Unending Devotion (Michigan Brides #1)(104)

“Maybe that means we’re meant to be together.” His voice turned soft, and his gaze captured hers with an intensity that made her breath catch in her throat.

What was he saying?

The look in his eyes drew her forward, like a magnetic pull. They were warm and wide and full of longing.

She found herself leaning across the box, closing the distance between them, wanting him, breathless for his kiss.

A muted cry within the box stopped her. Her heart started beating again, faster. “What was that?”

He sat back and pried off the lid.

As he slid it aside, her eyes widened.

There in a bundle of rags sat a dainty white kitten. It peered up at her with gentle blue eyes and gave a tiny mew.

“Oh, Connell.” Lily smiled, speechless at the beauty of the helpless creature.

“I found her this morning in the stables.”

She reached two fingers toward the kitten and ran them over the fluffy fur on its back.

“The stable hand said the mother cat died last week. The other kittens disappeared. This is the only one left, and she won’t make it without some help.”

Lily couldn’t resist a second longer. She scooped up the furry bundle and brought it against her chest. She cupped it in one hand and stroked it with the other.

It gave another soft mew, one that brought tears to Lily’s eyes. “Oh, you sweet thing. Of course I’ll take care of you.”

“I figured if anyone could save her, you could.”

Lily pressed a kiss into the downy fur between its tiny pointed ears. She scratched the crook of its neck and was rewarded with a rusty purr.

It was motherless and homeless and needed someone with a heart big enough to care—someone like her.

She pulled the creature back and looked into its little face, with its wet pink nose, feathery whiskers, and big trusting eyes. “You’re home, little one.” She planted a kiss on its forehead and then cuddled it against her chest again.

Connell smiled.

“Thank you,” she whispered through an aching throat. How had this sweet, loving man known exactly what to bring her? The kind of gift that would mean more to her than anything else?

“If you need something else to save—someone else to save—I have a lifetime project I can give you.” His smile faded, and his eyes darkened.

Her pulse quickened.

“I’m a man with many faults, Lily.” His gaze caught and held hers. “And I don’t know that I’ll ever leave the lumber business—”

She reached out her fingers and touched them against his lips to stop him from saying anything else.

But he took hold of her hand and slid it into his, intertwining his fingers through hers. His palm pressed into hers, and the warm moisture of his touch caressed her.

“I can’t leave—at least not now.”

She nodded. “I understand—”

“But I want you to know,” he continued, “God hit me over the head, and I’m finally realizing how much work needs to be done to make some long overdue changes within the lumber industry. And I’m leading the reform.”

Her heart swelled with pride.

“I’m investigating the efforts of reforestation in some of the camps. I’m putting into place policies that will help pay worker benefits upon disability.”

“That’s what your mother was telling me—”

“I’ve also begun looking at ways we can improve working and living conditions—not just in the camps but among the mills too.” He spoke earnestly, as if his life depended upon how well he could convince her of his merits. “And I’m doing some research into future business opportunities for Bay City, ways the city can survive once the lumber industry pulls out of Michigan.”

If only he would be quiet for a second and let her tell him none of it mattered to her.

“The biggest battle’s been getting my dad to agree. But in places where I’ve begun implementing changes, he’s starting to see some of the payoff. Worker loyalty and output have increased by twenty percent.”

“That’s fantastic—”

“I’m fighting hard, Lily.” He cut her off again. His brow wrinkled. “I might not be there yet, but I’m learning—”

She leaned across the open box and stopped his words the only way she knew how—with a kiss. She touched her lips to his, and his sentence died. Gently, she pressed her fullness into the softness of his, letting the warmth of his breath mingle with hers.

She wanted to increase the contact, to press harder, to taste of him deeper. But with new restraint, she lingered only an instant before pulling away.

“I love you,” she whispered.

His eyes widened.

“I love you for who you are—not what you do or who you’ll become.”

Her face burned with the brazen declaration. The kitten mewed, and she scratched its head and followed with a kiss.

Connell lifted a hand to her cheek. His gaze met hers with wide-eyed marvel. His thumb caressed the edge of her chin and simultaneously brought her face back to his. “I love you too, Lily.”

The words were a whisper against her lips.

His eyes promised her another kiss and a future full of them.

Suddenly he stopped.

“No one lays their pinkie on Lily and lives to tell about it.” Oren stood over Connell and pressed the barrel of his rifle into Connell’s temple. His gray brows dipped into a scowl.