I try to pull away again, but his strong arm wraps around my waist, pulling me in close again. With both of my palms against his chest, both of us still bared to one another, I’m caught in his heated gaze when he tells me clear as day, “I love you Lysa. And if you’ll have me, I want to be here with you. I sold the truck, I left the business. I just want to stay right here with you.”
“What?” I’m breathless.
“I sold it, invested the money and I have some left over I thought…” shaking his head, Dean looks past me for a moment then licks his lower lip, his grip loosening on me and vulnerability shining in his pale blue eyes.
“But that’s all you’ve ever known…” the words come out as a murmur.
“No. There’s something else I know,” he looks down at me with nothing but love. “Something I value more.”
“Dean--”
“I thought I could help you with the bar. I don’t need you to pay me, you can treat the money like a loan or a gift, whatever you want. I don’t need the money, I have enough on my own. I just want to be with you.”
Everything blurs around us as the silence passes. Time slows and I know I’ll remember this moment forever. I dreamed a thousand dreams over the years, wanting to confess, but he always wanted me to run away with him, like I wanted to do that first time I saw him, back when my father was still here and he would be there to take care of the bar. “Did you say you loved me?” I have no idea how the words manage to escape my lips in a whisper, or where they even came from.
For the first time that I can remember, Dean blushes. With his large hand running down the back of his neck, he grins at me, a boyish grin. “I might have. I might have said I love you so damn much it hurts.”
His grin falters slightly until I lift up onto my tip toes to press my lips against his and give him all of me in that one touch.
I don’t know when I gave my heart to him, but right now, I vow to give him all of me.
“I love you Dean.” I love him so damn much it hurts too. “You promise you’ll stay with me?”
Wrapping his arms around me and pulling me into his chest, he brings me back to bed. “I’ll stay with you Lysa. I’m here with you. I’m right here. And I’m not leaving anymore.”
He repeats, “I love you.”DAMSEL DUDE IN DISTRESS - HELENA HUNTINGRoadside Attraction
Nevah“I’M ON MY way to you. Other than Cactus Candy, is there anything else you need me to pick up?” I use my knee to control the steering wheel and pull my hair into a ponytail. It’s a gorgeous day and I want to drive with the top down as soon as I’m finished talking to my sister. Wind and phone conversations are not a winning combination.
The body of my 1959 Cadillac Eldorado needs serious TLC, and the interior is worn and dated, but any car lover knows those things can be fixed. It’s what’s under the hood that really counts.
Although, I will say that having AC on a drive through the desert is essential, and the one thing I made sure was in working order. No one likes underboob sweat on a cross-country road trip.
I stroke the steering wheel with real affection. I have big plans for this car, and when I’m done restoring her, she’s going to be gorgeous.
I plan to bring this beauty into the twenty-first century with a top-of-the-line, state-of-the-art sound system, so I don’t have to worry about things like being hands-free and not having access to my favorite road trip playlists. For the time being, my portable speaker will have to suffice.
“I’m so jealous that you’re driving here.” My younger sister’s wistful tone makes me smile.
“Must be hard to travel the world by private jet,” I tease.
My Vegas born and bred sister is married to Griffin Mills, heir to a multi-billion dollar hotel empire. We grew up living a very middle-class existence. Cosy, who is two years my junior, has always been a bit on the nomadic side, traveling as far as her beat-up cars would allow, until she met Griffin and they fell hopelessly in love with each other.
They’re a totally unlikely pair from completely different backgrounds and worlds, but they work. It gives me hope that I’ll find my soulmate one day. Maybe. If I can stop being attracted to the wrong kind of guy.
“I’m not going to complain about comfortable travel, but I miss road trips. We need to take one before Griffin knocks me up.”
“Amen to that, sister. I assume if you’re bringing it up, it means that’s high on his list of priorities.”