The heat of the night had nothing on what they were generating with this relatively simple touch. A little sound of need escaped her as she untangled her fingers from his, brought her hand from behind her back, and began pulling his shirt out of the waistband of his jeans, needing to feel more of him. When the tips of her fingers brushed his bare skin she felt it go taut under her touch. And when she slid her hand around his hip and across the small of his back, pulling him closer, he took his hand off the door and speared his fingers through her hair, taking the kiss from hot to scorching.

"The truck, Matty. Get in the truck," he said when she drew her mouth away from his and trailed her lips down his neck.

"Hmm," she said, bringing her hands up to unbutton his shirt. He tilted her head up and covered her mouth again with his. Even as she finished with the buttons and smoothed her hands over his cotton undershirt, feeling his chest and muscles under her touch, she wanted more.

Dash dipped his head and began moving his lips over her shoulder, pushing the strap of her sundress down. She tilted her head away to give him better access and ran her fingers along the waist of his jeans and up his sides.

"Dash, I dont want to wait," she said, moving her hands back down to his jeans and unbuttoning the top button.

"Were in a parking lot, Matty. Get in the truck. We can be at your house in less than five minutes."

But he wasnt making it easy. One of his hands had dropped to her thigh and was making its way back up, pulling her dress along with it. The other was splayed across her lower back, making her aware of his size and strength.

He must have sensed she was close to not caring because, in an instant, she found herself in the passenger seat. But before he closed the door on her, she grabbed his shirt and pulled him into another kiss, this time wrapping her legs around his body. She didnt want to let him go, not even to walk around the truck to get in on the other side so he could take them home.

"Jesus, Matty," Dash said, forcibly pulling himself away. "I knew it would be like this," he added, before bringing his lips back to hers. More than anything else, there was something about that phrase, about the assurance in his voice about her, about them, that sent her hurling over the edge.

"We need to leave, Dash," she said, reining in every bit of what she was feeling and experiencing in an effort to keep it from exploding.

He drew back and his eyes searched hers. She knew what he saw there because it felt like everything she was feeling, everything she wanted, was written not just on her face but on her body.

He nodded and stepped back. She swung her legs back inside and jerkily closed the door as Dash rounded the truck. He paused for a moment and looked at her through the windshield, his hair tousled, shirt open. Their gazes met and held for a heated moment and then he was beside her in the drivers seat.

And she didnt want to wait anymore.

Mattys leg came across his lap and the next thing Dash knew, she was straddling him in his truck, pulling his undershirt up to touch his skin as she dipped her head to kiss him.

"Parking lot," he reminded her, even as he moved his seat back to give her more room.

"Do you want to wait?" she asked with her hands unbuttoning his jeans. She paused for a moment, met his eyes, then slid her hands inside.

"Oh, hell, no," he said, searching for the zipper on her dress. She lifted her arm a touch and he found it. Tugging it down, the top of her dress fell, revealing her bare chest.

He swore again as she arched back, presenting herself to him as she worked his jeans down and freed him from his boxers.

"God, Dash," she said, her hands on him as he made it his mission to taste every inch of her he could reach.

He moved a hand between them and could feel her, hot and ready. When he brushed a finger across her barely-there underwear and heard her moan, he let out a throaty chuckle. She drew back to look at him and nearly took his breath away. Her dark hair was draped over her bare shoulders, the tips curling around her breasts. Her mouth was swollen from their kisses, and her eyes, thankfully, looked as needy as his.

"Something funny?" she asked, still stroking him.

"Condoms are going to magically appear, is all," he said with a smile. She looked confused and stopped moving her hand, which was probably a good thing.

With his right hand, he reached forward and, after a few botched attempts, managed to get the glove compartment open and pull out a box of condoms. He held them up and her expression turned to one of amused curiosity.

"I bought them the first day I met you. Unopened, see," he said, showing her the sealed sides of the box.

"Let me guess," she smiled and leaned forward, nuzzling his ear and neck and giving him the space he needed. "You were a boy scout?"

"Are you complaining?" he asked as he opened a condom packet and began rolling one on.

Matty raised herself up and met his gaze. "Not in the least," she replied as she sank down on him.

Air flew out of his lungs as her heat surrounded him. Tangling one hand in her hair and gripping the other firmly around her waist, he let her pick the pace but held her at just the right angle. She moved up and down, taking him deep inside her as she sank against him. The slow rhythm let Dash feel every centimeter of her as she covered him, feeling every part of him inside her.

Given how quickly things had heated up physically between them, this deliberate, sensual tempo gave his mind time to catch up and appreciate what was happening. He knew how it would end for both of them, and so, as she moved over him, he let his mind absorb the fact that he was with Matty. That she was as greedy for him as he was for her. That, despite his earlier misgivings and doubts, she wanted this as much as he did. It was a heady sensation and made the physical aspects, the act, of what they were doing that much more powerful.

She quickened her pace just a touch and let her head fall back as she spoke his name and other small, pleading words; he gave her neck a little nip then leaned back and savored her urgency. And then there was that heart-stopping moment when her body locked around him and she cried out, driving herself down on him. He curled his body up to meet her, feel every bit of her. And only when he was sure she had finished, he lowered his hips a few inches, gripped her waist with both hands, and drove himself up into his own release.

Spent, Dash let his hips sink back down and Matty fell forward against his chest. As her head rested on his shoulder and his hands lay limp against her hips, they gasped for air in the trucks warm cab. And Dash knew exactly why sex was nicknamed "the little death."

After a few minutes, when they were both breathing if not normally, then regularly, he reached up and brushed some hair away from her face. She pulled back just enough to see him, then offered a small smile.

He didnt have any words and neither, it seemed, did she. So he pulled her back to him and gave her a soft, sweet kiss before resting his forehead against hers. They stayed like that for another few moments until the sound of Andersons back door slamming shut brought them both back to a sudden reality.

Matty shrank against him, as if to hide herself in case anyone looked toward the truck.

"Its dark where were parked and there are lights by the door. Whoever it is isnt going to be able to see into the truck unless they walk right up to it," he said.

"Maybe," she said. "But have you noticed the windows?"

He glanced around, then chuckled. Theyd gone and fogged up all the windows. "And teenagers think they have all the fun," he said.

She smiled and then let out a little sigh of relief when whoever it was whod come out went back inside. She pulled away from Dash and looked around.

"Here are some perfect examples of the differences between real sex and fictional sex. Now that were done, youre going to have to figure out how to clean up without a bathroom nearby. And Im going to be sore tomorrow from the door handle digging into my leg and the steering wheel at my back. Not that Im complaining," she added, leaning back in for a deep kiss, pressing her body against his.

When they ended the kiss she pushed off of him, managing to get herself untangled and into the passenger seat without too much trouble.

"Just to be clear," he said, reaching for the paper towels he always kept in his truck. "We arent done." As efficiently as he could in his car and with Matty watching, he cleaned himself up then turned to her. She hadnt taken her eyes off him.

"Your place or mine?" he asked.

She smiled. "Mine. Its closer."

CHAPTER 9.

MATTY ROLLED OVER TO FIND Dash sitting on the bed, dressed and tying his shoes. "That time already?" she asked, squinting in the morning sun.

"Hmm," he said, turning toward her. Picking up her still-bandaged arm, he examined it then placed a kiss on her inner elbow. "How does this feel?"

"Its fine," she said with a lazy morning smile.

"Youre taking care of it, though?"

She gave him a look then rolled over and buried her face in the pillow.

"Matty?"

"Yes," she grumbled, her voice muffled. "Im taking care of it."

"Good."

His hand spread across her bare back and she felt his lips press against the skin between her shoulder blades. Then they were at her ear.

"Ill talk to you later?"

She smiled into the pillow and moved ever so slightly against him. "Count on it."

Dash was still chuckling when he left the room. From her position in the bed, Matty heard him feed the dogs and let them out. Good man. A few minutes later, he called Bob back in and she heard Isis join them in the kitchen. A few more minutes passed and her little slice of Hudson Valley was silent, the sound of Dashs truck having faded away.

Fortunately, the memories of the night before had not faded away and she stretched and luxuriated in the satiated feeling. She thought about getting up and showering but realized Dash had inspired her-in more ways than one. She slipped into a robe, popped downstairs, and grabbed her laptop. She paused for a moment when she spotted Brads computer on one of the shelves. She frowned, thinking it had been one shelf higher the last time shed noticed it. But then, not being certain and not wanting to lose her focus, she turned and headed back to bed.

And there she stayed, for several hours, writing the scene that would never be in her book. But at the end, when she hit save, she knew her characters would be the better for it. Their connection was solid in her mind now and she knew the rest of their story would come to her much easier.

With a smile, she closed her laptop and looked at the clock. She hadnt showered or even brushed her teeth, let alone bothered with breakfast or coffee. And it was close to two oclock. With a shake of her head, she jumped into the shower and cleaned herself up then headed downstairs to eat and take care of the neglected animals.

Thankfully, it wasnt too hot and the rabbits had plenty of water. She let the chickens out, collected some eggs, and made a mental note to ask Dash about the pancake breakfast, since she now had over two-dozen eggs and had only been in town for a week. After spending some time futzing in the garden, pulling weeds and watering, she collected some lettuce and herbs, along with some tomatoes and peas, and made her way back inside.

Realizing she hadnt called her mom in a few days, she picked up the phone and dialed.

"Mama," Matty said when her mom answered.

"Matty, Mija, how are you?"

"Im fine, Mama. I just wanted to call and say hello."

"And check in, in case Charlotte calls me. This is so I can tell her you called."

Matty laughed. "And maybe that, too. How are you?"

"I am fine. It is hot down here, as it always is this time of year. But everything is well. Everyone is well. How is that place?"

She could tell that her mother was trying hard to be fair to Brad. He had no more created the situation theyd all found themselves in than Matty did. But even so, she tempered her answer and told her mother only that it was fine. She didnt say anything about the cool, clean breezes or the beautiful sight of a storm making its way across the valley. Or the fresh vegetables from the garden. Or Dash.

She didnt like keeping things from her mother, but for right or for wrong, she felt as if she would be betraying her mom if she revealed just how much, even in such a short time, she had grown to like the Hudson Valley. Thats not to say that she was going to pick up and move here, but she could understand why Brad had chosen this area. It was different than the society world hed grown up in-still beautifully northeastern and historic like Greenwich, but quieter and more peaceful.

And so she kept these parts of her experience to herself, not wanting to hurt her mother in any way. Instead, she talked about her book and the progress she was making, they talked about the opening of a new modern art museum that her mother was helping with, and they caught up on their DC friends and neighbors.

When she hung up, Matty took a glass of iced tea out to the patio, called Bob down from his bed upstairs, and sent him out to do his business under her watchful eye. He had several more days to go in the bandage and cone, and while he bumped into things and occasionally looked confused as to why he wasnt fitting into places the way he normally did, in typical Lab fashion, he seemed to take everything in stride.

She was smiling, watching his attempts to sniff around when his nose wouldnt touch the ground when something caught her eye. Glancing toward the small table on the patio, she frowned. Something was lying in the middle of the table that she was certain was not there when shed cleaned the patio area the afternoon after Bobs incident.

Taking a few steps closer, she cocked her head to get a better look. And her stomach lurched. Instinct kicked in and her eyes scoured the hill behind the house and the driveway for signs of anything, or anyone, out of place. Finding nothing, but still feeling entirely creeped out, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialed Dash.

"And how was your day?" he asked when he picked up the phone.

His voice sounded very male and she had no doubt he was remembering the night before, but her mind was now elsewhere. "Uh, good." She paused, not sure how to proceed.

"Matty, is everything okay?" he asked. The satisfaction shed heard in his voice had been replaced by concern.

"I dont know. Did you notice anything on the patio table last night when we came in?"

He gave a short bark of laughter. "Youre kidding, right?"

She had to give him that, its not like shed noticed anything, other than him, either. "Okay, well, I just found something on the table and, um, Im not sure what to make of it or when it might have come to be here."

"What is it?" he asked.

She paused again and took one more look at it. A wave of nausea washed over her. "Im not completely sure, but I think its Bobs toe."

Dashs mind went blank for a moment, then jumped into gear as his heart crawled into his throat. It wouldnt have been unusual to find Bobs toe out in the field hed been in when it was separated from his foot, but to find it on the table on the patio couldnt be a good thing.

"Can you bring it to me?" he asked.

"Uh, sure," she answered.

"Take a plastic bag, turn it inside out and pick it up using the bag. Then flip it closed and seal it."

"Like evidence or something?"

"Like something," he muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing. Im almost done for the day, can you bring it down here?" he asked.

"Sure. Im done doing what I need to do. I can be there in a few minutes."

They hung up and Dash sat for a moment, staring blankly at the paperwork in front of him. He didnt know what Mattys find meant, but it was just too weird to ignore. So he picked up the phone and called Ian.

"I dont know that its anything," Dash said after telling Ian what Matty had found.

"Yeah, I dont either. But it is strange, Ill grant you that. Are you planning to take a look at it?" Ian asked.

"I was, unless you dont want me to."