Chapter 8 Lydia
EIGHT
LYDIA
Warmth cocoons me on all sides, and for the first time in what feels like forever, I feel rested…
at peace. Memories of last night flash across my mind, of Cade’s mouth on mine, on feeling his lips skim the rest of my body as he showed me what real pleasure looked like.
I remember how well he fit inside me, how amazing it felt to actually be wanted.
It’s not a familiar feeling at all, and as I snuggle into his arms, it’s one I don’t want to disappear.
The feeling of safety, of peace, and knowing there is someone that actually wants me, gives me hope. Could I have what my brothers have? Could I have the happily ever after I’ve always been jealous of?
“Are you awake?” Cade murmurs, nuzzling his nose into my hair.
I sigh. “No.”
The grumpy man I’ve come to know chuckles, the sound light—happy. It’s so strange coming from him, and yet it sounds good, too. It makes my belly flutter knowing that I stripped away some of that hard shell that’s been surrounding him for years.
His arms tighten around me as he presses a light kiss to the top of my head. “I think the storm has cleared,” he groans. “And my back is killing me.”
I glance up at him as he stretches an arm over his head, the mountain of blankets that became our bed last night falling away to reveal the hard lines of his chest and tanned skin I can’t help but admire.
“That’s what happens when you get old,” I reply, grinning when his eyes find mine. “Guess you can’t keep up anymore.”
Cade growls before pinning me beneath him, kissing me hard as if to prove me otherwise. Between us, his cock goes hard. If I weren’t so sore from last night, I’d go another round with him to see whether he can keep up, but instead I wrap my arms around his shoulders, melting into the kiss.
“Don’t you have a family dinner to get ready for?” he asks against my lips.
“I’ll just tell them the road’s blocked,” I reply easily, arching into him as he skims his lips down my neck. “I think I’d much rather be here.”
He pauses at my throat before pushing up onto his forearms. “Are you sure?” he asks, sounding almost surprised.
My fingers skim the raised scars on his shoulder as I bring my hands to cup his face. “Yeah,” I reply, a lump forming in my throat as his intense blue eyes lock on mine. “I like being here.”
Cade visibly swallows, Adam’s apple bobbing. “You don’t have to spare my feelings, cowgirl. If you want to see your family, I’ll take you down the mountain myself and drop you off at the ranch.”
I narrow my eyes. “You want to get rid of me, Mr Abernathy?”
The corners of his lips quirk as he lowers his face to mine. “Not at all,” he replies, voice low. “I’ve got you right where I want you.”
A shiver rolls down my spine, the claim in his words sparking something unfamiliar within me. It’s a feeling I’ve never felt before, and yet I can so quickly identify. It’s the one thing I’ve been terrified of since I came home to find all my brothers in love and finding their happily ever after.
I think I might be falling for my mountain man boss.
I watch, wrapped in one of Cade’s flannels, as the metal shutters roll up and the snowy landscape is revealed.
The entire deck is covered in a heavy sheet of snow—snow that’ll take hours to shovel off—and although I can’t see the driveway, I have a feeling the basement garage has been blocked off indefinitely.
Even if I wanted to go to dinner, the chances of us breaking out of the cabin are slim to none.
Cade hands me a steaming mug of coffee without a word, though I feel his eyes on me. “Thank you,” I murmur as I accept the cup, giving him a soft smile.
“Are you really sure you don’t want to go home?” he asks as he winds an arm around my back.
I nod once and lean into him. “I won’t lie.
I like how peaceful it is here,” I reply, glancing out the windows at the snow that seems to freeze literally everything around us.
It almost feels like we’re stuck in time here, and I’m not ready to leave it yet.
“And I’m afraid if I go, we’ll lose this. ”
Something shifts in his eyes as I meet his stare, a flicker of uncertainty.
“Unless…that’s what you want?” I ask, frowning.
I might be totally falling for this man, but he could still see me as his assistant and the girl who’s moved in to help him. He might not be seeing the possible future I’m dreaming about.
My cheeks immediately heat, though as I try to pull away, his arm tightens around me. “You’re not going anywhere,” he says, setting his mug down on the island before taking mine from me. “What makes you think I don’t want you to stay?”
“Well,” I murmur, leaning into him, “your nagging questions are making me think you want to get rid of me again.”
His gaze softens as he wraps another arm around me. “The only reason I ask is because I know your family means a lot to you.”
I snort. “You can’t know that.”
He raises a brow. “Every post on your social media is about them. Your first thought when the storm hit was making sure you could still go to Sunday dinner. Your family actually means something to you. They aren’t an obligation, and I don’t…I really don’t want to come between you.”
I release a shaky breath and circle my arms around his shoulders. “I didn’t realise you were stalking me.”
Cade smirks, chuckling under his breath. “Research on my assistant isn’t stalking.”
The reminder that I’m his assistant should snap me back to reality, but my heart is literally melting knowing he understands this about me. That he could see right through me. My family means the world, but they aren’t my entire world—just like I’m not theirs anymore.
Like my brothers, I want to find my own world.
I swallow hard, realising Cade could be that. “Am I losing my mind thinking there’s a…chance, here?” I ask quietly, stomach dipping with nerves.
Slowly, he shakes his head. “I meant what I said last night, Lydia. You’re mine.”
A shiver rolls down my spine, chest constricting with the weight of his words. “Alright, caveman.”
“I don’t think you realise how badly I mean that.” He shakes his head as he grabs my waist. “And it should terrify you—both of us—but I mean it.”
He’s not wrong—it should terrify me. It should have me packing my bags and running, snowstorm be damned. I came here to work and escape everything back home, but instead I might have walked into the very thing I’d been trying to escape.
“When I saw you naked,” he continues, eyes darkening, “I thought you were the most stunning woman I’d ever seen.”
I roll my eyes. “Bullshit.”
“No.” He shakes his head softly and brings our bodies close together, as if to prove his point.
The bulge in his pants hardens against my stomach.
“I wondered how well you would look pregnant with my child.” Those words have me sucking in a breath.
“And now, I wonder what it’ll look like to really call you mine. ”
“Cade…” I whisper, but the look in his eyes stops me.
“You don’t have to say anything,” he says. “Not yet. There’s a lot I need to figure out to give you the future you deserve, Lydia. If you want a future with me.”
Those words have my heart racing harder, thundering against my ribs. No one has ever wanted a future with me. No one has ever made me feel like this kind of future was even possible.
“I think I do want this future with you,” I reply quietly, watching the range of emotions that flicker across his features; shock, relief, and then pure happiness as his lips claim mine.
I melt into his embrace, moaning against his lips.
This kiss feels different to our others, full of promise and hope.
It strips away the fear that’s been building in my chest, the uncertainty over every choice I’ve made since coming here.
It washes away all the doubt that’s been hanging in the back of my mind.
It’s a kiss that tells me we’ll withstand the worst type of storm. It’s the kind of kiss Ma used to tell me stories about when I was a girl wishing for true love.
It’s the kind of kiss that could absolutely destroy me or give me the future I’ve always dreamed of.
A future with my mountain man.