Page 99 of Making It Up

Like right now. Or in less than an hour anyway. I’m just leaving work and it won’t take me more than thirty minutes to get home, shower, and change, then get on my four-wheeler and get to Mia’s.

I start to type in a response, but my phone rings before I can finish telling her it would be really great if the woman in question was wearing a skirt or dress in this scenario for easier access.

“This is Officer Bennett.”

“David. It’s Judy Turner. There are fireworks going off in my west pasture.”

I stop on the top step of the Game and Parks office. I frown. “Fireworks?”

Stupidly I look up at the sky. It’s not dark yet. How does she know? Of course, fireworks also make noise. But her west pasture is miles from her house.

“Yes. Fireworks.” She sounds like she’s rolling her eyes.

“Do you have any idea who it is?” I continue down the steps and head for my truck. I’m off duty, but Judy’s is on my way home.

“I’m seventy-eight years old. I’m not going out there to do an interview. That’s your job. All I know is it isn’t me, and I’m the one who owns that pasture, so that means someone is trespassing.”

Yes, it does. And lighting fireworks without permission.

My eyes narrow as I slide behind the wheel of my truck.

Just like someone was trespassing on her property in the deer stand.

That’s a lot of trespassing on land that is out in the middle of nowhere.

“You’re sure it’s not your grandkids?” I ask, starting the truck and pulling out onto the road.

“If they did, they didn’t tell me about it. Call me back if it’s them and I’ll just chew them out.”

I open my mouth to suggest she call her grandkids and ask them, but shut it and shake my head. It’s not her grandkids. I’m ninety percent sure I know who it is, though.

And yes, I definitely need to go check this out.

“I’ll swing by and see what’s going on,” I tell her.

“Okay. ’Bye.” She hangs up on me.

Ten minutes later, I turn into Judy’s west pasture and rattle my teeth as I bump along the tiny dirt service road that leads through the pasture and down to the river.

Even though I was expecting to see her, my heart still trips as I pull up and see Mia sitting on my brother's four-wheeler holding a sparkler.

She’s so fucking gorgeous. And it’s not the way her hair is pulled back into a French braid, or that she’s wearing a pretty little pink sundress, or the ankle-high boots that are at least kind of appropriate for walking around in a field of grass.

It’s not even the four-wheeler.

It’s the smile she gives me when our eyes lock.

And just the fact that she’s here.

One word goes through my mind as I shut off the truck, open the door, and my feet hit the ground.

Mine.

She’s mine. She’s here for me, and we’re going to make this work. And anything and everything I have to put up with to be with this woman is worth it.

I stalk toward her.

“Hi,” she greets as I stop next to the four-wheeler.