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She arched up and then they were kissing again. Ike didn’t mind. He couldn’t watch, but he was thrilled his friend was happy.
The kissing distracted Beau from harping on him to chase after Myra. Especially as all Ike wanted to do was chase after her, apologize, kiss her, and figure out how to change so they could be together.
Ike clenched his fists, tightened all his muscles, searched the hallway for any signs of danger, and didn’t move. He prayed for strength as he listened to Beau and Bermuda kiss.
No kind of heavenly help or inspiration came.
Chapter
Twenty
Myra focused on her siblings and dad and shut out all thoughts of Ike. They only leaked in when she let her guard down to sleep or when she was lifting weights or running and her thoughts ran away with her.
Her family was ecstatic to have her home, and when she got a two-hundred-thousand-dollar deposit from Beau into her checking account, she wrote her dad a check for the full amount. She’d already been paid well by Charli.
He hugged her fiercely and told her no way he could take it. She insisted that it was for her siblings for college and sports and weddings and anything else they needed. No matter that she’d never have a wedding of her own. The tough old sheriff might have had tears in his eyes as he finally agreed and then left the room as fast as he could.
She walked out onto the wide front porch of their farmhouse after everyone had gone off to work and school. Her dad was the only one still on the property, out in the barn. She’d offered to help with chores, but he’d needed some time alone. He was still embarrassed about the money.
The Wyoming wind bit at her cheeks. It was cold here in late March. Nothing like California. She was dressed in a long-sleeved running shirt and pants. A long run would help get some energy out. Hopefully Charli would call with a job soon. She loved being home, but it was time to get back to work. Had Ike really decided to go work with his brother? If he did, she’d know it was over. It meant he was trusting in all his dad’s theories and would never be in a relationship.
Who was she kidding? It was over anyway. He couldn’t trust her in a battle situation. She knew he just wanted to protect her, but it still made her mad.
She tugged the sleeves of her shirt over her hands to keep them warm and strode down the porch. A plume of dust announced a vehicle turning off the highway and up their long drive. She waited. Was her brother Joey coming home early from work? He’d done trade school and was a diesel mechanic. She wanted each of her siblings to do what they dreamed of doing.
The vehicle approached, a silver Audi SUV. The sun on the windshield made it impossible to see who was in it. That was a fancy car to be getting all dirty on their rutted-out driveway. She smiled to herself but couldn’t help but wonder who was coming to visit her family.
The SUV stopped next to the concrete driveway and brown front grass. The door swung open and a tough, ultra-appealing, dark-haired man climbed out. He was dressed in a pale blue short-sleeved button-down shirt and gray chinos. Too fancy for Wyoming. He looked incredible. Just watching him move made her spine tingle. He’d come. For her?
“Ike?” she whispered, putting a hand to her racing heart.
Sunglasses covered those blue eyes. She wanted to see what he was thinking.
“Myra,” he said in a husky voice.
She rushed down the steps and across the yard. He hurried to meet her. Myra almost threw herself into his arms like a needy woman anxiously awaiting the love of her life, but she jerked to a stop a foot away.
Ike stopped as well. The house shaded both of them from the morning sun.
He slid off his sunglasses and put them in his pocket. His blue eyes searched her face, full of longing. Longing for her.
She’d missed him. Horribly.
“Hey,” he said softly.
“Hey.”
They studied each other. He was the one who’d come. She wouldn’t be the one to start something. What would they start? She wanted to talk to him, spar with him, hold him, kiss him.
Had she been wrong to leave and not fight for them? He was the one who hadn’t fought for them, who couldn’t value her training and skills, so she still felt justified in walking away.
Even more tellingly, he hadn’t followed her.
But he was here now.
“I missed you,” he said.
Her breath caught. Her pulse picked up even more. “I missed you too,” she admitted.
