Page 127 of Mine For The Winter

Her fingers tangled into his hair. She scraped her nails against his scalp and he let out a low groan. “Why are you glad?” she asked him.

“Because I didn’t deserve you then. Any guy who makes a pact like that doesn’t deserve a woman like you.” He looked up at her, his eyes shining. “But there’s something much more important than that. If I’d have told you, you wouldn’t have Cole. And I’m so damn glad you have him. I love that kid.”

It was like the final piece of armor she’d fastened around her heart disintegrated. This man loved her son, and she loved him. Why had she spent so long fighting this? She only had to look into his eyes to know he was telling the truth.

He was a good man. The best. He’d saved her from hunger that first day of school and he was still trying to save her.

Maybe it was time to let him.

A tear rolled down her cheek. He pulled her closer until she was straddling his legs, and reached up to wipe it away. His hands were on her hips. Their faces were close, enough for him to feel the warmth of her breath on his skin. He was smiling at her, a soft, goofy kind of smile.

An I’m-in-love-with-you smile that he never wanted to go away.

Leaning forward, he brushed his lips against hers. Needing the connection. To wipe the past away.

And then they were kissing, his mouth moving against hers, her fingers in his hair again, his digging into her hips. She moved against him as their tongues touched, making him hard, making him needy.

“Mom?”

Cole’s voice was like a bucket of cold water on them both. Kelly jumped off of him, touching her hair. And he stood too, adjusting himself.

“Give me a minute,” she whispered, running out of her bedroom. “Don’t move an inch.”

He sat back down and lifted that photo up again, taking in their smiling faces, their muddy skin, the way they were holding hands. Damn, he’d been happy then. But he felt happier now.

Fucking ecstatic, in case anybody was wondering. He’d spent most of his life messing things up. Making decisions that hurt people.

But now? He was older. Wiser. And more importantly he was ready for love.

“Hi.” She pulled the door closed. “Sorry about that.”

“You never have to say sorry for putting Cole first.”

Her gaze softened. “Thank you.”

“Just telling you the truth.” He reached for her and she joined him back on the bed, this time beside him, their hips touching as she took the photograph from his hand.

“One day I’m going to make you recreate this,” he told her.

“Can we wait until summer? I don’t want to catch hypothermia.”

He grinned again.

“What?” she asked, smiling back at him. “What did I say this time?”

“You said the summer. Like you’re happy for me to stay with you. Like you’re mine for more than just the winter.”

She leaned forward to wrap her hands around his neck resting her head against his shoulder. “I’ve always been yours. It just took us a while to realize.”

And what a damn journey it had been. They’d walked through dark shadows and bright sunshine and all the things in between. But they’d got here, and it was perfect.

Even better, their journey was only just beginning.

“I love you,” he told her, pulling her close. “So damn much it hurts.”

* * *

“But why can’t I go to school?” Cole asked, his hair mussed and his pajama pants half-twisted around his waist. Kelly tried not to smile because she couldn’t remember him ever begging to go to school before.

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