Page 21 of A Montana Secret Admirer (Sagebrush Ranch Sweethearts #4)

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Serenity didn’t know what she was thinking when she’d hollered after Reese. Her head was a befuddled mess. It wasn’t just the amazing, thoughtful date they’d gone on. It had been seeing those flowers.

Reese might very well be the man who was leaving them for her, but even if he wasn’t, seeing them had been like a sign—a sign to chase after something she wanted, something that made her happy.

Someone who made her happy.

She nearly tripped over herself as she launched herself toward Reese. He turned around just in time for her to throw herself into his arms. Her mouth crashed against his.

Reese’s body was firm, stiff—at first. Then his arms came around her waist, and he pulled her body flush with his.

This felt… safe.

Warm.

And just like before, it was everything .

Her hands pushed into his hair, drawing him closer like he was the oxygen she’d been depriving herself of all these months that she’d been alone. Out of all the men who could have entered her life, Reese had been who she needed, and she was done pretending that she didn’t.

He moaned into her mouth, and his grip on her tightened. “Serenity,” he whispered, turning his attention and his kisses to her neck. She gasped at the contact, and her breathing grew more ragged by the second.

They were crossing the line she’d drawn in the sand, and there would be no going back from it.

She didn’t want to, either.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she heard a door shut. Deep, male voices, too. With another gasp, she pulled away from the man in her arms. Her cheeks burned, and her hands shook with barely visible tremors.

Reese looked to be in a complete daze. His eyes found hers, and he was just as unsteady on his feet. He took a step toward her, but she didn’t retreat. “Serenity.” The way he said her name, goodness, she could die happy just listening to him say it over and over. “What…”

“I don’t know what’s going to happen between us,” she blurted. “I don’t even know if I’m ready for whatever this… thing… is.”

He lifted a hand but then dropped it to his side.

It was her fault that he was so hesitant, and she was finding it hard to reconcile with the man who held her hand out at the pond.

So she reached for his hand and laced her fingers between his.

He stared down at where she held him, but he didn’t speak.

“I’m prepared to say that I like what we have. And I might want more.” She chewed on her lower lip. “But right now, I can’t…” She squeezed her eyes shut as she felt the blush creep up her skin and fill her face. “I don’t want labels. I’m not sure I’m ready for that degree of seriousness.”

His hand tightened on hers, but it wasn’t painful. If anything, it was done with a reassurance that he understood.

“How did I get so lucky?” she whispered.

“What?”

Her eyes lifted, and she repeated herself a little louder. “How did I get so lucky to have a guy like you interested in someone like me?”

“Someone like you?” he blustered. “Do you think you’re not worthy of my l—” He cleared his throat. “Affections? Because I can assure you that you are.”

She dropped her gaze, unable to meet his head-on. “I don’t want you to wait for me.”

The air turned colder, and she winced.

“That’s not what… I mean, if the time comes and someone else?—”

Reese placed a hand to her cheek, forcing her to lift her eyes to meet his. “There won’t be anyone else.”

“But—”

“No one, Serenity. Believe me when I say there is no one and will never be anyone else but you.”

Her breath caught in her throat. She didn’t want to believe it. Or maybe she simply couldn’t. That concept was so far away from where she had been even forty-eight hours ago.

“I’m willing to give you as much time as you need. The summer. The year. Five years.”

She let out a surprised and disbelieving laugh. “I doubt that.”

He stepped into her, his body dwarfing her in ways that made her feel both safe and the object of his desires.

The latter had an uncanny way of scaring her but in the most delicious way.

His hand shifted to the nape of her neck, and he tilted her face upward even farther.

“What I feel for you is unlike anything I’ve experienced, and I’m willing to be patient if it means you’re willing to give me a chance. ”

He was serious. She could see it in the set of his jaw and the lines around his mouth. His eyes flashed with something that could only be described as an oath, a promise.

Serenity swallowed back a sob. It was ridiculous that she was getting emotional over something so simple as him telling her he was going to be there for her.

Maybe that was all she needed right now—someone to be a constant, a rock, someone to count on.

“Hey,” he murmured, his voice soft, soothing. “Are you okay?”

She nodded, a sad laugh bubbling from her lips. “Perfect.”

Another week of sneaking around, and Serenity was having a harder time coming up with excuses as to why she couldn’t just come out and tell everyone that Reese was her boyfriend.

Because that was who he was to her.

He hadn’t missed a single sunset. He ate lunch with her and the boys most days, too. The looks he’d secretly give her when he was working with her sons were more than enough to set her body on fire.

And the kissing.

He had a knack for making her feel like they were the only two people in the entire universe when he had his arms around her.

There was a sense of peace about him, too.

The flowers had stopped coming, and as far as she was concerned, there were only two reasons.

The first was that the secret admirer had noticed just how much time she was spending with Reese.

Or Reese was the one leaving her flowers, and now that he had her, he didn’t feel the need to leave her notes and flowers anymore.

She couldn’t decide if that made her sad or not.

Part of her wanted to bring it up and ask him point blank if he was the one behind the little gifts. She wanted him to confess so she could consolidate it all in her head.

But another part of her almost liked the mystery—as if finding out it was him would change the way she felt about how it all started.

That stirred up a bit more unease than she was prepared for at the moment.

Reese was watching her where she stood next to Tegan. He was in the saddle, and he was looking more forlorn than usual. Up until she’d seen his sad expression, she’d been tempted to tell him about Reese and what was happening between the two of them.

Up until that point, she’d wanted to share her good news.

But now? Tegan was her priority. His happiness trumped her own, and she would never put herself or anyone else above him or Jessi.

“What’s the matter, bud?”

He glanced at her, drawing his attention away from something in the distance.

When she looked over that way, she saw one of Reese’s cousins with his kid.

The boy looked to be a couple years older than Tegan.

They were working on lassoing techniques, and the boy was laughing at just how much better he was getting than his father.

Serenity returned her focus to Tegan and nudged him. “What’s bothering you?”

“I miss Dad.”

His words were like a punch to the gut. Tegan didn’t talk about his father.

She could count the number of times he’d talked about his father on two hands.

He didn’t mention missing him or wondering if he had made it to heaven like his younger brother did.

Tegan was such a closed book that Serenity had nearly sent him to speak to a therapist.

At the time, she’d felt like a hypocrite. She’d not wanted to force him to do something she wasn’t ready for, either.

It might have been wrong, but it had been her decision, and after the first couple of months since Finn’s death, Tegan seemed to bounce back from his melancholy attitude.

“Me, too,” she whispered.

He frowned down at her, and the amount of anger that simmered in his eyes was just as much of a shock as the words he said. “No, you don’t.”

“What?”

“You don’t miss him.”

“What makes you think that?” she demanded. “I miss your father every day.”

He shrugged and turned his attention once more to the father and son duo across the way.

“No, Tegan. You can’t just say something like that and not explain yourself. It’s important that you tell me how you’re feeling.”

He didn’t speak. In fact, he attempted to pull his horse away from where she’d been petting it. But she grabbed the reins and forced him to stay.

“Talk to me.” She was barely able to whisper it.

His eyes darted to meet hers. “You’re happy. You smile all the time.”

“You smile, too. I can see that you like riding the horses and spending time here.” She really shouldn’t have snapped back with a rebuttal. She realized her mistake the second the words escaped her lips because his expression only grew harder.

“You smile at Reese. Like you used to smile at Dad.”

Her blood ran cold. Did he know? He couldn’t. She was careful when she was around Reese. They didn’t touch. They didn’t say anything inappropriate. Had they gotten complacent, and Tegan had noticed?

Serenity cleared her throat. “I smile at everyone.”

Tegan’s mouth tightened, and he jerked the reins again, harder this time. She couldn’t keep him here. He needed to cool off. He was having a bad day.

Reese appeared by her side shortly after.

“Don’t look at me,” she muttered.

He stiffened. “What? Why?”

She folded her arms. “Have you noticed anything wrong with Tegan?”

“No. What do you mean?”

“Has he been treating you different?” she pressed. “Does he have an attitude?”

Reese shook his head, she could see it out of the corner of her eye. “No more than usual. Some days are better than others.”

She nodded to herself. “So, it’s just me.”

“I’m sorry, what are we talking about?”

Serenity sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose. “He’s upset that I’m moving on.”

“You told him?”

“No,” she hissed. “Of course not. Apparently, he thinks that if I’m not sad, then I don’t miss Finn.”

Reese sucked in a sharp breath, and she flinched. They both knew it would be difficult for them to merge their relationship with the life she shared with her sons. “He’ll come around,” Reese finally whispered. “We can?—”

She shook her head. “It’s fine. I’m fine. I don’t?—”

“ Serenity .” His voice was firm yet calm. “There is no rush. We’ll figure this out as we go.”

As much as she wanted to lean into his body and feel his arms come around her, she couldn’t. Her son needed her to be there for him. So she’d continue her relationship with Reese in secret until a time when Tegan understood.