“Oh,” she breathes.
“Cat got your tongue, Kota Lynn?”
Good. Maybe she’s finally coming around to what I’ve known all along. I’ll continue to be patient with her, but progress is progress, and fuck does it feel good to see her affected by me even slightly.
“Please do not call me what my brother and Mama call me. It’s weird.” Her face scrunches up in the most adorable way.
I smirk in response, shaking my head. “My bad, Austen. Won’t happen again.”
“There, much better. I like when you call me that, even if I still don’t understand why you call me the wrong city. Maybe you should take to callin’ me Dallas.” Her suggestion ends on a hiccup.
“I’d let you in on my little secret, but I’m afraid you’re too tipsy to remember tomorrow. The time is coming for me to spill it all soon though.” I bite my cheek when I realize what I’ve just said.
Keeping eye contact with me, she tips her hat at me before saying, “I sure hope so, cowboy.” She chuckles, throwing a wink my way then pats my chest before walking backward toward the girls.
It’s after two in the morning when Dakota and I stumble through the front door of the cabin.
“I’ve got a secret, but I can’t tell you,” Dakota taunts as she skips toward the steps.
“Am I going to be an uncle again?” I guess. I’d fucking love for Griff and Mack to have more kids when they’re ready. But seeing as I don’t think the drinks Mack was drinking tonight were virgin, I will take a guess and say that’s not her secret.
She stops as she hits the first step to go upstairs and turns around. “Not that I’m aware of. It isn’t a secret about nobody but little old me.” Dakota points to herself, bopping her nose and hiccuping simultaneously. “I think I’m a wee bit tipsy, my lord.”
Fuck. I don’t know what it is about her calling me that, but it gets my dick going from zero to sixty in two point two seconds.
“Does my lady need help turning in for the night? If so, me thinks she may spill her deepest, darkest secrets to me.”
“I may have big lips, but they are sealed on this matter.”
Those lips. I’ve told myself countless times that I won’t have her lips until she’s fully ready for me without any hesitation. I thought we were making good progress on that, but then I overheard Dakota and Mack talking when they were getting ready earlier tonight. She thinks the age gap between us will cause bad publicity. But I don’t give a fuck about my image.
“Will you come with me for a minute? I want to show you something. I promise I’ll get you tucked in in a little bit.”
She cocks a brow in suspicion. “Where are you taking me, cowboy?”
That earns her a smile. “Some place that’s special to me. A place I think you’ll like too.”
With that, she takes the few steps back down the stairs and grasps my outstretched hand, lacing her fingers in mine. “Show me,” she whispers.
I’d show her the entire fucking world if she’d let me. But I’ll start with one of my favorite places for now.
The path to the boathouse is lit by solar-powered lanterns. Keeping Dakota’s hand in mine, I lead her down the stone steps and pathway until we’re standing outside the two story boathouse.
I key in the code to enter before nodding toward the steps to let Dakota know we’re headed up there. On the second level is a small guest suite that has a full wall of windows overlooking the lake that butts up to the A-frame glass roof. This may just be the best place to stargaze in the entire world. And it also serves as one of the best spots to watch the sun set over the lake.
When we get to the top of the steps and I open the door to the suite, Dakota gasps as she takes in the glass paneling along the west-facing wall and ceiling. “Carson. This is so beautiful.”
My mom renovated and decorated this space to be my personal oasis.
“When my parents inherited this cabin from my grandparents, they did a pretty big remodel of the whole house and this boathouse as well. My mom and dad decided Mack and I should each have a space of our own for when we come here. Sure we each have rooms upstairs in the main cabin, but Mack got to choose what to do with the space over the garage, and I got to choose what to do in here.”
Dakota runs her fingers over the charcoal gray king-size bedding before falling onto her back to take in the view of the clear night sky.
“I love this space so much.”
“Does it put you in the mood to share secrets?” I query.
“I don’t know. The bed is feeling too cold and lonely for me to share my secrets. Maybe if I could use you as my own personal heater then I’d spill the beans.”
