Page 35 of Claimed By the Cowboy
The words are out before I can stop them, my chest expanding as I give my heart free rein.
“You mean that?” His voice is rough, almost broken.
I see the vulnerable man beneath the cocky cowboy—the one terrified I might take it back. Then the shock in his eyes is chased by something fiercer, something hungry.
I lift my chin, refusing to let him doubt me. “I love you. I’ll marry you. I want to be yours.” My breath shakes, but my conviction doesn’t falter. “I choose you, Tom Sutton. Not because I have to. Because I want to.”
Tom stares at me as if he’s memorizing every word, branding them into his soul. Then his jaw tightens, and heswallows hard.
“There’s my good girl,” he murmurs, reverence threaded through the grit of his voice.
The praise makes my cheeks flush pink, and I file that reaction away for later exploration.
I grab his shirtfront and kiss him like my life depends on it. No hesitation. No apology. Just the raw, blazing truth of what I want.
Tom groans into my mouth, arms wrapping around me like he’s been waiting for this moment forever. His kiss is fierce and hungry, but this time it feels different. Not stolen or secret. Chosen.
“How soon?” he mutters against my mouth, his thumbs stroking along my cheekbones.
“How soon what?”I ask dreamily.
He pulls back to look at me, his eyes gleaming possessively. “How soon can I put my ring on your finger and make sure every man in Montana knows you’re taken?”
“Um, this weekend?” I suggest hesitantly.
“Perfect.” He brushes his lips against mine. “Simple ceremony, just family. Then I’ll take mywife home and spend our wedding night showing her exactly how much she’s worth.”
The promise in his voice makes my breath catch. “I can’t believe this is real.”
“Believe it.” He presses a kiss to my temple, breathing in the scent of my hair. “You’re mine now, Kitty Phillips. Mine to protect, mine to love, mine to keep safe forever.”
“Forever’s a long time.”
“Not long enough.”
A laugh bubbles out of me—half relief, half joy, but all mine.
For once, I’m not the girl being protected. I’m the woman who chose love.
And it feels damn good.
“Come on, darlin’,” Tom murmurs. “We both need to get out of these swamp clothes.”
“Trying to get me naked again, cowboy?” I tease, feeling lighter than I have for… well, ever.
He grins. “Always, darlin’. Always.”
Hand in hand, we walk back toward the house. The porch light flickers on as the last rays of sun sink below the mountains, painting the ranch in oranges and yellows.
Delaney is in the living room as we enter. For a breathless second, guilt tightens my chest again… but then she smiles. A real smile. Soft. Proud.
“About damn time,” Angus says as he appears from the kitchen. “We were starting to think you'd scared her off for good.”
Henry follows, leaning against the doorframe with his usual calm. “Scare her off? Kitty doesn’t scare easy, do you, honey?”
“No, she doesn’t,” Tom says. “And she's not going anywhere, are you, darlin’?”
“No,” I say softly, my voice full of wonder. “I'm staying right here.”
