Chapter 19
COLT
I find her behind the arena, tucked between the stock trailers and the equipment shed, exactly where she goes when she needs space but doesn’t want to leave.
She’s got her iPad tucked under one arm, phone in the other, boots dusty, hair pulled back tight like she’s bracing herself. She doesn’t look at me when I stop in front of her.
“Lily.” When she doesn’t answer, I shift my weight, knee barking out a warning I ignore. “You’re good at disappearing in plain sight.” She looks at me then, and I say, “I owe you an apology.”
She tilts her head, eyebrow raised. “That’s new.”
“I know,” I mutter. “I’m bad at this part.”
She puts her phone in her back pocket, crosses her arms, and waits.
“I shouldn’t have fought you the way I did. Not in meetings and definitely not in front of my family.” I swallow hard.
“Go on.” I huff as her expression softens just a fraction, but she doesn’t save me. She only makes me spit out everything that’s been jumbled in my mind.
“I don’t know how to let people help without feeling like I’m losing something,” I continue. “And instead of owning that, I took it out on you.”
She studies me like she’s deciding whether I’m telling the truth or just saying the right words.
“I didn’t come here to replace you,” she says quietly. “Or change how special this ranch is.”
“I know that,” I say. “I knew it then, too. I was just—”
“Being a dick?” She smiles sweetly, and I huff. The silence stretches with only the sound of a bull snorting nearby.
“You’re rebuilding something here,” I add. “And you did it without asking me to be anything other than what I already am.”
Her throat works. “You made that difficult.”
I huff a humorless laugh. “Yeah. I tend to do that.”
She finally uncrosses her arms. “So what changed?” she asks.
I hesitate. This is the hard part. “My dad reminded me I can be an ass.” I huff a laugh. “That my rough exterior is actually a mask for fear.” I swallow hard. “It’s hard to admit that character flaw, but there it is.”
She steps closer. “Colt, everyone has fears. You just can’t let it dictate your life.”
I nod once, jaw tight. “I can’t promise I won’t mess up again,” I say. “But I can promise I’m done pretending you don’t belong here.”
Her eyes search mine. “What are you saying?”
I take a breath and let go, letting my dad's words wash over me again. Make a choice, don’t do it with words.
“I’m making a choice, using actions and not words.
It’s something else my dad taught me how to do.
He’s actually a smart guy, but don’t tell him I said that.
” She smiles as I pull a folded paper from my back pocket and hand it to her.
She takes it carefully and unfolds it. She scans it with her eyes and then looks at me in surprise.
“Colt. You’re sure?” She’s blinking, looking at the paper, then back to me.
I laugh. “No. But I think I’ll get there.” I swallow hard again. “If you’re standing beside me.”
She’s watching me carefully, like I’m about to pull a ‘just kidding’ on her.
“Do you want it announced this way?” She shakes the paper lightly.
I nod. “I do.”
She watches me, her eyes becoming glassy, and then she launches herself at me. I catch her easily and melt into her hug. “Fuck, I missed you.” She holds me tighter. “I didn’t mean what I said about you being temporary. But I did mean that I’m scared.”
“Change is always scary. But you’re going to come out better on the other side.”
“I just didn’t know how to choose something good without feeling like I’m losing everything else.” She steps back from me slightly, but won’t let go of me.
“You’re not losing anything, Colt.” She squeezes my hands. “Do your parents know? Levi?”
I shake my head. “No, I want it to be a surprise.”
She smiles and wraps herself around me again. “It’s going to be quite a surprise, but a good one.” She leans on her tiptoes and brushes her lips against mine. “I’m proud of you.”
I breathe her in. “I’m sorry, Lily. I really am. I was a complete asshole, and if you don’t want anything to do with me, I’d understan–”
She kisses me again, letting her hands travel my back and down my sides, before she rubs the front of my jeans, forcing a low moan from my lips.
“I know you are. Now, take me to your place and show me just how much.”