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His shirt brushing against hers was enough to make her heart go wild like it had before. She inhaled sharply and regretted it immediately. The scent of cut pine and the valley after a rainstorm snuck past her defenses and her stomach flipped with recognition.

He smells the same.

So much had changed and yet that hadn’t.

With so much stacked against her, the small dose of familiarity comforted her. Yet as she shut the door behind the man who’d stolen her heart and set the bar for other men who’d stumbled beneath it the rest of her adult life, she wondered if it was actually a good idea to let her past back into her life. Something her father said tugged at her as Bennett settled himself on the couch where they’d first held hands.

“You can’t go home again, MagPie.”

Now she understood why. Because “home” was an anchor tying her to something she didn’t want anymore. And if she wasn’t careful, it would drag her down and drown her under waves of regret.

Chapter Three

Bennett handed Maggie one of the travel coffee mugs.

“It’s okay, I’ve got my own fancy coffee maker in the kitchen,” she said.

Her scowl frustrated him. He’d earned it this morning, but wasn’t he allowed a little snark after she’d asked for time to consider his proposal and then left? Forever?

“Try it. Here. It goes well with these.” He held out the bag, which she took as willingly as if there was a Texas coral snake inside. “It’s not poisonous.”

“What is it?”

“Can you please trust me? I’m not here to hurt you, Maggie.”

There was enough of that floating between them already.

He watched as she sipped the coffee he’d brought; his assumptions about how she drank it were right on the money, it seemed. Her eyes went wide with surprise and then closed as a satisfied smile played on her lips. Goddamn, she’d gotten pretty, hadn’t she? Even with her hair messed from sleep, her city makeup washed off, she could stop a man’s good decisions at the door.

“You have the same kind in that mug?” she teased. Her eyes sparkled.

“Hell no. Cold and bitter for me.”

“Hmmm. Sounds appropriate. Well, thanks for this. It’s good. Like, really good.”

He shrugged as if the three-mile drive to get it for her wasn’t out of his way. “I can’t take credit. It’s Mae’s. You should try the tart.”

Maggie bit her bottom lip, and Bennett turned away as his stomach tightened. He’d seen her do that so many times before he’d stolen a kiss from her. His heart pounded under the assault of memories she drudged up. He went to where the thermostat hung on the wall, gave it a whack until the cover came off, then fixed it to seventy so it would heat up the small ranch house quicker.

“Thanks. I was wondering how to get that darned thing off.”

“No problem.”

“Where’s Gander? I rustled up some dog treats my dad had in the barn.”

“He’s off bothering my brother since he’s feeding the horses. Gander tends to stick close to where the food is.”

Maggie laughed, and suddenly the room felt small, like she filled it with the melodic sound.

“How is Jackson? Still causing trouble?”

“Only when it doesn’t find him first. He’s been good, actually. Started taking some classes down at Austin Tech and working full-time on the ranch.”

Maggie smiled. Had it been cold in here a minute ago? He couldn’t remember since heat flashed from his chest outward.

“Good for him. He always had a good heart. And wandering feet.”

“A lot of that going around, it seems.”