Page 57 of Hold Me Before You Go

Mags was very,veryhard to read, and on the outside, he looked scarier than Grayson. But still, I trusted him. I trusted him more than anyone else on Hallow Ranch because I knew what he’d done for Grayson. I knew he saved my lover’s life years ago, and for that, I would always trust him.

Once he snapped out of his surprise, he told Mason and Denver to stand down, ordering Denver to go back up to the “house” and the couple to continue “settling in” at their new place.

That was fifteen minutes ago, and before they left, Harmony helped me onto the couch. I was exhausted, my entire body sore.Now, the cowboy and I were alone, the only sound in the cabin the cracking of firewood.

“Mags?” I called out again, softer this time. I watched his profile, taking in his tanned skin, sharp eyes, and black scruff. I watched his chest slowly rise and fall as he stared out into the endless white abyss.

Grayson told me Mags was a man of few words, having been that way since he got out of the Marines over a decade ago. He told me he and Mags were the same age, that he hadn’t left Hallow Ranch since he got here. That was almost a decade ago, and Mags hadn’t seen or interacted with the general public since. Grayson had also told me Hallow Ranch healed Mags, and he was happy now.

However, I was here, sitting four feet away from the man, and there was one thing to be certain.

Mags was far from healed.

He was in anguish.

Behind those dark eyes was a tortured, fractured soul.

A lump gathered in my throat, and I attempted to clear it with a small cough.

Finally, he looked over to me, and I froze, my lips parting as I saw the shadow of fury over his rugged face.

“Are you alright?” he asked, his jagged voice cutting through the warm, cozy cabin like a knife.

I blinked. “Denver asked that same question, and you told him—”

He came closer. “Know what I said to him, but that was before you told us who you were. Now that I know, you need to know this: Grayson is the closest thing I will probably ever have to a fucking brother.”

I closed my mouth, my heart pounding.

Mags came to stand behind the chair opposite the couch, bracing his strong hands on the back of it. “Do you understandwhat that means, Carrie?” he asked, his voice filled with something I couldn’t decipher, but it gutted me all the same. The lump in my throat reformed as a muscle ticked in his cheek, a flash of emotion appearing in his dark eyes. When I said nothing, he all but growled, “That means you’re fucking important to me. That means you aren’t just some fucking stranger I spotted on a trail camera and brought back here. That meansI need to fucking know if you’re alright.”

“Mags, I—”

“Answer me, God dammit!”he clipped, his voice hard, bouncing off the log walls of the cabin, the light of the fire highlighting the sharp edges of him.

He needed to know if I was okay. He needed to know because of his connection to Grayson.

I flinched and nodded quickly, not wanting to piss him off further. “I—I’m alright, Mags. I promise, I’m okay.”

His chest heaved, his hair falling over his shoulders as he stared at me, his face twisted in anguish. “Fucking Christ,” he pushed out, his eyes hard as they remained on my face, memorizing me.

After a moment, his shoulders sagged, and he bent his head and took his hat off. He rose up to his full height and ran a hand through his long, thick black hair before shaking his head, muttering something I couldn’t hear. When he looked at me again, regret and shame glimmered in his dark eyes. “I’m sorry,” he murmured roughly. “I didn’t mean to—I just—” He cut himself off and looked at the fire. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

I said nothing, waiting for him to say more.

He didn’t scare me. Mags was a good man, I knew. He wouldn’t hurt me, but I couldn’t stop him from lashing out. Underneath all that tanned skin, dark hair, and handsome features was endless pain, and most of all, anger. He was angry, and me being here must’ve triggered something.

We were connected by a powerful link.

That link was Grayson, and I only knew half of the horrors he’d been through.

Mags knew all of them.

“Your face is bruised,” he noted quietly as those dark eyes lingered on my cheek. “Your face is bruised, your bottom lip is cut, you have bruises on your wrists, and you’re Grayson’s woman—his sunshine.”

My bottom lip began to tremble, but he didn’t notice.

Grayson told Mags I was his sunshine?

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