Page 27 of Make Me Yours
A laugh rumbled out of me. “Picnic. Haven’t done one of those in years.”
“Then you’re overdue,” she teased, curling against me again.
I held her close, the warmth of her body seeping into mine. For once, I didn’t think about Humvees rattling through brokenstreets or the sound of a blast shattering the dawn. Didn’t think about Valentina or the way she’d disappeared overnight.
All I thought about was Lilly—the way she showed up tonight, nerves and all, and the way she looked at me like maybe I was more than the wreck I’d been dragging around.
She tilted her head and kissed me slowly, lingering, her voice whispering against my lips. “I’m tired of pretending we shouldn’t try for more than just shared desire. But I’m not ready for the world around us to know.”
I tightened my arm around her, pulling her in close. “Then don’t. As far as the world is concerned, I don’t think I’m ready either.”
And for the first time in a long damn while, I let myself believe maybe it could be that simple.
The house went still after a while, the kind of quiet you only notice when you’re wide awake. Lilly had curled into me on the couch, her breath slow and even, her body soft and trusting against mine. She’d stayed.
I should’ve let myself drift with her, but my eyes stayed pinned to the ceiling. My chest felt tight, like a weight had settled there.
She wanted more than nights like this. She’d all but said it. And damn me, I wanted it too—to wake with her still here, to see her smile in the daylight, to believe that mornings didn’t have to mean ghosts and loss.
But the past never really let go. Mosul was still under my skin, crawling through the cracks of my memory, no matter how hard I tried to keep it buried. Dawn raids. Sand in my teeth. Brothers who never came home. And Valentina—the way she’d been ripped away without warning. Every time I closed my eyes, those shadows waited.
I turned my head, pressed a kiss into Lilly’s hair, breathing her in.
Maybe tomorrow, I could hold them off. Maybe tomorrow, I could be the man she deserved to wake up next to.
If the shadows didn’t take me first.
Chapter Eleven
The Quiet Between Us
Lilly
Lucky Ranch’s wrought iron sign came into view the next morning, bold against the wide Montana sky. My stomach fluttered as I turned beneath it, steering onto the road that led to the homes of all four men who’d won the Powerball.
Money hadn’t changed the land much—fences still stretched across green pastures, cattle dotted the fields—but it was impossible not to feel the weight of what this place meant.
A mile down, the turnoff to Sawyer’s spread waited. My pulse kicked as I eased onto the private drive, the basket of food shifting on the seat beside me. Sunny’s ears perked in the back, nose pressed to the glass as if she knew exactly where we were headed.
Sawyer’s ranch house stood sturdy against the horizon, with clean lines and weathered wood that looked new and timeless. My vehicle hummed over the smooth blacktop as I pulled up to the porch. This was Sawyer James’ land, and every inch of it looked deliberate.
Sunny bounded out before I’d even killed the engine, streaking across the yard like she owned it. I slowly followed, clutching the basket against my hip. I’d measured and repacked everything until it was slim enough to slide neatly into Grace’s saddle bags, but standing there, I wondered if it all looked too planned.
Too careful.
Then the front door creaked as Sawyer opened the massive oak door.
Hat brim low. Shoulders easy.
And suddenly, my over-prepared picnic felt like the least of my worries.
When I reached the top of the porch, Sawyer pushed the screen door wide with the side of his fancy leather boot. He leaned against the frame, his broad chest steady, and his eyes shadowed beneath the brim of his hat.
“Hey,” I managed, trying to be casual.
The corner of his mouth twitched, but he didn’t say anything. Just watched me with that curious expression of his. It settled me and unnerved me all at once.
Sunny barreled back, nuzzling Sawyer’s knee like she owned the place. Sawyer bent to scratch behind her ear, earning an eager thump of the tail.
