As she straightened from the tree, her eyes saw the edge of where the bark had been removed. Walking around, she noticed where she had scratched their names into the tree. He had teased her when she had done it.
Her hand went out to trace the initials, smiling when she saw what Tate had whittled into the tree just below their initials. “4-ever.” The marks were new.
Sutton headed home then, nearly slipping and falling several times with her determination to get back to the man who had left his mark, not only on the tree, but her heart. Like the tree, the mark wasn’t going to disappear. It would be there until, like the tree, she was no longer standing.
She was halfway across the driveway when Tate came outside. He was wearing his boots and had put on a plaid shirt, leaving it unbuttoned, and his hat was on his head. Although he had tried to give her time alone, he looked like he had been about to come looking for her, exactly like he always would.
They were old friends and sweethearts. They couldn’t get back what they had shared when they were younger. However, it was time for them to see if the adults they had become could make something more.
“Today’s the seventh anniversary of Valentine’s death,” Sutton admitted as the rain poured down on her while she stared up at him. “I won’t ever let another man hurt me again.”
Tate stood at the end of the porch. Reaching up, he held the edge of the sloping roof, his shirt flapping in the soft summer breeze.
Her eyes dropped to his body, no longer feeling the cold rain as the temperature inside of her body rose.
“That’s fair.”
“You can stay here with me or go home. I’ll leave that up to you.”
“I’ll be staying.”
“So will I. I’m done running from you.”
“Come here.”
The demand in his voice had her putting one foot in front of the other until she found herself running up the steps toward him. She jumped up the last step, and he was waiting to catch her.
She plastered herself against him. “I don’t want you to leave.”
“I’m not going anywhere, and neither are you. I plan to keep you.”
“You do?”
“I was stupid enough to let you go once, but I’m not going to make the same mistake twice.” His hands cupped her ass, lifting her into his arms.
Sutton wrapped her legs around his waist, circling his broad shoulders. She loved his shoulders. He was strong, yet his strength didn’t scare her, she felt protected and secure. Over the last ten years, she had proven she could survive the worst life could dish out. It was going to be nice to have someone strong enough to protect her if she needed help.
Tate slung open the screen door, carrying her inside the house. When he started to enter his bedroom, she raised her head.
“My room. I don’t want to have sex on my pap’s bed.”
“Woman, it’s not like he’s here.”
Stubbornly, she shook her head. “My bedroom.”
“All right, but your bed’s small. I’m going to get Greer to go into town and buy us a new bed.”
“Don’t you dare! I’ll never hear the end of it. After Knox calls, we can go into town ourselves, and you can buy me dinner.”
“Let’s see how good you are first.”
Her worries kicked in again at his playful attempt to tease her. Tate set her down on the floor beside the bed.
“You’re soaking wet.” His hands went to her waist, tugging her T-shirt over her head.
Sutton began to shiver, not because the room was cold, but because she was worried Tate wouldn’t enjoy having sex with her. When he unsnapped her bra, she pressed herself against his chest so he couldn’t get a good look at her breasts. Scott had complained they were too small and had wanted her to get a boob job.
Tate didn’t slow down. Unsnapping her shorts, he pulled down them and her panties until all her clothes lay in a puddle at her feet. He then pulled away from her to take the clothes to the bathroom.
She jerked her robe on that was lying at the foot of her bed.
Tate came to a stop when he came back into the bedroom. “The idea was to take everything off, not to put more on.” His eyes searched hers then lingered on her trembling fingers tying the belt in a knot at her waist.
“I was cold.”
“Let’s get you warm, then.” He gave her a leering smile.
Sutton laughed, but it was cut off when his mouth covered hers and his tongue thrust into her mouth, not giving her a chance to think about being nervous.
He picked her up, laying her down on the middle of the bed.
“I like the way you kiss,” she admitted.
Scott had never kissed her after they had married.