I wake up in Maximus’ bed, encompassed in his rugged smell. His scent on his bed sheets… I can’t get enough of it.

The night was a mess of sweaty, twisted-up sheets and hot sex dreams. Me and Maximus rolling around in the tall grass like we used to do, in the back of his truck, on my parent’s couch, all of the old places where we couldn’t keep our hands off each other.

I’m so wet. Not just between my legs, but everywhere. I’m sweating like I just completed a sex marathon, which I kind of did even though it was only in my mind.

I close my eyes and breathe in his familiar scent, pretending for a moment that he’s here beside me. Flashes of last night’s dreams come back to me before they disappear forever—his weight pushing down on me, his strong hands spreading my legs, his thick cock sliding deep inside.

I’m moaning as my hand slides between my legs until a loud knocking on the front door jerks me out of my happy place.

“Kennedy, are you sleeping?”

It’s Lachlan.

“Breakfast is ready if you’re hungry.”

I’m so hungry, but it’s not for pancakes… Okay, it’s for pancakes too.

“I’ll be out in a minute!” I call out to him as I rub my forehead, trying to turn the R-rated thoughts in my head back to a more respectable PG-13.

I arrived at The Grisly Ranch last night and Lachlan let me sleep in Maximus’ cabin. I probably should have slept on the couch, but I couldn’t resist lying in his bed one more time. As I get up and peel the wet t-shirt off of me, I realize that I probably should have slept on the couch.

A quick wash up and change later, I step out of the cabin and the cool mountain air hits my face. I suck in a long breath and smile as the sun shines down on my closed eyelids. It’s late summer and the weather is perfect as usual. God, I miss Montana. Colorado is a close second, but nothing beats Big Sky Country.

The crew is hanging out around the outdoor kitchen as Lachlan cooks up some food. They’re laughing while drinking coffee and a pang of loneliness hits me. I miss this—the comradery of living with friends.

The only friends I have these days are in books. When I’m done work, I usually lock myself in my apartment and only leave when I absolutely have to. The world is an unwelcoming place for people who look like me. The stares, the pointing, the horrified looks—it’s easier to just stay home.

I walk over, self-conscious as usual and wondering if I’ve made a mistake. There are nine people around the outdoor kitchen and I only know two of them. Lachlan was always so nice to me back in the day, and Kneecap, well, I always stayed away from Kneecap back then. Everybody did.

The other seven—three men and four women—are strangers, but they seem nice enough. They’re all smiling and laughing as they tease each other.

I only saw two of them last night before Lachlan brought me to Maximus’ cabin, so I’m fully expecting them to do that thing where they see me, gasp, and then nervously smile, pretending they’re not bothered by my scars while being completely obvious that they are.

But when they turn around one by one and see me, not one of them looks shocked. They’re all natural smiles and grins.

“Guys, this is Kennedy,” Lachlan says, presenting me with a smile. “From what I remember, she’s the best.”

“Hi,” I say, smiling as I give an awkward little wave. “Sorry to show up unannounced like this.”

“Nonsense,” Kneecap says as he rushes forward wearing only a loincloth. He wraps his huge arms around me, and for a second, as I’m squished into his huge pecs, I think he’s going to crush me. Thankfully, he doesn’t break any bones. He just bruises me a little. “Maximus’ girl is always welcome here.”

Hearing him call me Maximus’ girl sends a jolt through me. I miss being called that, but those days are over. He let me leave and didn’t contact me for six whole years. I’m here for his protection. That’s it.

They fight to introduce themselves, elbowing each other as they say their names. Abigail, Tito, Zoe, Nora—there are so many of them and they all looked thrilled to meet me.

By the time they thrust a coffee cup in my hand and guide me to the picnic tables that are overflowing with food, I feel right at home.

“So, what was Maximus like when he was younger?” Caleb asks, looking at me with eager eyes.

How can I answer that question without giving my feelings away? He was amazing. The most incredible man I’ve ever met.

“Stubborn,” I say with a chuckle.

“So, he hasn’t changed,” Caleb says as everyone laughs.

“Do you have tons of embarrassing pictures that you can give us to bribe him with?” Jessie asks, rubbing her hands together like an evil villain from a children’s cartoon. “Anything with bad haircuts or clothes that are out of style.”

Maximus always looked good. No matter what he wore, he could pull it off. He was one of those guys.

“I think I have some at home somewhere,” I say as Kneecap dumps a stack of pancakes onto my plate.

“Relax, Gary,” Tito says with a smirk on his face. “She’s not going to eat all that. She’s not a shifter.”

“Who’s Gary?” I ask. I thought I had met everyone.

Tito snorts out a laugh as he looks at Kneecap who’s frowning back at him.

“You haven’t met Gary Halbert?” Tito asks as he presents Kneecap. “Accountant extraordinaire.”

“Call me an accountant one more time,” Kneecap warns with a fierce glare.

The twin doesn’t seem too phased. “Why, are you going to do my taxes if I do?” he asks with a smirk.

Kneecap just shakes his head and takes a sip of his coffee, letting it slide.

Wow. Things have definitely changed around here.

Back in the day if someone said that to Kneecap, they’d be sipping coffee through a straw on account of their broken face.

He seems to have settled down and found a girl. Nora, the pretty girl with the thick blonde curls and big ears, hugs his huge arm and smiles at him. He smiles back to her and suddenly it all makes sense. He’s in love with her and nothing else matters. Nothing is worth getting upset over because she’s by his side.

We spend the rest of the breakfast telling stories and joking around, and I already feel like I’m one of the gang.

I’ve missed this. Friendship.

Romantic love is not in the cards for me anymore, but maybe I can try to make some friends when I get back home, whenever that will be.

“Well, I have to go to work,” Abigail says as she stands up from the table.

“Is it that time already?” Nora asks with a frown as she looks at her watch.

“Yup,” Zoe says, standing up as well. “These animals aren’t going to heal themselves.”

Abigail smiles. “And these drowning swimmers won’t save themselves.”

The boys get up as well and go with their mates as they get ready to leave. Soon it’s only me, Lachlan and Jessie, who is currently falling asleep at the table.

“Go back to bed, babe,” Lachlan says, gently waking her up. “I’ll do the dishes.”

“Really?” she asks, looking so grateful. “It was a late night at the bar last night. I was working until four.”

“Then go back to bed,” I say as I stand up and grab a few empty plates. “I’ll help Lachlan clean up.”

“I like you,” she says with a yawn as she gets up. “I hope you get to stick around.”

“Thanks,” I whisper as she stumbles back to her cabin. “I hope so too.”

We start cleaning up the table and take all of the dishes into the outdoor kitchen.

“Where is Maximus?” I ask as I pile the dishes onto the counter.

Lachlan takes a deep breath as he turns the water on, filling up the sink. “He’s on his way back home. I talked to him about an hour ago.”

“You did? What did he say?”

“Nothing,” he says with a chuckle. “I told him you were here and he hung up the phone on me.”

“Why?” I ask with a gulp. “Was he mad or something?”

“No,” he says with a laugh. “I know Maximus. He hung up because he’s racing over here to see you. I’m sure he doesn’t want to waste a second.”

“What do you mean? He wants to see me?”

Lachlan looks at me with his brow furrowed. “Are you kidding? That poor guy has been dying to see you for years.”

“So, why didn’t he?” I ask, feeling the frustration boil over. “He could have come to see me. He could have called. I woke up in a hospital bed and my eye was gone, my face was gone, and he was gone.” He was the one that hurt the most. I could live without an eye and without my beauty, but at the time I didn’t think I could live without him. Some days I still think that.

“I don’t know if I should be telling you any of this,” Lachlan says as he squirts some dish soap into the sink.

“Don’t give me that shit,” I say, surprised by my aggressiveness. “I’ve been waiting six years for some answers. Tell me.”

He takes a deep breath as he watches the bubbles rise.

“He feels that he let you down. He doesn’t think he deserves to be with you anymore.”

We’re both staring at the rising bubbles as his words sink in.

“Kennedy,” he says softly as he turns to me. “I never got to apologize for what happened.”

“You didn’t do anything,” I say. “In fact, if you two hadn’t shown up, I might not be here today.”

“Still. I’m sorry. Carter was my cousin and my best friend,” he says, shaking his head. “I can’t believe he did that to you. It still haunts me.”

“It was a crappy day all around,” I say after a moment. “I wish we could all just put it behind us and move on.”

“Me too.”

We do the dishes in a comfortable silence for a few minutes. “When do you think he’ll get here?” I ask, hoping I don’t sound too eager.

“It should take about eighteen hours, but knowing Maximus, he’ll probably be here after dinner.”

My stomach does little flips at the thought of seeing him again. I can’t wait, but at the same time, I’m nervous. He hasn’t seen my scars.

I don’t even want to think about how he’s going to react when he sees me. I’m no longer the girl he fell in love with all those years ago.

I’m a broken version of her.

It’s okay, I tell myself. I’m not here for that. I’m just here to hide from Bledsoe.

As long as I remember that, I’ll be fine.

Hopefully, my heart can remember that too.

By the time dinner is done and the campfire is roaring, I’m a nervous wreck. Ronin is telling the story of how a cow gave birth on Tito’s head and everyone is laughing except me. I can’t stop looking at the road that leads into the ranch, expecting headlights to come driving down them at any second.

“Hellooooo,” Caleb says, waving his hand in front of my face. “Earth to Kennedy.”

“What?” I ask, turning back as everyone laughs. Was he talking to me?

I can’t focus on anything right now. Maximus can be here any minute. There’s no more room in my brain to focus on anything other than that.

“He’s trying to get you to go see his band,” Tito says with a grimace. “Don’t do it. Your ears will never forgive you.”

They start arguing, and once again my eyes veer to the road. I swallow hard when I see headlights in the distance. My heart starts pounding as the pickup truck approaches along the main road and then it starts doing backflips when the truck pulls onto the ranch.

“There he is,” Lachlan says under his breath.

There he is. The only man I’ve ever loved. He’s about to see me, scars and all.

I’m nauseous as he parks the truck and feel like I’m going to throw up as he opens the door.

Then I see him.

He steps out and stares at me with a look that seizes my core. The only part of my body that can move is my heart, which is beating wildly out of control.

He’s even more gorgeous than I remembered. His body was always big, but it’s filled out in thick hard muscle. He no longer looks like the boy I fell in love with. He looks like a man.

His face has lost that boyish charm, but looks even sexier with the way his piercing brown eyes are locked onto me.

We stare at each other for a long moment before he takes a deep breath and walks over.