The Pleasures of Winter

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Book: Read The Pleasures of Winter for Free Online
Authors: Evie Hunter
Tags: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary
his body. William didn’t need muscles.
    ‘Much better.’ Jack’s warm breath fanned her neck, sending tiny shivers along her spine.
    ‘Are you cold?’
    ‘No. I’m fine, Mr Winter.’
    She felt laughter rumble in his chest. ‘Abbie, why are you calling me Mr Winter again? We’re going to spend the night together. I think we’re beyond the formalities.’
    Put that way, it sounded ridiculous. They were stuck in the jungle. She was sharing a tiny hammock with him. Calling him Mr Winter had been a ploy to create a feeling of distance between them. But she realized it made her sound like a prudish spinster. ‘Fine, Jack.’
    His arm tightened around her waist. ‘Good girl,’ he mumbled against her neck.
    She was about to tell him off when she heard a low snore. Jack Winter was asleep.
    Abbie sighed, letting the tension slowly leave her body. She wasn’t sure what she had expected. That he would paw her incessantly. That she would spend the night rejecting his advances. But here he was, sleeping like a baby.
    The weird thing was that after all the turmoil she had gone through in the last few hours, she felt safe. He had been obnoxious earlier, but now he was gentle. The heavy arm around her waist was protective, his breath against her neck, comforting. Abbie relaxed against him. Her eyelids felt as if they had weights on them. Her eyelashes fluttered closed.
    A low roar in the distance woke her and she jerked awake.
    Jack lifted his head. ‘It’s miles away, go back to sleep. I won’t let anything harm you.’
    She settled back into his arms. She didn’t know why, but somehow she believed him.
    Abbie stirred. She didn’t want to open her eyes yet, she was blissfully comfortable. William wasn’t usually so amorous, but now, oh god, it was like that time on vacation when he had really chilled out and stopped worrying about his research and departmental politics. His hand cupped her breast, toying with her nipple through the thin fabric of her shirt, sending darts of pleasure around her body like tiny fireworks. His other hand cruised her hip, holdingher in place while his hips rocked gently against hers, pressing a sizeable bulge against her butt.
    ‘Mmm,’ she moaned as she rocked against him, seeking more of the delicious pressure. His mouth moved against her neck, making soft circles with his tongue, and then he nipped her playfully with his teeth. Abbie sighed deeply and the hand on her breast squeezed tighter. It felt amazing. William usually ignored her breasts but, oh, he was excelling himself this morning …
    Her eyes shot open and a series of confusing images filtered through the darkness. She wasn’t in New York. This wasn’t her apartment and those were definitely not William’s hands making her feel so good. The first rays of daylight brought a cacophony of noise to the forest, but her shriek was louder. She slapped Jack’s hand off her and rolled away from him, tumbling out of the hammock and on to the forest floor.
    Jack’s head appeared over the edge of the silk. His heavy-lidded expression left her in no doubt that he had been enjoying their early-morning encounter as much as she had.
    ‘You, you … groped me.’ Her voice echoed around the clearing.
    ‘Relax, Abbie. I didn’t mean it. I didn’t know it was you.’
    ‘Oh great. That makes me feel so much better.’
    ‘I didn’t hear you complaining.’ Jack flashed an amused smile.
    ‘Complaining, you arrogant –’
    ‘What the hell is going on?’ Zeke’s head emerged from beneath the mosquito net. ‘I’ve only just dozed off. Do you know how hard it is to sleep when you’re injured? Themeds have worn off and my chiropractor is going to kill me when he sees what I’ve done to my back.’
    Oh great, just what she needed. Another day with the Hollywood hypochondriac. Darting a filthy glance at Jack, she headed for the bushes to take care of business.
    Jack distributed the packets of nuts, and watched Zeke make faces and

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