Page 209 of Scent to the Feral Cowboys

"Thank you so much for cleaning up the barn more,” I murmured against Wyatt's shirt when I could speak again. “I don’t know which of you did it, or all of you, but it means the world. You can’t know how much it means. And being willing to bring Grandmother here...” I couldn’t say anything more, I was barely holding back a new onslaught of sobs.

“We’re going to give you more than a broke down barn filled with old tools,” Wade responded, hand stroking against my hair. “We’d planned on building you a studio once the big house was done, but your Grandmother needs to come first.”

“I don’t need anything else,” I protested. “You’re doing enough.”

“Never going to be enough, Nell,” Cooper said fiercely. “We could never pay you back for staying.”

“You don’t have to pay me back.” I shook my head, face rubbing against Wyatt’s body. “Honestly, what did I have in Seattle? What did I have left in Tacoma? An empty apartment. No job anymore. My only family forgetting me. I didn’t realize how much I needed you all.”

“We always knew how much we needed you,” Levi’s voice quaked.

“We’ll get your Grandmother here, and then we’ll build you a real studio,” Wade insisted. “Then you can dance as much as you want. Any time you want.”

“I love you,” I said, closing my eyes to savor this perfect moment. “I love you all so much.”

After years of barely surviving, I’d found sanctuary.

With five men who saw me completely and loved what they saw.

Five men who would help me care for the Grandmother who had sacrificed everything for my dreams.

Five men who had somehow healed my heart in the blink of an eye.

I was staying.

God help me, I was staying.