Excitement was in the air at the Parker house. Melanie and John floated from person to person like the perfect hosts that they were. My cheeks hurt from smiling so much at all the stories that had been told throughout the evening. Amelia and Wade’s wedding reception was turning out to be the party of the year, although Chloe informed everyone that her daddy and Uncle Mitchell’s party would be better.
I glanced around, my eyes landing on Amelia. I’d never seen her so happy. I thought back to a few months ago when she’d been scared that she might have lost Wade. Things could really change in the blink of an eye.
Heck, look at me and Mitchell. Last month we were barely able to look at one another across the room. Now I was sitting next to him, our hands laced together and I might possibly be…
I let the thought slip away. The less I thought about it the better.
“What do you think about the bodies showing up between here and Uvalde?” an older gentleman asked Mitchell. I couldn’t remember if he was someone Amelia’s dad worked with or an old family friend.
“It’s unsettling, that’s for sure,” Mitchell replied.
“Murders?” the man asked.
I could feel Mitchell tense. “Looks to be that way.”
Now I tensed. “How many bodies have they found?” I asked.
He looked at me, and I could tell he wasn’t in the mood to talk about his job. He rarely ever was. “Enough to cause concern.”
I swallowed hard.
“Lloyd Gillory said they are all runaways,” the man added. “Young women, most under the age of thirty.”
Mitchell cleared his throat. “Lloyd Gillory shouldn’t talk about things unless he knows the facts.”
Taken aback at Mitchell’s sharp tone, I quickly changed the subject. “Can you believe how insanely hot this summer has been? I’m hoping September brings a few early cold fronts. Especially with school starting next week and the fall festival a few weeks away.”
The older man, his wife, and Aunt Vi all looked at me.
“You couldn’t change the subject to something other than the weather, Corina?” Vi asked with pinched brows.
I managed a half-smile and shrugged.
A bell rang from the kitchen area, and everyone turned their attention to Melanie and John..
Mitchell leaned over and his hot breath brought goosebumps to my entire body. “I love your help, but the weather? We need to find some more interest subjects.”
I licked my lips before pressing them together. “Like?”
His mouth ran across my neck, causing a pull in my lower stomach. “Like how boring this party is and how I want to take you home and try a new position.”
I pulled away slightly to look at him. “You want me to bring up new sex positions next time I need to change the topic?”
He shrugged. “Might give the old bastards something good to talk about.”
I couldn’t help but smile. “I hardly think your mother would approve.”
He nodded, flashing a sexy grin. “She wouldn’t, but I would.”
I pushed his shoulder, then put my finger to my lips while his mother spoke.
“Thank you to everyone who came to help us celebrate Amelia and Wade’s wedding! Two down…five more to go!”
Cheers rang across the rooms as Trevor, Cord, and Tripp all held up their hands as if trying to reject their mother’s words.
“Never!” Trevor shouted.
Cord and Tripp both uttered something under their breaths. I was almost positive I heard a curse word or two.
Laughing, I looked at Mitchell. He stared with a goofy smile, and I wasn’t the only one who noticed. A few of the younger folks shot off a comment or two about how it looked like Mitchell had gotten bit. When Cord shouted something about Mitchell looking like a Smurf, everyone laughed.
Mitchell stood, taking a glass of champagne from one of the young ladies who had been walking around with a tray.
“I’d like to propose a toast to my baby sister,” Mitchell called out, glancing around the room. When he locked eyes with Amelia, both of their smiles lit up. “To see you so happy and in love is a beautiful thing. I’ve never been so proud of you for following your heart.”
Tears built in Amelia’s eyes as Wade pulled her close.
“To Amelia and Wade,” Mitchell said, lifting his glass. “May you both have a lifetime of happiness and here’s to all your dreams coming true. And may you give dad a new grandbaby soon!”
“What?” John shouted out as everyone else cheered, “Here-here!”
I pretended to take a drink. Until I went to the doctor on Monday, I was playing it safe, but I also didn’t want to draw any attention to myself. I’d given Mitchell a knowing look when I took the glass of champagne earlier. Not a single person, other than Mitchell, had noticed I’d had the same glass all evening.
Everyone moved outside under a giant white tent. The Parker family was all sitting at one table while friends sat at nearby tables. News of Mitchell and I becoming a couple had spread fast among the Parker family’s friends, so I was seated next to Mitchell at the family table, with Cord on my right.
Dinner was served and soon mini-conversations started at each table. Mitchell and his father talked about the ranch and some new horse that would be arriving in the next few days. I hadn’t realized how much Mitchell was involved with the ranch until the past week. There wasn’t anything he didn’t know about horses, and he pretty much ran the horse stables on some days. We had stopped by three evenings in a row so he could check on two new horses and a filly that had been born last week. I loved seeing him with the horses. Of course, the Parker ranch was a cattle ranch, but I could see something in Mitchell’s eyes when he was in that barn with the horses. I wanted desperately to ask him about it but decided to wait.
“I heard you got shot at work on Thursday,” Tripp announced. My fork froze at my lips and my hand started to shake.
Mitchell let out a half-hearted laugh. “Yeah, good thing I had my vest on.”
This time, the fork dropped and clattered against the plate. Everyone at the table looked at me.
“You okay, Corina?” Waylynn asked from across the table. Our eyes met, and I wasn’t sure what to say. I could tell she knew exactly why I was having a panic attack.
She gave me a knowing look before focusing in on Mitchell. She made a face then jerked her head toward me.
Mitchell turned and took my hand. “I’m sorry. I didn’t even think to mention it.”
I stared at him. “You didn’t think to mention it?” It’s not like I wanted much from him. To be faithful. To be honest. And to tell me if he got shot at!
“Everything was fine. It wasn’t a big deal.” He looked agitated.
“Mitchell, you said it was a good thing you had your vest on. Does that mean he actually hit you with the bullet?”
“Shit. Sorry, Mitch,” Tripp said with a slight laugh. I glared at him. He stopped laughing on a dime.
Swinging my eyes back to Mitchell, he frowned. “It’s part of the job.”
He turned to his father and started talking about harvesting or something while I tried to make heads or tails out of what I had heard. I stared at my plate, my breath not the least bit controlled no matter how hard I tried.
“Corina, will you help me get something in the kitchen?” Waylynn asked.
My eyes lifted, and she raised her brows before motioning for me to get up and follow her.
I was on automatic. I stood, turned, walked to the kitchen.
Waylynn took my hand and pulled me into the family room. “Breathe.”
I shook my head as I let Mitchell’s words replay in my mind.
Her hands gripped my shoulders. “Corina Miller! Breathe, goddammit!”
I looked into Waylynn’s blue eyes and sucked in a breath.
She nodded. “Good. Let it out.”
Exhaling, I sat on the leather sofa.
“Corina, I know being a cop was one of the reasons why Mitchell never wanted to settle down. Now with you possibly being in the family way and the fact that he is head over heels in love with you, I think he was only trying to shield you.”
Staring at her, I opened my mouth. “You think he feels that way about me too?”
Waylynn laughed. “Hell, yes. Girl, don’t you see the way he looks at you? I mean even before y’all were together he had puppy dog love eyes. He may not be saying it yet, but Mitchell is head over heels.”
A smile lifted my face as I let her words sink in. Then they slipped away. “I knew it was dangerous to be in a relationship with a cop, Waylynn, but if he’s going to hide this type of thing from me, I don’t know how I feel about that.”
She nodded. “And if he had told you, what would have happened?”
“I…I’m sure I would have been worried.”
Pointing to me, she said, “Bingo. You would have worried, freaked out a little, then when he left the next morning for work, what would have happened?”
With a shrug, I replied, “I would have worried a little bit more than normal, I guess.”
“Yes! And do you think Mitchell wants you to worry right now?”
I looked down at my hands in my lap, feeling like an idiot. “No.”
Waylynn reached for my hands. “Men aren’t always right, but I know Mitchell’s heart is always in the right place.”
Feeling foolish, I closed my eyes and sighed. “Everything is happening so fast, Waylynn. I told myself I wouldn’t fall back into Mitchell’s arms and then I did. I promised myself we would take it slow, only to have us both be reckless the first time we were back together. And now…now…”
My eyes stung with tears.
“Now you might be carrying his baby. Do you want to keep it?”
“Yes!” I said without even having to think about it. “Am I ready? No. I mean, I want kids more than anything, but I don’t want them because we were stupid and careless. I want them when we decide it’s time. This is not how I saw my life playing out. I mean, I love your brother with my whole heart, and I think he loves me, but he isn’t even ready to say it. What does that mean if I am pregnant? Will he love the baby or will he feel like he’s trapped? The last thing I want is to make him feel trapped.”
“Hey, it takes two to tango and I know Mitchell. He will love this baby with every ounce of his being. The same way he loves you.”
I forced a smile. It was nice to hear Waylynn saying what I so desperately wanted to hear Mitchell say.
“Come back outside and finish eating,” she said.
Nodding, I replied, “I will. Give me two minutes.”
Waylynn stared at me for a few seconds. “Two minutes. Now I have to go figure out what we needed in the kitchen and bring it back out with me.”
We both chuckled. Waylynn headed out of the family room, and I took a few moments to breathe and calm my racing heart.
Mitchell had a dangerous job. I was okay with that. No matter how much he tried, he wasn’t going to be able to protect me from all the bad stuff that came with it. Tonight I would tell him that. Let him know that I wanted all of him. The good, the bad, the dangerous job, the fear of opening himself up. I wanted all of it, and I wasn’t going to push him into anything. No matter what happened on Monday.
I loved him, and even though only a few weeks ago I set out to forget about Mitchell Parker, my heart had other plans. Now I needed to be there for him, let him know that I wasn’t ever going to leave him either. That he could trust me to know that whatever happened I would be strong enough to handle it.
I headed back through the house. As I stepped outside, I forced a smile and headed to the family table. All the other guests were engaged in conversations. I couldn’t help but notice Mitchell’s voice as I grew closer.
“Mom, please don’t do this.”
“I’m just saying, being in a relationship is a two-way street, Mitchell. If you start off hiding things, it’s not good.”
Pushing his hand through his hair, Mitchell let out a groan. “You think maybe I had a good reason for not saying anything to her?”
Tripp saw me and cleared his throat. “Mitchell, Mom. Let’s put this away. Y’all are getting loud and this is Amelia and Wade’s reception dinner.”
“Have you said the L word yet?” Melanie asked, peeking in my direction.
What in the heck? Is she trying to put him on the spot?
I shook my head and walked faster toward the table. I wasn’t going to let someone make Mitchell utter those words until he was ready.
“Momma, please let it go,” Waylynn said, making her way to her seat after setting down a bottle of wine.
Melanie shrugged and looked my way again. She quickly let an evil smile play over her face. “Well, someday when you fall in love you’ll be ready to say it.”
Mitchell let out a small, frustrated laugh. “I am in love, Mom.”
I froze.
“I’m pretty sure I was in love with Corina when I met her. Then I fell in love a little more when I heard her laugh for the first time. I fell harder when she kissed me. When she got pissed at me, hated me, and then loved me again. Through all of it, I was in love. I just didn’t know how to admit it to myself.”
I covered my mouth and didn’t even attempt to hold back my tears. Amelia, Paxton, and Waylynn looked at me, each of them wearing a goofy grin.
“I knew you were, Mitchell,” Melanie said with a wink. “You just needed a little push to say it out loud.”
Standing, he shook his head. “You’re an evil woman, do you know that?”
The whole table erupted with laughter. Mitchell looked back and our eyes met.
His smile faded, and his face filled with disappointment. There might have been a touch of sadness, but not because of what he had said. It was because I knew this wasn’t how he wanted me to hear it for the first time.
“Hey,” he softly said.
“Hey,” I replied.
He took my hands in his. “That wasn’t how I wanted to tell you.”
I couldn’t help my smile. “I know. I wanted you to say it when you were ready.” I shrugged. “It’s still kind of soon, maybe.”
Mitchell shook his head, leaned down, and gently kissed my lips. It was a sweet kiss—short and simple—a kiss I would remember the rest of my life. “What do you say we blow this popsicle stand?” he asked.
My eyes widened. “What about Amelia and Wade?” I asked, peeking over to them. They were lost in conversation.
“I hardly think anyone will notice if we sneak away. I mean, can they blame us after the bomb I just laid out for everyone to hear?”
A giggle slipped from my lips. I glanced around at the tables. No one was paying any attention to us. Well, except for John and Melanie. I could practically feel their eyes burning into us.
“Your parents are staring.”
Mitchell laughed. “My father is probably trying to figure out if the cameras are going to come out and say gotcha! And my mother, well, I’m sure we can guess what she’s thinking.”
A flutter rose in my chest as we gazed at one another.
Mitchell placed his hand on my lower back and guided me into the house. We were in his truck and driving down the long driveway faster than I could wrap my head around everything.
Mitchell loves me.
He’s loved me the entire time.
Warmth radiated throughout my body. My heartbeat picked up, and I swore if Mitchell listened hard enough, he would be able to hear it.
When I peeked at him, he glanced my way and winked. Everything was going to be okay.
Simply because…
He loves me.