Chapter 5 #2
"We can rough it for one night," I said quickly, surprising myself with how much I wanted this. "If Kevin's up for it."
His smile was answer enough. "I'd like that. It’s a mild enough night. We won’t get too many of these before winter comes out in full force."
The brothers exchanged knowing looks but didn't comment. They gathered their tools and headed for their ATVs, leaving us alone as darkness settled over the mountain.
"You sure about this?" Kevin asked as we watched their taillights disappear down the trail. "No electricity, no running water, no heat except what we can build in the fireplace."
"It's perfect," I said softly. "It'll be like camping in my future home."
My home. The words felt right leaving my lips. This wasn't just my grandmother's cottage anymore. It was mine.
We did go back to his house for supplies, bringing back sleeping bags and a camp stove, along with enough food for a simple dinner and breakfast. We ate by the light of battery-powered lanterns, sitting on upturned buckets in what would eventually be the finished living room.
"This is surreal," I said, looking around at the half-finished space. "A week ago, I thought this place was completely hopeless. Now..."
"Now it's going to be beautiful," Kevin finished. "Your grandmother would be proud."
"I wish I'd known her better." I picked at my food, thinking about lost opportunities.
Michael always had some excuse why we couldn't visit.
Too busy, too far, not worth the trip. I thought she'd written me off.
Michael always collected the mail, said there was nothing important.
It wasn't until I was packing to leave that I found a box of letters he'd hidden—birthday cards, Christmas notes, even a letter from last spring saying she was sick.” My voice broke.
“She died alone because I never knew she needed me.
The inheritance letter was in that same hidden box. '"
Kevin's hands clenched into fists. "Son of a bitch.” He moved closer, pulling me against his side. "He'll never hurt you again. I swear it."
"How can you be so sure?"
"Because I'll kill him first." The words were said matter-of-factly, like he was discussing the weather. "Anyone who hurts you answers to me."
The primitive promise should have scared me. Instead, it made me feel wanted and ... loved.
KEVIN
Later, we lay in our sleeping bags by the fireplace, the flames casting dancing shadows on the exposed beams above us. Tonya was curled against my side, her head on my chest, and I could feel her beginning to relax into sleep.
"Kevin?" she said softly.
"Yeah?"
"When your brothers called me your woman today, I liked how that sounded."
My arms tightened around her. "Good. Because that's what you are."
"Is it weird that I've never felt like I belonged to someone in a good way before? With Michael, belonging felt like disappearing. With you, it feels like becoming more myself."
"That's because I don't want to change you," I said, stroking her hair. "I want to protect the woman you already are."
She tilted her head up to look at me, firelight dancing in her hazel eyes. "Make love to me," she whispered. "Here, in my future home."
I didn't need to be asked twice. We ripped off each other’s clothes and tossed off the sleeping bags.
I pulled her on top of me, her thighs straddling my hips, and kissed her with all the hunger that had been building throughout the day.
She responded with equal passion, her hands clutching my shoulders as she rubbed her slick wetness against my hard cock.
"I love you," she breathed against my mouth. "I love the man you are, the life you've built, the way you make me feel strong."
"I love you too," I said. "More than I thought I could love anyone. You're so beautiful. And you're mine. All mine."
"Just like you're mine." She wiggled until I slipped inside her. I entered her slowly, watching her face as she sank down my length. Throwing her head back, she moaned as I cupped her breasts. She was so tight, so perfect, gripping me like she never wanted to let me go.
She bounced on me. I let her set the pace, content to play with her nipples and watch her eyes grow hazy and drunk on pleasure.
We made love slowly, thoroughly. I claimed every inch of her body with my hands and mouth.
This wasn't just sex. It was a promise, a declaration, a binding of souls beneath the stars.
"I'm going to marry you," I said as she danced and shivered on top of me. "Going to fill you with my children. Going to build a life with you on this mountain."
"Yes," she whispered. "All of it. Everything."
When we finally came apart in each other's arms, it felt like sealing a pact. Afterward, we lay tangled together in the sleeping bags, the fire crackling beside us. Through the gaps where windows would eventually go, I could see stars scattered across the mountain sky.
"I can't believe this is my life now," Tonya said softly. "A month ago, I was planning a wedding I didn't want to a man who was slowly destroying me. Now I'm lying naked in a half-built cottage that's going to be mine with a man who makes me feel like I can conquer the world."
"You can," I said simply. "You're stronger than you know."
"We're going to be happy, aren't we?" she asked.
I pulled her closer, my hand settling possessively over her lower belly where someday our children would grow.
The thought of her living here alone, even part-time, made something primitive in me growl with displeasure.
But I understood why she needed this—her own space, her own sanctuary that no one could control or take away.
"We're going to be everything," I promised. "Happy, passionate, completely devoted to each other and our children. And this cottage is going to be your refuge—a place that's completely yours."
She was quiet for a moment, then: "How many children?”
"However many you'll give me," I said honestly. "I want a houseful, sweetheart. I want to fill this mountain with our family."
"That sounds perfect," she whispered, and I could hear the smile in her voice.