Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Dawson didn’t sleep more than a few hours. When he wasn’t making love to Magnolia, he liked watching her sleep.
She slept like she did everything else in life—as if she wanted to give the entire world a hug.
At the moment, she was sprawled on her back with one arm draped over his chest and the other dangling off the mattress.
Her foot was tucked under his calf as if searching out warmth, even though she’d stolen all the covers, and her hair spilled over the pillows like corn silk.
Spending the night with a woman wasn’t something Dawson did. In fact, he’d never invited a woman to stay at his place. It was so much easier to slip out after sex, then to try and figure out how to get the woman to leave.
But that had been with other women.
The sight of Magnolia in his bed made him feel like a giddy kid who had just walked into the living room on Christmas morning to see a pile of presents all marked with his name.
She certainly had marked her name on his heart.
He hoped last night he’d marked his name on hers.
He loved her. He couldn’t deny it anymore. He loved her with an intensity that should have scared him but didn’t. All he felt was a warm contentment and the need to keep her right where she was forever.
The sound of his bedroom door opening had him quickly pulling the covers over Magnolia’s deliciously, perky tits and mentally cussing himself for not making sure the door was locked last night.
His siblings had never cared anything about privacy.
Huck’s grinning face popped around the edge of the door before he spotted Magnolia and his eyes flew wide.
He opened his mouth to say something, but Dawson stopped him with a warning look and a finger to his lips.
Huck didn’t say anything, but he knew his brother wouldn’t be able to hold his silence for long.
He slipped out of bed and pulled on his jeans.
As soon as he stepped out the door, Huck started in.
“Well . . . well . . . well. It looks like the Dawg has finally pulled his head out of his ass.” Huck gave him a hearty slap on the shoulder. “I’m proud of you, man. If anyone needed a night of fun sex, you did.”
Huck’s words weren’t mean spirited. And yet, they completely pissed Dawson off. Probably because that was his deepest fear—that Magnolia would view last night as a night of fun sex when it had been so much more to him.
He shoved his brother against the hallway wall. “Shut the fuck up.”
Huck didn’t seem at all surprised by Dawson’s anger.
In fact, a big smile spread across his face.
“So, it was more. That’s what I figured, but I just wanted to be sure.
Now, if you want, I’ll take Poppy for mini donuts so you and Mags can have the house to yourself.
But you’ll need to wake Pops up. Not only is she vicious when you disturb her sleep, but that dog she’s sleeping with scares the crap out of me. ”
Dawson released his shirt. “Wilbur’s sleeping with her?”
“Like a baby. A mean-assed baby.”
Sure enough, when Dawson got to Poppy’s room, he found Wilbur being hugged by his sister like he was her own personal teddy bear. But the dog didn’t seem to mind like Dumplin’. When he opened his eyes and saw Huck and Dawson, he lifted his head and growled a Do Not Disturb warning.
Huck chuckled and spoke in a low voice. “You know how they say a dog acts like his master . . .”
Yesterday, Dawson would have argued that he wasn’t Wilbur’s master and didn’t want to be. But looking at the dog with his sister, he realized that Wilbur needed them as much as they needed him. Accepting the fact made his heart feel even more light.
“Welcome to the family, Willy Boy,” he whispered before he turned and headed back down the hall. Huck followed chuckling to himself.
“A dog and a girlfriend. Will wonders never cease?”
Huck continued to tease him while Dawson made breakfast for Magnolia. His plan was to take a tray back to his room in the hopes that scrambled eggs and bacon would be followed by another session of lovemaking.
But just as he was plating the breakfast—and getting after Huck for stealing too much bacon—Magnolia walked into the kitchen, looking like a disheveled sex goddess in one of his western shirts.
He knew exactly why she’d chosen the shirt.
It was the only one he owned with her signature color.
Thin lines of pink ran through the blue and beige plaid.
She stopped in her tracks when she saw Huck. “Oops, I didn’t realize you were up, Huck. I’ll just go chang—”
“No!” Dawson said a little too quickly. He never wanted her changing out of his shirt. Like ever.
Huck smirked at him as if he understood Dawson’s outburst completely. “Yeah, Mags, you wouldn’t want your breakfast to get cold.” He slid off the barstool. “I’ll just let you two—”
Poppy walked into the kitchen looking like a rumpled tornado in Disney princess pajamas, with Wilbur hobbling at her side. “I hope you left some bacon for us, Huckleberry Finn, or me and Wilbur are going to kick your ass.”
As much as Dawson had wanted Magnolia all to himself, there was something extremely nice about sitting around the kitchen island with her and his siblings.
She fit as well as Wilbur seemed to. The dog got ear scratches and bacon from everyone while Magnolia teased Huck as much as he teased her and handled Poppy’s sassy nature better than Dawson did.
And she didn’t once act embarrassed about sitting there in his shirt.
In fact, she acted like it was the most natural thing in the world.
Which warmed his heart like nothing ever had.
All he could think about was having her with him every single morning for the rest of his life.
Wearing his shirt with her hair all mussed from his fingers and whisker burns on her neck from their lovemaking.
Wilbur sitting at their feet waiting for bacon and looking a little dazed like he was in a dream.
It felt like a dream to Dawson too. A dream he had never dared to dream because he didn’t think it was achievable. Because he’d thought he was too much like his mama.
Incapable of love.
But there he sat with his heart overflowing for the woman who ate his scrambled eggs like they were the best things she’d ever tasted, teased his brother unmercifully, warmed up his normally-gruff sister with her bright personality, and every now and then glanced over at him with a look in those pretty green eyes that made him believe in dreams.
The next time she glanced over, he couldn’t stop himself from sliding a hand into that gorgeous messy hair and kissing her. He’d only meant to brush her lips, but when she melted, he couldn’t stop from deepening the kiss.
“Sweet Lord,” Poppy grumbled. “Get a room.”
He drew back and smiled softly at Magnolia before he glanced over at his sister. “You’re right, Pops.” He got up and scooped Magnolia into his arms, calling over his shoulder on his way to his room. “Give Wilbur one of his pain meds on the counter and don’t feed him too much bacon!”
After they’d satisfied each other with some slow, sweet lovemaking, he thought he could talk Magnolia into playing hooky from work and spending the rest of the day in bed with him. But she insisted he drop her off at the bookstore.
“I’m already an hour late opening the store. I’ll be lucky if Uncle Otis doesn’t get wind of it and hop on the first plane home.”
But it was a struggle letting her go.
When he pulled in front of the bookstore, he felt like he did when he and Jaxon had walked Poppy to her first day of kindergarten.
“I think I’ll just come in for a little while,” he said. “There’s a book I’ve been wanting to look for.”
She turned to him. “I thought Huck said y’all were supposed to help Jaxon with that delivery of beer.”
“Huck can handle it.”
A knowing look entered her eyes. She was sitting right next to him, the perk of owning an old truck with a bench seat, so she had no trouble looping her arms around his neck and giving him a soft kiss.
“Go help your brother. I’ll be right here when you get done.”
But for how long? That was the question. Was what she felt for him enough to keep her here in Promise Springs?
In Promise Springs? He wanted to stay in Promise Springs? A place he’d always hated? A place he couldn’t wait to leave?
He found the answer to that question in a pair of sparkling green eyes.
Yes. He wanted to stay right here . . . with Magnolia.
But as usual, he couldn’t seem to get his feelings into words. She gave him another kiss that melted his soul before she drew back and smiled.
“See you soon . . . sweetheart.”
With his chest feeling like it might explode, he watched as she got out of his truck, then unlocked the bookstore and slipped inside.
She flipped over the OPEN sign and waved before she disappeared from sight.
After sitting there like a lovesick fool for several minutes, he finally backed out and headed to Honky Tonk Heaven.
Huck and Jaxon were in the back helping to unload the custom craft beer from the delivery truck when Dawson arrived. He thought Jaxon would give him shit about being late. But he didn’t. He only acknowledged him with a nod when Dawson joined the assembly line.
It wasn’t until they’d finished and were stacking the boxes in the walk-in refrigerator that he finally spoke.
“I thought I asked you to stay away from Magnolia.”
“Shit, Jax!” Huck said. “I wouldn’t have told you if I thought you’d get on him about it.”
“He needs someone to get on him. He has no business screwing around with Tully’s best friend.”
Usually, Jaxon’s distrust pissed Dawson off and made him clam up. But today, he was too damn happy.
“I’m not screwing around, Jax.”
“See?” Huck said. “I told you it was serious.”
Jaxon stared at Dawson. “Just because it’s serious, doesn’t mean someone can’t get hurt.”
That was the one thing Jaxon could have said to burst Dawson’s happy bubble.