Lane is sweet and steady. Thoughtful. Kind in all the ways that count, and I know he’d be gentle with me. Iwantthat. Eventually.
Even though my whole body protests, I slide off his lap and back into my seat. I tug off what’s left of my ruined tights, roll them up, and shove them into the glove box.
He reaches over, takes my hand, and presses a kiss to my palm before threading our fingers together. His thumb rubs against my skin as he shifts gears and starts down the long, quiet road.
LANE
Evencruisingtenunderthe limit, I can’t seem to slow down time.
Every second with Sadie feels like it’s slipping through my fingers, and I’m not ready to let it go yet.
She’s curled up in the passenger seat, legs tucked under her, cheeks pink, hair a little wild from my hands. She is like sunlight after a storm: warm and blinding in the best way, impossible not to look at, but—best of all—mine.
At least, for tonight.
I went into this without any expectations. Not the laughter over dinner. Not the way she looked at me like I was the only man in the room. Definitely not what happened in the truck.
She caught me off guard in every possible way, and I have a feeling I’ll never fully recover from it.
I thought being honest and opening up about my dad would scare her off. I thought the truth would ruin whatever this was before it started. I wouldn’t have blamed her, either.
She’s young—and young people like to go out and drink and have a good time. She should be doing that. Having fun. Not worrying about a guy who morphs into a monster, turning into someone unrecognizable when he drinks.
But I’m not that guy anymore. I will never be that guy again. Not since that night.
Heath was the first person to see that, see me, and give me a chance. Once I’d gotten settled in the bunkhouse, he invited me out on a trail ride, claiming the land was best viewed on horseback. I wasn’t about to argue with a man offering me a second chance.
On the way back, he led us through the wildflowers. I’d thought the name of the ranch was kind of unoriginal—but later, I’d overheard the story. Heath’s late wife fell in love with this land because of those flowers, and she named the ranch. After that, I never thought about it the same way, and I sure as shit wasn’t going to insult him and disrespect his dead wife.
He silently stared out into the field and I had no idea what to say. I’m not always good at communication, especially when it comes to emotions and feelings, so I just sat there quietly beside him.
Eventually, he exhaled a deep breath and asked me therealreason I was here. I hesitated, unsure how honest he wanted me to be. How honest Ishouldbe. I was worried the truth would ruin my opportunity before it even started. But there was something in his eyes and demeanor that made me feel like no matter what I’d done, he understood and he wasn’t going to hold it against me.
So, I told him everything.
I told him my biggest fears. How I was worried I was just like my dad. I confessed to every ugly and horrid detail of what happened that night.
When I finally stopped talking, he looked at me for a long time before asking, “Do you still feel the urge to drink?”
I answered truthfully. “No, sir.”
He nodded slowly and smiled. Told me that he believed in second chances, and if I wanted to stay, the job was mine.
It’s been almost a year, and I’ve really grown to love the life I’ve made here so far. It’s something I will never take for granted.
Sadie showing up this summer has been the best surprise yet. Like the universe reminding me that good things still exist.
Like I told her at dinner, I believe in fate. That the universe has a plan and things happen for a reason. Sometimes we’re led down dark paths, but it’s to teach us, to challenge us, and we come out stronger for it. And sometimes, it leads us to find something we didn’t know was missing.
I think fate brought me here. To find her. She makes everything make sense. I’d go through everything tenfold if it meant that in the end, it would lead me to her.
She is the light. She knows the darkest part of me and chose to stay.
And now?
I can’t stop replaying it—the way she moved against me, the way her breath hitched when I touched her. The tremor in her body, the sound she made when she fell apart in my lap. It’s burned into me. I don’t think I’ll ever forget it, even if I tried.
I pull in front of the main house next to Emmett’s truck, the gravel crunching beneath the tires. The porch light glows faintly through the dark, but I don’t move right away. I just watch her.
