Page 12 of Ryder (Heart River Valley: Montana Protectors #3)

Ryder

Something is wrong.

Dana has been distant all morning, dodging my kisses and making excuses about competition prep. Now she’s methodically packing equipment into boxes, her movements precise in a way that makes my chest tight.

“Sugar?” I step into the kitchen, hating how she tenses at my voice. “Talk to me.”

“Nothing to talk about.” She doesn’t look up from her task. “Just getting organized for the trip.”

“For a few days?” I gesture at the boxes. “Looks more like you’re...”

“What?” Now she does look at me, and the carefully blank expression hurts worse than anger would have. “Moving out? Isn’t that better? Keeping things uncomplicated?”

Ice slides down my spine. “What are you talking about?”

“I heard you. With Jake.” Her voice is too calm, too controlled. “About how this is just fun. Nothing serious.”

Shit.

“Dana—”

“It’s fine.” But her hands shake as she folds a towel. “You were clear from the start, right? Your dating history, your... arrangements. I just forgot for a minute.”

“That’s not—”

“I got the official audition details this morning.” She cuts me off again, still in that terrible calm voice. “If I make it onto the show, they’re offering a six-month contract. Plus potential permanent position with their test kitchen in New York.”

The room tilts sideways. Six months. New York. Permanent.

“You’re leaving?” My voice comes out rough.

“Isn’t that better?” She finally meets my eyes, and the hurt there guts me. “Before this gets complicated?”

Everything I’ve been afraid of, everything I’ve been trying to protect myself from, crashes down at once. Because watching her pack, watching her pull away, is worse than any pain Sarah ever caused.

“I lied.” The words burst out before I can stop them.

She stills. “What?”

“To Jake. To myself.” I step closer, relief flooding through me when she doesn’t back away. “This was never uncomplicated. Never just fun.”

“Ryder—”

“I’m in love with you.”

The box she’s holding hits the counter with a thud. “You... what?”

“I’m in love with you.” Now that I’ve said it once, I can’t stop. “Have been for months. Since before the flood, before all this. Since the first time I saw you light up talking about the perfect pie crust.”

“But you said—”

“I said what I always say when I’m terrified.” I close the distance between us, heart pounding. “Because the last time I let myself fall this hard, it nearly broke me. But this...” I cup her face in my hands. “This is different. You’re different.”

Tears sparkle in her eyes. “How?”

“Because you make everything better just by being near it. Because watching you chase your dreams makes me want to be better. Because the thought of you leaving...” My voice cracks. “It scares me more than letting you in ever did.”

A tear slips down her cheek. I catch it with my thumb.

“I don’t want uncomplicated,” I continue softly. “I want you. Morning breath and flour fights and everything in between. I want to wake up to your baking experiments and fall asleep to your recipe planning. I want—”

Her mouth crashes into mine, cutting off my words. I pull her close, pouring everything I feel into the kiss. All the fear and hope and desperate love.

When we finally break apart, both breathing hard, she presses her forehead to mine.

“Say it again.”

“I love you.” I brush my lips across her temple, her cheek, the corner of her mouth. “I love you. I love—”

This time when she kisses me, it tastes like promise. Like future. Like everything I’ve been too scared to want.

“The show...” she starts.

“We’ll figure it out.” I hold her tighter. “Whatever you want to do, wherever you want to go. Just... don’t go thinking this isn’t real. That you don’t mean everything to me.”

She pulls back just enough to meet my eyes. “I love you too, you know. Even when you’re being an idiot.”

“Especially then?”

Her laugh is watery but real. “Especially then.”

“So what do you want to do?” I brush her hair back, needing to touch her. “About the show?”

She bites her lip, thinking. “I want to go to the audition.”

My heart stumbles, but I nod. “Okay.”

“Not to leave,” she adds quickly. “But to prove I can. That I made the right choice choosing this life.” She gestures around the kitchen. “Even if I don’t take the permanent position.”

“You don’t have to choose.” The idea hits me suddenly. “Between your dreams and... this. Us.”

“What do you mean?”

“The guest house kitchen.” I pull her closer, excitement building. “We could convert it. Make it your test kitchen, your workspace. You could consult remotely, develop recipes, maybe even do online classes...”

Her eyes light up. “You’d do that?”

“Sugar, I’d do anything for you.” I kiss her softly. “Including letting you go chase your dreams in New York. But if you want to stay...”

“I want both.” She winds her arms around my neck. “The show, the opportunities, but also... home. You.”

“Then that’s what we’ll do.” I lift her onto the counter, settling between her legs. “But first...”

“First?”

“First, I’m going to show you exactly how uncomplicated this isn’t.” Her laugh turns to a gasp as I find that spot behind her ear. “The competition prep...”

“Can wait.” I pull her closer. “This won’t.”