Page 85 of Stay for Me

“Mags?”

Something in my voice made him slow, coming to a full stop just before we exited the forest. “What is it?” he asked, looking at me.

My hand on the back of his neck shifted, snaking around and up to cup his cheek, the rough hair of his beard scratching my palm. He stiffened, his jaw jumping underneath my hand. “Don’t leave me,” I pleaded. “Please, don’t. Not now.”

“Not going to let you out of my sight, Diana,” he murmured roughly.

I nodded, relief washing over me like rain shower in the dead heat of summer.

“Mags!”

Both of our heads turned, finding Denver walking through the trees, his gray eyes filled with worry. “Diana,” he pushed out, rushing over to us. “Thank fuck.” He gently touched my cheek, his face twisted with a mix of fear and concern as he took in the state of me. “What the hell happened?” he asked, looking at Mags.

“I was stupid,” I began, and Denver’s eyes cut back to me. “There was a bear—”

“—I’m going to kill it,” a voice said from behind Denver. “First our cattle, and now this.”

Mason appeared a second later, looking more pissed off than his brother. His features softened slightly at the sight of me.

“No one is killing that baby,” I snapped, pain be damned.

I felt all three pairs of eyes on me then, Mags’ arms tightening.

“That bear is not a baby,” Mags deadpanned. “It’s fully grown.”

“It’s an innocent creature,” I countered.

Denver looked to the heaven’s. “Jesus fuckin’ Christ, you sound like Val.”

“And Harm,” Mason mumbled. “She told me she’d divorce me if I ever killed a wolf or a bear.”

“I’ll sue you all,” I warned. “Leave that baby alone. It just scared me, and I was in fight or flight.”

The Langston brothers glared at me. “You ran?” Denver quipped at the same time Mason said, “Diana, you never run from a grizzly.”

“That’s enough,” Mags snarled. Both men looked at him before he started rattling off orders. “Need to get her out of here so I can look at her ankle. Mason, go get her car. It’s on the west side. Bring it to my cabin. Tell one of the twins to get Midnight. Denver, help me with Diana.” Before they could respond, he moved, walking through them and out of the forest. On the horizon, I saw another horse—Beau’s---barreling towards us, a river of hair flying behind its rider.

Abbie.

“Easy, Spirit, easy,” she cooed as the horse came to stop a few feet from us. Her brown eyes flashed as they landed on me. She swung off the steed with ease before running to us. “Diana, what the hell?” she breathed out, grabbing my face and sweeping some of my hair back. “What happened?”

“Abbie.” Mags’ voice was gentle but laced with impatience as she looked up at him. “Need to get her to my cabin, yeah? You can either help me with that or move.”

His cabin?

Mags was taking me to his cabin.

“Of course,” she said. “Whatever you both need, I’m here. The rest of the family will meet us there.”

What?

Mags was moving again, heading to the four wheeler. “Denver,” he called, turning around.

“Right here,” the ranch owner replied as his brother took off on his horse, heading back towards the main house.

“Take her for a moment,” Mags ordered.

“I can stand—”

---