Page 154 of The Lumberjack and the City Slicker

Waiting.

“I love you,” I whisper.

The words hit the air between us like something sacred.

“I am in love with you, Clara Belle.”

Her breath catches.

“Greyson—”

But I don’t let her talk. Not yet.

“I don’t want you to leave,” I continue. “Not because I get to decide where you belong. And not just because I’m scared of losing you—though I am.”

I swallow hard.

“I don’t want you to leave because the fact of the matter is I belong with you. To you. And I choose you. Not the idea of you. Not the version of you that fits on this mountain.”

My hand comes up to cup her cheek.

“Just you,” I say firmly. “All of you. The city slicker. The troublemaker. The writer. The woman who tells me when I’m being an idiot.”

Her eyes shine now.

“I need you,” I admit. “Not because I wanna build a cage for you. I don't wanna trap you. I just wanna be with you. I love you. And I want you to stay.”

I don’t say move in. Not yet.

I don’t say forever. Though it’s implied.

I just lay it there.

Honest.

Unarmored.

And for the first time in my life—I don’t run away.

Chapter 31

Clara

If this is a dream, I don’t want to wake up.

Greyson is here.

In the spare room I’m borrowing from Kelly.

Gloriously bare-chested.

Long hair carelessly tousled.

Eyes dark and serious and somehow vulnerable all at once.

And he’s saying impossible things.

Things I’ve imagined in quiet, dangerous corners of my mind.