Moth to a Flame (11 page)

Her lips formed a sexy, little pout that made me want to throw her across the table right then and do very dirty things to her.

Holding the backpack up, I smiled reassuringly at her. “Babe, you look hot as hell, but you aren’t dressed appropriately for our date. I bet those heels cost a fortune and they won’t help you where we’re going. I took the liberty of bringing some stuff for you to wear on our date. Throw on some jeans that aren’t so nice. Everything else you’ll need is in here.”

Lia grabbed the bag and made her way back to her room, swaying her hips as she marched off. Getting out of those jeans was definitely a good idea if we had any plans of actually making it to our date.

A few minutes later, she came out frowning, holding the bag like it contained venomous snakes.

“What?” I asked.

“There is NO way in hell I am wearing those ugly things!” she shrieked, sounding like such a valley girl.

I started laughing at the look on her face. “What’s wrong with them? They’re hiking boots and you love shoes. I guess I’m missing the issue here.”

“Pink camo? Really, Cale?” she huffed.

“Lia, you’ll need them for our date. I promise it’ll be just us two. The fashion police won’t be anywhere near us. You’ll thank me later.”

She rolled her eyes and sat down to put them on. Her cute lips were still puckered into a pout, but she was complying. She’d changed into some equally sexy jeans, but these looked more comfortable. The hoodie was one I’d given her to wear. It was pink camo too, but for some reason, she wasn’t as offended by the top.

When she finished, she stood up, walked over to me, and kissed my cheek. “I’m ready for our date, handsome.” And with that, she strutted out the front door, giving me another prime view of her sexy ass.

CALE WAS UP to something for our date. He had me dressed up like a freaking redneck, but honestly, I really didn’t care. I was just excited to be going on a real date. When I’d thought about if this day would ever come with anyone, I’d been overwhelmed with anxiety. My nightmare dinner with Sam and then his creepy note stressed me out, but going out with Cale had me feeling anticipation I hadn’t felt in a very long time. For once in the past three years, I felt like a normal woman going on a normal date with a man.
A very hot man.

The drive to our unknown-to-me destination was a quiet one except for Big Wreck singing a very appropriate “You Caught My Eye” in the background. Our thoughts were in other places as we drove. Yesterday, Pops had a talk with me about being careful on my date. It seemed that he had quite the protective streak in him. If he’d known about the craziness with Sam or, more terrifying, my abduction three years ago, he’d have probably forbid me to date anyone ever. Family isn’t always blood. Pops was definitely family.

I noticed that we were heading towards a more secluded area that normally would have sent me into a panic. But with Cale, this was exciting, not scary. If only he knew how much he’d saved me from my ugly past these last few days. When my mom called earlier, I was finally able to give her the juicy gossip she’d been waiting on for the past three years. She was beyond thrilled and couldn’t wait to meet the man who had managed to snag her baby girl’s interest. I missed her and Rich so much and desperately anticipated seeing them on Thanksgiving.

After driving on some old roads through the woods for a good thirty minutes, we eventually arrived at a clearing. “Ready for our date?” Cale asked.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” I answered honestly.

He smiled at me before hopping out of the truck. I followed after him to find him already pulling stuff out of the back.

“What exactly are we doing?”

“Carry those two bags right there. You’ll find out soon enough, but we need to get going before it gets dark,” he instructed.

A little while later, after hiking though several nearly impassable trails, we arrived at a small clearing completely surrounded by thick woods. Darkness was falling quickly, but with Cale nearby, my fear stayed at bay.

With impressive efficiency, Cale assembled a tent in record time. “I was a Boy Scout,” he offered when he saw my jaw hanging. After the tent was up, he gathered what he needed and started a blazing fire that illuminated our camping area.

“So, is it safe to assume we’re camping, Cale?” I asked him.

“Complete with ghost stories and all,” he smirked.

I watched him as he dragged over a huge piece of wood for us to sit on. Once I sat down, he busied himself with the small ice chest he’d brought with us. A few minutes later, he handed me a stick with a hot dog on it.

“You can’t go camping without cooking hot dogs over the campfire,” he grinned, looking very much like a little boy.

After we’d filled our bellies with hot dogs sans buns, he brought out the marshmallows. By the time I burned the third one, I was in full-on pout mode. He’d already laughed at me the entire time, but he eventually held up one of his perfectly roasted marshmallows to my lips. I leaned forward and pulled it off his fingers with just my mouth, never losing eye contact, leaving him staring at my lips. When I dipped my head back down to suck off the gooey remnants of the marshmallow on his fingers, he groaned loudly.
Who’s laughing now?

After the tense marshmallow moment, we settled by the fire, getting cozy. Cale had already located a blanket he’d brought and wrapped it around us since the temperature had begun to drop. It was quiet except for the crackling of the fire, chirping of crickets, and rustling of leaves blowing in the wind.

“Thank you, Cale,” I whispered, snuggling into his neck with my arms wrapped around him as much as they could be while sitting side by side.

“For what?” he asked.

“For this. All of it. This date is the best one ever. It’s perfect. You have no idea what it means to me,” I said seriously. “I feel like you’re the only one who sees me. To everyone else, I feel like I am just this ugly moth, just a fragment of who I used to be. But with you, I feel like you see me for more than that.”

He cringed at the first part of my words but squeezed me back. “Lia, Madison once told me to go after what I wanted in life. There’s never been anything that I’ve wanted more than what is in my arms right now. She was right. And, Lia, you are not a moth. I’m the moth,” he declared, looking into my eyes, no hint of humor at all in his face.

When I shook my head at him, he placed his palms on either side of my face, bringing my face closer to his.

“Lia, I’m the moth and you are the flame. Your light burns so bright. I never had a chance. From the moment you maced me, I have been fluttering as close as I can get to you. Your fire enchants me, and I’d do anything to be near this fire, even if it meant death. Babe, you have to realize that what we have is so unique,” he said with conviction. “So don’t ever call yourself a moth again, Lia. You’re the damned fire shining to me like a beacon in the night. Wherever you go, I will follow.” He then leaned forward, pressing his lips into mine with such an intensity, grabbing the back of my head like he was holding on for dear life.

I was lost in his words, his touch, his kiss. My mother had had a whirlwind romance with Rich, so I wasn’t opposed at all to what was happening so quickly between Cale and me. It was like we’d been waiting a really long time for one another.

A twig snapped, pulling us from our kiss to look around into the dark forest.

“The critters are coming out. Want to make out in the tent?” he teased with a wink.

“Something like that,” I countered back, causing another sexy growl of his.

GOD, THIS WOMAN was going to make me crazy. When she flirted, it was adorable and sexy as hell at the same time. I could tell that she wasn’t used to this sort of thing, but she was good at it nonetheless.

I climbed into the tent after her, zipping it up behind me. When I turned to look at her, she was already lying on one of the sleeping bags on her side, gazing up at me.

“Are you cold?”

“A little bit. Come here and warm me up,” she commanded breathlessly.

I crawled to where she was and stretched out beside her, lying so we were facing each other. She leaned towards me and softly kissed me on the lips.

“It’s been a long time,” she whispered. “But I want to do this with you.”

My dick hardened at the thought of Lia naked. She was a damn goddess.

“Are you sure?” I asked her. “We’ve only known each other a few days.”

“Believe me, Cale. I’m sure. Don’t worry. I’m on the pill and haven’t been with anyone in a very long time. I know I’m clean. I want this so badly.” She brought her bottom lip into her mouth, capturing it between her teeth.

“I’m clean too,” I told her.

Then I groaned and leaned over to suck that lip into my own mouth. She tasted sweet, like marshmallows. I nibbled at that lip, showing her that I liked the taste. She moaned as she pulled me on top of her.

I continued to kiss, suck, and nibble on her lips and tongue. Her body was squirming with need beneath me and she was whining, “Please,” over and over again.

I slid one of my hands to the waistband of her jeans and then slipped it up underneath her hoodie towards her breast. Her breasts were full and swollen, begging for my touch.

My thumb grazed her nipple through her bra and she moaned, “Oh, God.” I continued kissing her but broke the kiss to pull her sweatshirt up over her head, leaving her in just her black lace bra. She was ethereal-looking, glowing in the light leftover from our fire.

Reaching behind her, I unhooked her bra and slowly pulled it away. She was watching me with hooded eyes. When I leaned down and tasted one of her perfect breasts, she cried out in pleasure so loudly that I thought I might come in my jeans right then. Needing to cool my dick off, I took a moment to remove my own hoodie, enjoying the cool air on my body. I bowed forward again, sucking her nipple between my teeth. She arched her back in sheer bliss.

I was a fair man, so I gave her other breast some attention too. By the time I began removing her jeans, she was panting wildly.

Damn, this woman is going to orgasm from me just touching her breasts. Wait till she sees what I have planned next.

I unbuttoned her jeans, unzipped them, and, with agonizingly slow speed, pulled each pant leg off. She was lying there in nothing but some sexy-as-hell lace panties.