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At the mention of her, he squeezed my hand. Maybe he recognized how hard it was for me to reveal the event that changed my sister and me forever.
I released a slow breath. “Sophia and I had a cubbyhouse in a Scarlet Oak tree in our parents’ backyard. She was just eleven years old, and I . . . I was acting like a fool. I lit a cigarette. I was showing off, pretending I knew how to smoke, but I dropped the cigarette.”
I closed my eyes, picturing what happened like it was in slow motion, when in reality, it all happened so fast.
“A fire took hold so quickly, trapping us.” A tear spilled down my cheek and I flicked it away. “By the time my father dragged us through a hole he chopped in the side of the cubby, Sophia suffered severe burns to the back of her left leg. The agony she was in . . . I can still remember her screams.”
He went to put his arm over my shoulder. “Oh, Layla, it wasn’t your—”
“No, Hunter. Don’t say it wasn’t my fault. It was. Sophia suffered horrific burns because of my stupidity, and I didn’t even get a scratch. To this day, she has a limp that’s a permanent reminder of what I did.”
“It was an accident.”
“One that should never have happened.”
“That’s why they are called accidents, Layla. You didn’t deliberately light that fire or hurt your sister.”
I clenched my fist, digging my nails into my palm. “I deliberately lit that cigarette, knowing it was wrong.”
He turned his gaze back to the fire. “Now I understand why you came down here and why you’re obsessed with making the burns ointment formula. You have done everything you can to make up for your mistake.”
“You’re wrong. Nothing makes up for that.” I swallowed the lump in my throat.
He threaded his fingers into mine. “Has your sister forgiven you?”
My shoulders slumped. “She says she has but . . .”
He frowned. “But what, Layla?”
“But how can she, really? My stupidity ruined her life.”
“Did it? She was only eleven at the time. Her life wasn’t mapped out. Things happen that send us in directions we never saw coming. Like us sitting here. I thought I’d lost you forever, but now . . .” He swept his gaze to me. “Now I hope you agree with me that we have something going on. Something special, and real.”
“Oh, Hunter. Despite everything that’s happened, I feel like I’m the luckiest woman in the world.”
“You know, we could have averted all this if you’d just stayed in Yellowstone.”
I cocked my head. “Maybe I would have stayed if you’d asked me on a date.”
He blinked like he was trying to turn back time. “Are you serious?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know, but I kept thinking you were close to asking me out, but each time you pulled back.”
He lowered his gaze to his right hand, where a tiny burn scar had stamped its mark below his wrist. “I didn’t think you would want to be with a man like me.”
“What? You mean a brave soldier with a kind soul who makes me laugh and feel like a giddy teenager?”
A tiny smirk curled across his gorgeous lips. “I meant a hideously disfigured and broken man who is no longer a Navy SEAL.”
“I don’t even see your scars, Hunter. I see you. The real man beneath your skin. And although I love that you dedicated your life to saving people in the navy, if you hadn’t left the military the way you did, then we may never have met. So to me, it’s a bit of a double-edged sword. Besides, it sounds like you’re still saving lives. Case in point.” I slapped my chest. “And doing other active missions, and you have your amazing dogs that you train. Maybe I could come and meet some of your dogs when we get back.”
His expression twisted like he was trying to hold back a massive grin. “Are you asking me on a date?”
I burst out laughing. “If that’s what it takes to get you to realize that I want to be with you, then yes. Mr. Hunter Black, will you go out with me?”
He curled his arm around my neck and planted his lips on my temple. “I thought you’d never ask.”
I ran my hand along his thigh. “Is that a yes?”
