11. Lena
11
LENA
I slam my bedroom door so hard the mirror rattles and threatens to fall.
My heart is beating like a drum solo, and my hands are shaking so bad that I sit on them in an attempt to steady myself. Tears blur my vision as I stuff clothes back into my bag–the same one I ran off with when I left the ranch. Only this time, I have no idea where I’m going to go.
I only know it has to be anywhere but here.
“I’m not a little girl anymore!” I’d screamed at Dad. “You don’t get to decide who I fall in love with!”
He’d glared back at me, and his reply burned like a hot poker. “Love? You’re too young to even know the meaning of the word, Lena. He’s just a goddamn ranch hand, for Christ’s sake.”
“So what!?” I’d snapped. “Why should that matter?”
“He’s not right for you.” He’d shaken his head. “You’re going through a phase, all right?”
“A phase?” I’d snapped.
I couldn’t believe it. Colt–a phase? Absolutely not.
Colt held me like I was something sacred. Like he couldn’t breathe unless I was in his arms. He didn’t just touch me–he worshipped me. And my heart blazed whenever I was with him.
That’s not a phase.
I drop my bag and kick it across the floor, tears rolling hot and fast down my cheeks. What am I even doing? I panicked and ran off from the ranch, only to have Jess take me right back home to my house and my father. I thought he might have gone easy on me and just me angry at Colt, but he exploded.
Colt and I were “playing with fire,” according to him, and I had “jeopardized my future” with a guy who “only wanted me for one reason.”
Somehow, my dad’s words didn’t get to me. I think it’s because I know in my heart that Colt does love me and that I made a big mistake leaving him. But then why did he let me go? He could have grabbed me and stopped me from going if he’d wanted to.
I wipe my nose with the back of my hand and pull open my dresser, yanking out Colt’s flannel that I took with me when I left–the one I used to love to wear around the house. I bury my face in it and breathe him in.
I ache for him so badly I can hardly stand it.
And then I hear it.
Shouting.
Not my dad’s usual pissed-off grumble when he’s doing business. This is louder, grittier. Familiar.
It can’t be…
My legs have me on my feet before I even realize what’s happening. I race to the window, throwing the curtain aside.
And there is he is. My cowboy–my love.
Colt.
My heart nearly gives out. He’s standing out back in the yard, jaw clenched, boots planted, and covered in dirt like he rode straight here from the ranch without stopping. He looks like hell and heaven at the same time, and he’s staring my dad down like he’s ready to take him apart.
Instantly, I bolt from my room and take the stairs two at a time, my feet barely even touching the floor. I race toward the raised voices, and when I burst through the back door, they both turn.
“Lena,” Colt says softly. The way he says my name only makes the tears flow faster. I can hear the pain in his voice, like he’s been missing me forever when it’s only been two days.
He looks handsomer than ever. His sheer presence dominates the scene, despite being surrounded by multi-million-dollar townhouses and meticulously manicured lawns and gardens. All that looks insignificant compared to him–to his face, his muscles, his eyes, so intent and focused on me that my cheeks instantly start to tingle.
As does the rest of me…
Dad steps into my eyeline, blocking me from Colt. Overprotective as always, but I rush past him.
“Colt,” I whisper as I race closer. Am I dreaming? Is he really here? “What are you–?”
“I let you walk away once, Lena,” he cuts me off. “That will never happen again. I never should have let you think I didn’t want you.”
“You’re right.” I nod, not afraid to say it. “Why didn’t you stop me?”
He shakes his head. “I was afraid of the consequences. If you wanted to stay, I wanted it to be because you wanted to. But now I’m here to tell you”—he takes my hand, and my whole body electrifies—“that you’re coming back with me.”
My dad scoffs behind me. “You’ve got some nerve. Showing up here after the shit you pulled.”
Colt’s body goes tense, and he looks over my shoulder. “You know what, Ed? Fire me. Don’t pay the rest of what you owe me. Hell, blackball me from every other farm and ranch in New York if that’s what you want to do. But I’m not leaving without her.”
He squeezes my hand, and the world goes still.
Colt’s voice is thunderous and filled with strength. Any reticence he had back at the house is gone. He’s here, and he knows what he wants.
Me.
And watching him stand up to my father is the world’s biggest turn-on.
“Do you know what you’re saying?” my dad asks.
“I love your daughter, Ed. I love her more than life itself, and even if all I get to do is make her breakfast every morning and watch her muck out stalls, I’ll die a happy man.”
My heart skips a beat, and my knees nearly give out from under me.
“She’s not a fling, sir. As far as I’m concerned, she’s the rest of my life.”
My dad glares, his eyes narrowing, looking like he’s about to pull a gun on Colt. “Is that right?” he asks. “So, you’ll marry her then?”
I suck in a breath. Oh my God, what is he saying? I snap my gaze back to Colt, who doesn’t even blink. “Absolutely.”
Silence crashes down on us like someone just pressed the mute button.
Dad walks slowly forward, eyeing Colt like he’s investigating him. “You’re ready to work ten-hour days, raise kids, and take care of your wife and never let her wonder if she married the wrong man?”
Again, Colt nods, and my heart swells inside my chest. “I’d crawl through hell and back for her, Ed.”
Dad looks at me, and I get the feeling that I could say one wrong thing and the whole situation would explode and I’d ruin everything. He holds my gaze, then looks at Colt, then lets out a deep sigh.
“You hurt her, Colt, and I’ll make sure you regret it for the rest of your life.” He extends a hand. “But you sound sincere, and I respect that. You may not be an Ivy League boy, but you mean what you say, and I respect that. My daughter is yours.”
Colt grabs his hand without hesitation and shakes it, strong and sure. He turns to me, and for the first time in my life, I see a full smile on his face.
And then I’m crying again–but it’s the good kind of crying. The kind where your whole body feels like it’s glowing.
Colt turns to me, his eyes filled with unfiltered, wild love, and drops to one knee. “I don’t have a ring, darling.” He smirks. “But that’s the first thing on my to-do list.”
A laugh spills from my lips as I look down at him, wiping tears from my eyes. This can’t seriously be happening, can it?
“But, Lena Swanson, will you marry me?”
“Yes!” I blurt out. I hurl myself into his arms before he can even stand. But he’s a big guy and lifts me easily into the air as he rises. This must be a tough moment for my dad, but I actually hear him quietly chuckling as Colt squeezes me tightly against his chest.
We both made some mistakes, but he came through in the end. He made me remember the truth: I belong to him.
“Say the word, honey,” he whispers. “And I’ll take you back home right now.”
“ The word ,” I repeat, teasing him as he presses a respectful kiss against my cheek. “Let’s get out of here.”
Still holding me in his arms, he nods to my father, who moves aside to let us pass. He actually looks happy, which is a great first step. I know he was hoping I’d link up with some guy he approved–a banker or a lawyer or a hedge fund manager–so this is me flipping the script on him completely. It’ll take him a while to get used to it, but having his blessing now means the world to me. To both of us.
“Two days and I missed you so damn much,” I tell Colt as he carries me out front to his truck.
“Ain’t that the truth,” he chuckles. “Those two days felt like an eternity.”
His arms are strong and sure around me as he carries me. I settle into the seat and lean against it as he climbs in. He turns the key, and the engine rumbles to life. As we pull off, he places his hand on my thigh. I glance up at him and see the same look in his eyes that I’d see when we lay in bed together. When he’d look at me like he was starving.
“You have no idea how badly I need you, Lena,” he tells me, his voice low and strong. “Wait until we get back. Then I’ll show you.”
My thighs tingle as a primal thrill comes over me. Being wanted by this man is intoxicating.
“Back to the ranch?” I smile.
“Back home ,” he corrects me. “Where you belong.”
I smile into his shoulder as we drive, his scent wrapping me in a wonderful security that calms the storm that’s been raging inside me since I left.
Where I belong …
Damn right.