Total pages in book: 25
Estimated words: 23868 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 119(@200wpm)___ 95(@250wpm)___ 80(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 23868 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 119(@200wpm)___ 95(@250wpm)___ 80(@300wpm)
"We established I'm a dumbass."
"You are not." I elbow him in the side before I place my hand on top of his. "And only I can call you that."
“Yes, ma’am.” He turns his hand over so we can link our fingers together.
The feel of his strong, possessive hold is overwhelming. The simple act of holding hands has my insides warming. I’m still buzzing from the pleasure he gave me earlier, and I don’t ever want it to end.
“Maybe we should go to my place,” I suggest when he turns in the opposite direction.
“Well, I was thinking that you haven’t been to mine in years.” He’s driving toward his family's land, and a ball of emotions form in my chest.
“It has been a long time,” I agree. We have a lot of memories from time spent there as kids. “But we’ll be alone at my place.”
“We’ll be alone at my place too.” He grins.
“Oh.” I let out a breath. “Your parents are out of town right now?”
If Sawyer and I are truly committed to this relationship, I will have to face them at some point. I’m just not ready for that to happen today or, to be honest, tomorrow. Right now, things are pretty dang perfect, and I don't want to rock the boat quite yet.
"They're back tomorrow. They'll be in for a shock when they find out about us. Mom will be so damn excited."
Well, shit. She's not going to be excited one bit.
"Hey, why’d you tense up on me?" Suddenly Sawyer is catching everything when it comes to me. He takes his eyes off the road to glance over at me for a second. "Tell me. I don’t want there to be any more hiding. From now on, we talk things out."
I sigh, and even though I don’t want to have this conversation, he’s right. We’ve spent far too long keeping these things in, and I don’t want to continue this way. This needs to stop now, and it’s best to get it all out.
"Your mom doesn't like me."
As soon as the words are out of my mouth, a bark of laughter leaves Sawyer.
"Lane, you’ve lost your mind. She loves you."
The irony is that at one time, I would have said the same thing.
"Since when?"
"What do you mean, ‘since when?' Your whole life." He blinks at me like I’m speaking another language.
"At one time, sure, I think she felt that way but not so much now."
"Did she say something to you?" Sawyer's laughter vanishes, and his whole mood shifts. It's a power I have only ever seen with him. He can somehow change the whole vibe in a room with his presence or a couple of words. I always thought it was why he's so good with animals.
“No, in fact she doesn’t say anything to me anymore.” I could be standing right next to her, and I was a ghost. It hurt, but I kept telling myself it was for the best.
“I’ll fix it,” he promises.
“It’s not your job to fix everything.” I squeeze his hand, appreciating that he would go to bat for me, but I don’t want to come between him and his family.
“Are you my girl?”
“Yes,” I say without hesitation. I’ve always been his, even when I wasn’t ready to admit it to anyone. Including myself.
“Then you let me take care of you.” He lets go of my hand so he can drape his arm over my shoulder. Then he pulls me close and kisses the top of my head. “I’ve waited a long time to do it, so don’t try and stop me now.”
Chapter Twelve
SAWYER
“Wait, I thought we were going to your house?” Lane says when I turn past the main house and keep going.
“That’s my parents’ house,” I tell her and grin. “Did you think I still slept in my old race car bed?”
“Well, I did have a fantasy or two about you and me in that bed.”
I slam on the brakes and put the truck in reverse.
“Where are you going?” Lane giggles as she pushes on my side. “I’m only joking.”
I stare down at her and raise a brow. “Say the word and I’ll get you in that race car so damn fast.” God, I love how happy she looks. It’s silly and playful between us, and my heart is so damn full.
“Maybe another time. Right now, I want to see where you live.”
“Fair enough.” I put the truck into drive and keep going down the new driveway I had cut last year.
Once I knew the end of my rodeo days was getting closer, I made plans for me and Lane. I’m sure more than a few people would have thought this was a stupid idea considering up until a few days ago she would hardly look at me. But with every inch of my soul, I knew we’d end up here. One day she would be mine, and when the time came, I wanted to be ready.