“I know. But knowing I was so close during his last moments . . . I was minutes away from saying good-bye to him. I hate that I never had the chance.”
Liam stared into her green eyes. He’d thought her bad memories of this town revolved around him. If he could win her forgiveness and make her see that this time would be different, that he wouldn’t run, he wouldn’t hurt her, then she would stay. But it ran deeper, so much deeper . . .
He interlaced his hand with hers as the arm snaked around her waist drew her closer. “I can understand wanting to escape those memories.”
“Don’t you think about leaving? A fresh start someplace that doesn’t remind you of the people you lost?”
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sp; “I thought about it after my parents passed away. But Georgia was in school and she needed a place to come home to. So I started logging.” He shrugged. “It’s what I know. I grew up working in the forest, same as Eric.”
He looked out at the lake. The sun was dipping low behind the mountains. It would be dark soon and the temperature would drop too. They should finish eating and head inside. But he couldn’t let her go. Not yet.
“I told myself I would leave when Georgia graduated,” he continued. “But then she joined the army. And I felt paralyzed. If I left, if I walked away from our hometown, what would she have to come back to? I needed her to come home. I couldn’t lose her too.”
He closed his eyes, feeling the weight of his words like the heavy fear he’d carried around day and night while his sister had been overseas. Katie squeezed his hand.
“Now this place is my home,” he added. “My future is here.”
Opening his eyes, he looked at their joined hands, resting in her lap. Our future. But he couldn’t say the words. He couldn’t tell her that running from memories didn’t make them disappear. Look at Georgia. She carried hers with her across the ocean.
No, he couldn’t use words. He needed to show her. Tonight. Before they left this place and returned to the other side of the lake. When they got back Independence Falls, the negotiations to buy her family business, the one her late father had nurtured and grown, waited for them. And when Katie learned of Eric’s plan to hire her and bind her to Independence Falls?
His hand resting on her hip ran up the side of her body, drawing her closer. On Monday morning, when Eric presented his offer, she’d feel trapped. And there was no doubt in his mind, she’d look to him, accusing and demanding to know why he’d hadn’t said a word about the deal during their time together.
Shit. He couldn’t do that to her. He had to tell her. Now.
“Katie, honey, I want you to stay, but there is something you need to know—”
“I can’t.” She raised her hand, pressing a finger to his lips. “I can’t stay, Liam. I want to be here. Tonight. With you. But I can’t make promises beyond that. If that’s not enough for you, I understand.”
He turned his head, running his lips over her palm. He should tell her about Eric’s plan. But out here, removed from Independence Falls, with Katie perched on his lap, the need to be with her, to love her, won.
“What did you have in mind?” he murmured, punctuating the question with a kiss in the center of her hand. They could discuss business in the morning. He silently promised they wouldn’t leave the cabin until she knew about Eric’s offer.
Katie broke free from his hold, sliding off his lap. “I think it is my turn to call the shots.”
“And if I disobey?” he asked, watching as she returned to her chair.
“You wouldn’t dare.” In the near darkness, he saw her pick up her knife and fork. “But first, I’ll let you finish your dinner. I’d hate for that steak to go to waste.”
Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen, he thought, hardening to the point that he might explode. The thought of Katie vying for dominance narrowed his focus to the here and now.
“Later.” He stood, picking up his plate. “It’s getting dark out here.”
“I don’t mind.”
“I do.” He picked up her dish and headed for the sliding glass doors. “You better believe I want to see the expression on your face when you make your demands.”
If they had only tonight—and she’d better be prepared for the fact that he wasn’t going to let her walk away without a fight—he wanted to spend it worshipping her, caring for her, giving her damn near all he had to offer.
Chapter 14
KATIE PAUSED IN the doorway. The things she’d revealed on the porch, she’d never shared with anyone, not even her brothers. How could she tell her family, the people who loved her no matter what, that living with them in Independence Falls left her second-guessing her past choices over and over?
But she’d told Liam, the man she had reason to distrust. On the porch, she’d been open and honest with him, proving once again that she’d pushed beyond her desire for revenge. She no longer held the past against him. But what did that mean for the future?
Katie shook her head. That question, the future—it didn’t belong here in this moment. Right now, she wanted to focus on the fever pitch of need rushing through her at the thought of seducing Liam, of calling the shots.