FIRST KISS Falling for the Stranger © Loner Llama Press
      Snapping branches and several muttered curses heralded Andi’s ascent, but Harley kept his distance. Just peeking over the top of the ridge was enough to make the pressure build behind his eyes. He chose to pretend that sitting beneath the pine tree watching the tension on her rope amounted to helping her.       A minute later she scrambled over the hump of loose gravel at the side of the road, dusting off leaves, bark and dirt from her pants and shirt. “Made it.” Her grin sparkled with triumph. “And I’ve got a present for you.”       He barely heard her words because he was trying to talk himself out of kissing her.       She stepped free of the ropes, then peeled off her gloves, dropping them to the pile of gear. “Look at this.” She pulled an object from the top pocket near her thigh. A man’s wallet.       Harley’s stomach turned over. “Mine?”       The weight of possibilities pressed on his chest, making it hard to breathe. That little leather square in his hand might tell him everything. Am I ready?       “It was lying near some clothes and books and a mangled laptop. Most of the stuff is beyond saving, but I brought up what I could carry.” She unclipped a funny-shaped cloth bag suspended from her belt and set it on the ground by her feet. “Animals got everything, I suppose. And weather. This whole area probably spent a couple of months under snow.”       She shrugged off her heavy shirt, folding it inside out, then used the hem of her T-shirt to wipe the sweat from her face. Harley caught a tantalizing glimpse of her belly.       Even though the timing was undoubtedly terrible—and the action foolish—he reached out and put his free hand on her shoulder.       She didn’t resist when he pulled her to him, although her eyes were wide with surprise. But her lips parted before he lowered his head, and she seemed to welcome his kiss.       Harley hadn’t kissed a woman since his accident. Who? When? Where? He didn’t have a clue. But he’d bet the value of that Harley in the tree he’d never experienced anything sweeter and more intoxicating than kissing Andi Sullivan.
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