Page 102 of Cowboy Bull's Promise

But I’m more scared of wasting this time pretending I don’t want him. Pretending I’m not already in love with this big, growly, secretly soft Bull of a man.

And I know I have to choose.

So I do.

Before I can speak, he takes a breath and beats me to it.

“Arliss, I know you’ve got questions. And I know what I did—claiming you without telling you everything—” he breaks off, jaw tight, shoulders tense. “That wasn’t fair. I should’ve waited. But there’s something you need to know. More than anything else.”

I turn fully toward him. My heart is pounding so hard it’s a miracle it doesn’t crack my ribs.

“What?” I whisper.

His eyes meet mine, golden and earnest and filled with more emotion than I thought any man could hold.

“I love you.”

The words land like thunder.

“It’s fast, and maybe it’s crazy, and yeah, you’d be right to question it—but it’s real. It’s mine. I love you more than I’ve ever loved anything in my life.”

I feel the heat start in my chest, then spread like fire licking through my veins.

I can’t do anything about it here.

Not in this house, not with Gramps one room away sipping his tea with his lingerie-clad lady love—but I need him to know that I hear him.

I feel him.

And I’m with him.

So I smile.

Not shy. Not scared.

Sure. Brave. Honest.

And with more guts than I knew I had, I look him straight in those wild, wounded stormy brown eyes and I open my mouth.

“Good.”

His brow furrows, like he misheard me. “Good?”

“Yeah. Good.” I reach for my bag, sling it over my shoulder, then grab the smaller one filled with my cosmetics and toiletries.

“Now take me home, Kian. Then you can show me exactly what you meant by that declaration.”

He straightens, like I just threw down a gauntlet he’s been dying to pick up.

“Yeah? You mean that?”

I toss him the larger bag and grin. “It’s early days. I don’t know where this is gonna go, but I know I want to find out.”

And then, quieter, but with every inch of my heart behind it.

“Let’s just promise each other something right now. Honesty. Always. No secrets. No pretending. You feel something, you say it. You have questions, you ask. No more bottling things up or hiding from the hard stuff. Can we do that? Is it a deal?”

It’s a risk.

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