Chapter Twenty-One

Once she’d caught her breath, Violet ran a finger down the slope of Ford’s nose and tapped the center of his mouth.

He kissed her fingertip, eliciting more goose bumps than the cool air.

“Cold?” he asked, cocooning her in his arms and shifting so he could pull the blanket up and over them. With the heat of his body soaking into hers, she didn’t bother mentioning he’d been the main reason for the shiver.

While she’d been harsh on herself for those twenty pounds she never managed to lose, the way Ford worshiped her body made her grateful for every extra inch. Add in the passion that’d swum in his eyes as he did so, and it was easier to be kind to herself. Whenever she was with him, she felt beautiful and sexy and—best of all—desired.

Sure, it was something she should’ve been capable of herself, but after the number Benjamin had done to her self-esteem, the boost was much appreciated.

A soft glow caught her eye, a fleck of yellow between dark pine needles. Another spark and another. “Lightning bugs,” she whispered as the insects lit up the dark, adding an enchanted-forest effect.

Her skin hummed as Ford’s soft lips and scruff skimmed the line of her shoulder. “Yeah, I asked them to put on a show just for you.”

“Oh, did you now?”

A grin spread across his face as he nodded, all false innocence and mischief.

“Well, it’s insanely romantic.”

“Before you showed up, I’d never call myself a romantic. Thanks to you, Violet Abrams, I might be changing my stance.”

Another string looped around her heart, tethering her to this man, this night, and this place.

Dangerously close to falling had come and gone. Affection had been replaced by a stronger emotion—one she dared not name.

Violet’s defenses sounded the alarm, a belated warning to reinforce her walls. It had a Trojan War vibe: letting the enemy in and then closing the drawbridge so they were stuck inside to battle it out, no escape in sight.

Now her only option was a white flag, one she hoped not to have to wave, but she clenched it in her fist just in case.

“I haven’t had a girlfriend in years, and the few I’ve had…”

Violet froze, afraid to move or breathe.

“What I’m trying to say is that I don’t bring girls here. I don’t do this.” He gestured between him and her, and everything inside her began to crack. “But I want to do it with you.”

One by one, she peeled her fingers off the metaphorical white flag so she could hold on to Ford instead. She placed her palm over the center of his heart, feeling the thump, thump, thump in response.

When she glanced up through her lashes, he was peering deep into her soul, imprinting himself upon it, and she knew she’d never be the same.

And for the first time, instead of scaring her, it comforted her.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“For what?”

For making me feel witty, cared for, understood, and beautiful. For showing me a different side of Uncertainty and another side of yourself. Pushing me to pick up my camera. Bringing me here.

Getting me to believe in love again.

The words lodged in her constricting throat, and she wasn’t sure which ones to choose, anyway, so she kept it simple. “For everything.”

Strong fingers wrapped around her hip, and then he rolled her so their hearts lined up and beat against each other. He splayed his fingers on her lower back as he sealed the perfect night with the perfect kiss.

Lost as she was in a sea of euphoric happiness, his words sounded far away when he said, “Get dressed. I wanna show you one last thing before we go home.”

…

Between cutting off Violet’s circulation and a possible fall off the rocky path, Ford decided to err on the side of holding her hand too tight.

Gravel skidded underneath their feet, and he made sure she was steady before stepping on the next large boulder. Finally, his feet hit a familiar flat landing. “See that alcove there?”

Violet peeked around him. “Yeah.”

“I spent countless nights there in high school. My dad would go on these binges, and that’d rile up my brothers. Or one of his new girlfriends would be around, and they’d be loudly fighting or fu—” Ford rubbed at his neck, wishing he’d cut himself off earlier. “Anyway, whenever it got to be too much, I’d head here with my pack, sleeping bag, and fishing pole.”

“For how many nights at a time?” she asked.

He shrugged. “Eh. Anywhere from two to five.”

“Your dad didn’t send the search and rescue team after you? Or was that what inspired your career path?”

Although it wasn’t exactly funny, he chuckled at the thought of Jimmy McGuire admitting he might need help of any kind. “That’d require him realizing I was missing. He did teach us wilderness survival skills, so I guess I have him to thank for that. My ability to rough it allowed me to find peace out here, even at the most contentious times.”

Violet lowered her eyebrows. “I… I don’t know what to say.” She hugged him around his middle. “It sounds rough. But I’m also glad you had those skills, and admittedly I do find your badass side super sexy. I just wish you didn’t have to run away to find peace.”

A band formed around his chest, one that contracted with each inhale and exhale. The fact of the matter was, he’d often been jealous of his friends’ parents and home life. They’d complain here and there, and he’d pretend he was glad he had so much freedom.

When in truth it was indifference.

Now he got a bit more than that—mostly whenever his dad or brothers wanted something. They jabbed at him about being the reliable McGuire, until they were the ones who relied on him.

Since he didn’t want to get into that, he focused on Violet’s other question. “As for my career, we had a drought one year, and there was a big fire.”

Ford spun Violet around in his arms so that her back met his chest and pointed across the lake. “Over in that ridge. Fall of my junior year. The fire crews worked endlessly to put it out. I thought ‘now that’s a badass job, running toward the flames instead of away from them.’ Before that, I’d been set on becoming a stuntman.” He rested his chin on the top of Violet’s head. “I talked to a few of the firefighters when they came into Martin’s Trading Post, and one of them told me I should become a paramedic, since it’d open up my options. When I looked into certification, I stewed over whether I was smart enough to learn all that medical mumbo jumbo. But you might have noticed I’m a tad competitive—”

“Just a tad?” Violet teased, and he gave her ass a light smack that only made her giggle.

“Addie needed to take anatomy as well and bet me she could get a better grade, and it was on after that.”

Violet relaxed against him, her fingers drifting across his forearm and soothing his inner turmoil about spilling so many personal details. “When did the search and rescue and dog training enter the picture?”

“Sorta stumbled into them. There was a lost hunter, and I’m familiar with the area, so I helped out. The Talladega Search and Rescue asked if I’d be interested in joining the team, and it was nice for people to want me around instead of waiting for me to leave so they could whisper about my family.”

Violet gazed up at him, adoration gleaming in her eyes. He wasn’t sure he deserved all that, but his heart swelled that she obviously did.

“The guy who trained me also trained canine units, and he was about to retire. When he asked if I wanted the job, I about gave him a heart attack with my enthusiastic yes.”

Man, he was in deep now. While the gang accused him of being the loudmouth, mostly he blew hot air and talked shit. Flavored the conversation with jokes. When it came to real talk, he’d only ever gotten this intense with Addie.

For a moment, he second-guessed taking Violet into the alcove.

But then she twisted to face him, the smile on her face turning her from gorgeous to woman-of-his-dreams material. She kissed him softly and rested her head against his chest. “I love everything about what you told me. Are you ready to concede that you’re, indeed, a good guy?”

“Don’t know that I’d go that far,” he said, and she tipped her head up enough that he could see her roll her eyes.

That cemented his decision. If nothing else, he wanted to sear this memory into his brain. That way, no matter what happened later, he could recall the night nothing existed besides him and the woman making a mess of his insides. “We’d better get on with what we came here to do—besides sex, of course.”

“Of course,” she said, her husky voice suggesting she was reliving their session underneath the big Alabama sky.

Linking his fingers with hers, he led her into the alcove.

A pile of ash from fires past sat in the pit where he’d cook any fish he’d caught.

Ford turned on his flashlight and ran the beam over the walls. “The outer rocks have all those different names and colors and flags painted, and I was thinking…” He dug through his bag until he came up with the spray paint. “We should make our mark here, where only we can find it.”

Shit. With that out in the air, he wished for the ability to undo, undo. It was such an absurd idea. “Or is that stupid?”

“Not stupid,” Violet said, hijacking the purple paint. “I’m going to get to work, because otherwise I might cry over such a perfect gesture”—sure enough, her words came out clipped—“and then you’ll go calling me overly dramatic.”

The peck she bestowed on his cheek set off fireworks in his chest. “If it makes you feel better, I’m fairly certain I’m the one obsessed now.”

“Not sure you’ll agree once you see how old-school I’m about to go on you—don’t make fun.” The can rattled as she shook it, and then she wrote her initials. She added a plus sign underneath, and next came his initials. “Do I add the TLF?”

“I don’t follow,” Ford said.

“True love forever, duh.”

Was she asking…? Even scarier, did he…?

Relax. It’s initials, not a proposal.

His heart palpitated and expanded, and it hit him that he might just be developing L-word feelings for this woman. “Do it,” he said.

Violet connected the L and used the bottom part as the middle of the F, and he did recall seeing that in high school. After she’d completed the F, she drew a big heart around the entire thing.

Using the white can in his hands, Ford painted the petals of a flower. He exchanged the white paint for the purple and outlined the image. “There you go. It’s a violet.”

“Aww.” She pressed her lips together, one hand going to her heart. Then she lifted the white can, the tip aimed at a blank spot of rock. “I have to add one more thing.”

Blocking the section where she was making her mark, she sprayed, shook, and sprayed again. With a flourish, she stepped back. “Ta-da!”

The symbol for Ford trucks stood out against the dark rock.

“Get it?” Happiness shone through her features, and right then and there, he didn’t have to wonder anymore. No might or maybe about it.

Falling in love with Violet had snuck up on him. He wasn’t sure what to do about it, and the idea of telling her caused pressure to cumulate beneath his ribs.

Instead, he decided to show her. He drew her to him and planted a kiss on her still-smiling lips. He meant to just take a taste, but all it did was whet his appetite and awaken his carnal side.

Breaths sawed in and out of their mouths.

Hers…

His…

Theirs.

And before he could analyze and stifle the words, he said, “I want you to stay.”