Free Rock Hard (Siren Publishing Classic) by Tatum Throne

ground in one athletic move that was a blur of movement. The air left Wynn as her backside hit the ground hard, and Kade covered her with his body. Her eyes were wide as she looked up at him. An animal look was on his face as he realized too late that it was her. His eyes widened, and he loosened his hold.
    “Wynn?”
    She wasn’t hurt, only startled at the sheer power that gave him the ability to move that way. It was almost inhuman. It made her wonder what other skills he had that she didn’t know about.
    “Did I hurt you?” he asked.
    He looked upset. She grinned and touched his jaw. “No. I’m sorry...I startled you.”
    He gave her a quick kiss on her lips and helped her to her feet. “You’re early.”
    “I thought I’d give the route a quick look before you got here,” she confessed.
    He gave her a look that challenged her to bear her soul. “I’m glad I got here early, then.”
    She checked out the equipment he brought. He had a rope and Black Diamond carabiners. Trad climbing involved a lot of safety equipment. There were two harnesses on the rock, right next to her yellow Scarpas. Her shoes. She sat down and toed her feet into her climbing shoes. She laced them up and stretched her legs out.
    “We doing trad?” she asked.
    “That okay with you?”
    “Sure. It’s been a while for me,” she said. “Who goes first?”
    “Ladies first,” he said.
    She took the harness he offered and slipped it over her tight-fitting climbing pants. Kade came over and helped her cinch in the legs and waist. His possessive gaze moved over her blue sports bra. He gave her a good pull in the center, bringing her in close. He gave her a kiss with his eyes open. There were questions in his eyes as his gaze moved over her body, and he stepped back. She knew he wasn’t bold enough to ask her if she was wearing her workout thong. She tightened the buckle down on the harness and clipped on her chalk bag. She then hooked on the cams she’d be using as anchors as she climbed the route first.
    Kade harnessed up and clipped the rope into his carabiner. “Ready?” he asked.
    “I think I am.”
    “Belay?” she asked.
    “Belay on.”
    “Climbing,” she said.
    “Climb on.”
    Wynn chalked her hands and headed for the rock. She started out slow, feeling the rush of adrenaline that came with starting a new climb on a new rock. She climbed up ten feet before fitting her first cam between a crack in the rock. She pressed the center of the cam in and let go. It snapped out, creating a safety anchor if she fell. She reached between her legs, pulling the slack of rope up to clip it into the carabiner hanging from the cam.
    Climbing became a quiet dance of peace and serenity. She was shocked she felt it with Kade keeping her tied down to the rock. With each move, she felt as though she were moving closer to trusting him with the truth about what she was doing down here.
    She didn’t understand how this man had managed to slip his way into her heart so quickly. Or more importantly, how she allowed him to come inside without protecting her heart at all cost. She placed more cams as she climbed higher.
    Halfway up, Wynn looked down the cliff to see Kade watching her closely. He gave her slack in the rope and tension where she needed it, and he anticipated each of her moves with checking the route above her head.
    “Nice!” Kade yelled.
    A thrill danced over her skin. She wanted to impress him. “Thanks.”
    Distracted by Kade’s praise, she missed a critical hold for her right hand. That left a bad one. Wynn went for the bad one anyway, knowing she’d have to move off it fast.
    “Easy now. You have a better hold off to your right. There’s a nice pocket there.”
    She trusted Kade and went for it, finding the spot fast. Her left leg swung out without a hold as she leaned into the new one. Her hand went a second later, and she did a barn door off the cliff wall before she swung back in, hitting the rock. Wynn dug her toe onto