Page 112 of Live for Me

I didn’t know how much time had passed when Mags found us. We slowly broke apart, all tear-stained cheeks and red-rimmed eyes, looking up the dark cowboy.

“Hi,” Valerie greeted, laughing quietly.

Mags blinked. “Kings is looking for you, Val.”

“Oh.” She moved to get up, and Mags was there, holding out his hand for her. Once she was on her feet, she put her hand on his shoulder, silently thanking him before heading inside. Mags’ dark eyes studied Harmony and me for a moment.

“Women don’t belong on the floor,” he said gruffly, holding out his hand to Harmony first, helping her up, and then to me.

His hand was warm, calloused, and strong—like Beau’s. He pulled me up with ease.

“Thank you,” I muttered, wiping the tears from my cheeks again. “Sorry I’m such a mess.”

Mags said nothing, stepping back away from us.

“You disappearing into the night, Mags?” Harmony asked, teasing him with a soft smile.

He headed down the porch steps. “I’ll be back.”

And that was all he gave us before he disappeared.

“You know he heard every single word of our conversation, right?” Harmony asked, staring up at the moon now.

My head jerked. “Wasn’t he in there with the rest of the cowboys?”

Harmony stepped forward, leaning her forearms against the porch railing. I followed her, mirroring her position. “He’s been in the foyer, listening in on the cowboys and us,” she explained, shooting me a look. “He may never thank you for doing what you did, Abbie, but trust me when I say, that man is grateful.”

I nodded. “I know he is.”

The screen door opened behind us, and I looked over my shoulder, finding Beau coming out, placing his hat on his head. As the door banged shut behind him, he came directly to me, cupping my face in his hands, his lips heading for mine.

“Sorry, Harm,” he muttered. “Need to kiss my fuckin’ woman.”

His lips landed on mine, and I clung to him, my hands landing on his biceps as his tongue forced my lips open. And God, Harmony watching or not, I let him in. He tasted like mint, anger, and all man. He held me in place, kissing me until I was breathless, my heart pounding for an entirely different reason now.

Slowly, he pulled away, both of us breathing heavy now.

A throat cleared softly at our side, and Beau looked over to her, his forehead resting on mine.

“I would just like to say, I’m glad I tried to help her run away from you,” she said, her words making me look at her too. There was a deep blush on her cheeks, and her eyes shone with pride. “I would also like to take partial credit for this.” She gestured to the both of us, tucking a curl behind her ear.

“Harmony,” Beau called.

“Hm?”

“Go find your husband,” he suggested, his lips twitching.

She nodded. “Right. Yeah. Um. I’m just going to…”

I didn’t even get to say goodnight to her before Beau was kissing me again, this time with a sense of urgency that made my body ignite. He backed me into a pillar, growling into my mouth before taking my bottom lip between his teeth, pressing his front to mine. His thumbs shifted below my jaw, forcing my head back, allowing him to dive down, his lips kissing along the path he’d grabbed in the dining room. With every kiss, he whispered something new.

“I’m sorry.”

Kiss.

“My beautiful wildflower.”

Kiss.

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