Total pages in book: 27
Estimated words: 24518 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 123(@200wpm)___ 98(@250wpm)___ 82(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24518 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 123(@200wpm)___ 98(@250wpm)___ 82(@300wpm)
Then without waiting, I launch myself into his lap. My arms go around his neck, and he kisses me hungrily. This is our first kiss without masks or pretense or any silly games. This is just us, the way it should always be.
He licks into my mouth, growling and muttering things under his breath. I think he’s threatening to carry me away to his cabin and keep me chained to his bed, so no other man ever sees me. Fine by me. I’ll let this rugged mountain man keep me for the rest of my life.
Chapter 11
Ford
“Where do you want it, boss?” I ask as I bring the oversized easel into the back bedroom of our cabin. It’s the first week of January, and Joy has moved in with me.
We just finished getting her stuff moved completely two days ago. I paid off her lease to get her out early. Then I celebrated the move by taking her on the kitchen island and in the shower and on the back deck. Finally, once more, in bed. Our bed.
Even though she’s only been here for a few days, the cabin already feels lighter and brighter. She plays music a lot and hums under her breath. She’s looking at paint swatches and curtains and decorative pillows that are not for napping on.
Apparently, our cabin needs “texture”. I think that’s a woman’s word for looking at thirty-five different cream-colored pillows and buying fifteen of them. Still, I can’t complain. She’s here. She’s filling the place with warmth. She’s making it a home. How did I get so fuckin’ lucky?
We spend our days decorating. Well, she spends her days decorating. I spend my days watching her decorate and trying to convince her that the key advantage of not having neighbors is our ability to be naked constantly. Sometimes, I lose that debate. Every so often, I win.
At night, it’s rough. The nightmares keep coming, but Joy is always there. She gets up with me in the middle of the night, even though I tell her to go back to sleep. She complains that the bed is too cold without me, but really, I know she just doesn’t want me to be alone.
I made an appointment to see a counselor that works with combat veterans. I don’t know if it will do any good, but Joy said that maybe it would help to get the nightmares out of my head. She thinks if I talk about it, maybe they won’t torment me so much.
For a long time, I believed that I deserved to live with the nightmares, flashbacks, panic attacks, and the constant feeling of doom. I thought it was a fair punishment for living when everyone else around me died. But she makes me think maybe that’s not how this works. Maybe there’s a way to let go of the pain without letting go of my brothers.
I set the oversized easel down and turn to her. “What do you think?”
She frowns and points to a different corner. “I think the light would be better over there.”
She tries to reach for the easel. It’s light for me, but I imagine it’s heavy for her. So, I grab it before she can, lifting it easily. The way I see it, my girl never has to struggle now that I’m around. She’s got a man now who loves taking care of her, who delights in being there for her.
As soon as the easel is moved, she turns her attention to the window, tapping her chin in that way she does when she’s thinking.
“These curtains really aren’t good for this,” she murmurs under her breath.
I shrug. “Change them.”
Before she can respond, her phone dings with a message. She reaches for it, her big diamond engagement ring glistening in the late afternoon sunlight and throwing small rainbows around the room.
I thought I’d go feral on New Year’s Day when I realized the jewelers were closed. I needed to see a ring on my girl’s finger. Needed every other motherfucker to know she was taken.
She checks her smartphone and gives me an excited grin. “They’re on the way.”
Hunter and Nate are bringing their women and coming for dinner. It was Nate’s idea, and he insisted that we gather at my cabin. He acted grumpy about it, like it was my turn to be a host once. But I’m grateful for his dramatic production, for the way he didn’t call attention to how much I struggle.
She frowns down at the outfit she’s been wearing since this morning when she put on clothes again. I can’t say that I haven’t considered burning her wardrobe about a dozen times since she moved in. Then she’d be naked all the time. Or forced to wear my clothes constantly. Either way, it’s a win for me.