“More than I thought possible.” He slipped inside me with those words.
We never found that feral heat. This was something different. A heat lit by those embers that lived in both our bones. We moved as one, finding something that was more than lust or even love. Something that belonged to only Calder and me.
As we climbed that mountain, we clung to one another, assuring each other that we were here, alive and breathing. And when we came apart, it was with a bone-deep knowledge that this was always meant to be.
45
Calder
“Welcome to chaos central,”I told Hayes as I ushered him out to the back porch. School had let out a couple of days before, and Birdie and Sage had the early summer burst of energy running through their veins. They let out shrieks as they chased each other around the backyard in a game I hadn’t quite figured out.
Hayes grinned as he handed me a coffee. “Maybe this will help.”
“God, I hope so.”
“Where’s Hads?”
I took a sip of the coffee and almost sighed. “She’s going on a ride with Toby and Jinx.”
Hayes lifted a brow in my direction. “And how do you feel about that?”
I lowered myself into one of the chairs, facing the yard. “I want her to be happy. Riding, climbing, boarding, it’s all a part of her.” I flicked the edge of the lid on my cup. “I don’t want to change that. It doesn’t mean I don’t worry—”
“Because you’re human.”
I nodded, watching as Birdie threw herself into some sort of flipping roll. “I think Hadley gets that, too. We’re both at peace with it. She knows I’ll worry. I know she needs to live the life she wants. And we’ll both try to make it as easy on the other as possible.”
“I’m happy for both of you.”
“Thanks, man.” I looked over at Hayes, my friend from basically birth. “I love her. I’ll do everything in my power to protect her. Everything I can to help her soar.”
“That’s good because if you hurt her, I’ll have to kick your ass.”
I barked out a laugh. “You could try.”
“And I’d succeed.”
I took another sip of coffee as Sage let out an especially high-pitched yell. “So, you gonna tell me why you’re here first thing in the morning on a workday?”
Hayes leaned back in his chair. “First, I wanted to tell you that Evan Gibbs won’t be giving Hadley any more trouble.” His lips twitched. “And you and I won’t have to don monkey suits to go to some stupid ball.”
“What happened?”
Hayes shook his head, scrubbing a hand over his jaw. “Someone from the FBI field office in Bend showed up today. Wanted to give me a heads-up that they’d be taking Evan into custody. Turns out, he’s been defrauding people all across the country.”
“Shit,” I muttered.
“No kidding. It’s even worse. A lot of the organizations he stole from were charities.”
I straightened in my chair. “You think he was going to try to steal from the widows and orphans fund?”
“I wouldn’t put it past him, but he won’t get that chance now.”
“I knew that guy was an asshole.”
“Understatement of the century.”
Hayes was quiet for a minute. “Jackie woke up.”