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When I read the last words, he sighed and rolled toward me. “I like books that have happy endings. All the books I had to read in high school were so depressing. They burnt me out on reading.”
I secretly agreed, but I pointed out, “They were trying to be realistic.”
“But they weren’t. Real life comes with happy endings, Amelia. You just have to keep going til you find one. It’s all about how you end the story.” His gaze found mine, and suddenly I realized how close the two of us were. His deep green eyes, darker than Stone’s, vivid and free as the forest, met mine.
My heart stuttered in my chest. I wanted to kiss Shaw, but I didn’t want to be just another girl who kissed him and was forgotten.
Shaw’s breath was warm against my face, scented with coffee and mint, when he murmured the sweetest words a man can say. “What do you want to eat? I’ll get you anything.”
“How are you going to do that? We live in the middle of nowhere.”
He grinned as he rolled up to his feet. “Give me a chance.”
“Pad thai and chocolate cake,” I said, naming two of my favorite things.
An hour later, I was eating noodles in bed, watchingFriendswith him lounging beside me, and learning not to doubt Shaw.
“You’re a lot of fun,” I admitted.
A cloud passed over his face, just for a second, before he smiled. “That’s me. The fun brother.Surlyandcrazywere already taken.”
I rolled my eyes. I didn’t want to call Liam crazy, exactly; it was more complicated than that. But I wasn’t going to argue with Shaw, who knew him better than I did, despite my protective impulses.
“Hey, I just got a text from Cole.” Shaw passed me over his phone. On the screen was a photo taken out on the river. Dylan had a wide grin on his face. His smile was bigger than the fish he’d caught, and it made me laugh. “He’s having the time of his life.”
“Aw, Dylan’s lucky day,” I said.
“I was talking about Cole.”
I laughed and handed him back his phone. Having the phone in my hand made me think about how I could probably use Shaw to get a phone, to contact home.
But right now, I didn’t want to worry and plot and plan.
I just wanted to lie close to him, and when he took the empty bowl out of my hands and set it on the nightstand, I put my head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around me, and the two of us snuggled together.
Lying with my face against his chest, the beat of his heart seemed to be racing along, faster than normal, even though we were just lying in bed. But he just cuddled me close.
CHAPTER35
Amelia
The next day,I felt better when I came down to breakfast. Stone was in the house, although he didn’t sit down at the dining table as Karissa flitted around making breakfast, and the weight of his gaze made me feel small.
“Can we go fishing again?” Dylan asked Cole excitedly.
Stone gave Cole a meaningful look. Right. Cole was my principle bodyguard… or captor. It was hard to tell which exactly.
“That’s a great idea,” Shaw cut in smoothly. “Maybe take Uncle Stone. He needs some time in nature.”
Stone’s brows shot up at being Uncle Stone. But he was, and suddenly I knew what I needed to do to help anchor Dylan here in this place where he’d begun to feel so safe. No matter what happened here, Dylan needed these men. He’d come home chattering about all the fun he’d had with Karissa and Cole.
“All right,” I said, having a feeling Stone wouldn’t want to be the bad guy. My heart was in my throat trying to manipulate him, but god, I just needed him to love my son, to keep him safe. Stone had spent so much time trying to avoid me. “I think Uncle Stone’s busy today, but you can go out with Cole.”
Stone looked as if he were at a loss for words. Shaw leaned back against the countertop and winked at me from behind Stone’s back.
Stone might not want to get attached to me, but I’d already seen his flares of jealousy. He didn’t want to be left out. And he already had a tenderness for Dylan, but he hadn’t spent time with him yet like Shaw and Cole.
“I could go for an hour or two,” Stone said finally.
