Page 131 of Beautiful Exile

I stared at him for a long moment, saying the only thing I could. “I love you.” The words stirred a little less fear this time. Didn’t strangle me quite as much on the way out.

“Say it again,” Linc said, his lips hovering just against mine. “I want to feel it.”

“I love you,” I whispered, my lips moving against his with the words.

“Best gift I’ve ever received. Because I know the cost. Know how terrifying it is to let yourself step off that cliff.”

It was terrifying. But now that I’d taken that step, the fear started to melt away. And it was because of one thing. “You’re with me.”

Linc slid his fingers through mine. “Always. And that will never change.”

I pulled back and searched those hazel eyes. “Will you do something with me?”

Linc’s gaze softened on mine. “Said I was with you, didn’t I?”

“Yes, you did.”

48

ARDEN

My truck bumpedalong the gravel road that led to Colson Ranch, but Linc was behind Wanda’s wheel now. I sat in the center seat, and Brutus was at the window. I’d been a little too shaky to drive and needed to be close to Linc. Had to remember that he was with me.

His fingers slid through mine like he could read my thoughts, and he twisted his head to kiss my temple. “Talked to Ellie. Told her everything.”

I jerked back. “You did?”

Linc nodded, a hint of worry passing over his features.

“How’d she take it?” My stomach twisted for Linc’s sister, for the rug I knew had just been pulled out from under her.

Linc stared hard out the windshield. “Said I’ve been shielding her for too long. And that it wasn’t helping anything.”

I pressed my lips together. Her words were so similar to the ones I’d given him.

He squeezed my hand. “Told her she sounded like someone else I know.”

I leaned into Linc, trying to give him a little of the strength he’d given me. “It’s not wrong to want to shield the people you care about. It shows how much they mean to you. You just have to pause and decide whether that shielding is actually the best thing for them. Sometimes, the best thing is just to let them know you’re with them. Not in front of them.”

Linc glanced down at me for barely a moment, but there was a lifetime in that smattering of seconds. And so much love. “With you.”

I squeezed his hand hard. “I’m always stronger when you’re at my side.”

And wasn’t that partnership at its core? Making each other better, stronger…more ourselves.

“I am, too,” he said, pulling me tighter against him. “Even when you steal my last french fry.”

My lips twitched as I remembered our meal last night. “You were too slow. And you’re the one who gave me a taste for fries dipped in milkshakes. So, really, it’s your fault.”

Linc grinned at the road, shaking his head. “Adding insult to injury.”

I leaned in, my lips ghosting over his ear. “How can you complain when you ate the rest of that milkshake off me?”

Linc cursed, and his grin shifted into a scowl as he pulled up in front of the ranch house. “Are you seriously trying to make me hard before seeing your mom? You’re evil.”

A laugh bubbled out of me. “The absolute worst. But you love me.”

He turned and took my face in his hands, pulling it to his. “I do.” And then he kissed me. It was one I’d never experienced before because it wasn’t just one or two things. It waseverything. Heat and comfort. Attraction and strength. Gratitude and promise. But most of all, it was love. The emotion that encompassed so much.

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