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“Let me prove it to you,” I said. “Give me the chance to show you, over time, that this has nothing to do with some hit songs you had ten years ago. Although I do have to say it’s a loss to the world that you aren’t sharing your talent. Your voice, yourmusic, made such a difference to so many people. I can’t say I don’t love that part of you. It’s who you are. It’s what makes you the man you are today.”
His features had softened even more at that point. He took another drink, and when he lowered the bottle, he was smiling.
“You liked the way I sang, huh?” he asked.
“Of course. Although my biggest complaint is you didn’t sing solo enough.”
“Yeah, that Josh was a huge microphone hog.”
He was full-on smiling now, the pain gone from his expression completely. I was still shivering, but my body at least relaxed a little, knowing we were back on good terms.
“You don’t have to ever sing again,” I said. “Or you can only sing for me behind closed doors. I don’t care.”
Slade shook his head. “You don’t have to say any more. You’re freezing out there. Take off your clothes.”
“I think that would only make me colder,” I joked.
“Then you’ll need to get in here for warmth.”
Now I was the one smiling as I unzipped my dress and stepped out of it, then my shoes. I removed my underwear next and used the little steps on the side to climb in. It still wasn’t easy. There was no graceful way to get into a hot tub naked. But it didn’t matter. This man wasn’t a stranger. He was the man I was going to spend the rest of my life with.
“I’ve fallen in love with you too, Cheyenne,” he said as I settled against the side of the tub across from him. I couldn’t assume he’d want me close to him. Not just yet.
“I think I fell in love with you the first second I saw you in that cabin,” he said. “From there, I’ve been trying to figure out a way to convince you to move back to Blackbear Bluff.”
“I don’t need much convincing for that,” I said. “But I have to admit, being near you is one of the biggest reasons to move back.”
He set his beer down on the flat surface at the nearest corner to where he sat. Then he moved toward me.
“Well, shoot,” he said. “I was hoping to use my body to convince you.”
“You can use your body for other things.”
I spread my legs as he moved between them. And then we were kissing, the jets rustling water up all around us. He reached between us, stroking me, getting me ready. But his kiss was doing that all on its own.
“Do you like that?” he asked when he broke the kiss to look down at me.
“Mmm.” I did my best to smile, but he was rubbing me in all the right places. “I think you’re ready for me, baby.”
Oh, I was ready for him, alright. I reached for him, our mouths coming together at the same time he entered me. There was no pain, only pleasure. Still, he started gently at first, only increasing his thrusts at my urging. When he broke the kiss, it was to look down at me again.
His expression said so much. It was filled with desire, of course. But there was love there. So much love.
We came together, my cries inspiring his own. When it was over, we held each other as we caught our breath. Only then did I remember we were on his back deck. Cabins were straight across the pond. People could see us here.
Blackbear Bluff had better get used to it. There was a new couple in town, and we couldn’t keep our hands off each other.
EPILOGUE
SLADE
We weren’t the first couple to get married at the top of Blackbear Bluff in snowy weather. But we were the first in recent history to get married outside in these temperatures.
As I kissed my bride and turned to face the crowd, I was overwhelmed with emotion. How was it possible the place I’d chosen as a hideout had become home?
“I now present Slade and Cheyenne Shepherd,” the minister said.
The crowd broke into a cheer. On cue, the trio we’d hired to perform started playing our song. Two were musicians Slade had worked with back in the day. The other was my buddy Gage, who’d asked me to teach him to play guitar.
