We’ll figure it out. I’ll prove myself to Lauren and, maybe along the way, I can get her to change her mind about hiding us.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Lauren
When my alarmgoes off in the morning, I’m torn between knowing what I’m here for and wanting to stay in bed with Jax for all of eternity. We still have four hours of conference events today, and while I’m looking forward to the speakers on the agenda—there are talks on innovation and ranch management—all I want to do is lie here wrapped up in Jax’s arms.
I peer over my shoulder and find his soft eyes already focused on me. “Have you been up for a while?”
“Couldn’t have been too long.” He pulls me closer. “Granted, time goes by too fast when I’m with you.”
I turn to face him, wrapping my arms around his neck. “I have a hard time believing you’re known as one of the biggest flirts in all of Texas. You’re just full of corny things to say.”
“Ouch.”
I giggle and press a smacking kiss to his cheek. “I like it.”
“Good, because you’re making me this way. I promise I’m normally a lot cooler.”
I swing my legs over the edge of the bed, glancing back at him with a smirk. “If you say so.”
I gather my clothes from my suitcase then pause, groaning.
“What’s wrong?”
“You’ve ruined the conference for me. I want to stay here with you.”
He smiles, slipping from bed. “I’m touched, but you need to get up. You’ll be glad you did. I promise.”
He shoos me toward the bathroom, and as I head that way, he follows close behind.
“What are you doing?” Suspicious, I place a hand on my hip.
He doesn’t answer. He simply grabs my hand, tugging me toward the bathroom and flicking on the light.
Shredded up pieces of paper with the hotel logo are taped all over the mirror. They’re covered with notes in Jax’s handwriting.
You’re Kind. You’re Funny. You scrunch your nose when you laugh. You’re one of the best bluffers in poker I’ve ever seen. Every once in a while, you’ll catch me off guard with something witty, and it makes me laugh. Even when you get knocked down, you get up. You love your people fiercely.
I turn to him, my hands hanging limp at my sides as my jaw falls to the floor. “You did this?”
“You asked me last night what I see in you, and I need you to know that it’s everything. But saying itdoesn’t feel like enough. I wanted you to look in the mirror and see what I see.”
My heart swells. I feel like I could cry. No one has ever made me feel so loved.
I shake my head in disbelief. “I don’t even know what to say.”
I wrap him in a hug. I want to tell him he didn’t have to do this, that I’m learning to love myself on my own and it isn’t his job to take care of me, but when I look up at him, he’s fighting back a smile. I know what Jax needs to hear. “Thank you.”
I keep scanning the sticky notes, and one in the bottom right corner catches my eye.
You’ve become my best friend.
I pull it from the mirror. I just want to hold it for a moment and soak it in. He watches me silently until I finally set it down and pull him to me, sinking my fingers into his hair and crashing my lips into his.
I don’t know any other way to convey the things I’m feeling right now, but I can only hope this kiss lets him know whatever is happening between us means the world to me. This isn’t some rebound from Austin. This isn’t some misguided decision or a quest for wild adventures post-breakup. Jax makes me feel safe and adored. I only hope I can do the same for him because this is something that can very easily bloom into the greatest love I’ve ever felt.
“Okay, this is so not fair.” Jax tosses his head back. “If I can’t play a John Michael Montgomery song three times on thecar ride, then you definitely can’t play ‘All I Want for Christmas is a Cowboy’ three times in arow.”
