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“Noah, I need to be ready for him.” She drew a deep breath. “You’ve done so much for me already, but I have to ask for more. I need an advance on my paycheck. Probably a couple paychecks.”
“Done.” He smiled across the picnic table. “I’ll even toss in a promotion to part-time bartender when you get back.”
“Thank you. I don’t know how to mix drinks, but thanks.”
“You’ll learn.” He shook his head. “You can’t be any worse than Lily.”
She rested her arms on the table. “Now, I need to ask one more favor.”
CAROLINE TOOK A tentative step forward. After weeks of walking around this base with purpose and determination, carrying her faith that Josh would come through for her around like a secret weapon, she felt nervous.
Is it really over?
She glanced down at the piece of paper detailing her medical discharge from the Marines. After spending over a year hiding, feeling hunted by her past, it was officially behind her. The Marines were done with her. And she had the man leaning against a familiar silver pickup to thank.
She wanted to run to him. She needed to weep with relief. But not yet. Right now she had to savor this feeling.
This is what freedom feels like. Scary. New. Exciting.
Oh yes, the tears could wait until much, much later. Right now, she needed to share her gratitude, her relief, and her love with the man who’d set her free.
“You’re here.” She crossed the parking lot, the base becoming a blur behind her. She’d spent days, weeks trying not to feel, and now . . .
Emotion erupt
ed as if a faucet had been turned on. Her pulse raced and tears burned paths down her cheeks, refusing to wait. So she broke into a run. She needed to feel his hands on her, his arms around her. She wanted to hold on to him and never let go.
But first, oh God, she had to tell him.
“I’m sorry I didn’t trust you.” The words came out in a rush as his arms wrapped around her. She placed her palms flat against his chest and looked up at him. Ever since Noah’s visit two weeks earlier, she’d been planning her speech. She refused to write him another letter. She needed to tell him.
“I should have told you that I was going to turn myself in,” she continued.
“Caroline.” His hands roamed over her waist and hips before settling on her lower back. “I know you’re sorry. Noah told me.”
Her eyes widened. “He did?”
“We had a sleepover, ate one too many cinnamon rolls, one thing led to another and he told me everything.”
She laughed and it felt so good and so right. “Josh—”
“All right. We skipped the sleepover. And I didn’t bake for him. But we did have a few shots of whiskey the other night.” His smile faded and his hands stilled on her back. “I owe you an apology too. For the past year, I told myself I was giving you space and working around your issues.”
“You did, Josh,” she murmured, trying to fight a fresh wave of tears. She was free and he was here, holding her. She didn’t want to cry.
“But I have one question for you,” she said quickly, reaching for facts to keep the feeling from running away with her. “If Noah found his way down here, why didn’t you? Too busy making TV appearances?”
“That’s part of it.” He touched his mouth to hers, stealing a quick kiss. “I’ve also been poring over this mysterious set of blueprints that arrived.”
She stared up into his green eyes. “You figured out they were from me?”
He let out a laugh as his hands pressed into her back, drawing her closer. “The architect that you hired dropped them off at the farmhouse,” he said. “He wanted to walk me through them.”
“Actually Noah hired him for me,” she murmured, arching her lower back. Her chest pressed against his and her thigh brushed his.
I’m never letting you go, she thought.
“And was the ‘Superhero’s Lair’ in place of a master bedroom Noah’s idea too?” he asked, running one hand up her spine. His fingers brushed the bare skin at the nape of her neck and she felt a rush of pleasure.
