When I came to, I was on the barn floor with Reya curled up to me. Being a little disoriented, I freaked, thinking she was dead because she was so still. But as soon as she lifted her head I calmed down.

The next several hours consisted of firefighters, policemen, the coroner and emergency personnel coming and going while asking a ton of questions. It was exhausting and I could tell Reya was ready for it to be over. A year-long nightmare for her can finally come to a close and she can get on with her life. I should be happy I helped and that she’s okay, but instead I feel hollow. I remember this feeling well. It took over my life after I got out of the military.

My home and all my belongings are gone, not that it was much, but it was still mine. The peace I’d worked so hard to gain since I came here went up in that same puff of smoke. Reya stumbled drunkenly into my life a few days ago and twisted it inside out. I never thought about loving someone again. Never thought about making a commitment again until those last moments before all hell broke loose last night. She was already getting under my skin before that. She’s beautiful, strong, resilient, loyal and intelligent. Who wouldn’t want a woman like that at their side? Maybe if there was no chemistry I’d feel differently. But we have that in spades.

Something passed between us on that bed last night, something I didn’t even know existed. Now, I have to let her go. It’s time for her to move on with her life, and with all of this tied up and her questions answered, she can.

Earlier today her father flew in to the airport in Billings and Hank picked him up. I didn’t want her driving home alone, especially after everything that’s happened and she refused to let me help. I can’t lie and say that didn’t hurt, but I wasn’t going to admit it out loud.

Her father, Jeb Saunders, is a large, robust man with a kind smile and firm handshake. In fact, when I met him upon his arrival, he almost shook my hand right off as he thanked me for everything. Bill put us in his guest rooms in the main house an hour ago and I’ve been lying here trying to figure out how to say goodbye and let Reya go. I’ve also tossed around the idea of asking her to stay and finding us somewhere to live nearby, but I quickly realized how selfish that would be and let the thought die.

The creak of the door snaps me out of my thoughts and I glance over to see Reya tiptoeing in and closing it behind her. Without a word, she slips into bed and straddles me. My hands slide up and clasp her hips automatically. What’s she doing? Why is she here? She hasn’t said much to me since her dad arrived so I thought maybe she was ready to be done.

Reya dips her head in close and brushes her lips with mine. When she sits up she whips her shirt over her head and rocks a little against me. I stifle a groan as I grow with the friction. She leans down again and slips her tongue between my lips. Her mouth is minty and warm and I get lost in the sensation of her. When I can’t get any harder, she raises up and strips off her panties and tugs my boxers down and off. Then she sits up, opens a condom packet and rolls it on me. Considering my apartment burned to the ground, I have no idea where she got it, but now isn’t the time to ask. Now is the time to enjoy the feel of her sweet pussy wrapped around me and her nails buried in my chest as she rides me. Her hips rock slowly at first, steadily increasing the pace until I’m forced to hold the headboard so you can’t hear it squeaking or banging against the wall.

Her beautiful breasts bounce and sway in time to her movements. I wrap my free hand around one and roll the berry tip between my fingers, causing her pussy to clench and her head to roll back. Strands of her long hair brush my thighs behind her. I want to shout her name, but instead I grip her hips and hold tight as I climax so hard it feels like I’ve emptied myself completely. Her body shudders and she whimpers as her orgasm hits her seconds later. Finally, she collapses on my chest and rests there. She doesn’t say a word and neither do I. How do I make this last longer, like all night?

Reya draws designs on the skin of my shoulder with her fingernail as I rub her back softly.

“I’m going to miss you,” she whispers. “Tomorrow I go back to my life, but I’m not ready to leave you.”

There are two things I want to say to her. One of them being that I want her to stay. The other that I’m in love with her. But knowing those aren’t the right things to say to her I remain quiet. After 10 minutes, she kisses me one last time and climbs out of bed, looking for her clothes.

As she’s shrugging her shirt back on I finally say her name.

She kneels on the bed and kisses my lips. “Shhh. You don’t need to say a thing. I get it. You don’t owe me anything,” she whispers, then leaves the way she came. And I’m right back to the empty feeling I had before she came in here. What the hell is wrong with me? Why didn’t I say what I’m feeling? Probably because it’s wrong to try and keep her here. This is not her home.

The next morning, I follow them out to their car and shake hands with her dad before he goes to the driver’s seat and leaves me with her.

“Thank you for everything. I’m so sorry about your house and your stuff. I wish you’d let me repay you.”

Reaching out, I push the stray strands of hair over her shoulder and out of the way. I could say they were in her face, but that would be a lie. The truth is that I wanted to touch her at least one last time.

“It’s all stuff. None of it mattered. You’re safe; that’s what counts. You don’t owe me anything. Bill will get the insurance check and rebuild. I’ll find myself a place in town. Everything’s okay. Just go home and be happy. That’s all I want, is for you to be happy. You deserve it.”

We stare at each other for a long time and I can feel all the things I pushed down last night creeping to the surface. Almost as if she’s saving me from myself, she breaks the stare-down and hugs me. I hold her tight and kiss the top of her hair. Finally, she pulls back, turns and strides to the car. “Reya!” I call to her like I’m going to say more. But of course I don’t—I can’t—so she climbs into the car without another look back. I wave as she disappears from the property, taking the last little bit of my heart with her.