Nova (The Renegades Book 2)

Queenstown, New Zealand

“We’re going to be late if you keep that up,” I said to Landon, exposing more of my neck for his mouth. The man was going to have me in a giant puddle, and I wasn’t sure I cared.

“We could stay in today,” he countered, backing me against the wall of our hotel room.

“We could,” I agreed, running my fingers through his hair. Every muscle in my body clenched with the unbelievable pleasure he sent spiraling through me. It was like my neck had a direct line to my core, and Landon was taking complete advantage. I moaned when he set his teeth to the delicate area where my neck met my shoulder.

“Yes, let’s do that,” he said as his hand slipped under my halter top and underlying bikini to cup my breast. His thumb found my nipple, and I arched, wrapping one leg around his waist.

For not having sex, we were certainly pros at the hottest make-out sessions ever.

Hard against me, he strained against the material of his cargo shorts, and I grasped him through the layers of material. He was hot and heavy in my palm, and the moan he gave me when I gently squeezed him sent a fresh wave of need through me.

“Fuck,” he said, leaning his forehead against mine as I stroked his length.

“We could, you know,” I suggested. It had been two weeks since his self-imposed celibacy, and he’d not backed down even an inch.

He grasped both my hands in his and held them against the wall above my head. “Stop trying to rob me of my virtue, Ms. Dawson.”

“Stop driving me out of my mind, Mr. Rhodes,” I complained.

He kissed me long and hot, his tongue twisting around mine, drawing every ounce of pleasure he could between our mouths. With my hands pinned, I could only accept his kiss, but I leveraged my lower body and wrapped leg to rock against him. How long could this madness continue?

Three loud slams at our door were followed by Little John’s voice.

“The van is waiting on you two. Let’s go.”

“We’re not going,” Landon called, his mouth hovering just above mine.

“Like hell you’re not. Unwrap yourself from your girlfriend and get your ass in the van now, Nova.”

Landon’s eyes raked down me. “What do you want to do?”

“I want to put you on that bed and ride you until my sexual frustration is a distant memory,” I said, nipping at his lower lip.

He growled.

“But I guess we really should go, seeing as we flew all the way down here last night, don’t you think?” I asked.

“I’m not kidding, guys!” Little John called through the door.

“Fucking fine! We need a minute.” He backed away from me and glanced down at his erection. “We need a couple minutes.”

I stalked him, and he retreated. “Don’t even think about it,” he said.

“Think about what?” I asked innocently, laughing at the absurdity of this six-foot-plus guy backing away from a five-foot-two girl.

“No,” he said, stopping and pointing a finger at me. “You touch me, and I know I’ll fucking lose it. You’ll be on your back on that bed, against the wall, in the shower, on the damned bathroom counter in less time than it would take you to count to three, and I don’t even know where to buy condoms here.”

“You didn’t bring condoms?” I asked, folding my arms across my chest. “What kind of sex god are you?”

“One trying to convince the girl of his dreams that he means serious business!”

“Well, I seriously could go for some sex!”

“I could go for you two getting your asses into the goddamned van!” Little John called out.

Laughter bubbled up through my lips, and I covered my mouth as I tried to get myself under control. “Oh my God, he must think I’m the horniest girl ever.”

Landon joined in, pulling me to his chest and kissing the top of my head. “Yeah, well, apparently I’m the prude here.”

“And I’m getting sick of asking you guys to get out here!”

We grabbed our bags and headed out the door. Little John stood with his arms folded in the hallway. “It’s about damn time.”

Landon didn’t make any excuses, just shrugged his shoulders and held his hand out for mine. I slipped mine into his, and we made our way to the van.

“For fuck’s sake, you two,” Pax called out. “We have an appointment.”

“You know what? Until one of us misses the boat, you have no room to talk about tardiness,” Landon answered with a grin as we pulled into traffic, the camera crew following in the van behind us.

“Fuck off,” Pax answered and put his arm around Leah’s shoulder.

“Later,” Landon promised in a whisper as I leaned against him, buckling my seat belt.

“Later what?” I asked.

He moved his lips next to my ear. “Later I’m going to strip you out of these shorts and bury my tongue inside you. I can’t have my girl walking around all sexually frustrated.”

I turned so fast that our lips brushed. “How about this? You get to put your mouth on me when I get to return the favor.”

“You play hardball, Ms. Dawson.”

I grinned. “Learned from the best, Mr. Rhodes.”

“I can’t remember ever wanting someone as bad as I do you, Rachel,” he whispered.

The van was crowded, but it felt like we were the only ones on the planet.

“I might know how that feels,” I told him.

He ran his thumb over my lower lip before kissing me. It was soft, lingering, and full of the barely restrained passion I knew lurked just beneath his surface.

“There’s only one thing to do when I’m this damned turned on and can’t have you.”

“And what’s that?”

“Go jump off shit.”

“Sex is comparable to cliff swinging?” I asked.

“Hell no. Sex with you blows everything out of the water. But I’ll take what I can get.”

“You can have it all,” I told him in all seriousness.

“Yeah, I know,” he said, kissing me again softly. “That’s why I’m waiting on the sex.”

Damn it. He was good.

A hot Kiwi strapped me into my harness as Landon watched. “Are you ready for this?” the guy asked with a sexy little smile.

A couple of months ago, I might have gone for him.

Now the tall guy brooding behind him was all I could handle—or want.

“Tallest cliff swing in the world? Bring it on,” I said, carefully examining the latches on my harness.

“A girl after my own heart,” he said, pulling the strap tight. The metal platform we stood on hung over 350 feet in the air, and I could already feel my body readying itself to take the plunge. I freaking loved this stuff.

“Mind if I look?” Landon asked.

The guide knew the Renegades by reputation and backed away with his hands in the air. “Feel free, Nova. I strapped your girl in tight, I promise.”

Landon went over every strap and latch, pulling the one around my waist a little more snug before he was satisfied. “You sure you don’t want to go tandem with me?”

I rolled my eyes. “I think you’ll be safe on your own, honey.”

His eyes lit up at the endearment. “What will I do without my lucky charm?”

“Vomit,” Pax said from behind him. “Rach, you strapped in?”

“Yeah, I’m good to go,” I told him, my eyes still locked on Landon. His eyes looked blue today against the fabric of his shirt, and they were looking at me in a way that said he’d rather be watching me naked.

Well, that makes two of us.

“I saw you at the X Games last year, Nova. You’re pretty badass on that board of yours,” the guide said as Landon gave his final approval on my harness.

It was completely overbearing and a little primal but hot as hell to watch his concern for me.

“Thanks, I love what we do,” he told the guide.

Leah walked out onto the metal walkway until she reached us.

“Firecracker, what are you doing out here? I’ll take you with me,” Pax promised.

“I’m going to ride tandem with Rachel,” she said. “You have stunts you need to do. There’s no chance I’m holding you back from that.”

“No. No way. I’ll take you. I’ll just come back up—”

“Hell yes!” I said. “A girl jump!”

Leah smiled and pulled away from Paxton, her harness already in place and no doubt examined like she was launching into space. If I thought Landon was obsessed with my safety, well, Paxton was ten times worse with Leah.

“This okay with you, mate?” the guide asked, not knowing which guy to ask.

“Well, since she said it’s okay with her, mate, it doesn’t matter what the boys say,” I sang sweetly.

Leah echoed my smile. “I’m quite capable of making my own choices.”

“Fuck my life,” Paxton muttered. “Fine. Rachel—”

“Save it, Wilder. She was my best friend long before she was anything to you,” I said with a grin. “Strap up, Leah!”

“Guys, I’m going to have to ask you to wait off the platform,” the guide said. “We already have a camera out here, and you’re in my way.” He showed them the way off while they sputtered about safety and harnesses.

“Well, girls, what do you want to do? The drop slide? The backward fall? The cutaway?”

Leah blinked up at me, realizing what she’d signed on for. She had been petrified of heights when we were at Dartmouth, but Wilder had helped her work through a ton of it. But having gone through the accident she did a few years ago, it didn’t surprise me to realize some of that fear would linger.

“Cutaway?” I asked Leah. “Instead of rushing off, we hang there for a second, and then they cut the rope.”

“Yeah, that sounds better than just falling off,” she agreed.

They latched us onto the cord and walked us through the procedure once the ride was over. Then they hoisted us until we hung suspended over the platform. We were jostled as we attached to the line that would swing us down the canyon.

“Oh my God, this sucks,” Leah said, gripping her rope. “Talk to me.”

“About what?” I asked, watching the river raging in the canyon beneath us.

“Anything!” she snapped. Then she took a deep breath. “I can’t let him think I’m upset. He’ll freak out.”

“Ready, girls?” the guide asked.

“No!” Leah yelled.

“It’s not bad,” I promised her. “You just let yourself go. The cord does all the work.”

“Not. Ready.”

“She needs a second. Is that okay?” I asked the guide.

The guide looked behind him, where Pax and Landon stood on land, their arms crossed. “You can have as long as you need.”

“Thanks,” I said, shifting us so that I could slip my arm around her. “Are you okay? You don’t have to do this.”

“No. I do. I’m good. I just… Ugh. Distract me for a second. How are things with Landon?”

I blinked at the change of topic. “Great. We’re connecting again, and I’m happy.”

“Do you love him?” she asked.

“What? We’re not talking about this right now.”

“For fuck’s sake, Rachel. I’m dangling three hundred and fifty feet over a river, getting ready to tell this guy that he can cut the rope that’s holding us here. The least you can do is tell me if you’re in love with Landon so I can die peacefully.”

My mouth opened and shut. “Uh. Well. I mean…”

I looked over to where he stood, shifting his weight back and forth in nervousness. He did this kind of thing all the time, so I knew it was worry for me. Ugh, that melty feeling in my heart was back.

“Are you?” she asked, gripping our harnesses like her life depended on her hand positioning.

I would have rather swung down the canyon wall than discuss my freaking feelings.

“Yes,” I finally admitted. “Yes, I’m in love with him. I’m sure it makes me the stupidest woman on the planet, seeing what he did last time we were together, but I honestly can’t stop my traitor of a heart. Are you happy now?”

“You’re not stupid,” she said softly. “He loves you. I know it.”

“Well, love didn’t help us last time.”

“But it will this time. You’ll see,” she said with all the faith in the world. “You just have to let go and trust. I know that’s the hardest part for you—the trust—but you two are more meant to be together than anyone I’ve ever seen.”

I sighed at my sappy, trusting, perfect best friend and wished I saw the world through her eyes. “Letting go is the hard part.”

“Not really. You just fall.” She used my earlier words against me.

“Are you ladies ready?” the guide asked.

“I am,” Leah said, her smile a touch devious.

“You did it on purpose,” I said. “You wanted my confession.”

She shrugged. “Maybe. Now let’s fly, shall we?”

I laughed and hugged her. “I’m so glad I have you.”

“Ditto,” she said. “Cut us loose!”

The guide took out an actual knife and started to saw through the white rope that kept us tethered to the base. In a second we’d be swinging by only the cord.

I looked up at Landon and realized that Leah was right. I just had to trust. Maybe it would get me burned. Maybe it would hurt so much this time that I wouldn’t survive it. Or maybe we’d fly. Whether or not I wanted to deny it, my heart knew the truth—I was his, so in love with him that my heart fluttered with the sweetness of the emotion.

I was done fighting it.

The knife cut through the rope, and in one instant, I hung above the canyon.

The next…I let go and fell.

When the ride was over, and we were all gathered at the vans, waiting to return to the ship, I made sure the cameras were on and then walked straight up to Landon, wrapped my arms around his neck, and kissed the hell out of him.

His surprise lasted all of two seconds before he lifted me off my feet and robbed me of every thought. We ignored the catcalls around us as our kiss lasted way longer than publicly acceptable, both reveling in what I’d just done.

Whether we flew or failed, we were public now.