Lone Star Reunion

Before she could protest, Daniel grabbed her biceps and slammed his mouth against hers in a hard kiss, but as Alex started to sink into the kiss, he whipped his mouth away. Holding her arms, he easily lifted her away from her spot by the door and grabbed a suitcase and a toiletry bag, tossing both into the bed of his pickup.

Since that was exactly where she wanted her stuff, Alex watched him, her shoulder pressed into the side of the car as he emptied her car in a matter of minutes. She wished he’d taken a little more care in moving her potted plants, but she was sure they’d be okay.

When her car was completely empty—Daniel had even chucked her bag and phone onto his passenger seat—he stormed back to her and placed his hands on his hips, his chest heaving.

“You are not going to Houston,” he stated, his voice gruff.

She’d gathered that already. Alex just resisted throwing herself into his arms and it took everything she had to lift an insouciant eyebrow. “You kidnapping my stuff, Clayton?”

“I couldn’t give a damn about your stuff,” Daniel muttered. He jerked his head toward the pickup. “Get in.”

There was something wonderful in seeing her man slightly unhinged, Alex thought. She was quite curious to see what he’d do if she dissented. “And if I don’t?”

Alex expected him to toss her over his shoulder, to bundle her into his car, and she was turned on thinking about Daniel going caveman on her. But instead of utilizing his physical strength, he lifted his hand to gently touch her face. “I need you, Lex. Right now, I need you to get into my truck because I have things to say...”

“Like?”

Daniel rested his forehead on hers. “I want to tell you that I need you, period. In my bed, my house, my damned life. Nothing makes sense without you.”

Alex turned her cheek into his hand, refusing to drop her eyes from his. This was Daniel, naked and exposed in a way she’d never seen him before. “We make sense, Alexis. We made sense ten years ago, but we were too young and dumb to know it. We made sense three months ago, but we were too scared to acknowledge it. You and I, we’re two puzzle pieces that interlock. You’re...”

Alex felt the moisture on her face, saw the sheen of emotion in his eyes. “What am I, Dan?”

Daniel held her face within both of his hands as her heart slowly slid from her chest to his. “You’re everything, Lex. You’re both my future and my past, my baby’s mother and the beat of my heart. Please don’t go to Houston. Stay here with me.”

“Okay.”

Daniel yanked his head back, a smile hitting his eyes with all the force of a meteor strike. “Are you being serious?”

Alex nodded. “When you roared up, driving like a crazy man, I was actually unpacking, not packing. I was coming to look for you.”

Daniel’s thumb skated over her cheek. “Why?”

Alex gripped his shirt, bunching the fabric in her hands. Preparing to jump, she gathered her courage. “I want to stay. I want to be here with you. Raising our children together.”

More shock. Daniel looked down at her stomach and jerked his head up. “We’re having twins?”

Alex laughed. “Not this time. I was talking about the future, the future I see with you.”

“Damn. Twins would’ve been fun.” He brushed her hair off her forehead, his expression tender. “How do you see our future, Lex?”

“Pretty much as you said earlier. I know that I have some issues, Dan, but I don’t want to live my life fearing something that may not happen. I’d rather have any time I can have with you than no time at all. I’m not saying that I’m not going to be insecure, to worry. I probably will but I’ll try not to be ridiculous about it.”

“And instead of getting frustrated, I’ll just hold you tighter and tell you that I’m never going to let you go.”

He was gruff and bossy and powerful and sometimes annoying, but he was also perfect. She tipped her head back. “I love you, Daniel. I’m crazy in love with you.”

Daniel’s smile was pure tenderness. “I love you, too, sweetheart.”

Alex’s mouth lifted to meet his and she tasted love on his lips, relief in his touch, happiness dancing across his skin. She was feeling pretty damn amazing herself. The kiss deepened, became heated and Daniel pulled her into his hard body, chest to chest, groin to groin. Tongues tangled as love and belonging and desire merged into a sweet, messy ball. This was the start of a new chapter and Alex couldn’t wait for the rest of the book.