Chapter 26
Dustin paced the length of the kitchen. His nerves were pulled tighter than a stretch of new barbed-wire fencing.
Silver hadn’t seemed mad at him. Then again, she was incapable of being mad at anyone for too long. But just because she wasn’t mad didn’t mean she would be willing to forgive him and give him another chance.
He glanced at his watch. She’d been upstairs for thirty minutes. She’d told him to wait, but maybe she’d decided she wasn’t coming back down. Maybe she’d realized she would be better off staying away from him.
He blew out an exasperated breath.
He’d hoped he would get to see her today on their first day of construction. But he hadn’t expected to see her coming out of the house in her pj’s and storming toward him like a woman on a mission.
Obviously, he hadn’t wanted to have a conversation with her out in the open. He also hadn’t wanted any of the men to look at her half naked like that. Even he had no right to look at her when she was half naked.
At the soft tread of footsteps in the hallway overhead, he halted. It was her pattering bare feet. A few seconds later, she started down the stairway.
He let the tension ease from his shoulders. She was coming.
As she entered the front hallway, she paused. “Dustin?”
“In here.” He’d rather talk to her away from Beryl and any other listening ears.
A moment later, Silver entered the kitchen.
At the sight of her again, the air caught in his lungs.
She was so beautiful that his chest ached just looking at her.
She had on a pair of jean shorts with a pretty pink top that highlighted the color in her cheeks and lips.
She’d left her hair down, but it was now brushed and straightened and sleek.
She’d put on a little bit of makeup, enough to make the blue of her eyes especially dark and mesmerizing.
“Hi.” She stopped on the opposite side of the center island from him. She cocked her head toward the wide kitchen window, which faced the construction site. “So what’s all that about?”
Dustin’s stomach knotted, and everything he’d been rehearsing about the project evaporated from his mind. From the moment he’d first contacted Franklin, he’d known this was the right thing to do, his big thing. He wanted to do it for her whether she accepted him or not.
The trouble was, he didn’t want her to give him a second chance because she felt manipulated by his plan. That meant he had to apologize and tell her how he felt first.
He braced both hands on the counter and faced her squarely, his sunglasses already up on his hat so that he could see her clearly. “I was wrong to push you away, both in high school and in the honeymoon cabin.”
Her expression was soft and warm—and happy? Of course she was happy, because that’s just the way she always was.
“I was scared of getting hurt,” he continued. “I was a fool, an idiot, a complete moron—”
“Dustin, it’s okay.” Her lips started to curl up into one of her beautiful smiles.
“No, it’s not okay. I apologize and hope you can forgive me. Because the truth is that I love you.”
Her smile rose as full as the noonday sunshine, and she opened her mouth to respond.
He spoke again before she could. “My love for you has always been so deep and certain and passionate that it scared me with its intensity. But I realize now I can’t run from it.
It’s okay—even good and right—for me to love you in an out-of-control way so that I can sacrifice myself and meet your needs all the more. ”
She circled the center island and approached him. Her beautiful eyes, framed by those long lashes, searched his face, seeking the truth.
“I want to spend my life being weak if that means I love you all the more strongly.”
She stopped only inches away.
“I don’t deserve another chance,” he continued, “but will you give me time to prove I can love you better?”
“No, Dustin.” She lifted her palm and flattened it onto his chest over his rapidly thudding heart. “I don’t want to give you time.”
He’d expected her resistance. So he nodded. “I understand. But you should know that with or without your permission, I’m going to win you back.”
“Dustin,” she gently chided.
“I am. And you know how stubborn I can be.”
Her smile crept higher. “I don’t want to give you time because I don’t need you to prove anything, and I don’t need you to win me back.”
What was she saying? Was it what he thought?
She nodded. “I forgive you, and I love you, and I want to be with you. I’ve actually been miserable without you.”
His chest swelled with sudden emotion. “As easy as that? After how much I hurt you?”
“You did hurt me.” Her smile wavered.
“And I hate that I did. If I could go back, I’d do it differently.”
Her eyes took on a sparkle. “We can’t go back, but you can make it up to me now.”
“Make it up to you?”
“Yes, absolutely.”
“Would it help if you knew I’m overseeing the building of the new whole-body therapy facility that you’ve wanted?”
Her gaze shifted out the window again. “What?” Her expression filled with wonder and delight.
The sight of it brought him a satisfaction he hadn’t known was possible. Was this what sacrificing and giving did? Bless the giver more than the receiver?
“I contacted Franklin about it earlier in the week, and he was in agreement with the plan. I’ve worked day and night since then organizing and lining everything up.”
She crossed to the window and peered out now, excitement in her eyes. “This is amazing! I can’t believe you pulled everything together so quickly, not after all the roadblocks I was having with getting permits.”
He followed and stood beside her, taking in the view. He hadn’t slept much over the past week, but his determination had paid off.
“How did you do it so quickly when I’ve been trying for months?” She was watching the big machines clearing the spot that her architect had already designed and planned.
Dustin had gotten the plans from Franklin, who had been surprisingly accommodating.
Dustin had easily contacted the architect, and he’d used connections and called in favors to line up the builders and crews, some as far away as Kansas City.
The hardest part had been getting the Boulder City Council to agree to it.
“So?” She pivoted and faced him. “How did you pull it off?”
He shrugged. “I told them I wanted to build a gym in town.”
Her eyes widened. “You did?”
“I’m designing a new app for intense workouts. I decided I needed a place to test it out.”
“In Boulder? But what about your bodyguard job—”
“I resigned a month ago because I wanted to move back here and be close to you.”
She again laid her hand over his heart. “You didn’t have to do that. We can try long-distance—”
He touched his finger to her lips and silenced her. “I want to work on my apps now. I recently finished the security app, and I already had plans for the workout app. So it made sense to open the gym.”
“You did it for me.” She tucked her hair behind her ear.
“Nope. I did it for the app.” Of course he’d done it for her, but he was benefiting from it too. With his security app already hitting number one in a number of categories and the sales jumping higher every day, he would have plenty to invest in the gym.
“Dustin.”
“Silver.”
She smiled. “You’re amazing, you know that?”
“Then you’re willing to give us—me—another chance?”
“When I came outside a little bit ago, it was to beg you to reconsider our relationship. So I guess that means yes.”
“Really?”
“Really. I’ve always loved you too. And I realized I can’t live without you—don’t want to live without you. So you’re stuck with me whether you want it or not.”
He wanted to grab her into a hug, swing her around, and let out a victory shout.
But he settled for a slow smile. “Does that mean I’ve redeemed myself for being such an idiot?
And that I don’t have to make it up to you anymore?
” He planned to make it up to her for the rest of his life.
That was a given. He also planned to enjoy every moment of it.
“Actually, you still need to do more to make it up to me.” Was her voice turning sultry?
Heat speared him low in his gut. “Like what?”
She bit her bottom lip and began to tug him away from the window and back toward the center island.
He tried not to look at that lip tucked between her teeth, but he couldn’t help it, and the heat only spread into his blood.
A second later, she hopped up on the counter so that she was level with him. Then she hooked a finger into the collar of his shirt and pulled on him.
Shoot. This wasn’t what he’d expected. But he was here for it. Her hair had come out from behind her ear, but before she could slide it back, he did it for her, unable to stop his hand from lingering there.
“Do you want me to tell you how you can make it up to me?” Her gaze dropped to his lips.
He took a step closer so that he was flush against her legs. “Show me.”
She used her finger in his collar to draw his head closer until her lips brushed against his. He could feel her wide smile, could tell she was happy. And he knew with certainty that he wanted to keep making her happy for the rest of their lives. As long as she was happy, then he would be too.
With a soft sigh, she pressed her lips into his. The touch was achingly sweet, filling him with a contentment in knowing this was right where he wanted and needed to be . . . with her. Having her lips on his was a bonus. And it was a bonus he wasn’t about to squander.
He let the sweetness last a moment longer, then he captured her lips in a kiss that told her she was his special woman, his fast, furious, and forever one.