Stealing Cinderella
? Crazier - ysabelle
Callie
I sway on my feet,head tilted and eyes heavily lidded, my voice as unsteady as I am. “I love weddings.”
Jaxon lets out a throaty chuckle. “Come on, Cinderella. Time to go before you turn into a pumpkin.”
I dissolve into a fit of giggles. “That’s not how the story goes, silly. I’m supposed to lose my shoe, and then the handsome prince comes to find me.”
He takes two measured steps toward me. “Am I the handsome prince in this scenario?”
I kick off both of my heels and throw my arms around his neck in the middle of the empty dance floor. “One more dance. I want to feel like a princess for just a little while longer.”
Jaxon dips to hook my shoes onto his fingers and wraps his arms around me. There isn’t any music left to dance to, just the low chirping of crickets and the occasional rustling of thewind through the trees. He dips me backward and presses his lips to mine, kissing me soundly.
“Have I told you how unbelievably beautiful you are tonight?” he murmurs.
The sincerity in his voice makes my heart spasm. I’ve spent the majority of my life making myself invisible. Blending in was the best way to keep myself safe. I don’t feel like I have to do that anymore—not here. Not with Jax by my side.
“You’re not so bad yourself, Cowboy.”
His grip tightens on my waist. “Mm. Say it again.”
I bring my lips to the shell of his ear. “Cowboy.”
“That’s my girl. Hold on tight.” He sweeps his arm behind my knees and lifts me into his arms with practiced ease. I squeal at the sudden change of position.
“Let’s go home, Bluebird.”
Home.
There’s a tightness in my chest as my mind latches onto that one singular word. Home was always a dream—so far in the future, I never gave it much consideration. My focus was always survival. I never considered what would come after that. The living part—the contentment—it’s all new to me, and it is profoundly humbling.
Jaxon drives us home with his hand on my thigh, making lazy patterns with his thumb. I rest my head on his shoulder and melt into the easy affection. Suddenly, I’m grateful for old trucks with bench seats; it makes it easy to press up against him.
I settle into a contented haze, and my eyes drift shut, only opening again when the truck stops moving. I glance out the front window, blinking several times to get my bearings. It’s dark, but I can still make out the rocky shore and the rolling creek beyond. Jaxon stares straight ahead at the waterfall shimmering in the truck’s headlights. All is quiet, save for the faint sound of rushing water.
“Jax? What are we doing here?”
“We used to hang out here a lot as kids. I stopped coming after Ryan…”
I twine my fingers through his. I don’t speak, waiting for Jaxon to continue. Whatever feelings brought us here, I want him to feel safe to express them. Despite all of his jagged edges, Jaxon has become my soft place to land. I want to be that for him, too.
“That night changed everything. This place stopped feeling like home. The waterfall, the ranch, all of it. So many of my happiest memories were tied to our friendship, but I couldn’t get past the one that took him from me.” He shifts, those green eyes boring into me like he’s seeing straight through to my soul. “Then you came along.”
He reaches for me and pulls me onto his lap, one hand cradling my jaw. The touch is so reverent, so delicate, I forget how to breathe.
“I started to see beauty here again. New memories found a home beside the old ones, and I realized that pain and happiness can co-exist—that one can’t truly exist at all without the possibility of the other. I thought I had to live my life under the shadow of what happened that day, but you… you taught me that my life doesn’t have to be defined by one moment.”
He sweeps a lock of hair away from my face. “My beautiful Callie. I’m going to kiss you now. I’m going to kiss you and let this moment take its place beside all of the others, and when I think about this place, I’ll think of you and this moment, and every one that comes after.”
He presses his lips to mine, and I receive him without reservation, soft and deliberate, neither of us rushing to deepen it. The world around us fades until nothing exists but us—no past, no future, just this moment with this man.
Jaxon
I set Callie down at the foot of the bed with her back to my front and press a kiss to the spot between her shoulder and neck as I fumble with the zipper at the back of her dress. Her scent envelopes me as she relaxes back into me just a fraction. There’s a chance she doesn’t even realize she’s doing it.
