Colleen moved in closer, laid one hand on his chest and said, “What he did was terrible, you’re right. But he did it because he loved you.”
“Hell of a way to prove it,” he muttered. “He betrayed me, bottom line. And so did Megan, though in the long run, she did me a favor.”
“Can’t you say J.D. did, too?”
He snorted. “Don’t know that I’m ready to thank him. But looking back, I can see that I mistook lust for love and I’m guessing J.D. saw that more clearly than I did back then.” He blew out a breath and Colleen saw the anger fade from his eyes as he began to let go of the past. “I can say that if he hadn’t stuck his nose in, I might not be standing here in front of a woman who turns my blood to fire with a look.”
Instantly, Colleen’s whole body lit up as if a sudden fever erupted inside her. She loved him. She wanted him. She stared into his eyes and knew that though he might not love her back, his desire was real and every bit as powerful as her own. “Sage...”
“I’m done talking about J.D. right now, Colleen,” he murmured, dropping both hands to the workbench on either side of her, pinning her in place. “I’ve been trying to stay away from you—”
“I know,” she said. “Why?”
“Because I want you too much. You’re all I think about. All I give a flying damn about. You’re in my blood, Colleen.”
“You’re in mine, too,” she whispered, reaching up to cup his face between her palms. Her thumbs traced across his cheekbones and he held perfectly still as she went up on her toes, moved in and kissed him.
That soft brush of her lips against his was a benediction of sorts. A wiping away of the past and a welcome into the present—the future?
He fell into her kiss willingly, eagerly, and wrapped his arms around her. Colleen gave herself up to the moment, letting go of everything but the magic shimmering in the air between them.
But just as the kiss was deepening, spiraling out of control, Sage pulled back, looked down at her and muttered, “Damned if we’re going to be together in an old cabin and then in an equipment shed where any one of my cowboys could glance in the window for a peek.”
She flushed and laughed, burying her face briefly against his chest. “I forgot entirely where we were.”
“Yeah, you have that effect on me, too,” he confessed. “But today we’re going to try an actual bed. Come with me.”
He took her hand and led her out of the shed toward the main house and all Colleen could think was, she would go with him anywhere.
Ten
She woke up early in the master bedroom to find that Sage was already up and gone.
Colleen sighed and stretched languorously in the big bed she’d shared with him all night. Her mind filled with images of the night before and bubbles of residual heat slid through her bloodstream like champagne. She’d only managed about two hours’ sleep all night, but she’d never felt more awake, more aware.
Who would have guessed that love could heighten every sense? Could make you both grateful and miserable with the kind of feelings that were so overwhelming? She couldn’t stay, she knew she couldn’t. She loved him and he didn’t love her and never the twain would meet just like when it happened in those literary, depressing love stories.
But God, she didn’t want to go. Her gaze fixed on the wall of windows and French doors leading to a wood deck, beyond which she saw an amazing sweep of stormy sky that was punctuated by the tips of pine trees. It looked as though they would get another storm, and she knew she should go before that storm hit. Now all she needed was the courage to make the move. She was in love, but he wasn’t. In fact, he would probably panic and run if he knew how she felt about him. But when she remembered the tenderness, the amazing heat that spiraled between them when they made love, it was hard not to dream that one day, he might love her back.
“Oh, God,” she murmured, pulling her pillow out from under her head to drop it onto her face. “Try not to be a complete idiot, Colleen. Sex isn’t love. Just because he’s good at it doesn’t mean he cares. He’s just...thorough.”
She threw one arm across that pillow so that her voice was muffled and she wouldn’t have to listen to herself. Honestly, this was a serious mess. Falling in love was just—unavoidable, she thought. Now she had to work out what to do about it. Keep her mouth shut, obviously. And get off this mountain as quickly as possible. Because the longer she stayed, the harder it would be to eventually walk away.