“Jude,” I whisper against his stubbled jaw. “Say it again.”
“I’msoproud of you.”
I sniff at the onset of tears, winding my fingers through his hair as he holds me in the dark, barely hidden at the side of the stage.
“Thanks, but that’s not ...”
Somehow his grip gets even tighter, and he presses his mouth to my ear. “My girl.”
That low, assertive tone would get him anything.
Something between a gasp and a groan escapes me when he kisses my cheek. “Gorgeous … brave… bad-aaa—”
I put a hand over his mouth to stop him, but I can’t stop my own smile from spreading. He playfully bites it and kisses my cheek near my ear again.
“Mine.”
Shivers run through me, shutting down half my brain.
“Wait. I have to help Sam.” I loosen my grip, my sense of responsibility still hanging on by a thread.
“I brought him help. You’re with me now.”
And that thread has snapped.
My body liquefies when his words sink in. He grins at the disbelief on my face. “I took care of it, Rock Star. Get your stuff.”
Not only do I get Jude tonight, I getbossyJude.
Yes, please.
He lowers me to my feet, keeping me close, and kisses my head. This may be the first time I’ve completely exhaled in six months.
I can’t stop staring at him. He looks delicious … I meandifferent. His white shirt’s half unbuttoned with the sleeves rolled showing my favorite ink, but I can easily imagine how he’d look in some executive boardroom.
I’ll find out why he’s dressed this way later, but right now, I just want to look at him. At least three new fantasies have been unlocked in the last five seconds.
“You’re staring.” He smirks. “Any confessions?”
I can’t answer that yet. I just hold his gaze and nod slowly.
His grin slips, and his throat bobs as he swallows. “I think we better get out of here before you start something I have to finish.”
“I left my backpack in the cabin,” I manage to squeak out, and tug his hand to follow me down the steps toward the path that brought me here. Two hours ago feels like a past life now.
“You might want to say goodbye to Sam. It won’t take him long with Cade helping.”
I reluctantly let go of him and run straight into a rib-cracking Sammy bear hug. He introduces me to Cade from a distance, and I wave since he’s already loading the car.
“Thank you for making me do this. Today was amazing. And exhausting.”
“It was epic, Smalls! Even better than I imagined. See what happens when you let yourself have fun? I can’t wait to do it again.”
“No, no. Once was good. But really, thanks for helping me with that other thing too.”
“It’s been a good day. You know who you are, Lu Lu. You gotta trust yourself.”
“I love you, Moose. Y’all be safe going home. Come over to Mom’s tomorrow.”
