“Who says it has to?” he asked quietly, taking her hand in his. When she just stared at him, he continued, “I don’t want this to be over yet, either. Let’s get you there and settled. I already told you I’m not leaving right away.”
She didn’t want him to leave,ever.That was the problem. She wanted to ask him—fuck,she’d beg him—to stay if she needed to. She didn’t want to say good-bye. Didn’t want to lose him, not now that they’d finally come together.
By the time they had crossed the border into Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and started heading east along the shoreline of Lake Michigan, Roxy was exhausted. As badly as she didn’t want this to end, she was so ready to not be in the car any longer. When the massive, five-mile-long suspension bridge came into view, Roxy gasped, sitting up straighter in her seat. “Holy shit, we have to drive across that?!”
“We’ll be fine,” Travis chuckled.
His tone changed once they got onto the bridge nicknamed the Mighty Mac. His fingers were white knuckled around the steering wheel as he drove, slower than the posted speed limit. There were only two lane options; the outside lane, which was solid concrete beneath their tires, but far too close to the much too short metal guardrail in Roxy’s opinion… or the middle lane, which was a metal grate that they could see straight through to the water that ran below the bridge, and Roxy hated that even more.
“Who the fuck designed this deathtrap?” he grumbled through clenched teeth, eyes straight ahead as they made it to the halfway point of the Mackinaw Bridge.
“You afraid of heights, big guy?” Roxy teased breathlessly, her own throat tight with fear, too. She shivered when she looked out over the expanse of water far below. The view would have been beautiful, if not for how terrifying it was.
“Yes,” he admitted, laughing. “I don’t much like the idea of plummeting over the side of this thing.”
Once they’d made it to solid ground again, his knuckles unfurled from the death grip he’d had on the steering wheel, andhe blew out a long exhale. Scrubbing one hand down his face, he rasped, “I don’t even smoke and I need a cigarette after that.”
Deciding to stop in the tiny town of Mackinaw City to stretch their legs and unwind from that treacherous drive, they wandered the streets, hand in hand. Early June in Michigan was stunning, Roxy admitted to herself as they walked. Lilac trees in varying shades of purple and white were in full bloom, the soft, heady scent filling her nose. After she’d stopped to smell every single lilac tree they passed, Travis plucked his switchblade out of his pocket and sliced off several small branches, handing them to her. She thanked him with a grin, and then he leaned down to kiss her swiftly.
“I’m sure Jodi has a vase we can put those in, when we get you home,” he murmured, taking her hand in his once again as they continued back toward the car. “How much farther?”
“Looks like little more than half an hour.” Her heart tripped in her chest.She didn’t want this to be over!
Setting the fragrant blooms in the back seat carefully, she stepped toward Travis, wrapping her arms around his waist, fisting her fingers in the shirt at his back.
“Please stay,” she whispered, not daring to look up into his eyes. It had taken all of her courage to force the words out of her mouth.
His arms banded around her tightly, his head dropping to force her own up. He kissed her, and this kiss was long and fraught with so much emotion that tears stung her eyes. When he lifted his lips from hers, he breathed against them, “I’d follow you anywhere, Roxy.”
Smiling through the tears that clouded her vision, she clung to him. This wasn’t how she’d imagined their trip ending. How drastically different her life was from a week ago, she marveled as she stared up into those honey gold eyes that she had fallen so deeply in love with.
Climbing back into the 4Runner, they made their last short leg of the journey toward Blue Haven, Jodi’s parents ranch, and her new home. Roxy had let Free know they were almost there, and when Travis pulled them down the long, white picket fenced driveway, Jodi, Free, and Jodi’s parents were there waiting for them when they arrived.
She hadn’t even had time to open the door when Free swung it open, and she stepped out of the car and was immediately enclosed in his arms. His citrus and cedar scent hit her as he hauled her close. Burying her face in his neck and wrapping her arms around his waist, she let herself cry, all the fear and pain and exhaustion escaping her.
“This is the last time you’re allowed to scare me like this,” he muttered darkly into her hair, kissing the top of her head. She laughed through her tears, then pulled back, swiping at her face. She’d missed that Texas drawl.
“It’s good to see you, too, Free,” she deadpanned, rolling her eyes. God it was good to see him. He tilted her face up so he could assess the damage to her face, his lips thinning and those intense aquamarine eyes narrowing dangerously. “I’m okay.”
Travis had alighted from the driver’s side and stepped around the hood of the car. Roxy stepped back from Free, holding a hand out to Travis, who took it.
“Free, this is Travis. Travis, this is Freeman,” she introduced, and the two men shook hands.
“Thanks for getting her here safely,” Free murmured softly, though his eyes hadn’t missed the way their fingers had intertwined. Clearing his throat, he turned, gesturing behind him. “Travis, my wife Jodi, and her parents, Serenity and Levi Kendall.”
Jodi stepped up, launching herself at Roxy, who caught the pregnant woman around the waist and hugged her with onearm, her other hand still twined with Travis’s. The shorter, dark haired beauty’s shoulders shook with tears, and Roxy laughed.
“I’m sorry,” Jodi hiccupped, leaning away and swiping at her own face. “These stupid hormones have been awful.”
“She cried because a hummingbird came to the feeder today before she had refilled it,” Free muttered out of the corner of his mouth, and Roxy laughed again. Travis grinned.
“What if it thought I abandoned it, Freeman!” Jodi cried, waving her arms as more tears fell. Free pulled her into his arms and rocked her there gently, smoothing a large, tanned hand over her flyaway curls, and pressed a kiss to her forehead. He grinned over her head at Roxy and Travis, shaking his head lightly.
Serenity and Levi, Jodi’s parents, stepped forward then. Levi was a tall bear of a man, with broad shoulders, a wide chest, and dark hair that was streaked heavily with silver. Sapphire blue eyes that matched his daughters were kind, though shrewd. Seren was a petite thing, her dark hair twisted up into a loose French twist at the back of her head. Roxy had always liked Jodi’s parents; they had welcomed her into their family like she’d always belonged.
“We’re glad you made the trip safely,” Seren said softly, stepping forward to hug Roxy. Turning to Travis, she asked, “And who is this handsome thing?”
Roxy smiled. God it was good to be here. “Thank you for opening your doors for me when I needed it. And, this is Travis Hayes. He taught the kickboxing class I was taking, and when everything happened, he railroaded his way into driving me here.” He shook his head with a chuckle, rolling his eyes down at her.
