Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 87179 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87179 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
She grins and sighs once more when I switch to the other foot.
“They’ve been sore,” she admits softly. “I’m just on them a lot, so this is a treat. I probably should invest in some new sneakers, but who has time?”
“Maybe you should hire more help, just for the summer season,” I suggest. I don’t like that she’s exhausting herself. Even if she loves what she does, she can’t work herself into exhaustion.
“I definitely will next year. Our town is becoming more and more popular as a destination wedding location, and I could take on double the events that I do now, if I wanted to. To do that, I’d need to double the workforce. I’m not afraid to do that, but it can’t happen this season.”
She clears her throat, ignoring the television altogether, and watches my fingers dig into her arch.
“What made you decide to be a cop?”
“I don’t know, I just always knew that’s what I would do. It wasn’t a question. When I was a teenager, I was convinced that I’d move to a big city and be on a force there, where the action is.”
“High-speed chases and murder and all the exciting stuff?” she says, waggling her eyebrows.
“That’s right.” I finish with the second foot and then take her hand, squeeze some lotion into her palm, and keep rubbing. The moan that comes out of her delicious little throat makes me want to lay her down and fuck her into next week. Instead, I clear my throat. “And I tried it.”
“You did?” That has her opening her eyes in surprise. “Where did you go?”
“I was in Seattle for about a year, and it was exciting. But it was also kind of sad, and I didn’t like being so far away from the ranch. Montana is my home. It’s where I’m supposed to be, and it didn’t take me long to remember that and move back. I was hired on here, and I’ll retire from here someday.”
“Well, I’m glad you came back. I would have missed out on this really great hand massage if you hadn’t.” Her smile is soft and sweet. “You do a good job here, Chase, and I’m not just talking about the massage. I enjoyed working with you when everything went down with Erin a few months ago. You’re smart, and even though it was a stressful situation, you were excellent at calming me down and communicating clearly what you needed me to do.”
I reach for her other hand, kiss the palm, and then begin to massage it.
“I don’t have a lot of experience in dealing with the police,” she continues with a rueful smile, “since I’ve never been arrested and haven’t needed to work on an investigation before.”
“No speeding tickets?”
“Not even one. My point is, you make people feel safe here, and that’s a gift. I don’t think just anyone could do that.”
“Thank you.” I don’t know what else to say. “I’m glad you feel safe. That’s always the goal. Any more issues at your house, with noises or slashed tires?”
“No.” Her smile is sleepy now, and she yawns. “Nothing going on there, thankfully. Everything’s been quiet.”
Her voice softens, her eyes slide shut, and within just a few minutes, her breathing evens out with sleep.
I reach for the remote, turn off the TV, and sit in the quiet, watching Summer and Lily snooze away. Having them both here feels right. I’ve wanted Summer in my house, and in my bed, for a long while, and now I finally have her here. Lily is cute and not any trouble at all. I’ll have to get a couple of beds and some bowls for her because now that I have them here, I plan for them to be here often.
Finally, I stand and lift Summer into my arms. She curls into me and presses her face into my neck the way she did earlier after the bath, and I feel the same zing shoot down my spine. Lily’s head comes up off of the couch, and I nod, gesturing for her to follow us, which she happily does, hot on my heels as I carry Summer up to the bedroom and gently lay her on the bed.
Lily jumps up with her and curls into Summer’s side.
“Leave some room for me,” I whisper to her and rub her head before I go back downstairs to turn off the lights, make sure the doors are all locked up tight, and then return to my girl.
I climb in behind her and pull her to me, tucking my arm around her middle.
Yeah, this feels right. Having her warm against my body and listening to Lily’s little snores as my eyes droop is the most contented that I’ve felt in years.
Maybe ever.
I’m going to do whatever it takes to make her mine for good.