Calder captures my knee with his large, calloused hand. “I know, trouble,” he replies quietly. “I know.”
Yet somehow, I feel safer with him here. It’s a strange feeling, one I’m not used to. The only person who’d given me this sense of safety had been my grandfather, and I thought I lost that when he died.
Or maybe I just haven’t been looking at anything properly. Especially not him.
SEVEN
CALDER
The drive back to the ranch is quiet. I can’t tell if Imogen is sleeping, or dealing with her thoughts on the break-in. Either way, she’s not talking to me.
I’m glad she wasn’t there. I’m fucking happy I picked her up and insisted on taking her out. The thought that this could have happened while she was home alone…
I grit my teeth and kill the engine. From the corner of my eye, I watch her for a moment; the gentle rise and fall of her chest, her features lit up by the front light on the porch.
Dad appears in the doorway, still wearing his day clothes, arms crossed. With a sigh, I quietly slide out of the truck as he meets me at the hood.
“What happened?” he asks, concern darkening his eyes. “Billy called. Told me you reported a break-in?”
I almost roll my eyes. But hey, at least he wasn’t getting a call about something dumb I got caught doing. “Yeah. I was taking Imogen home when we found her place all messed up.”
Dad eyes me before glancing at the truck—and the sleeping nurse within. “Imogen?”
I rub the back of my neck, sighing. “She’s Miss Iris’s nurse. We’re working together on something for Iris.”
My old man presses his lips together in a firm line, like he doesn’t fully believe me. “Your old room is set up. Just in case.”
With that, he turns on his heel and walks into the house. In the doorway, I catch sight of Ma in her robe, but she doesn’t say anything.
Shaking my head, I return to the truck and quietly open Imogen’s door. Her eyes flutter open as I lean across her to unbuckle her seatbelt.
“What’re you doing?” she asks, groaning.
I pull back enough to slide my arm beneath her legs, the other around her back. “Arms around me, trouble. I’m taking you to bed.”
Imogen makes another sound in the back of her throat, but by some miracle, she lets me pick her up out of the truck. I use the heel of my boot to kick the door shut once she’s out, shifting her in my arms as I do to make sure she’s comfortable. The warmth of her body is way too comforting, especially when she wraps her arms around my shoulders and presses her face into my neck. All I can do is breathe her in.
For a moment, I taste her kiss on my tongue. Feel her lips against mine. My heart pounds as I carry her up the porch steps towards the house.
Only the kitchen light is on when I enter. Ma and Dad have gone back to bed, their bedroom at the other end of the house, while my room—and the rooms that once belonged to my siblings—follow a long hallway beyond the family areas. I make my way down it, careful not to bump family photos or accidentally run Imogen into any corners.
The house is otherwise silent. I feel like holding my breath, but slip into the bedroom that once belonged to me. It’s vaguely familiar, in the sense that I spent so many years here. Except the old posters are gone, stored away because Ma has a problem with letting anything go, and most of my personal items are atthe bunks. Now, there’s just the bed, a dresser, my old desk, and a few boxes.
Gently, I lay Imogen down on the bed, careful not to wake her. But as soon as I start to pull away, her eyes open. Our gazes lock, and for a moment, that breathless feeling returns.
Imogen doesn’t release me, her arms still around my neck. I plant my hands either side of her, still wrapped in her comfortable heat. There’s a war playing in her dark eyes, a fight over what she wants to happen next.
I’d never been a man to care. To want more than what he’s got. I’ve been happy just coasting by.
But now that I’ve had a taste of her, I need more.
I don’t want to be in a world that doesn’t have her in it.
And now, I’ll do anything to keep her.
A breath passes her lips, brushing mine. “Make me feel something, cowboy,” she says, desperation darkening her eyes.
I know I upset her when I pulled away from our kiss. But I want to make it up to her. And if that’s by giving her something to feel…
