Page 86 of Finding You

She nodded. “Yeah. I can honestly say I trust him with my life.”

His smile softened. “Go on.”

“He’s incredibly giving.” She paused. “When I had nothing and no place to go, he took me in. He gave me a job, a place to stay,andfixed my car.”

“That seems very generous.”

“You have no idea,” she replied. “And through it all, he never asked for anything in return. He constantly gave and gave and gave. And I don’t know if I ever told him how much I appreciate him or how incredibly thankful I am for him.”

“Maybe you should tell him,” Devin said, his voice gruff with emotion.

“I don’t know,” she said quietly, stepping in closer until they were toe to toe. Then she looked up at him. “There are so many things I want to say to him, but…I’m not good with words. Not like he is.”

“Maybe you could practice on me.”

She took a steadying breath. “Okay. I’d say…I love you. I know it’s soon and it scares the hell out of me. Everything I own is packed up in my car and my life is kind of a mess, but…when I’m with you, everything seems right. Good. Better than good. That day on the side of the road, you did more than just rescue a person with a broken-down car. You rescued a person with a broken-down life. You gave me hope. And the time we spent together was the best in my life. And…I don’t want to leave. I don’t want to go to Oregon.”

“And what do you want?” he asked seriously.

“I want to stay,” she said, her voice trembling, her heart hammering in her chest. “With you. In Sweetbriar Ridge.”

“I never wanted you to leave. It was killing me watching you pack up your stuff.”

“You didn’t say anything!” she cried.

“It had to be your decision,” he countered. “I didn’t want to sway you–I mean, Idid. But I knew it wasn’t the right thing to do. So I had to wait and hope and pray you’d change your mind.”

MacKenzie let out a shaky breath and nodded. “Wow.”

“I think you’re better with words than you think you are.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Really.” Grinning, he reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet and then one of his business cards. Handing it to her, he said, “Devin Maxwell. And I’m hoping you meant what you said about staying. Because there’s nothing I want more than to be with you and get to know you more and…make a life with you in Sweetbriar Ridge.”

She had never been much of a crier, but her emotions were too raw today and she couldn’t help the flow of tears that started up again. “MacKenzie Holland,” she replied, slipping his card into her back pocket. “And I was very serious about what I said. The thought of staying here with you makes me happy. And…and…”

He didn’t let her say anything else. He swept her up into his arms and claimed her lips with his in a kiss that promised a whole lot of everything–love, passion…and forever.

A minute later, he lifted his head and smiled down at her. “Welcome home, MacKenzie.”

Those were the second sweetest words she’d heard all day.

It was after dark and they were lying on a blanket in Devin’s backyard, watching the starry sky. They had made love out there after the sun had gone down and now–with minimal clothing on–they were simply enjoying the night.

Devin couldn’t believe how happy he was. He had the woman he loved in his arms and she was staying. They had unpacked her car as soon as they had gotten back to the house and, just like that, his world had righted itself.

“Why did you have those suitcases in your truck?” she asked, running her hand over his chest.

“I was prepared to go with you if you really felt like you still had to leave.”

“What about the garage? Your life here? You couldn’t just abandon all of it!”

Holding her close, he explained. “I was going to leave the truck there and Will and the guys would have picked it up. I planned on going to Oregon with you and making sure you got there okay and that things were going well with your mom. Then I was going to fly home. I was going to be gone for two weeks, tops. And before I flew home, I was going to make arrangements to come back and drive home with you.”

She let out a soft breath. “You are truly the most amazing man in the world. I can’t believe you were willing to do all that for me. I don’t even know what to say.”

“Say you love me.”

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