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“She is,” Gage agrees. He pulls me closer to his side and presses a soft kiss to the top of my head. “Rory’s good at everything she does.”

“I wouldn’t say that,” I reply with a smile. And surprisingly, even though I have four relative strangers all looking at me, I don’t feel nearly as insecure as I thought I would.

“Well, I’m just glad McKay found someone to put up with him,” Sam says. He extends his hand out to me. “You ever get sick of this guy?—”

Gage kicks Sam with his prosthetic foot, grinning as Sam yelps in pain. “Find your own woman, McNeal.”

“Are you guys getting into trouble already?” Another couple approaches us, both of them smiling. The man lifts his chin at Gage. “McKay. Good to see you.”

Gage gives him a quick chin lift in return. “Layne.” To the woman he adds, “Hey, Mal. How was the trip out here?”

“Good,” she replies. “The flight was overbooked, so we ended up getting moved up to first class. So that was a nice surprise.”

As the couple looks at me expectantly, Gage says, “Rory. This is Devin Layne, and his wife, Mal. And this is Rory. My beautiful girlfriend.”

Devin takes my hand. “It’s great to meet you, Rory.” His smile slides into something more serious. “And it’s really good to see McKay looking so happy.”

It might sound like a strange thing to say without knowing the circumstances.

But Gage told me about how he met Devin at Walter Reed; how they became friends as they struggled through rehab and stayed in touch ever since.

So Devin would know first-hand what Gage went through. How hard it’s been for him.

“I am happy,” Gage agrees. “Even more than I ever thought possible.”

Mal awws quietly, and I can practically see the little hearts in her eyes.

“You want to grab a seat?” Webb asks Gage. “We have a table over in the corner. Hit the buffet, load up on some good food, and we can shoot the shit for a while. Hear about everything you’ve been up to.”

“That sounds good.” Gage’s gaze moves across the room. “But first, I want to find Vince’s parents. And I’d like to talk to his wife, too.”

Webb nods in understanding. “Of course. We’ll save you some seats.”

As Gage and I head across the room towards a couple I’m presuming are the Mattisons, he says quietly, “You don’t have to come with me, Ror. If you’d rather wait with the others…”

“No.” I give his hand a reassuring squeeze. “I want to be with you. Unless you’d rather talk to them alone?”

Gratitude shines in his eyes. “I want you with me, Ror. Always.”

The closer we get to the Mattisons, the more nervous Gage gets. His fingers are cold and stiff around mine, his shoulders are high and tense, and I can practically feel the anxiety radiating from him.

“It’s going to be okay,” I whisper. “And no matter what, I have your back.”

And despite Gage’s fears, it is okay.

The Mattisons aren’t angry. Instead, they both give Gage big hugs and thank him profusely for coming.

When Gage starts to apologize, Vince’s father brushes it off, saying, “There’s nothing to be sorry for, son. We always knew you were thinking of Vince.”

Then Mrs. Mattison tells Gage, “We’re just glad you’re okay, Gage. We’ve been so worried about you. And Vince of all people would understand if you weren’t ready to come until now.”

Gage stares at her for a long moment, swallowing hard before he replies, “I think about Vince every day.”

Mrs. Mattison gives Gage another long hug. “I know you do.”

Another hard conversation is the one with Vince’s widow, Melissa. She and Vince had only been married six months before he died, had their whole lives ahead of them, plans for a house and kids and a lifetime together. Instead, she was widowed at thirty-one.

“I’m sorry,” Gage tells her immediately. “I should have done a better job of staying in touch. I should have called more. Come here sooner.” He sighs. “I was struggling. But that’s not an excuse.”

Melissa stares at him, her silence long enough to make me think she might not accept his apology. That she might reaffirm all his fears of letting down Vince’s family.

Then she gives him a small smile. “It’s okay. I understand.” She pauses. Her gaze drifts to me, then to Gage’s arm still wrapped around my waist. “But it looks like you’re doing better now.”

Gage nods at her. “I am. It took a while. But I think I’m finally doing okay.”

Once the conversation is wrapped up and we’re headed to Gage’s friends’ table, he leans his head down and says in a low tone, “I’m more than okay now.

I didn’t want to say that to Melissa and rub it in.

But with GMG and Dewey… I was good then.

And now that I have you, I can’t imagine being any happier. ”

Oh.

There’s that feeling again. Like my heart is too big for my body.

I have to tell him.

But first.

“So, how do you feel now? Having talked to Vince’s parents? His wife?”

Gage thinks for a second. “I feel good. Talking to his parents… I realized all the guilt was just in my head.”

In the corner of the room, Sam waves us over to the table.

“Thank you for coming with me,” Gage adds. “And thank you for supporting me through this. I can’t tell you how much it means to have you here.”

“Always.” I brush my mouth across his. “So. Let’s go spend some time with your friends. And later, we can go back to the cabin to do some sexy things?”

His eyes light up. “Sexy things?”

“Yes. Lots of sexy things.” I kiss him again, this time nipping at his bottom lip and stroking away the small sting with my tongue. As he pulls me against him, he hardens, jutting against my belly.

Desire throbs in my core, heavy and aching.

Gage looks at me with hooded eyes, lust turning them a molten chocolate. “I like the sound of that.”

“Me too,” I breathe.

Sexy things first. And then I’ll tell Gage I love him.