“I know you are,” she said, gaze softening. “And maybe someday I’ll be ready to talk, but right now I’ll just say it’s been tough being alone when I thought I’d always have people on my side.”
Bubba sighed, his chest aching for her. “I have no idea what made your family come to a decision like that, but I can’t imagine you did anything to deserve it. Short of committing murder, I can’t think of anything my brothers could do that would make me turn my back on them. Even then, I don’t know…I guess it would depend on who they’d killed, and why.”
Marisol’s brows lifted. “Seems like you’ve thought this through.”
Bubba shrugged. “Mia was in trouble not too long ago. Her ex was crazy, and we were all scared he was going to try to hurt her. It got me to thinking about what I would do if I was with her when the bastard showed up. It ended up being Sawyer who threw the psycho through a window, but it could have been me. I would have done that to protect someone I love.”
“Jesus,” Marisol breathed, her eyes widening. “Mia said she’d been in a bad relationship, but I had no idea it was that bad.”
“She doesn’t like to talk about it. She’s moving on, making good memories.” Bubba paused, not wanting to push his luck, but wanting there to be no doubt about the way he felt. “I’d like to help you do the same, if you’ll let me. I think we could make some good memories together.”
Marisol shoved her hands into the front pockets of her jeans, her gaze falling to the hard packed dirt at her feet. “I do, too.”
He heard the softly spoken words, but he was still hesitant to read too much into them. “So, that means…”
When she looked up, her eyes were troubled. “It means we can try to be more than friends. To date, or whatever.” She made a vague fluttering motion, gesturing to the space between the two of them. “But I want you to know from the beginning that I’m scared, even though I’m trying not to be. And I haven’t been in a relationship for years. I don’t know if I’ll remember how to do it right, or if I ever knew the right way to begin with.”
“It doesn’t matter what’s right for anyone else,” Bubba said. “We just need to figure out what’s right for us, and I don’t think that will be too hard. I mean…I happen to like you a whole lot already.”
“Me, too.” Marisol smiled, a simple, unguarded grin that was enough to make Bubba thicker, even if he was so exhausted he’d been about ten seconds from a nap before she pulled up.
“Jesus, you’re pretty,” he said, smiling wider when she laughed. “Will you please come sit down? I promise not to touch you when I’m covered in sweat, but I’d sure like you closer.”
Marisol crossed the ground between them in three quick steps. But instead of settling onto the ground beside him, she surprised him by plunking down on his lap and curling her arms tight around his neck, hugging him tight enough to make him grunt.
“Thank you,” she whispered into his neck, the hitch in her voice making it clear how much the past five minutes of shield-free chatting had cost her.
Bubba wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer, his chest tight with emotion that was more than lust or empathy. He wasn’t sure what he was feeling, only that as he smoothed a hand up and down Marisol’s back and cradled her closer, he felt like he was holding something very precious. Something delicate and complicated that would be hard won, but that would be worth every dragon he had to slay to get to the gates guarding this woman’s heart.
“You don’t have to thank me.” Bubba brushed the wisps of hair escaping from her ponytail behind her ear. “It is my privilege to court a woman like you.”
Marisol laughed, pulling back to look at him with shining eyes that made him suspect she was feeling as emotional as he was. “A privilege to court me? Seriously, Robert, who talks like that?”
Bubba grinned. “I do. I like courting, sounds more serious than dating.”
Her eyes widened, but there was a smile on her lips when she said, “I really am nervous, okay? So can we skip the serious stuff and stick to the dirty talk? Maybe for just a little while?”
His gaze dropped to her full lips. “So you like the dirty talk?”
“Oh please,” she said, lips twisting in a naughty smile. “As if you couldn’t tell.”
Bubba slid his hands down to her hips, squeezing her curves through the soft denim. “I had a feeling. But I—”
“Excuse the hell out of me.” Cole’s voice sounded from not ten feet away. “If I’d known this was a co-ed lunch date, I would have called Betsy to see if she was free.”
Bubba eased Marisol off his lap, coming to his feet before reaching a hand down to help Marisol up. “Cole, this is Marisol. Marisol, this is my littler big brother, Cole.”
“I don’t like the sound of that,” Cole said as he set the cooler down, and held a hand out to Marisol. “I’m big in all the places that count.”
Marisol chuckled politely, while Bubba scowled, silently wishing he’d made it clear to his notoriously flirtatious older brother that Marisol was off limits.
“Nice to meet you,” Marisol said, taking Cole’s hand.
“Nice to meet you, too.” Cole’s eyes narrowed on Marisol’s face. “You look so familiar. Have you been to Lonesome Point before?”
Marisol shook her head, looking uncomfortable as she released Cole’s hand. “No, it’s my first time.”
His brow furrowed. “That’s so strange. I would swear I’ve seen you somewhere. I mean, I have an awful memory, but it’s hard to forget a face like yours.” His frown became his most winning grin, the one Bubba knew had charmed the panties off of more than Cole’s fair share of women. “My little brother didn’t tell us he was bringing the prettiest girl in Texas home for the week.”