Page 32 of Stormswept Colorado (Hart County #3)

I suppressed an eye roll. But I’d already started this, so I might as well see what he thought. “So, this woman… We spent time together. We clicked. On many levels.”

A crooked grin started to slide up Callum’s face.

“ No ,” I barked. “Whatever you’re thinking, don’t.”

He pressed his lips into a flat line. “Got it. Go on.”

I’d spent some late nights torturing myself by watching her videos, scrolling her social media. Not exactly healthy. And also unsatisfying.

Her talent was mind-blowing, yet the version of herself that she revealed in the media wasn’t the woman I’d held in my arms at the Last Refuge Inn. The woman who’d opened up to me, laughed with me.

Who’d whimpered and cried out when I made her come.

That was who I wanted. The truth of her.

I’d replayed the moments we’d shared in my head like my favorite movie, even as I’d refused to confirm or deny any of the gossip.

Those memories were private. Something that belonged just to the two of us.

If any man had dared to make a snide comment about Ayla, he would’ve quickly found my fist in his face. Even Callum.

Deep down, Ayla still felt like mine.

I didn’t know how to stop feeling that.

“We had to say goodbye. We don’t even live in the same state, and we have almost nothing in common beyond some very intense chemistry. But I still can’t stop thinking about her.”

“Sounds rough.”

“It’s becoming a problem.” I leaned forward on my elbows, rubbing my eyes. “My temper is shorter than usual.”

“I hadn’t noticed. ”

I glared. He thought he was cute. “I can’t sleep , Cal. It’s bad.”

He nodded. “Okay. Have you reached out to her?”

“Yes. I’ve texted to check in on her.”

“Have you heard back?”

“A few times.”

I’d been texting her every few days to check in, and she wrote back often enough to suggest the communication wasn’t unwanted. But beyond that, Ayla had gone quiet on me. No updates yet on the stalker situation.

“Does she write back to every message?”

“Not exactly.”

“What does that mean? Not exactly ?”

I took out my phone, glancing over the messages I’d sent. “She doesn’t always reply, but she always likes my messages.”

“Wait.” Callum grimaced. “With a thumbs up?”

“With a heart.”

He nodded, relieved. “A heart is promising. We can work with that.”

“Yeah? I have no idea what to think.”

“Show me what you’ve written. We need to check your tone.”

“ What ? No. I’ll check my own tone.” Holding my hand over my screen, I scrolled back through my texts over the last couple weeks.

Me

Hope you’re well.

Ayla

I am. I hope you’re well too.

I am. Just been thinking of you.

She responded with a heart to the message. Then, a few days later.

Day off today. Spent time with Ollie and Maisie at the park. They were up to their usual antics.

Wish I could’ve been there.

I wish that too.

Sending a photo

Another heart. Then a couple more days. I remembered agonizing over whether or not to write, starting and stopping several texts before I sent the next one.

Heard one of your songs while I was driving today. Got so distracted Finn had to radio me three times before I responded to dispatch. Embarrassing. [eye roll emoji]

[blushing face emoji]

And just yesterday, from me:

Missing you.

Fuck. I scrubbed a hand over my face.

“That bad?” Callum asked.

“What is wrong with me? I sound like I’m obsessed .”

He grinned. “From you, Teller, that’s saying something. And it’s a pleasant surprise.”

“Doesn’t feel pleasant.”

When Ayla and I had been together in person, the chemistry between us flowed naturally. But it ended when that weekend was over. It had to end, and we’d both acknowledged that. Logically, I knew it.

But the rest of me just wasn’t listening.

I was all twisted up over Ayla, and I had no idea what to do about it .

I put my phone away. “I’m so fucking out of practice with this kind of thing.”

“What exactly do you want to happen with her?”

I rapped my knuckles on the bar top. “Something that’s…impossible. But I still want it so fucking much.” I’d been cursing a lot more lately too. Probably went without saying.

He nodded slowly. “It kinda sounds like you might be falling for her.”

Oh hell.

Hell.

No. That could not be it. Ayla was incredible, breathtaking, every superlative. But me , falling that way? After one weekend together and then two weeks of sheer misery without her?

Could a weekend be that life-changing?

The muscle in my chest reacted, thumping out an answer that I felt in my bones, my skin. My face fell into my hands.

“What’s happening to me?”

I didn’t do this kind of thing. Chase a woman who was unattainable. I didn’t chase women at all.

I’d spent the last ten years devoted to causes bigger than myself.

That hadn’t left room for anything else.

But now there was suddenly a hole in the middle of my life.

A lack I hadn’t even realized was there.

Until Ayla Maxwell filled up that space for a few life-changing days and showed me just what I’d been missing.

Laughter and connection and intimacy. Plus epically hot sex.

Did I just need to find a girlfriend? A more realistic prospect than a superstar?

The very thought of touching some other woman made me nauseous. No, this was about Ayla. The most incredible woman I’d ever met.

A better question: what the hell was I going to do?

“Maybe it’s just an infatuation,” Callum said. “You wouldn’t be the first guy to fall for the girl on the cover of the magazine. She must have men chasing after her all the time.”

Remain seated , I commanded myself. Do not launch across this bar and strangle your friend . “Stop talking about her with other men. Unless you want me to lose my shit.”

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry.” Callum held up his hands. “That was a test, by the way.”

“And?”

“You’re an intense guy all the time, Teller, but you’re extra intense about her. Seems like it’s something real. Look, it’s a long shot, the two of you working out.”

I scowled. We’d both dropped the fiction that this wasn’t about Ayla. “I don’t need a reminder of that fact.”

“ But , if you feel that strongly about her, you shouldn’t give up. Just don’t jerk her around. Or yourself. Only do this if she’s worth it to you.”

My response leaped to the tip of my tongue without a moment’s hesitation. “She’s worth everything.”

I had no idea what I was doing or where this was going. But Ayla was the kind of woman who was worth burning down the world for.