Home For a Cowboy Christmas(32)

“It’s because I’m in this position that I said what I did this morning. The me before never would’ve had the courage.”

“I’m glad you did.”

He felt her smile against him. “Me, too. It was … freeing. I knew the worst that could happen was that you wouldn’t be interested. I’ve always looked at the worst-case scenario in any situation, but it didn’t matter how many times I knew the odds were in my favor, I could never take the leap and just try.”

“Sounds like you discovered something about yourself.”

“I did. I’m going to stop being scared that someone will say no. I’m going to go for it. I wonder how many opportunities passed me by while I was scared.”

He kissed the top of her head, smiling. “It doesn’t do any good to think of the past. Let it go and live for this current moment.”

“Now that’s great advice.” She rose onto an elbow to look at him.

Her hair was mussed, her skin glowed, and her lips were still swollen from his kisses. He’d never seen anyone look so amazing before. He smoothed a strand of hair from her face and decided to take a page from her book.

“I have to tell you something.”

She grinned, her eyes crinkling at the corners. “Okay.”

“These last few weeks have been some of the best of my life.”

“Mine, too,” she said in a soft voice.

Dwight glanced down and took her hand in his. “The thing is, I’m falling in love with you.”

She blinked, shock filling her face.

It wasn’t what he wanted to see, but he had to tell her the truth. “I love you, Emmy. I don’t want to just safeguard you until the first of the year. I want to spend my life protecting you, loving you.”

“I-I,” she stammered.

He smiled and put a finger to her lips. “You don’t need to say anything.”

She returned to her position on his chest as he stared through the windows out to the snow-covered valley and the mountains. He didn’t regret sharing his feelings. Like Emmy had said, life was too short to let chances pass by. Whether she ever returned his feelings or not, he had told her his.

They lay in silence, their hearts beating in time. Her lashes fluttered against his chest as she blinked. There was so much he wanted to say to her, but he kept silent. She had a lot on her mind with the trial looming closer and closer.

“I want to come with you to Denver,” he said into the room.

A beat of silence passed before she said, “I’d like that.”

He sighed, a band loosening around his heart that he hadn’t known was there. “Dalton is more than capable, but both of you need someone you can trust.”

“I trust you.” She absently drew on his chest with her finger, then lifted her head a fraction to place a kiss on his skin.

“I’ll do everything in my power to protect you.”

He felt her smile again. “I know you will.” She released a breath and then asked, “How did you and Dalton meet?”

“We went to college together. We hung out with the same people but weren’t really close. After graduation, we went our separate ways. It wasn’t until a joint venture between Homeland Security, the FBI, DEA, and the US Marshals that we ran into each other again. They had a team of four from each of the divisions to build relationships for future task forces. It was only supposed to be a training exercise, but it turned into much more than that.”

She shifted her head to look up at him. “What happened?”

“They, meaning the heads of the four divisions, each wanted the training to be on their home turf. No one wanted to give an inch, so someone ranking far above them decided to send us out of the country to a place where no one had the upper hand.”

Emmy raised her brows. “Where was that?”

“Britain. Word got leaked about our training, and a terrorist group attacked. I was shot in the leg and pinned down. Dalton managed to get to me and helped stanch the bleeding. Somehow, he got us back to the base, but during that five-hour stretch, a brotherhood formed. He saved my life. I told him I would always be there if he ever needed anything. After I left Homeland Security to come here, I made sure that he knew the offer still stood and always would.”

“Now I understand why he trusts you.”

“And why I didn’t hesitate when he called.”

Emmy released a breath and smiled. “I’m glad Dalton was there for you.”

“We might not talk often, but the one thing we know above all else is that we’ll be there for each other.”

“So, was the joint training venture a success?”

He twisted his lips as he wrinkled his nose. “Yes, and no. It was a start. Not much headway had been made by the time I left.”

“But out of that came a friendship that has kept me safe.”

Dwight shifted her so that she lay between his legs on her stomach. He leaned down and placed his lips on hers for a lingering kiss. “That it has.”





Chapter 16


Emmy met Dwight’s blue eyes. “That story about you and Dalton ended well.”

“It did,” Dwight said with a shrug.

“You left out a lot.”

He held her gaze before glancing away.