Chapter 19
Jane
The wind slices across the field. I stand there, cheeks burning, heart wide open. Tex is right in front of me, as solid as the earth, cradling my face like he’s afraid I’ll vanish if he lets go.
In my mind’s eye, I see my brothers: Caleb’s hard stare, Weston’s worry, Boone’s anger—then the way it cracked when he realized he’d hit the same bruise he always hits.
You’re a mess.
It shouldn’t hurt anymore. But it does.
Tex’s thumbs trace the edges of my jaw, grounding me. It’s as if he’s saying, Stay here, not with words, but with touch.
Come back inside. Not for them. For you. We’ll handle it together.
My throat tightens, my eyes sting, and my whole body feels like it’s vibrating.
“I don’t know how to do this,” I admit.
Tex’s gaze remains steady. “Then I’ll help you.”
“That sounds... ominous.”
The corner of his mouth lifts, just barely. “Why?”
“Because your way is order and routine and—”
“Truth,” he interrupts. “My way is truth.”
That hits hard because my way has always been noise, humor, movement—anything but standing still long enough for the truth to catch me.
I blow out a shaky breath. “Okay.”
Tex releases my face, and his hand slides to the back of my neck, his fingers firm in my hair like he needs a tether. He doesn’t pull; he just holds.
“Look at me,” he says.
I do.
His eyes are fierce. Not angry or cold. Certain. “You didn’t do anything wrong by wanting space. You didn’t do anything wrong by making a choice."
My voice wobbles. “My brothers think I’m an idiot.”
“Your brothers are scared,” he corrects. “And scared men get loud.”
I swallow hard because that’s true, and it still doesn’t fix the fact that their fear always lands on me like a cage.
“I shouldn’t have—”
Tex’s hand tightens slightly at my neck. “Don’t.”
I frown. “Don't what?”
“Don’t apologize like you did something shameful. You didn’t.”
My lips part, the word sorry already trembling on the tip of my tongue.
He catches it, as if he can see it forming. “No. Not that.”
I stare at him, trying to figure out how to exist in a world where I’m not required to pay for love with guilt. “I didn’t mean to hurt them.”
Tex’s gaze softens. “I know.”
“And I didn’t mean to—” My voice breaks. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
His jaw tightens. “You didn’t hurt me.”
My laugh is watery. “I heard you wrong, ran off, got covered in cow shit, accused you of regretting me—”
“And we handled it,” he says simply.
The certainty of that truth makes my chest clench. “You didn’t deserve that.”
Tex steps closer until my body is almost pressed to his. Warmth radiates off him, cutting through the cold at my back.
His voice drops, his Texan drawl thickening. “Jane. I deserve to know when you’re hurtin’. I deserve you coming to me instead of runnin’ away alone.”
I close my eyes briefly. “I don’t know how to do that.”
“I know. But you’ll learn. We’ll learn,” he says, like it’s inevitable, already decided.
My heartbeat stutters. “Why are you so sure?”
Tex’s gaze holds mine steadily. “Because I’m not guessin’ with you.”
I stare at him for a long minute.
“I never thought someone would pick all of me.” The words slip out, raw and honest and humiliating.
Tex looks at me like I’m telling him something he already knew.
My voice trembles. “I thought... best case, someone would pick the parts of me that were easy. The pretty parts. The quiet parts. The manageable parts.”
His nostrils flare slightly, as if something in him clicks into protective mode. “And the rest?”
I swallow. “The rest would be tolerated.”
His eyes flash. “You’ll never be tolerated. Not by me,” he says slowly and deliberately. “You’ll be accepted. Loved.”
My breath catches so hard it hurts. “Tex—”
“No.” His voice is still calm but carries an edge of steel. “You don’t get to reduce what I feel for you to a choice I made because you were convenient.”
My cheeks burn. “I didn’t—”
“You did,” he states, not harshly, just certain. “Because that’s how your brain tries to keep you safe. If you make it small, it can’t break you.”
My eyes sting.
Tex lifts his hand and gently drags his thumb under my eye, catching a tear as if it offended him. “I claimed you the second you walked onto that stage. Not because you were perfect. Because you were you.”
I breathe in shakily. “That sounds possessive.”
“It is,” he says unapologetically.
My mouth twitches. “You know that’s a red flag, right?”
Tex leans in, pressing his forehead to mine. “You’re a red flag with freckles and boots.”
I snort a broken laugh, which turns into a shaky exhale.
“I'm choosing you publicly,” he says. “Right now. In this field. With your brothers watching from my porch.”
My heart slams as he slides a hand to my lower back, firm and protective.
“I’m not hiding you,” he continues. “I’m not ashamed. And I’m not giving you back because three men showed up scared.”
The words land like a vow, and something inside that’s been braced for abandonment my whole life cracks open.
“Okay.”
Tex watches me closely. “Okay, what?”
I swallow. “Okay... bring me back.”
His gaze softens. Then his mouth covers mine. It’s not a rough, hungry kiss. It’s slower and deeper. A kiss that says I’m here and I’m not moving and you can stop running now.
My hands clutch his coat like it’s the only solid thing in the world. He pulls me closer, one arm wrapping around my waist as if he’s anchoring me against the wind and against myself.
When he pulls back, my lips feel swollen. This man… he steals my breath.
He rests his forehead against mine. “Ready?”
I glance toward the porch. My brothers are still there, three silhouettes against the cabin.
For half a second, I feel twelve years old again, small and caught doing something I shouldn’t. Then Tex’s hand tightens on my waist, and I remember I’m twenty-six. I’m a grown woman. And this is my choice.
I nod. “Yeah.”
Tex takes my hand and starts walking steadily, knowing I’ll follow because I want to.
As we cross the snow, my pulse rises again. Not fear, but anticipation, because I know what’s waiting at the cabin. The confrontation. The air thick with things said that can’t be unsaid.
Caleb steps forward first when we reach the porch.
I stop, still holding Tex’s hand.
Weston’s eyes scan my face like he’s checking for injuries he can fix.
Boone’s gaze goes straight to Tex.
My stomach knots. I open my mouth, ready to apologize, ready to shrink myself into something easier, ready to soften the impact—
And Tex speaks first. “Jane is staying.”
His words aren’t loud. They’re not a threat. They’re facts.
Boone’s eyes flare. “Like hell she is.”
Tex doesn’t move. He doesn’t raise his voice. He just looks at Boone, standing firm. “She’s staying because she wants to, and because I’m not lettin’ you bulldoze her into silence.”
Weston’s brows knit. “We’re not trying to bulldoze her. We’re trying to protect her.”
Tex’s gaze flicks to Weston, then Caleb, then Boone. “I know, but your protection is suffocating her.”
Caleb flinches.
I stand there with a tight throat and burning eyes because I’ve said it a thousand times in my head but never out loud.
“And what is this?” Boone snaps, waving a hand between us like we’re a problem he wants to solve with anger.
I meet Boone’s eyes. “This is my choice.”
His expression shifts as his anger flickers into hurt.
Caleb steps forward, looking at me as if he’s trying to see past the noise to find his little sister. “Why didn't you tell us?”
My throat tightens. “Because you would’ve tried to stop me.”
Caleb’s jaw tightens. “Because we worry.”
“I know. And I love you, but I need you to stop loving me like I’m fragile.”
Caleb’s eyes shine, and he looks away quickly.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper instinctively.
Tex’s hand tightens. He leans slightly toward me, his voice low enough for only me to hear. “No.”
My mouth closes. My chest aches.
Caleb turns back, his expression carved tight. “We thought you were in trouble.”
“I was,” I admit softly. “Just not the way you thought.”
Weston’s gaze flicks to Tex. “And you... You’re what? Her savior?”
Tex’s voice is calm. “No.” He turns his head and looks at me. “She doesn’t need saving. She needs space to be herself and room to decide what she wants.”
“Seems pretty obvious what she wants,” Boone grunts, looking between Tex and me.
Caleb studies Tex for a long moment before his gaze slides to our joined hands. “If you hurt her—”
“I won’t,” Tex says, holding Caleb’s gaze steadily.
“And if she wants to leave?” Weston asks.
Tex’s answer is immediate. “Then she leaves.”