too real through his sodden clothes, and the sting of the rain against his numb face was a harsh reminder of all the muddy water he’d swallowed in his slide down the mountain.

Rooster gave them a thumbs-up, then turned out of view for a moment. When his features became visible again, his voice emanated from the helicopter’s loudspeaker.

“Don’t go drowning yet, fellas! We’ll get you outta there in no time.”

Colby’s bark of laughter vibrated through both of them. “I guess we know what happened to Rooster now.”

The joke cut through the tension. Though Colby was his only source of warmth, Maine let him go and stepped back, his gaze intent on the helicopter. He wanted nothing more than to get as far away from this deathtrap mountain as he could before it decided to stop messing around and kill him and Colby for real.

“We’re going to lower the rescue basket,” Rooster said through the loudspeaker. “It can only hold one of you at a time, though.”

“You go first,” Colby said before Maine could say the very same thing.

The hard set of Colby’s jaw brooked no argument, but Maine wasn’t about to give in just because Colby looked gorgeous asserting his opinion, even as muddy and wet as they were. “I’m not getting in anything until I see that you’re safe,” he countered.

“I’m not the one who just went mud-water rafting without a raft.”

“No, but last I checked, I’m still your boss. You’re going up first, and that’s an order.”

His mouth thinned. “Then I quit.”

Maine laughed. “No, you don’t.” He cupped Colby’s face, his thumb skimming along the raindrops collecting in his beard. “Rooster isn’t about to let anything happen to either one of us, and I made a promise to myself that I would do whatever it took to make sure you walked away safely from all this. So stop being so obstinate, get in the basket, and I’ll see you on the helicopter.”

Colby grasped his wrist, but instead of tugging Maine’s hand away, he leaned into the touch. The eyes he locked on Maine glistened. “When are you going to stop putting everybody else’s well-being ahead of your own?”

“Not in the next five minutes.” He couldn’t consider the larger ramifications of Colby’s question, not yet, not until they were finally safe. Too many dark thoughts had already scoured his consciousness when he’d been adrift in the water, regrets ready to eat him alive faster than the rain could drown him. “I need you to do this for me, Cole,” he added, leaning closer so Colby could hear him without raising his voice. He wanted to seal his request with a kiss—Christ, he needed to feel Colby against him just to feel alive again—but he was already pushing his luck touching him like this.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.