Chapter 10
CHAPTER 10
JAX
J ust drive away,” I mutter darkly, watching Derek’s car disappear down the road, the bright afternoon sun reflecting on his rear window. My hands are still clenched. If he’d pushed things, if he’d continued trying to force Leesa to leave with him—he would’ve found out the hard way what happens when someone threatens someone I love.
But he didn’t. He’s gone. And Leesa...
Leesa is still here, her hand gripping mine. Her lips are swollen from our kiss, her cheeks flushed pink in the summer heat. She looks nothing like the lost woman I found on the side of the road two weeks ago, mascara streaked down her face, wearing a wedding dress and standing next to a broken-down car.
She looks like she belongs here. With me.
“Everything okay out here?”
I turn and see Mack and his guys standing outside the garage, one of them with a wrench in their hand.
“Yeah, it’s good. He’s not coming back.”
The sun beats down on us in the parking lot of Rebel Autos, but I barely notice the heat. All I can focus on is her face, the way she’s looking at me like I’m everything she’s ever wanted. She’s changed since that first day—grown stronger, more sure of herself. I’ve watched it happen, watched her bloom like the wildflowers that carpet my mountain in spring.
“I meant what I said.” She meets my gaze. “I’m staying. I choose you.”
I cup her face in my hands, needing to be sure. I stare deep into her green eyes, searching for the truth. “This isn’t about him? About what happened with the wedding?”
“No.” She covers my hands with hers. The simple touch sends lights up every atom of my body. “This is about us. About how I feel when I’m with you. How everything makes sense here.”
My chest tightens. I’ve imagined her saying these words, but hearing them—it’s real and scary. Scary because I’ve never opened up to a woman like I want to with her. Sharing who I am, deep down? That’s not something I do with just anyone.
And Leesa certainly fucking isn’t just anyone . She’s my woman.
“I need you to be sure,” I say, the words nearly sticking in my throat. “Because if you stay, if you let me fall even deeper, and then you leave... I don’t know what I would do without you.” I take a deep breath to steady my nerves. Nothing has ever been more important than right now, this moment with Leesa. “You’d be changing your whole life.”
“I’m sure about you,” she interrupts, her voice filled with passion. Her eyes are fierce as she holds my gaze. “About us. The rest... I don’t know exactly how everything will work out. I just know that when I think about leaving, about going back to my old life, it feels wrong. My heart knows that leaving you would be the biggest mistake of my life. You’re not getting rid of me.”
My heart swells so much that my chest hurts. How can one heart contain this level of emotion? “We’ll figure it all out together. Whatever you want to do, whatever you need—I’m here. If you want to start a business up here, I’ll help you build it. If you want to commute to the city, I’ll make sure your car’s always ready for the drive. If you want to write a novel, I’ll give you all the space and time you need.”
Her eyes fill with tears. “Jax...”
The kiss happens naturally because how else do you seal a commitment like this? This kiss isn’t like our previous kisses—those were questions. This kiss is the answer. My woman’s body molds against mine like she was made to fit there. Like every moment of our lives has been leading us to this moment, this commitment.
When we break apart, I rest my forehead against hers. My heart thunders so loud that I wonder if she can hear it. “You changed everything, you know that? Before you showed up, I thought I had it figured out. Keep to myself. Live and work on the mountain.”
“And now?”
“You make me want things I gave up on a long time ago.” I exhale heavily. I’m not used to talking about my feelings or the things important to me on a “who I am” level, but with Leesa, talking and sharing this part of myself doesn’t feel uncomfortable. I know my heart is safe with her.
She slides her arms around my waist. “Like what?”
I take a deep breath, inhaling her scent—vanilla and something uniquely Leesa. “Like someone to come home to. Someone to protect. Someone who sees past all my walls and stays anyway.”
“I’m not going anywhere.” Her voice is fierce. “I choose you, Jax. I choose this life.”
The possessive surge that hits me is overwhelming. Mine. She’s choosing to be mine. Every protective instinct I have rises to the surface. I’ll shelter her, cherish her, love her so much that love is all she’ll know.
I pull my woman closer. “I’ve loved you since the moment I saw you on that road. Everything in me recognized everything in you. And now that you’re choosing to stay, choosing us—” My voice roughens. “I’ll spend every day making sure you never regret that choice.”
“I won’t regret it.” Leesa slides her arms around my waist. “You make me feel safe. Cherished. Like I can be myself, completely myself, and that means everything to me.”
“It’s more than enough.” I brush away a tear that’s escaped down her cheek. “You’re more than enough. And I swear, Leesa, we’re going to build an amazing life together, however you want it to look.”
“Together,” she smiles. My heart thunders as she tightens her arms around my waits.
“Then let me help you start fresh,” I say. “We’ll get your things and bring them here. Together, we’ll make The Lodge ours, not just mine.” My voice drops lower, rougher. “I swear I’ll honor that trust, Leesa. I’ll protect you, protect us, with everything I have.”
My woman’s eyes shine with tears, but she’s smiling. “I know you will.”
The afternoon seems to hold its breath. Even the traffic noise from the highway fades away, leaving just us, just this moment.
I brush a strand of hair from her face, damp from the summer heat. “I tried to fight it. Told myself you’d leave as soon as your car was fixed. That you belonged in the city, not up here with a solitary man like me.”
“You won’t be solitary anymore,” Leesa says, standing on her tiptoes to kiss me sweetly.
“Andrea knew,” I say, thinking of my sister’s knowing smiles. “She saw it before either of us did.”
Leesa laughs softly. “She told me, you know. Said she’d never seen you look at anyone the way you look at me.”
“She’s right.” I cup her cheek again, unable to stop touching her. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone. I never thought I would.”
I kiss her again, pouring everything I feel but haven’t yet said into it. There’s so much to say, but it’ll take time to voice all the words and share all the things. Right now, my kiss holds the promise of all that and more. All the love that’s been building since the moment I saw her on that road is ready to run wild with her. Her hands tangle in my hair, pulling me closer, and I growl low in my throat. She presses her lusciously curvy body closer, kissing me deeper.
When we finally separate, we’re both breathing hard. My heart races, and I can feel hers pounding against my chest.
“Come on.” I take her hand. “There’s something we need to do.” I remember her car and pause. “Hey! Mack!”
Mack shields his eyes as he walks back into the driveway. “What do you need?”
“Keep an eye on Leesa’s car for another couple days?” I pluck the keys from her hand and toss them to Mack.
“You got it.” Mack smiles as he snatches the keys from the air and heads back inside. By the look in his eyes, I know he understands. He’s never been happier since Aimee came into his life.
“Let’s get out of here,” I tell Leesa. She follows me toward my truck, toward our future, and for the first time in years, I’m truly happy.
This woman. My woman.