Lynn nodded because she didn’t trust her voice.
“I know you’re scared of getting hurt.” Dani’s breath coursed over her face; they were that close. “So am I. I can’t tell you what’s going to happen, but I do know you can’t control it. There are decisions to make, of course you control that, but what happens here—” She guided their linked hands between their bodies and pushed them first against Lynn’s chest, then her own to indicate their hearts. “Is something we can’t control. You can shut it down entirely, but I-I don’t think you want to.”
As terrifying as it was to admit it to herself, let alone to Dani, she was right. “I don’t.”
“Good. Neither do I. So maybe you could try to think a little less, hm?” Dani guided Lynn’s hand up to her lips and kissed her fingers. “Give up a bit of control? It would be really nice to get to know you better.”
Lynn chuckled nervously and shook her head. “There’s not much more to know; you seem to have me figured out pretty well.” Embarrassingly well.
“No, I don’t.” Dani examined her. “I know almost nothing. I know you lost people and that you’ve been alone since. That’s it.”
All these questions were making her antsy, but she forced herself to lie still and smile. It was normal for Dani to want to know more about her, but Lynn wasn’t sure what to share. “You’re wrong. You know more about me than you think.”
“Oh? Like what?” Dani settled more comfortably on her side. She mirrored Lynn’s smile.
“Well…” Lynn withdrew her hand from Dani’s grasp and wiped it clean on her pants before she used it to fish Dani’s braid from her hair. “You know that I’m good at digging holes and that I can kill wolves. You know I can make fires, build carts, and lift heavy things.” She ran the bead at the end of the braid through her fingers. “I can make bandages for swollen knees…”
Dani hummed as if she were considering that. “You’re right. I knew all of that. And do you know what that tells me?”
Lynn shook her head and hooked the braid behind Dani’s ear. “Tell me.”
“That you’re a good person for using all those skills to make me feel better. I think you care about me.”
Lynn met her gaze and held it. She thought she could see a hint of uncertainty in the depths of Dani’s eyes, and it urged her to cup Dani’s cheek and let go of a bit of her control, even though her heart rate soared. “Yeah, I do. It’s scary because I know the odds of losing you are…” She swallowed. “High. Very high.”
Dani placed her hand on Lynn’s and sighed. “Not high. Uncertain. Too many variables.”
“I don’t like variables.”
Dani cupped her neck. “Me either, but I liked it when we kissed.”
Lynn chuckled despite her anxiety. “Yeah, me too.”
“So, maybe for now, we don’t think about what happens next?”
“I—”
Dani pulled Lynn’s head forward and brushed her lips against hers.
The touch instantly made Lynn long for more, and she let her objections fade away. She met Dani’s lips in a soft press that was rapidly becoming familiar. She knew Dani would part her lips and anticipated it by teasingly rolling her tongue over them.
Dani’s breath caught, and as expected, she parted her lips. Her tongue met Lynn’s for a slow kiss. After a few moments, she slid her hand down from Lynn’s neck and traced her ribs.
Need flared inside of Lynn. She pulled Dani harder against her and lost herself in the feeling of breath ghosting over her skin, of a strong tongue moving against her own, and of fingers softly tracing her ribs and then the swell of her breast. The touch coursed through her like lightning, making her gasp.
Dani pulled back. “S-Sorry. Too soon?” Her breathing was slightly labored.
Lynn took in her hooded eyes, puffy lips, and strong features. Her stomach tightened. “N-No.” She swallowed. “Go on.”
When Dani hesitated, Lynn guided her into another kiss and another and another until Dani’s hand massaged her breast more firmly and she ran her thumb over Lynn’s nipple.
“Ohhh.” The unfamiliar spikes of pleasure sent ripples through Lynn.
Dani broke the kiss and licked her way to the corner of her mouth. “Good?”
“Y-Yes.” Lynn swallowed, overcome, even though she had hardly been touched. She rolled her body against Dani’s to urge her on, unable to ask for whatever Dani had to give.
Full lips trailed down to Lynn’s jaw, then her neck, nipping lightly.
Lights exploded behind Lynn’s eyelids, and she jerked as the butterfly kisses caused goose bumps to break out across her entire body, especially when Dani’s lips ghosted over her ear.
“Can I touch you?”
The words washed away her pleasure-induced headiness like a bucket of ice-cold water. She suddenly realized how vulnerable she was and how much more she would have to expose of herself—physically and emotionally—if she said “yes.” Her breath hitched. She froze and pulled back to check Dani’s features, needing to reassure herself of… something; she didn’t know what she needed right now.
Dani’s breathing had shallowed. She searched Lynn’s eyes as confusion, then worry flitted across her face. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to push you into anything.” She pulled her hand back.
The rasp to Dani’s voice flared the need inside Lynn’s overloaded body, and she hurried to take Dani’s hand. “I…” She took a deep breath and dropped her gaze down to their joined hands.
“Lynn, are you okay?”
She met Dani’s gaze again. “Y-Yes.”
“Are you sure?” Dani’s eyes studied her. “You don’t look okay.”
Lynn couldn’t help chuckling. She exhaled and tried to push all the tension in her body out with the stream of air. The warmth radiating from Dani’s hand felt good; their tangled legs felt good, and it felt good to be worried over. She cupped Dani’s cheek. “I want to trust you.” It felt good to admit that, despite her earlier words, she wasn’t quite there yet.
Dani didn’t get angry, as Lynn had feared. She smiled softly and settled her hand on Lynn’s hip. “How can I help?”
Nerves fluttered again. “Tell me this means something to you.”
That seemed to rattle Dani. She sucked in a breath. “Lynn, it—” Her gaze fell away, but only for a moment. “It means a lot. Wanting you, liking you… I’m so confused.”
“But you want to…” Lynn didn’t know what word to use to describe what would come next if she allowed Dani to touch her. Sex was too distancing; making love came too close. “To touch me?”
Dani blushed. “I do. Even if we are temporary, I want this memory.” She licked her lips. “And maybe I’m hoping that if we—” She didn’t seem to want to commit to a term either. “…spend the night, you won’t leave if I choose to stay at the Homestead.”
It surprised Lynn how good it felt to have Dani put her thoughts out in the open, and she realized how fearful she still was of being played. “I can’t make promises.”
“I know.” Dani smiled. “I’m not asking you to. I just want to enjoy being together now.”
A smile crept up. “We’re enjoying ourselves, huh?”
“Well…” Dani shrugged. Her gaze dipped to Lynn’s lips, then moved back up. “There have been moments.”
“Moments?” Lynn’s stomach did a somersault when Dani met her gaze again.
Dani bit her lip and shrugged.
Still smiling, Lynn slid her hand to Dani’s neck and leaned in to kiss her. “The answer is yes,” she whispered against her lips. “Yes, you can touch me.” Nerves buzzed up and down her spine, but they only made her more eager.
“Are you sure?” Dani’s breath ghosted across her lips.