Page 10 of Crew

She couldn’t help herself.

She cried.

Great, big fat tears of joy.

When they were away from the prying eyes of her herd behind a barn and in a fenced pasture where the cows and a single goat roamed, he pulled her into his arms and held her close.

“It’s okay, Zara. It’s all going to be okay. You’re here now. Fate brought us together. We’re soulmates. You’re not alone anymore, and neither am I.”

All the unspoken fears, all the hopes that she’d kept buried for longer than she cared to remember, surfaced in a fresh wave of tears.

“Soulmate,” she whispered. She tilted her head and looked up at him through the blur of tears. “Crew.”

“I’ve got you, love,” he whispered.

And then he kissed her.

Oh.

Everything dropped away except for them. She could only feel his arms around her, and the press of their bodies together. She felt entirely protected and safe in his arms.

That was something she’d never encountered before, never felt before.

She hadn’t felt at peace since her parents died, but standing in Crew’s arms, she did.

For the first time in years, she felt safe.

Crew was positively mesmerized by his beautiful soulmate.

How the hell had this even happened?

He couldn’t believe that he’d almost declined inviting the Valley Herd to stay with them. Then again, he’d been told about Zara but she hadn’t been at the meetup, so he didn’t know she was his soulmate.

He’d seen her walking with Tris and been immediately attracted to her.

She was gorgeous on a hundred different levels. Petite and perfect, curved in all the right places. Her golden hair fell past her shoulders, and her eyes were the most enchanting shade of emerald.

But he hadn’t realized why he was so profoundly interested in her until he talked to her. And then the moment their hands touched, his stallion let him know she was their soulmate.

Damn, her alpha was an ass.

He’d thought he was when he met Colton at the park. He seemed to be holding his ego in check and appearing to be congenial, but Crew couldn’t shake the feeling that the male was operating on some kind of agenda.

But he’d been compelled to let them come stay, and how fucking glad was he that he had?

The kiss? Spectacular.

The way she felt in his arms? Heaven on earth.

And how happy was his stallion? Prancing around like a show pony.

He cupped her face and brushed the streaks of tears from her cheeks. “I should have asked if those were happy tears instead of just kissing you.”

She smiled. “I liked the kiss.”

“Me too.”

“And they were happy tears.”