Page 98 of Unexpectedly Falling
“I’m not,” Jensen says with a smile before turning to me. “Go put on something warm; there’s somewhere I want to show you.”
Intrigued and honestly too tired to argue, I move down the hall and throw on a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt over my thermal before returning to the kitchen. Jensen holds out my coat and I slip my arms inside.
“You’re not kidding about the cold,” I comment, and he shrugs.
“It’s always a little colder by the waterfall.”
“Romantic,” Mason quips, his tone approving.
“I texted Remi’s bottle instructions,” Jensen says, ignoring him, “but we shouldn’t be that late.”
Mason grins. “Take your time.”
Glaring at him, Jensen shuffles me out the door, Mason’s laughter following us out into the cold afternoon sun.
It’s strange but I could probably count on one hand the number of times I’ve been in Jensen’s truck. Our schedules had always been matched just right to hand off Remi before one of us was heading out the door.
The roar of the engine brings me back to the present as he starts down the drive and cranks up the heat. “I Ain’t Sayin’” by Jordan Davis plays softly, and I hum along as I watch fields and fence posts fly past the window. It feels like a date and even though I’m pretty sure it’s not, my stupid heart wishes it was.
The thought makes me feel itchy because even though I know what I want and I’m trying to embrace thesefeelings, it still doesn’t feel natural to want this side of a relationship. I’m startled from that runaway train when we pull off the road and into a dirt lot surrounded by trees.
Jensen puts the truck in park and pulls a backpack I hadn’t noticed from the back.
“Are you ready? There’s a waterfall right here, but the one I wanna take you to is a little ways in. Montana and Ellison think they’re the only ones who know about it.” He rolls his eyes, and it’s so adorable I can’t help leaning over and pressing a quick kiss to his lips.
His surprise is evident but as soon as I try to pull back, Jensen wraps his hand around the back of my neck and slants his mouth over mine. There’s nothing sweet or chaste about the kiss, and that rush I feel every time he kisses me floods my veins.
“Ready,” I croak when he finally releases me, resting his forehead against mine and shaking with silent laughter.
“Let’s go, Trouble.”
Helping me out of the truck, he puts on the backpack and takes my hand, the two of us walking through the woods. Birds chirp and twigs snap beneath our feet, and it’s reminiscent of my time growing up by the lake.
The silence between us should be uncomfortable but it’s not. I’d expected a sense of foreboding but all I feel isfree. The idea that I’ve found something bigger than soccer is indescribable, but I try for me and Jensen and the future I hope to build with him.
The air is chilly and damp when the trees open up but the view is breathtaking. Water flows over the rock shelf, a mixture of the most beautiful browns and tans, darkened by the mist as the water gathers in a stunning teal pool.
“It’s beautiful,” I say finally, shoving my hands in my pockets and turning to face him. He’s set the backpack on the ground, his stance mimicking my own.
“I’d like to bring you here when the weather is nicer,” he starts, licking his lips as he continues, “spend summers here when we can, and travel with you during the season.”
“What?” I ask, completely caught off guard even though I’d been hoping for some version of this. But Blackstone Falls is Jensen’s home—his livelihood—and I want that too.
“You and me and Remi. I could teach at the academy in Nashville or find a department out there, and we’ll travel to as many games as we can.”
“Hold on,” I say, pushing down the panic and meeting his gaze. “Before you start giving up everything for me, I need to tell you something.” My heart hammers in my chest as the words hang between us. “It’s going to change things.”
“Why don’t you let me decide what it changes or doesn’t change?” he replies, his big arms crossing over his chest as his face remains carefully neutral.
“Every other person who knows this was required to sign an NDA.”
“I will if you want me to.” The statement holds no emotion—simply a fact—and it’s almost worse than if he’d gotten angry.
Not wanting to delay the inevitable, I take a breath. “The car accident I was in with my sister sent me to the hospital for emergency surgery.”
“You told me that.”
“They had to remove my uterus and one ovary because they couldn’t stop the bleeding.” I pause as he watches me, unblinking. “I lost the other because of complications from the first surgery. There was a settlement that we donated to the local humane society. But all that means I can’t have kids, Jensen.”
