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She nodded.
Cooper pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Thing is, Gracie. You’re worth the commitment. Don’t forget that. Ever. Okay?”
She hugged her cousin. “Thank you. I needed to hear that.”
The back door off the deck opened and brought with it a gust of wind, two Simons and the one guy who made her heart beat fast and hard without even trying.
Matt was grinning at something her brother Teague was saying, and he looked so damn easy and relaxed that it made everything inside her melt. He glanced up suddenly, as if knowing her eyes were on him, and she couldn’t help but smile.
“I’m heading out,” Teague said, walking over to Grace and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. “I like him,” he whispered.
“I should go up, too. Been traveling all day.” Tucker nodded and took the stairs two at a time.
“What are you guys up to?” Cooper opened the cabinet and grabbed a bottle of scotch.
“I should take our stuff out to the bunky,” Grace said, reaching for her jacket.
Cooper held up the bottle and arched an eyebrow at Matt. “Single malt.”
“Thanks, but I’m going to have to pass.” Matt took Grace’s hand.
“Not surprised. Have a good one.”
Grace and Matt headed outside and trudged through the snow to the bunky. It was small but the necessities were covered. A bed. A toilet and sink. And a desk that was big enough for her weekender.
The heat had been turned on and the lamp on the desk threw a soft glow. It was cozy and intimate and for the next few days, it was all theirs. Grace tossed her bag onto the desk, suddenly nervous and not really knowing why.
“Hey, you okay?” M
att reached for her and she snuggled up against him. With her cheek pressed into his chest, she inhaled that unique scent that was Matt and closed her eyes.
“I’m perfect.” And she was. In this moment, in this place, with this man…she was one hundred and fifty percent perfect with the world.
“Your family is real nice.”
“They’re not always so well behaved, but I’ll keep them.”
A few seconds ticked by. “Grace we should talk.” His voice was quiet. Too quiet.
Her stomach rolled and the panic that swelled inside her was something fierce. No. The word whispered through her head and she shook her head. “It can wait, Matt.”
“That’s just it, Bluebell. I don’t think it can.”
“Please, Matt.” Straight up, she was a coward and for the moment she could live with that. “Let’s just have tonight for us. Nothing but you and me. Let’s forget about everything else.”
His arms tightened around her and she squeezed her eyes shut when she felt his lips graze the top of her head. His hands sank into her hair and with a groan, she turned to him, accepting his mouth and kissing him back hungrily.
Clothes went flying. Elbows and knees bumped against furniture. Naked limbs entwined on the bed. Grace loved Matt with everything that she had. She used her body—her mouth, her fingers, her tongue and hips. She used everything but her words to let him know the depth of her love.
There was a frenetic, desperate quality to their lovemaking and it went on for hours. She loved him until the first streaks of dawn crept over the horizon. And when she finally fell asleep, exhausted, satiated and sore, that fear that had been building for hours twisted and turned. It was a heavy stone in her gut.
A heavy stone that stayed with her long after she fell asleep.
26
Team pink was up by five points. Matt had no idea how since they had some serious competition, but it seemed to him Grace was the secret weapon. His lady was fierce and competitive and not above using devious means to beat her brothers. And beating them was exactly what she and team Pink were doing.
They’d just finished a pretty intensive scavenger hunt through the bush and once again, team Pink had the most items on the list. They’d also won the wheel barrow race, and Grace could skip a stone across the water like no tomorrow.
