“Honey,” she whispers, looking up and tightening her arms around me.
“You saved me, Leigh. You brought me back and showed me that I wasn’t as lost as I feared I was. All that darkness and pain around me, you are the reason I beat them back. Trust me when I say this, your love gave me a reason to live again, and I will spend the rest of my life making sure you know how grateful I am to have that gift.”
“Maverick, honey, you say that like I was the only one doing the saving. I was just as lost. The loneliness was killing me slowly. All that time we were apart—even with all that distance—it made that bond we’ve always had so much stronger.” She gives her head a small shake and her curls dance around her face. “You think I saved you, but sweetheart, I think we saved each other.”
Bending slightly, I pick her up with my hands gripped to her thighs. She doesn’t wrap her legs around my hips, but her hands come up to cup my jaw and tip my head back to look up at her. She smiles and brings her lips down for a kiss so full of fucking emotion I have to tighten my grip for fear of dropping her. I feel my hat fall next to my feet, but I continue to kiss her passionately. Our mouths move hungrily as our tongues slide and swirl against each other. The promise of what’s to come makes me groan deeply into her mouth, turning my head in to deepen our kiss.
“I love you,” she says against my lips after one last wet swipe of her tongue against mine.
I don’t respond. Instead I slowly drop her to her feet before falling to my knees. She gasps. I look up at her, the enormity of the love I feel for her making my throat burn. My forehead hits her belly and she stumbles slightly when I cross my arms around her back, pulling her closer with my hands at her sides. I dig my fingers into the soft flesh and squeeze my eyes shut. Praying I get this out before sobbing like a baby.
“I love you so fuckin’ much, Leighton. I know if I was ever forced to live without you again, I would never find my way back from that. You’re everything to me, darlin’. Everything I never let myself believe I would have, but I thank God every day that I finally have it.” I look up, not even ashamed of the tears rolling down my face. “One of these days, our kids will run through these same fields that we grew up on. They’ll do that with happy hearts because their parents love them just as much as they love each other. My past will never touch them, and by giving our land both of our names, I’ll ensure it. Marry me, Leighton James. Marry me, give me babies, and let our love become something that people dream of findin’.”
By the time I finish speaking she’s sobbing so hard that if I hadn’t been holding her tight, I reckon she would have fallen.
“God, yes!” she cries, her tears falling even faster now. “Nothing would make me happier.”
I stand and pull her close. She rolls to her tippy toes and I bend to meet her the rest of the way. Our kiss is slow. The heavy breathing falling from both our fused mouths turns our connection desperate, the need to be as close as possible building between us as our tears of happiness dance together.
That need builds as our frenzied movements tear at our clothes, the silent demand our bodies make fuel us until we’re both as naked as the day we were born under the bright Texas sun. I lift her and she wraps herself around me, our mouths never breaking as I take her back to the blanket. Her wetness has me pulling her closer to my aching cock, and before her back has even hit the ground, I’m inside her. We move slowly, her body taking every inch of me. I lift my mouth from hers, keeping my forehead connected as my hips start to move faster. Her cries pick up tempo with each deep drive I take into her tight body, our eyes still wet with emotion.
“I’m gonna take your name, baby,” I vow, slamming my hips down.
“Oh, God.” She gulps, her whole body trembling as her pussy quivers around my cock.
“I’m gonna take your name and when we have our babies, they’re gonna to have it too.”
“Oh, God!” she screams, her core squeezing me tight.
“Nothing I want more than to let the world know that you saved me. Gonna show them all that when you marry me, baby.”
She jolts, my cock hitting the deepest part of her, and I groan as my balls tighten up.
“You gonna give me that?” I pant in question, feeling my release start to rush through my body.
“I’ll give you everything!” she screams, her body once again squeezing me, tighter than before as she starts to come.
I give three more powerful and deep thrusts before I feel my release pour into her welcoming heat.
“You already have,” I whisper, taking her mouth again while I lazily plunge myself into and out of our combined wetness. With any luck, those James babies I want so desperately will come sooner than later.
We settle after a few more minutes, and Leighton lets out a happy little sigh as I nuzzle against her. We’re in no rush to leave our field. No one will bother us here. Not in our place. With the flowers of our past blooming just as stunningly as our love, I hold my future in my arms.
I was lost once. A rider without the ability to do what he loved. I came home even though it was the last place I thought I wanted to be, and in the process not only did I find myself again, but I also found that my reason for livin’ didn’t have shit to do with ridin’.
No . . . ridin’ doesn’t define me anymore. Not when I’ve got the love of the woman made for me. She gave me me back, and in the process, I gained everything.
Leigh rustles against me. “Should we get going, baby?” she murmurs, half asleep.
I just tuck her tighter into me and kiss that sweet forehead for all I’m worth. “Baby, we aren’t going anywhere. We’ve got all the time in the world.”
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
To my family—your understanding, support, and encouragement fuels my every move. This journey wouldn’t be half as fun without your love. To my girls for keeping me going when I felt like giving up—everything that I do is with the hope that you will see dreams do come true. Never stop dreaming, my babies. To my husband for loving me when I’m a mess, feeding me when I forget, and keeping me sane. I wouldn’t be me without you four. To my parents for never losing faith in me, even if it took me a while to find my place in life.
To Felicia Lynn—my best friend, partner in crime, and writing marathon partner. I’m pretty sure it would take me three times longer to finish a book without your reassuring support. I like you, a little.