Playing with Words (Boggy Creek Valley #2) - Kelly Elliott Page 0,50

said them.

“Why don’t you?” he asked.

I snapped my eyes back to his questioning face and felt my cheeks heat. “I didn’t mean to say that out loud.”

He smiled. “Why not?”

With a half shrug, I sighed. “That’s a dream I’ve never told anyone about. I’m not even sure why I said it just now. Lost in my own thoughts, I guess.”

“Maybe that’s why you safeguard it. Because it’s a dream of yours.”

“The bookstore is my dream,” I quickly corrected with a gruff laugh.

Hudson frowned. “Are you not allowed to have more than one dream?”

“Of course.”

“Then, write it.”

Heat ran up my body and burned in my cheeks. “I, um…well…” Looking back at the waterfall, I had to wonder if there really was some magical mojo coming from it because I replied, “I’ve already written it.”

Hudson looked over at me. “What? But you said you’ve always wanted to write a book.”

I glanced down at the food. “I said I’ve always wanted to publish one.”

My entire body froze when I felt his finger on my chin, drawing my gaze back up to his.

“Will you let me read it?”

I was positive my eyes were as round as saucers. “What? Read it? You want to read it?”

He smiled softly and his thumb moved ever so slightly over my skin before he dropped his hand. “I’d love to read it. What’s it about?”

“No way,” I said with a fierce shake of my head. “Not in a million years.”

“Why not?” he asked as he picked up a chocolate-covered strawberry and started to eat it.

Hudson slowly took a bite of the strawberry, licked his lips, and closed his eyes as if in pure ecstasy. It was the most erotic thing I had ever seen in my life. Hudson Higgins eating a chocolate-covered strawberry was going to make me spontaneously orgasm.

He must have noticed when I didn’t answer because he looked at me. “What’s wrong?”

I swallowed hard and cleared my throat. “Nothing. That was…distracting.”

Jesus tap dancing Christ, why do I keep speaking before thinking?

The corners of Hudson’s mouth twitched with a smile. “What was distracting?”

My gaze fell to the half-eaten strawberry, then quickly back to his face.

This time, his dimples popped out in full display. “Why, Greer Larson, does fruit turn you on?”

“What?” I asked with a nervous giggle. “No! Don’t be ridiculous. I only meant that I’m still hungry and that strawberry looked erotic.”

His brows shot up.

“Irresistible,” I quickly said.

That made him smile even wider.

“No, wait. It was the way you were eating it that looked…” I let my voice trail off as I realized I was digging myself deeper into a hole that I wasn’t going to be able to crawl out of.

“Do you know what I find so damn attractive about you?” Hudson asked.

I swallowed again. “You find something about me attractive?”

His eyes darkened with pure desire. “I find many things about you attractive, Greer. But it’s the way you get tongue-tied and stumble on your words that makes me wonder if it’s me who makes you so flustered—or if you’re like that with everyone.”

It’s you. Lord above, it’s all you.

“I’m not flustered.”

He looked away and nodded, but kept that sinful, crooked smile on his face. I wasn’t sure if he was giving me a few moments to settle my thoughts, or himself.

Finally, he turned back. “How about we finish up lunch and keep on hiking to the next falls?”

“Okay,” I said softly. I picked up a strawberry, looked at it, then quickly put it back in the container and grabbed another finger sandwich. Good Lord, I was never going to be able to look at a strawberry again without thinking about Hudson’s lips wrapped around it.

Hudson

Greer and I finished our picnic, packed up everything, and headed back up the trail. After the way she’d licked her lips and softly moaned when I ate the fucking strawberry, it had taken every ounce of power I had to try and make my dick go back down. She clearly didn’t even realize that she’d let that moan slip free, and when she’d stumbled on her words, I had to fight the urge to pull her into my arms.

I had never been this attracted to a woman before in my life. Sure, I’d seen beautiful women whom I’d had dirty thoughts about, but with Greer, it was different. It felt like my heart had woken up from a long winter’s nap or something. With each smile she gave me, I felt myself falling a little bit more—and that was a