Chapter 197

• A thunder clapped in the sky with lightning, illuminating their faces for a nanosecond. Hunter was panicked by her words and the expression he caught in the light from her face made his blood rush to his head.
• He moved closer. He pulled her to his chest and leaned his face near hers. Claire squirmed and wriggled like a fish taken out of water. But she calmed down the minute he pinned her to the tree and rested his forehead against hers, his mouth aligned with hers while his thrumming heart synced with her own.
• The air seemed to turn colder as darkness increased. They couldn't see each other. But in the back of their minds, they pictured each other's expressions and emotions as they breathed heavily in sync.