Immediately, he halts to return the kiss, tangling one hand in my hair as, for several seconds, we lose ourselves in each other.

Long minutes pass before I reluctantly break the kiss.

“What was that for?” Mack asks softly.

“I don’t know,” I admit. “But I just had to.”

His warm brown eyes soften. “I know the feeling, love.”

At the sound of a twig snapping, my heart lurches as I jerk my head toward the noise, my eyes probing the surrounding trees.

While it’s still a bright ...