Page 152 of Hold Me Until Morning

A reckoning.

Cody buried a roar in my neck, his body pulsing and vibrating as he came.

Our orgasms rushed through us.

Liquid flames.

An inferno where we were trapped.

A flashfire where we were both consumed.

Burned beyond recognition.

Incinerated.

Ash.

We floated there, in the rubble of who we once had been, in the darkness as we clung to each other.

I didn’t know how much time had passed, but Cody had me fully wrapped in his arms, breathing me in, our hearts thundering against the other.

Finally, he pulled away so he could look down at me, and I stared up through the dimness at his marred, beautiful face.

He ran the pad of his thumb along the edge of my cheek. “I mean it, Hailey. I’m here, standing for you. No matter what, I won’t walk away.”

Reaching out a trembling hand, I scratched my fingers through his beard and whispered, “I trust you.”

THIRTY-THREE

CODY

TWENTY-FOUR YEARS OLD

The sun beat down as Cody hefted the wooden pole to place it into the slot between the two supporting posts. He’d been hired to put in fences around three pastures at Wagner Ranch, a place that had to be the most gorgeous property in Colorado.

Deep in the recesses of the woods, the dense thickets of soaring trees shrouded the area, giving it a quiet, secluded vibe.

He was already slammed for the summer, but he’d taken the project on, needing to stock away some extra cash since he was making his landscaping gig official. Applying for a business license and insurance and all that shit that would make him legitimate.

Allow him employees and expansion and a way to chase down those dreams that hovered just outside his reach.

Hoping to finally pay off his mother’s house so he might one day be able to afford his own.

He grabbed the drill and began to drive the huge screw through the log to adhere it to the wooden pole, sweat dribbling down his back as he did.

He stilled, though, when he felt the presence.

When he felt the severity of those eyes that had been haunting him for the last two weeks snag on him from behind. Eyes that continually watched, peeking out from corners and peering through the expanse.

Crystalline eyes that speared him through.

He shifted enough to find her coming down the path toward the stables where she went every day.

Blonde hair braided into two pleats at the side of her head.

Not a lick of makeup, as pretty as could be, though she had that innocent vibe that he normally strayed away from because he didn’t mess with that.

He romped and fucked and had a damned good time, but he had no interest in taking anything farther than that. He had his mother and sisters to worry about, a business to build, and he couldn’t afford to get distracted.

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