Chapter 13
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
I laced my fingers through Eden’s and led her toward the stairs, my grip tightening as we walked. I’d kept my hands off her all night, and every time I heard her laugh, every time she smiled at someone else, all I could think about was getting her alone tonight.
About asking her to marry me. Again.
The ring I’d bought ten years ago was still sitting in my dresser back at the house, tucked away in the back of a drawer.
I never could say why I hadn’t gotten rid of it, only that I’d never been able to bring myself to do so.
I wish I’d had the foresight to bring it with me tonight, but then, I hadn’t planned to ask her to be my wife. But it felt right, somehow.
And if she said no? If she wasn’t ready or didn’t believe in us the way I did?
I didn’t know how the hell I’d live with that.
I cupped her hip as she climbed ahead of me, my gaze dragging down her legs, the way the tight denim hugged curves I hadn’t been able to stop dreaming about.
The hayloft came into view as we crested the last step.
A thick blanket was spread out with another folded next to it in case we got cold, as well as a battery-operated lantern hanging on a nail to ward off the dark.
It wasn’t quite as romantic as the old flame one I’d brought up here with me ten years ago, but I was quite a lot smarter now about fire safety.
Soft white light lit the space, and when my gaze landed on the old beam where I’d carved our initials that summer, deep and sharp, I couldn’t breathe.
At the time, I thought this woman was my forever.
That we’d always be together. Two weeks later, she was gone.
I didn’t come up here again for four more years.
Before I could call attention to the carving, Eden moved toward it, her fingers tracing the grooves.
She was quiet for a long moment, and I wondered if she, too, was remembering the night I’d carved them—how young and confident we’d been.
“I almost forgot how magical it is up here,” she said finally, her voice soft as she looked back at me over her shoulder with something like wonder in her eyes.
I swallowed hard, my boots scuffing the floor as I stepped in behind her and placed my hands on either side of her hips. “I never could.”
She turned then, her eyes shining, her mouth soft, and for a beat we just stood there, the air between us thick with memory and wanting.
I reached up, my fingers brushing her cheek and tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. Jesus, she was so beautiful it made my chest ache.
“I wasn’t sure I’d ever get this again,” I said softly. “You. Us.”
Her breath caught. “Neither was I.”
I leaned my forehead against hers. “But this isn’t about our past, Eden. Not anymore. Being up here again, it’s about what I want with you now . And I need you to understand that if you stay with me tonight, that’s it—you and me. Together. Forever this time.”
When she pulled back, her eyes searched mine, and I saw the exact moment she made her choice. The air between us shifted, charged with possibility and promise. Her answer came as a kiss.
We undressed each other slowly, deliberately. Unlike a couple of weeks ago, we weren’t rushing, pulling frantically at each other’s clothes in our rush to be together. We weren’t chasing ghosts tonight. We were just two people who’d already lost too much damn time but were finally getting it right.
My fingers shook as I worked the buttons of her flannel, my breath coming rough and uneven as I revealed the skin I’d been dreaming about since Eden had walked back into my life last month.
“Jake,” she whispered, her palms gliding up under my shirt and her nails scratching through the hair on my chest, sending a shiver racing through me.
The last button slipped free, and I pushed the fabric from her shoulders, leaning in to taste her skin. “You’re still the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” I murmured against her throat, branding the words there.
We kissed until her knees buckled and she whimpered.
“Shh,” I said, easing us down onto the blanket. “I’ve got you.”
I hovered over her for a beat, brushing her hair back from her flushed face. “Boots first,” I rasped.
A breathless laugh escaped her as her eyes shimmered with a teasing glint. “Thought you liked these boots, cowboy.”
“I do,” I said, shifting to kneel at her feet. “But I like you naked even more.”
She propped herself on her elbows as I worked the boot and her sock free, pressing a kiss to her ankle and smiling at the shiver it earned. The second boot followed, another kiss, another soft gasp.
“Much better,” I said, my voice rough with wanting as I reached for the button of her jeans next, my fingers working it open, then dragging the zipper down. I gripped the waistband. “Lift for me, sweetheart.”
When she did, I peeled her jeans from her body, tossing them aside. My hands skimmed up her legs, pausing at the soft scrap of fabric between her thighs, a patch of moisture darkening it.
“Christ.” I pressed my thumb into the satin and rubbed it against her clit. “You’re so wet for me already.”
She whimpered, her hips arching into my touch.
I leaned in, dragging my mouth up her inner thigh, nipping gently at the soft skin there.
“Need to taste you,” I murmured, easing down onto my stomach, my shoulders pressing her legs wide. Eden’s breath caught, her eyes locked on mine as I leaned in and pulled her scent into my lungs. “I’ve been starving all night.”
A shaky laugh escaped her. “You already ate tonight,” she whispered, fingers threading into my hair like she knew damn well the kind of meal I really wanted.
“Not this pretty pink pussy,” I rasped, dragging the damp panel of her panties to the side and dipping my head to lick her, one slow, deliberate stroke from bottom to top, savoring her taste.
“Christ, you taste incredible,” I groaned against her. “I could spend the rest of my life right here and never get enough of you.”
Her head tipped back for a second, a soft moan spilling from her lips, but when I sucked her clit into my mouth, her gaze shot up, her eyes wide and her face and neck flushed.
I kept my eyes locked with hers as I licked her over and over again, letting her see exactly how much I loved having her like this—open, wet, mine .
Her fingers tightened in my hair, hips rocking up to meet my mouth. “Jake,” she gasped.
“That’s it,” I murmured, my voice vibrating against her. “Take what you need.”
And then I went to work, licking and sucking her clit, swirling around her opening and fucking her with my tongue until her thighs trembled, her eyes shining with need, her whole body begging for more.
And fuck if I wasn’t right there with her. My dick was hard as steel, my jeans uncomfortably tight, every muscle in my body strung taut with the need to be inside her.
But not yet. I needed her to come first.
I flattened my lips against her clit and sucked hard, my fingers gripping her thighs to hold her steady as I fucked my tongue in and out of her wet heat.
“Jake,” she cried out, her hips jerking and her breath ragged. “Oh my god. Don’t stop.” Her back arched, her thighs clamping around my head as her orgasm raced through her. She sobbed my name, her body trembling beneath my mouth, her pussy pulsing against my tongue.
I worked her through it with soft kisses, not letting up until the last tremor eased and she sagged boneless against the blanket.
I rose slowly, bracing my hands on either side of her, and kissed her deep, letting her taste herself on my lips. When I pulled away, her lashes fluttered open, her cheeks flushed, her eyes shining.
Fuck. I didn’t think I could wait another second.
I sat back on my heels, shoving my jeans and boxers down my hips, my hands rough with urgency. My cock sprang free—thick, heavy, aching for her.
Eden’s eyes were dark and hungry as she pushed up onto her elbows, her gaze raking up and down me like she wanted to devour me whole.
I crawled back over her, our bodies skin to skin at last, every inch of me burning for her, and reached between us, dragging the thick head of my cock through her slick folds. “Say you’re mine,” I rasped, my voice breaking. “Say you’re done running.”
“I’m yours,” she whispered. “I’ll always be yours.”
That was all I needed to hear.
I pushed inside her, inch by deliberate inch, her breath catching as her body stretched to accommodate me.
Christ.
The feel of her—wet, hot, tight around me—nearly undid me right then and there.
“Eyes on me, sweetheart,” I rasped, every muscle in my body shaking with restraint. “Watch me make love to you.”
Her gaze fluttered open, wide and dark and full of everything I’d never stopped wanting.
“You feel so good,” I groaned, dragging out that first thrust, burying myself to the hilt and holding, grinding my pelvis against her. “Like you were made for me.”
Her hands slid up my back, her nails biting into my shoulders. “I was.”
I leaned down and kissed her—deep and slow—pouring every ounce of my love for her into it.
“I love you,” I whispered against her mouth before pulling back to stare down at her. “Never stopped. Not for a second.”
A tear slipped free, tracing down her cheek. “I love you, too,” she choked out. “So much.”
I braced my forearms on either side of her head as I started to move, long, deliberate strokes meant to make her feel every inch of me.
“Say it again,” I rasped, my hips rolling into hers.
“I’m yours,” she breathed, her voice breaking. “Always.”
I reached between us, circling her clit with my thumb, watching her eyes go glassy with need. “Come for me, sweetheart,” I murmured, my voice rough. “I want to feel you take me home.”
Her body tightened beneath mine as she lifted her hips, meeting me thrust for thrust, welcoming me into her body.
“That’s it,” I coaxed, thrusting deeper, harder. “Come on, baby. Let me feel it.”
Her cry broke free on my next thrust, her body clenching around me as she shattered.
Mine , I thought in the half-second before I followed Eden over the edge, spilling inside her with a raw groan.
For a long moment, neither of us moved, our bodies slick with sweat, our breaths coming hard and uneven.
I buried my face against her neck, trying to slow the wild beat of my heart, trying to make sense of the fact that this was real—that she was here, beneath me, wrapped around me.
That I was inside her in every way a man could be.
Slowly, I eased out of her with a soft groan, my muscles trembling, my breath still ragged. I glanced down and stilled, mesmerized by the sight of my cum seeping out of her, glistening on her swollen flesh, proof of just how deeply I’d claimed her.
Fuck .
Something primitive surged through me. Suddenly, I wanted to push back inside her and fill her again. Wanted to keep her full of me until her belly was swollen with my baby.
The thought hit me like a freight train, catching me completely off guard.
I’d assumed I was done having kids. Thought Cole was it for me, and if it was just me, Eden, and him, I’d die a happy man.
But seeing her like this, full of me, made something shift inside my chest—a longing I hadn’t expected.
I could picture her in our kitchen, one hand on her swollen belly, the other ruffling Cole’s hair.
Could see myself teaching our daughter to ride, or watching our son learn to rope cattle.
The images hit me with startling clarity, like they’d been waiting just beneath the surface all along.
I wanted to see her round and glowing, carrying the life we made together.
Ours .
I reached for her and pulled her into me, her body melting into mine. Her head found my shoulder, her fingers trailing lazy circles over my chest.
I kissed the top of her head, held her tighter, my throat burning with everything I hadn’t said yet.
I should wait , some faint voice whispered. Do it properly. With the ring . But hell if I could keep it in. Not now.
I swallowed hard and brushed a lock of damp hair from her face. “Eden, baby.”
She tilted her chin up, her eyes soft and hazy. “Hmm?”
I stared down at her, my heart near to bursting. “I didn’t plan to say this tonight. I swear to God, I didn’t. But—” I swallowed deeply. “It’s the only thing I can think about.”
A soft smile tugged at her lips. “Say what, cowboy?”
I cupped her cheek, my voice rough with emotion.
“I want you to be my wife, Eden. I want us to build something together—you, me, and Cole. I want Sunday mornings, arguments over coffee, and growing old on this ranch together. I don’t want to spend another day wondering if I’m gonna lose you again. Please, say you’ll marry me.”
Her breath caught, her eyes brimming with tears. “Jake,” she whispered, her voice shaking. “Are you sure?”
I smiled, leaned in, and brushed my lips over hers. “I’ve never been more sure of anything.”
For three long beats, she just stared at me, her eyes shining bright, one hand pressed flat against my chest. I was sure she could feel my heart hammering beneath her palm. Then she nodded, a trembling smile breaking free as tears spilled over. “Yes,” she whispered. “Yes. I’ll marry you.”
I crushed her to me, kissed her deep, sealing her vow. And when I finally pulled back, I held her tight against my chest, knowing without a doubt this was meant to be.
She’s mine. I’m hers. And this time, I’m never letting her go.
Later, I woke to the soft press of her body on top of mine, her mouth brushing my jaw, her fingers trailing over my chest.
I rolled her beneath me, swallowed her gasp with a kiss.
We came together again in the dark, her pussy still slick with my cum.
I shivered as I kissed her again and rocked my hips into her warm, welcome heat, and when I came with her name on my lips, I stayed inside as long as I possibly could, holding my seed inside her.
When dawn finally broke, painting the edges of the loft in pink and gold, I held her close, my lips pressed to her temple.
“Cole’s going to be over the moon,” I murmured against her hair.
“Think he’ll be okay with sharing you?” she asked, her voice teasing but with an edge of genuine concern.
“Sweetheart, that boy’s been asking when you’re moving in since he came downstairs two weeks ago and saw you at breakfast. He’ll be more than okay.”
She was quiet for a moment, her fingers tracing lazy patterns on my chest. “I never thought I’d get this,” she whispered. “A family. A real home.”
“You've always had it, Eden,” I said, tightening my arms around her. “You just had to come back to claim it.”
The sun climbed higher, painting everything golden, and I knew this was just the beginning.
“Welcome home, sweetheart,” I whispered. “Welcome home.”