Page 89 of Ashes of the Past
She smirks, side-eyeing me. “You must be some prize if a woman is willing to fight me for you.”
Relief washes over me. Brynn could have one hand on the door handle right now, ready to tuck and roll out of the truck the second we’re back at the ranch. Instead, she’s laughing about the ridiculousness that just ensued.
Thank goodness.
I snort, shaking my head. “I’m not a prize. I just learned too late that she likes chaos.”
Brynn tilts her head playfully. “Well, I guess that’s something we have in common.”
I glance over at her, raising a brow. “How do you figure?”
She grins, looking out the window. “Our first relationships were with crazy people.”
A laugh escapes me, genuine for the first time since we left the restaurant. “Yeah, I guess you’ve got a point there.”
“I definitely didn’t have that on my Bingo card for the night,” she says.
She reaches over and laces her fingers through mine.
“Me neither,” I say as I squeeze her hand. “I’m really sorry about her.”
“I appreciate the apology, but there’s no need for it. You can’t control her; her behavior is all on her. In the beginning of relationships, people tend not to show us the real version of themselves. I was blind with Clay, and like you said, I learned too late who he really was.”
“Yeah,” I murmur.
That’s an understatement. She’s being really cool about all this, and I’m so damn grateful for that.
“You probably have a thousand different emotions going through you right now. I just…I just want you to know that it doesn’t change how I feel about you. I had a really good time with you, and her actions didn’t change that.”
I glance back at her, swallowing a smile.
She’s really perfect in a million different ways.
“Thanks for saying that.”
“If you…if you’re struggling because I don’t know, maybe you still love her. I can…”
I resist the urge to slam on the brakes. Instead, I slow the truck down and pull into a field road. She’s stiff beside me,almost tense. I put the car in Park and turned in my seat so that I could look directly at her.
“I’m not certain how I can make this any more clear to you, Brynn Castings. I don’t want anything to do with my ex-wife. I’m only interested in you.”
“I know how hard it can be to shut those emotions off and—”
I put a finger up to her lips to silence her.
“Stop arguing with me.”
I unbuckle my seat belt before I lean forward and unbuckle hers. I put my hand on the back of her neck, my fingers tangling in her hair before I pull her into a kiss.
I kiss her, slow this time, savoring the way she melts into me, the way she grips my body like she’s trying to get under my skin. I deepen the kiss just enough to make sure she knows exactly where I stand, exactly what I want.
When we finally pull away, she’s breathless, her eyes half-lidded. “That was…”
“Yeah,” I murmur, resting my forehead against hers. “It was. Any more questions?”
She giggles and leans forward. “I do have another question.”
I sigh and shake my head, fully expecting her to argue some more with me about my feelings.
