Page 134 of Bad Cowboy, Tennessee

My heart felt too large for my chest. “I’ve never known love, Baby Blue,” I told him, my voice going strange, my throat tensing. “When… when you tell me you’refalling in lovewithme, I can’t fathom it. It’s like a mirage. It’s like something Iknowwill disappear. How could I be loved?”

“Because it would be impossible not to love you,” Max finally said, and when I turned, his eyes were glassy.

He leaned in and kissed my cheek.

Lightly.

Then tipped his own hat off so he could move in, pressing a kiss to my lips.

“It’s no good, loving me,” I whispered.

He answered with another kiss.

“That’s the biggest lie you’ve ever told yourself,” he said after, a hollow sadness in his eyes. “And you’re not a monster.”

“You heard it all. Everything I just told you.”

“And I’m still here,” he said. “You think I shouldn’t be. But I am, because I love you. I love you, even if it’s bad. I love you, even if it takes you a million years to believe it.”

He was breaking my heart and putting it back together, all at once.

“Max,” I whispered.

“Even if you push me away, and I never see you again, I’ll still be loving you. There’s nothing that could change that now.”

Chapter 21

Max

The buzz of Draven’s phone was like a doorway back to reality.

It was as if I’d stepped into another timeline as Draven told me his story, a darker, uglier version of reality where things happened that I couldn’t comprehend.

It was real.

It made me want to take Lily away from everything, off to some protected island where she could never get involved in anything like this again. But I also knew she’d made all of the decisions herself, and that she probably didn’t regret a single one of them.

Lilywasokay.

I just wanted Draven to be okay, too.

When his phone buzzed I snapped out of the trance I’d been in, listening to his story. He checked it, his expression looking increasingly concerned as he tapped his phone then called someone.

“Is the situation under control?” he said into the phone. “Then I’m going. Now.”

“Situation?” I asked the moment he hung up. “Fuck, are the police here? Is Brody coming?”

“Nothing like that,” Draven said, his gaze landing on me. “It’syourguy.”

“Excuse me?”

His eyes were wild, his fists bunching up like he was awaiting a fight. “Reggie Sandlefield approached the perimeter gate of my property about ten minutes ago, and my team picked it up.”

“Reggie…”

“Rex67camehere. How the fuck did he know… Max, did you post your location here?”

My blood went cold.

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