She’d said the words that she loved him but had been too frightened and selfish to act on those feelings. Love wasn’t a noun. It was a verb.
And Mike had taken the leap and shown his feelings in action tonight. She owed him the same.
* * *
LACEY SAGGED INSIDE
her SUV, soaking in the wash of relief—or at least reprieve. The council had been moved by the show of support from the community and adopters. They saw the positive ripple effect.
Although they’d surprised everyone by keeping the meeting closed while they reviewed the written data and statements. They’d listened to the Hammonds and the McDaniels, along with a handful of witnesses such as Officer Parker and Ray Vega.
Their ultimate ruling? Decide nothing fast. Take time to assess and evaluate Lacey’s operation to make sure as the rescue grew, the safety and well-being of the animals stayed in the forefront.
The second she’d heard those words she knew all would be well. The council understood this was about saving the animals, not about personal grudges or self-glorification. The Second Chance Ranch was meeting standards now, but she would be closely scrutinized for a year.
She welcomed it. Her dream, her mission, was safe.
A tap on the passenger side window jolted her. Another supporter? She’d spent longer—hours, actually—speaking with people after the meeting than she had making her case inside the town hall. Mike and Sierra had left earlier, taking Nathan home. Lacey rolled down the window.
Ray leaned in. “Mind if we talk for a few minutes?”
She thumbed the unlock button. “Come in. The air conditioner’s running.”
He slid into the seat beside her, dropping his hat onto his knee. “Congratulations on how things shook down. Mike and Nathan really pulled off a coup with that gathering. Did you see the news crews in the crowd? The blogger friend of Mike’s was there as well. I’ll bet you get a slew of adoption requests as a result of the added exposure.”
“News crews?” She shook her head. “I must have missed them. I was so scared tonight I could hardly think until after I heard we got a reprieve. Everything before that was such a blur.”
He kept his hands on his hat. A couple of days ago, he would have patted her shoulder. “You’d never know it from looking at you. You appeared totally in control, poised . . . beautiful.”
That final word hung between them for a few awkward seconds.
“Thank you for all you said in there about the rescue’s work, testifying to the level of care we provide our animals.” She owed him so much. For his skilled help with the animals. For his support when she’d needed a friend most. And for giving her space to pull her life together after she’d given him incredibly mixed signals. Ray Vega was a good man.
“All true,” he said simply.
“I mean it,” she pressed. “Your professional opinion carried a lot of weight with the naysayers—and there were plenty of them in attendance tonight.”
Although not even half the size of the supporters Mike and Nathan had brought together. She was so proud of her son and . . . the man who already felt like a son to her no matter what Sierra said about breaking up.
“I’m glad I could help.” He spun the hat on his knee.
After all Ray had done for her, he still offered more. He deserved to have someone in his life who could give back.
“I wouldn’t have blamed you if you had wanted to stay away after what happened between us the night Trooper ate those pills.” She nibbled her bottom lip. “I never should have let that kiss get so out of control.”
He gave her a half smile. “I’ll chalk it up to my animal magnetism.”
“That would be an accurate assumption.”
He scruffed a hand through his overlong hair. “Maisie quit her job. She found your scarf in my office and she assumed the worst.” He scratched behind his neck. “She was really unhinged about the whole thing.”
“Truly? Your ego wasn’t a little stroked by all that giggly attention?”
“Okay”—he grimaced—“maybe a little, but not to the extent of her reaction. Be careful of her. About the vandalism at your place . . . from a few things she let slip, I think she’s friends with some of the people in the dogfighting ring Officer Parker’s investigating.”
Gasping, Lacey sat up straighter. “You really believe she would have steered them my way? That seems like a whole different level of cruelty.” And she wouldn’t rest until she found those responsible.
“I don’t know what to think. But I passed along my suspicions to Officer Parker who already has the group under surveillance. He says one of the members is going to flip and give over evidence for a deal. I just wanted to make you aware of it.”
“There haven’t been any problems since I upped the security system that second time—not even with the General wandering or the Hammonds trespassing.” She would be fund-raising like crazy to pay for it, but the safety of her family and animals had to be top priority. “Still, I will certainly keep both eyes open.”
“Good, that’s good.” He nodded, his eyes falling. “Because I have something I need to tell you.”
The ominous tone in his voice set her nerves on edge. “Is there a problem?”
“Do you remember my mentioning an offer to join that practice out west? I’ve been getting some pressure to make a decision soon,” he started.
“And you’re going to take the job,” she said with a sinking heart, already understanding. Because of her, he was leaving, giving up the niche he’d built. She grieved for him as well as the animals here who needed a man like him.
“Actually, no. I didn’t take the position.” He looked out into the darkness. “The pressure made me think about what I wanted to do most. It pushed me to contact a missionary group that provides veterinary aid to animals in third-world countries.”
That sounded like him. She told herself the stab of pain in her chest was for the animals here who would miss his warm manner and skilled treatment. But she also understood why it had to be this way.
“How long will you be gone?”
“About a year, give or take a month.” He turned to her fully for the first time, sliding his hand to cup the back of her neck. “And when I return, we’re going to dinner.”
She cupped his face, her thumb stroking. “I would like that.”
His throat moved in a hard swallow before he leaned in to kiss her forehead, holding for an instant. Then he pulled away sharply and left the vehicle—leaving her alone.
Completely alone.
For the past four months, she’d been filling every single moment with work and her family, hiding from her bedroom, terrified of being by herself. But right now as she sat in the silence of her car, the Helen Keller piece of wisdom whispered through her brain and seeped into her being.
What we have once enjoyed we can never lose. All that we love deeply becomes a part of us.
She wasn’t alone at all.
* * *
MIKE SAT AT
the foot of the steps waiting for Sierra to finish with her family. Soft country tunes seeped from the barn, soothing the animals to sleep with a twang rather than classical melodies tonight. His fingers drummed along the wooden step, mimicking the chords as he ghost-played along.
There hadn’t been a chance for them to speak since the council meeting. By the time they’d gotten home, sent Gramps’s nurse on her way and tended the animals, Lacey had arrived, which brought another rehash of the evening.
Along with a request from Lacey not to let Maisie from the vet clinic anywhere near her animals.
A strange request, but things were never run-of-the-mill around here. That was one of the many things he appreciated about this amazing family.
The screen door creaked and he stood straighter. Sierra stepped out, Trooper sliding through the door at the last second before it slammed closed. The porch light illuminated Sierra, bringing out the blond highlights in her braid. She’d changed into jean shorts and some airy pink blouse. Her flip-flops smacked the ground as she walked closer, her eyes full of love for him. She’d told him that she loved him, and finally, he let himself believe her.
Now he needed to let her know how very much he loved her. He held out an arm. “Wanna take a walk?”
She fit to his side, sliding her arm around him, tucking her fingers into his back pocket. “I would like that very much.”
His arm draped over her shoulders, steering her toward the path into the woods. “I’ve been thinking about what you said, and I understand why you’ve already done your tour of duty with military life.”
“Wait. I’ve been thinking, too, and—”
“Shhh, let me go first.” He tucked her closer. He didn’t want her making sacrifices for him she would later regret. “I’ve signed a military contract that lasts for two more years and I can’t get out of that. But I talked to the Sergeant Major yesterday, and I have a couple of options.”
“You did what?” She looked up sharply, her braid brushing his arm.
“I can withdraw my Special Forces packet right now.” And he would do it in a heartbeat for this woman. He’d thought climbing the career mountain was his dream. He’d been wrong. Having Sierra in his life forever was the dream turned to reality. “If you say you want me out of the military two years from now, I can ride out the rest of my time here at Fort Campbell. I can’t promise I won’t deploy before then, but I’ll have set a path to a new start for us.”
“What would you do afterward?” She spoke carefully, almost as if the idea of them being together was so fragile it wouldn’t stand up to scrutiny.
He needed to fix that. Starting now.
“I have the G.I. Bill to go back to college, and I’ll have two years to figure out what to do with it.”
He was a smart guy. Hell, he’d found a way to multiply nickels in a subway with his guitar as a kid. What might he accomplish now with a whole lot more brainpower and resourcefulness at his disposal?
“And the other option?” Her words were still soft, tentative. But he could almost hear the wheels turning in her smart mind.
“Defer my Special Forces assignment for a year. I would stay here for twelve months while you finish school, then we would move to Fort Bragg in North Carolina, together.”
She stopped walking altogether and stepped in front of him. “You could really defer the slot for a year?”
“It’s been done before.”
“But it’s not a guarantee the slot would still be there for you.” She rested her hands on his chest. “I can’t let you give that up for me.”
“I would do anything for you, Sierra.” He could not lose her again.
She clenched her hands in his T-shirt. “What do
you
want to do?”
“I want to be with you.” He cradled her face in both hands. “But I understand you have good reason not to want a military lifestyle. And then there’s the rescue here. You’ve put so much of your heart into it.”
“It’s my mother’s rescue. Not mine.”
“Are you sure? Because from where I’ve been standing it seems you inherited your mother’s sheltering spirit. So this is your call to make.”
“It’s not fair for me to choose your career path for you.”
“Do you want to be with me? I love you, Sierra. Damn it, the words are getting tangled up here.” He took a bracing breath. “I’m trying to propose. I want us to get married.”
Her arms slid around his neck, the acceptance soft and immediate and so right it made his heart ache in the best way.
“Oh, Mike, I want that, too. I always have.”
She’d never quoted better poetry than those words. He tucked them away to remember forever, because they had just turned his life around. More certain than ever, he kissed her forehead. Trooper darted out of the woods as if he sensed a happy moment and wanted to be a part of it. He barked and ran in a circle around them, tail whipping fast.
“Then we’ll work out the rest.”
“If you’re comfortable waiting around here for me for a year, then I’m all in for North Carolina.”
Which meant he got the green light for the military life he’d always envisioned for himself. A huge compromise for her.
“You don’t have to decide tonight,” he reminded her. “It’s been a hell of a day.”
“I’m sure.” Her eyes were clear and . . . certain. She had more of her father in her than she knew.
“And the rescue?” He looked around at the Second Chance Ranch, a place she’d been a part of from the beginning.
“Animal rescue is a calling that won’t go away just because I leave home.” She bent to stroke Trooper’s ear as the dog settled down from his evening romp. “There are shelters with animals everywhere in need of people to foster them. I’ll carry what I’ve learned from Mom wherever we go.”
“So we pack some of the Second Chance spirit to take with us wherever we move.” He could picture Sierra loading up a few extra leashes.
“Exactly. We got our second chance here, too, you know. I’m too smart to let you get away from me again.”
She leaned closer, her heart in her eyes.
Mike had to swallow the lump in his throat over the fact that she was going to make a place in her life for him. No, this incredible, beautiful, smart woman was going to build her life around him and with him.
“I love you, Sierra.” He wanted to be very clear on that point. “Like crazy.”
Slanting his mouth over hers, he kissed her with all the longing in his soul. He sucked at saying the right words, so he hoped she felt it in that kiss.
He wrapped her tight in his arms and lifted her off her feet, pressing her to him. When he broke away, he smiled down at her and set her back on the ground. Trooper’s tail thumped the ground beside them.
“I found a poem for you.” Mike had the feeling she wouldn’t mind keeping things light for at least a little while tonight after the day she’d had.
“A poem?” She grinned, catching his mood and linking her arm through his as they walked under the stars, crickets and frogs buzzing from the undergrowth.
“Absolutely. I had to figure out a way to one-up my crossword puzzle vocab games.”
“But you know I enjoy your twist on Scrabble,” she teased, matching her step to his.
“I believe it’s time for us to take this to another level.”
“Such as?”