Chapter 10
Joy
I’m in luck because Bobby is waiting for me in the parking lot. He’s in the driver’s seat, baseball cap pulled low. I doubt anyone would recognize him here, but he can’t be too careful. It’s one of the downsides of being “semi-famous” as he calls himself.
I crawl into the passenger seat. “Let’s go home.”
He doesn’t ask questions, and maybe that’s the best gift anyone could give me tonight. He just starts the vehicle and drives into the night. Even as he follows me up to my apartment, he doesn’t say a word. He only asks about it when we’re finally in the privacy of my living room.
I’m on the couch, arms wrapped around myself. I know the tears are going to hit in a few minutes. Right now, I’m numb, still processing everything that happened tonight.
Bobby takes a seat beside me, leaving a cushion of space between us. “Did someone hurt you?”
I shake my head and give him what I’m sure is a wobbly smile. “I had the best night of my life.”
He frowns. “I’ve seen you happy, and this isn’t it. Do I need to go kick some motherfucker’s ass?”
“Bobby,” I exclaim, “I didn’t know you knew those words.”
He shrugs and doesn’t let it derail the conversation. “All I need is a name. Hunter and I will go kick his ass together.”
I chuckle even as a sob builds in my throat. “Hunter doesn’t even like you.”
“Hunter would help me kick some ass on your behalf,” Bobby is quick to reassure me.
I shake my head, unwilling to talk about tonight. I want to hold the memories to be just mine. But even if I didn’t, I couldn’t reveal Ford’s real identity. As it is, future holidays spent together are going to be awkward.
I’ll always remember what it felt like to be near Ford, to have him hold me in his arms and whisper filthy things as he made me come.
“You know we could figure out who it is. It wouldn’t take much for me and Hunter to get his identity and beat him to a pulp.”
I will myself not to fall apart. Later, after a hot shower, I’ll crawl under my blankets and sob my heart out. But not just yet, not with an audience still present. “Please don’t do that. Give me my privacy. You know what it’s like when your whole life is available to the public.”
Something flickers across his expression, and he finally nods. “I’m staying over tonight.”
“Thank you for being a good friend,” I say softly. I didn’t expect that I would grow to like him so much.
There’s a terrible banging sound. Someone is pounding on my front door. Whoever it is, they managed to get past the doorman.
I exchange a look with him because it’s almost midnight. There’s no one that should be at my door, let alone pounding like a maniac.
Bobby’s jaw tightens. He gets to his feet and sends me a firm look. “Stay there.”
He grabs an umbrella from my foyer and swings open the door. From my seat on the couch, I can’t tell who’s there.
“Who is it, Bobby?” I call as I step around the wall. I can’t stand the idea that he might get hurt on my behalf. He’s been so kind and sweet to me through this whole thing.
Ford is there, and it completely scrambles my brain. I don’t know why he’s here. He’s never once been to my apartment. How did he figure out I was with him tonight?
He takes in my tear-stained face, his expression becoming thunderous. He snarls Bobby’s name and shoves him against the wall. “You made her cry. You don’t deserve the air she breathes.”
Bobby holds up his hands. “Hunter, I wasn’t anywhere near your girl.”
“Ford, put him down,” I call.
“He made you cry. That’s unacceptable,” Ford roars and pulls back his fist like he’s going to punch Bobby.
“You’ve got this wrong, Hunter, Ford, whoever you are,” Bobby insists. He met Hunter recently when Hunter threatened to kick his ass if he proposed to my sister. He doesn’t know that Hunter has two brothers that look just like him. That must be why he keeps calling Ford by Hunter’s name.
“It was you,” I shout at Ford before he can do any damage to Bobby’s face. I don’t even know Bobby’s filming schedule right now, and I already know it will cost our studios thousands of dollars to take time away from production for Bobby’s healing.
“You’re the one who made me cry,” I tell Ford, an angry note in my own voice. See, I don’t even know why I’m angry. It’s not like Ford knew who I was.
Ford’s fury melts, and he drops Bobby who sags back onto the floor. He turns to me incredulously. “I hurt you?”
Bobby’s face turns a mottled red. I expect him to be angry with Ford because he’s been threatened. He shoves to his feet and glares at my boss. “You’re the jerk who made her sad tonight.”
He looks like he’s about to take a swing at Ford on my behalf, and I love how fiercely protective Bobby is. But I can’t let them fight. This night has already been confusing enough.
I step between the two of them and push at Bobby. “Can you give us a few minutes?”
He pins Ford with another hard glare. “I’ll be in the kitchen if you need me.”
Ford crosses his arms. His sleeves are rolled up, revealing corded forearms that are enough to make a girl drool. Not what I should be thinking about right now. But there’s something about this man’s body. Every part of him is a work of art that I’d love to spend hours sketching.
“Why did you leave me tonight?” His soft question has me raising my gaze away from his arms.
My shoulders slump, the exhaustion of the entire night hitting me. “Because you didn’t know who I was, and you never would have chosen me.”
He scowls. “What are you talking about? The whole reason I was there tonight was because of you.”
My heart leaps in my chest then I realize what this means. He was just being protective of me the way a good boss is. “You followed me there.”
“Of course I did. The thought of you being in the arms of another man drove me fucking crazy.” He runs his hands through his short hair then stops when he realizes it’s short.
I fold my arms over my chest like I can keep him from hearing the sound of my heart breaking, “So it’s a jealousy thing. If you can’t have me, no one can.”
“I don’t know what the fuck it is. All I know is when another guy gets too close to you, I want to rip his arms out. When you smile at another man, I think of a million ways to dispose of him. You’re all I want–to keep you happy and safe.”
I’d think it was just jealousy, but something about wanting to keep me happy and safe makes me think it’s more than that. “How did you even find me tonight?”
“I saw the invitation when you were over at my cabin. You dropped it.”
I lost my invitation. It all makes sense now. He must have used my lost invitation to get in. After all, the bouncer never checked my identification. It’s part of the appeal of a place like that. Your exclusive invitation is the only proof you belong.
He steps forward and reaches for me like he’s going to touch me then drops his hand. “I’ve been in love with you for months. I didn’t know how to tell you.”
I shake my head, forcing myself to be strong. He told me tonight that he’s in love with another girl. I can’t get into something like that. It’s too complicated and will hurt too much. “But you said you were seeing someone else.”
“No,” he says firmly. “I said I was in love with someone then I told you that I’d only been faithful to her. Joy, my whole life I’ve only ever wanted you.”
“If that’s true, then why didn’t you tell me sooner? Why let me go through with tonight and make a fool of myself?” I can’t make sense of this. Ford has never struck me as the type of man who wants to play games. If anything, he seems to value honest conversations.
He looks away from me, the first time he has since he arrived. “Because I’m not good enough for you.”
I take his hand in mine, wrapping my fingers around his warm calloused ones. I tug him over to the couch, settling on it and patting the space beside me. He hesitates for only a second before joining me. He’s so big, and he doesn’t leave any room between us. He can’t get close enough to me.
We’re quiet, neither of us speaking. Even Bobby is quiet in the kitchen, and I’m glad that he’s giving us privacy.
I let the silence linger until Ford finally breaks it.
“It was a roadside bomb. I was the one driving. One minute, you’re on patrol, and you’re laughing at a raunchy joke your buddy told.
The next you’re waking up in the hospital, and they tell you that everyone else is gone.
Lost all my friends in the blink of an eye. ”
He’s touching his side, rubbing where the scars are. I don’t even think he realizes that he’s doing it, and my heart hurts for what he’s been through. I take his hand in mine, so he can stop touching the area. I give it a gentle squeeze, offering him courage and comfort.
“I haven’t felt like I deserved anything good since. Then there you were on my front porch, and I thought maybe fate was teasing me. Maybe this was my punishment, to be tormented by a beautiful woman I couldn’t have. Someone I fell in love with.”
“You fell in love with me?” I repeat, the moment finally starting to feel real. This isn’t just another one of my late night fantasies after too many trashy romance movies and a pint of ice cream. This is real. It’s happening.
A muscle works in his jaw, anger returning to his expression. “That’s why I couldn’t let you go tonight. If you were going to dance with someone, touch someone, kiss someone, then it should be me. It should always be me. Because you’re mine, and I will fight anyone who tries to come between us.”
I can’t help the grin that’s spreading across my face. “Good. Because I will fight anyone who tries to come between us too.”
Then without waiting, I launch myself into his lap. My arms go around his neck, and he kisses me hungrily. This is our first kiss without masks or pretense or any silly games. This is just us, the way it should always be.
He licks into my mouth, growling and muttering things under his breath. I think he’s threatening to carry me away to his cabin and keep me chained to his bed, so no other man ever sees me. Fine by me. I’ll let this rugged mountain man keep me for the rest of my life.