Page 67 of Major Love

I smirk and give her chilled fingers a firm squeeze with mine. “Internet connection is better down here, so you can set your laptop by the couches if you wanna get any work done.”

She hesitates and then squeezes me back. “Thanks,” she says softly.

I’m not sure what Sunday’s work situation is right now, and she’s sure as shit not biting the bait when I try to get it out of her.

I don’t know how long I’ve got her back in town for, so I’m just gonna make the most of the here and now.

The kitchen is all wood and open-plan, making it bright and cosy, and Sunday looks appreciative as hell as she slides her fingertip over the counter. I don’t realise what she’s thinking until her eyes finally meet mine.

“You built this place,” she says gently.

I search her eyes for a moment. Then I nod.

“Wow.”

“Thanks.”

She laughs quietly and shakes her head at me before teasingly mouthingmountain man.

I smile and squeeze her hand, before grabbing one of my search-and-rescue jackets by the back door.

I hold it up for her to slip her arms into and jerk my chin at her. “Put this on.”

She tucks her arms into the sleeves and I help pull it around her shoulders until she’s fully enveloped. Then I open the door so that she can step onto the roofed back deck and she spins around in surprise as something beneath the wooden canopy catches her eye.

“You’ve got a hot tub?” she exclaims.

I laugh and try not to go too red as I lean against one of the porch posts. “You like it?”

“Of course I like it!” She peeks under the tarp that’s covering it, and then glances back at me. “Can we use it?”

I watch her in silence, my chest rising a little faster.

Can…weuse it?

As in… together?

I search her eyes with mine and then say, “Of course.”

I only use the hot tub when I’ve been on a long SAR mission and the cold from the higher mountains has made my back muscles tighten. But right now, I’ve never been happier to have built it into my deck.

I gather Sunday against my side and walk us a little further forward, out from under the wooden canopy of the back porch and into the snow, toward the workshop. Because this is what I really want to show her – the kind of work that I’m doing now. I want her to know how secure everything is, how she doesn’t ever need to worry about me – anything to help convince her that the reason why we went our separate ways all those years ago is no longer an obstacle in our path.

It’s just us – her and me – and there’s nothing standing in our way anymore.

Her eyes flicker toward the garage then up to me as I walk us closer.

I grab my keys from my pants and start unlocking it as she watches me.

“When I’m doing preliminary work on a project, this is where you’ll find me,” I tell her, not to mention it’s also where Mitch comes to build his joinery pieces when his garage is full and he needs extra space to work.

I haul up the garage door and let Sunday step inside ahead of me, both of us keeping our fingers twined together because it just feels too damn good.

She looks around the space, at the tools on the walls and the saw-horses, until her gaze lands on my desk, which is made with deep brown hardwood. It’s simple and sturdy, exactly what I need when I’m checking out plans for a project.

The garage interior is made with darker logs than the timber of the main house, making the space look warm and intimate even without any lighting on.

She glances up at me with an amused smile and says, “So this is your man cave.”

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