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Dax moved closer to her, pinning her against the rail with his gaze. “We need to talk.”
“Yeah, we do. You need to tone this relationship thing down.”
He shook his head. “What has gotten into you?”
“Me? What about you? I’ve made it perfectly clear where I stand in this relationship. I’m not ready for something super serious.”
Dax let out a harsh breath and ran a hand through his mussed hair. His features contorted into something filled with pain. “The last time we talked…” He shook his head. “I guess I assumed you were more on board than you are.”
She hugged herself, her chest aching from the breath she couldn’t take. She looked away, refusing to meet his gaze because she knew one look and he’d be able to tell she was lying. “Yeah, maybe you did.” She sucked in a sharp, shuddering breath. “I’m not going to be around much longer, Dax. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Well, it’s too late for that,” he snapped.
She flinched. “It’s for the best.”
“How can you say that?” he whispered. “I know that I want to be with you. I’ve told you that I’m in love with you. Isn’t that enough?”
Sarah lifted a shoulder. Deep down she knew it would be better to cut him off now before they got closer. But she couldn’t bring herself to do it. She lifted her gaze to meet his. “Nothing was going on between me and James. We were just talking.”
“I figured.” His voice was cold and numb.
“I wouldn’t blame you if you don’t want to spend any more time with me.”
Dax peeked at her. “You have to know I can’t stay away from you. If you’re set on going home at the end of the summer, fine. But I still want to spend as much time as I can with you.”
Chills crawled down her spine and up again. Goosebumps lifted on her arms, an indication that his words had shot like a dart right into her heart. He was too good for her. She didn’t deserve him. Even if there was enough time to get him to love her so completely that he would be okay with her secrets, it wouldn’t solve the problem she had with her family.
Dax grasped her upper arms, and she looked into his eyes. “Just let me in. That’s all I ask.”
He wasn’t going to drop it. If Dax was one thing, it was persistent. And she was terrible at telling him no. It was best to play along and make him think that everything was going to be okay.
She nodded, but her voice was caught in her throat. She couldn’t speak, for fear that the emotion in her tone would betray her.
Dax pulled her close against his chest and rested his chin on her head. She wrapped her arms around his strong body, reveling in the safety he offered her. In a perfect world she could tell him everything, and there would be no issues. He’d come to her rescue and sweep her off her feet.
But this wasn’t a fairy tale. She’d managed to get herself into this mess, and she would be the only one to get herself out.
“Why didn’t you tell me about the guy who’s watching you?”
Sarah froze.
He rubbed her back as if to soothe away the tension, and she was grateful that he couldn’t see her face. “The sheriff came by the ranch. He said you were worried about some guy who’s been stalking you.”
So the sheriff didn’t tell Dax anything. The relief she felt was short-lived. Now that Dax knew there was something—or someone—bothering her, maybe he’d ease off a bit and give her some space. Then again, this could be the exact thing that would make him hover.
“How bad is it?” Dax pressed.
She shifted, resting her forehead against his chest. “It’s not. He’s just some guy from my past.”
This time Dax did pull back. She shut her eyes tight. “Sarah,” he urged, “what’s going on?”
Finally, she opened her eyes. “He’s just an ex, okay? He’s messing with me.”
Dax glowered and his voice tightened as he spoke through gritted teeth. “What?”
“Really. He’s harmless,” she murmured. Kenneth wasn’t going to do anything to jeopardize what he wanted. If he was going to hurt her, he would have done so. He was annoying, and he was committing a crime, but he had all the cards in his hands. She hadn’t even been able to tell the sheriff about Kenneth bribing her because there was nothing he could do. She was stuck.
* * *
