Page 50 of Cowboy's Healing Heart

"Wow," he breathes. "You look... incredible."

I can't help the heat that creeps up my cheeks. "You clean up pretty nice yourself, Kennedy."

He laughs, offering me his arm. "Shall we?"

The restaurant is fancier than anywhere I've been in years. Crystal chandeliers hang from the ceiling, and the menu doesn't have prices listed. I shift in my seat, feeling out of place.

"Relax," Shane says, reaching across the table to take my hand. "This place comes highly recommended."

I nod, but I can't shake the feeling that something's off. Shane seems too comfortable here as if he's used to this kind of luxury. It doesn't fit with the man I've come to know at the ranch.

As we eat, I watch him, trying to reconcile this version of Shane with the one I know. He catches me staring and raises an eyebrow.

"Are you ready to leave?" he asks.

I shake my head, looking around the room. I consider pushing and asking the questions that are burning in my throat. But I let it go.

"Just thinking about how nice this is," I say instead. "Thank you for tonight."

His smile is warm, but there's a flicker of something in his eyes. I lean forward to ask, but the waiter arrives with dessert.

Back at the hotel, the tension between us is electric. Shane's hands are gentle as he unzips my dress, his lips trailing down my neck. I turn in his arms, capturing his mouth in a kiss.

We tug and tumble, a heated dance of undressing, all lips and fabric, and stifled moans.

Shane's hands slide my dress down my shoulders, his mouth trailing kisses along my collarbone. I fumble with his belt, desperate to feel his skin against mine.

Our clothes pool around us as we stumble towards the bed, unable to break the contact of our lips.

Tonight's the last night together like this. Tomorrow is back to normal.

How will we go back to hiding? How will I sleep without him?

This weekend has changed everything.

Shane's touch brings me back to the moment. Hot, slow, reverent, like he's memorizing every inch of my skin. I arch into him, wanting more, needing to be closer.

When he enters me, it's different than before. Slower, more intense. I look into his eyes and see something that scares me with its intensity. I close my eyes, losing myself in the sensation instead.

We move together, a slow-burn building. I feel him everywhere, in every cell of my body. His name falls from my lips, a desperate plea. He answers by driving into me deeper, his breath ragged.

The world falls away. Nothing exists but him, his weight on me, inside me. We move together, a slow climb to the edge of the universe.

The realization that this might be the last time clings to me with a death grip. I can feel the sadness and longing in our every touch. When we come together, it's with a shuddering, heart-wrenching intensity.

His strokes are deep and deliberate as if he wants to imprint himself on my soul. His lips find mine, swallowing my cries of pleasure.

"I'll miss this," he whispers against my skin, his voice rough and raw. "I'll miss you."

Tears well in my eyes, and I turn away. "Don't, Shane, please."

"Look at me," he says, gently turning my face back towards him. "You're mine. Every inch of you. No matter where we are. Do you understand?"

"Yes," I whisper. "Yours."

He kisses me again, claiming my mouth as fiercely as he's claimed my body.

And I surrender to him, giving myself over completely, knowing that this may be the last time.

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