I wrap my arm around her waist and guide her back inside like nothing happened.
Like I didn’t just leave Benny gasping in the dirt. Like she didn’t tremble through every second of it, caught between the ones who think they can save her and the man who already fucking owns her.
She’s quiet now, I imagine she’s holding the adrenaline in, letting it calm in her core before she opens her mouth again. I’m not mad at her. She didn’t bring them here. She didn’t run to him. Didn’t throw herself on top of him to protect him from me. Instead, she stood still and stayed loyal. She didn’t even try to pull me off him when he was breathless in the dirt. And that? That earns her something.
We slide back into the booth. I flag the waitress without looking and order two slices of chocolate drizzled cheesecake and two espressos.
Summer watches me from under those lashes like she’s waiting for the storm. But all I do is lean back, arm stretched across the top of the seat, and smile.
“Relax,” I murmur, voice low and velvet wrapped. “I’m not letting a good night go to waste.”
She blinks. Swallows hard. “After all that…?”
I nod, slow. Letting her feel it. The shift.
“Yeah,” I say. “After all that.
My hand drops to her thigh under the table, but this time I offer her gentleness. Warm, possessive gentleness.
“Because you didn’t throw yourself down in front of him. Didn’t cry. You stood there—right where I left you.”
My thumb strokes over her leg, lazily making my way higher up her thigh until I feel her clenching them together. “And that makes me think….” I pause, smile stretching. “Maybe you’ve finally learned where you belong.”
She doesn’t speak, she doesn’t need to. Her body is telling me everything I need to know.
“So now I’m thinking,” I murmur, leaning closer, voice a promise wrapped in gravel, “tonight, when we get home, I’m going to ruin you.”
A beat.
“But not as the sheriff who’s sworn to protect you.” My voicedrops to a growl, lips brushing her ear. “As the man who’s waited long enough.”
She’s squirming in her seat. One fucking sentence—that’s all it took.
“Ruin you.”
And now she can’t sit still. Can’t meet my eyes without her breath hitching. Her thighs are pressed together so tight I can practically hear the tension humming off her skin.
Good.
She stood by me. Sat beside me. Let me touch her, claim her, mark her in ways no one else ever fucking will.
She’s earning it.
And tonight, she’ll finally find out what happens when I stop holding back.
The waitress drops dessert in front of us. I thank her with a nod, not breaking eye contact with Summer. She licks her lips, then realizes what she’s doing and stops.
But it’s too late, I saw you baby.
I dip my finger into the whipped cream, drag it through slow. I lift it to her mouth.
“Open,” I murmur.
Her eyes dart to the table beside us. The old couple pretending not to stare. The kid in the corner booth with his mom. I can see her cheeks flush.
Good.
“I said open.”
