After he put the letters back in the envelope, he stood and walked to her, taking her into his arms and hugging her tightly. “Are you okay?”
“That was my line.”
His brow was furrowed when he pulled back and met her eyes. “I’m not the one who’s crying.”
“They’re not sad tears. Well, mostly they’re not. Reading that did make me miss him. But they were—”
“Happy tears,” he finished with a small smile. “Do you do that a lot? I’m going to have to start figuring out the difference if you do.”
“I don’t know if I do it often, but sometimes I do. You never answered my question, though.”
“You were right. About all of it. How Brandon would feel if he knew we were together. I know you thought he’d be okay with it, but I wasn’t sold. You even called the fact that he would have teased me if he knew how I felt for you back then.”
She shrugged, unable to keep a tiny hint of smugness out her smile. “I knew him well. Since I was twelve, remember? I didn’t know what he’d written, but I’m glad he covered that stuff. He said he didn’t have a crystal ball, but it was like he knew what was going to happen. It was uncanny. And now, I have to ask… do you think maybe you can let go of the last bit of guilt you feel?”
“He gave us his blessing. I think that basically washed it all away. Besides, he was right. I’d be a dumbass if I let anything get between us. I think that guilt counts.”
“It definitely counts. I’m so glad I found that letter. I’ve been feeling like he gave me the nudge I needed to track you down, but that kind of confirms it.” She paused, wetting her lips and taking a deep breath. “I know you said to take some time, but I don’t need it. I don’t want to go home, Noah. I want to stay here, with you.
“And one day, when we’re both ready, I want you to claim me. I don’t mind being a shifter. And I can’t think of anything I want more than to be claimed by you. To feel our bond strengthen even more. To have us belong to each other irrevocably. I want that more than anything.”
“Then you’ll have it when you’re ready,” he said softly, his eyes searching hers. “There’s nothing I want more than to be with you forever, Lil. Nothing.”
She smiled, running her fingers over his beard before leaning up to kiss him. It quickly turned from gentle to passionate, but she broke it off before it could go further. She had one more important thing to tell him. Something he already knew, but she’d continue saying it often.
“I love you, Noah.”
Reaching up, he brushed the backs of his fingers down her cheek as he smiled. “I love you too, tesoro.”
He leaned down to kiss her again, but she put her hand on his chest to stop him. “Tesoro? What’s that?”
“Your new nickname, if you like it. When we were first briefed on Fernandez, I started brushing up on my Spanish in case I needed to use it. Tesoro means treasure in Spanish. That’s what you are to me. My treasure. I figure it’s better than the generic baby, but I can think of something else if you don’t like it.”
Tears pressed against her eyelids and she quickly shook her head. “No, don’t. I love it.”
“And I love you,” he whispered, kissing her ever so softly before pulling her in for a hug.
Heart bursting with warmth and love for him, she closed her eyes, snuggling in closer. So much had happened since she arrived at B&B Bar and Grill. So much was still happening. Her head was spinning, and it might continue to for a while, because there was a lot still up in the air.
The dragon case with the kidnapped women was still unfinished. But like she sensed before, she thought Blake was right in thinking it might take a while to wrap up. She wasn’t going to stop searching the files for clues, though. Not until all seven women—eight, including Damara—were safely away from Fernandez. And she knew the other Enforcers were going to be working just as hard.
And then there was the mystery of Noah’s twin brother, Chance. She had no idea what the time frame was on that one, since it rested in Chance’s hands. But she would personally track him down and hurt him if he made Noah wait any longer than necessary.
Noah had already endured so much in his life. So much pain, darkness, despair. The last thing he needed was to feel even more of it, and at the hands of the brother he’d missed so fiercely for over twenty years. He might not have known it was Chance he was missing, but it didn’t change the fact that he and his lion yearned for him for so long.
Yeah, too much was still up in the air. It wasn’t a neat and tidy beginning of a life together—it was full throttle, messy, and real. Real life wasn’t a fairytale where a person felt nothing but happiness, surrounded by sunshine and roses. And they were beginning their life surrounded by love, people, messiness and craziness.
It might not make sense to many people, but that reassured her more than anything else could have. If it was too perfect, she would have worried. Perfect never lasted. But this—this was real. And it might not be perfect, but it was perfect for her.
Opening her eyes, she slanted a look up at heaven, hoping Brandon was watching. Thank you for this. For Noah. I’ll take care of him and I know he’ll take care of me. We’ll be happy.
Closing her eyes again, she tightened her arms around Noah’s waist as she snuggled back in. Back where she belonged. Pressed up against the man she loved, who had his arms wrapped tightly around her, loving her just as much as she loved him.
Everything might have happened quickly after she got to Nevada, but it had been a long, hard road to get to where she was in that moment. But as painful as that road had been, it was worth it to get to where she was. She’d always miss Brandon—they both would—but she had her future in her arms, and she wasn’t looking back again. Ever.
Goodbye painful past, hello beautiful future.