Page 70 of The Cowboy's Unshakeable Love

“Just thinking about the day when I’m carrying you off to bed because I’m in a hurry to get you there – not because you can’t get there yourself.”

She ran her fingers through his beard and kissed him.

“That day cannot come soon enough.”

~ ~ ~

When Travis woke up on Saturday morning, it took him a moment to get his bearings. He’d grown used to waking up with his arm around Retta – that wasn’t unusual. It was the filtered light coming in through the drapes and the pretty pink shade on the light above the bed.

Of course, he was at Retta’s place. He loved the way it felt. The only way he could describe it was that it felt like home. There was nothing about it that should feel that way to him. It was very feminine, but that didn’t matter. He wished he could put his finger on it, but he couldn’t.

He’d known that it was more than the décor that created the feeling. He wouldn’t have asked her to help with the cabins otherwise. The guests he intended to bring in weren’t the kind who’d appreciate pretty colors or frills. From the work that she’d done so far, she’d proved him right. The décor she’d chosen for the cabins was completely different from anything she had here in her home. She’d chosen darker colors, everything had a muchmore masculine vibe, but the overall feeling was still the same – she made a place feel like a home.

He smiled when she muttered something and turned toward him. She didn’t wake, she pressed her forehead against his arm and settled again. He loved the way she did that. He’d learned a lot about her since they started sleeping together. He shifted his hips away from her – one part of him was getting impatient to be able to sleep with her. He could wait.

The way she slept reminded him of the way she’d approached their relationship – the way she seemed to approach most things in her life. She started out distant. She’d kiss him goodnight and then scoot over to the edge of the bed – saying that she wanted to give him room and that it was better for her with the cast. Around midnight, he usually woke up to find that she’d moved over and was pressed up against his side. When he put his arm around her, she muttered something, and he thought that she’d wake up, but she didn’t. By the morning, she usually had her arm around his waist, her head on his shoulder, and sometimes, her good leg hitched up over his.

It was the same as the way she’d kept him at arm’s length for a long time, and then showed up out of the blue. She’d come to stay with Callie just after he’d moved home to the valley. She’d hung out with him for a little while before admitting that she wanted to explore something more with him. The way he saw the current state of their relationship was that she had her arm around his waist but hadn’t entangled her leg with his yet.

He smirked to himself, not sure why he was thinking of it that way. Probably because he was trying to distract himself from thinking about the day when he’d finally get to make love to her. What would be the equivalent of that in the metaphor that he’d come up with? He didn’t know if marriage was an idea that she’d even entertain. It appealed to him, but it wouldn’t botherhim if she didn’t want it. He wasn’t worried about conforming to something that society said was the norm. What mattered to him was the two of them being clear that they wanted to spend the rest of their lives together.

If the ultimate entanglement wasn’t marriage, would it be sharing the business with her? He didn’t know how he felt about that. Creating a kind of sanctuary place had been a goal of his for a long time. So many vets struggled after they got out. Transitioning back into civilian life wasn’t easy. He knew that he’d been lucky to have the other guys. They’d shared the experience and been there for each other. Not only was he not alone, but he also hadn’t gone back to a ‘regular life.’ He couldn’t imagine how he would have survived if he had to do what some guys did – they had to go back to a family and a life in the suburbs full of people who had no idea what they’d been through. He sighed. That had been the case for a friend of his. He’d asked him to come and work with him for Cash and Mav but even though he wanted to, he’d said he couldn’t make it happen. He needed to be home with his wife and kids, and they didn’t want to move. He’d done his best to fit back into a world that no longer understood him, but in the end, he’d taken his own life.

“Are you okay?”

He turned to smile at Retta. “How could I not be, waking up with you like this?”

She kissed his shoulder. “You went all tense, as though you were thinking about something that bothered you.”

He nodded slowly. “I was thinking about my buddy.”

“The one who died?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m sorry.”

He shrugged. “It is what it is.” He tucked his fingers under her chin and pressed a kiss to her lips. “I know he would have liked you.”

She smiled. “I’m sure I would have liked him, too. I’m not going to push, but would you think about what I said?”

“Yeah.”

“You don’t even need to ask what I mean, do you?”

“Nope. We understand each other. I think I like the idea of bringing you in as a partner, but I need to wrap my head around it first. I don’t need your money.”

“No! I didn’t think you did.”

“I know. I just needed to say it out loud. I just think it’d make the place ours – it’d become our mission, not just mine with you helping me.”

“That’s exactly why I want to do it.”

“Okay, there’s no rush. And before we decide anything, I think you should talk to Callie about it.”

“She didn’t attach any strings to giving me that money. She wouldn’t …”

“I didn’t imagine she would, but she’s your daughter and she loves you. If she has any reservations, you should hear them.”

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