Hidden Fates (Hidden Heroes #4)

Chapter 18

Sitting under the midnight stars at Garrett’s picnic table with her bare toes in the grass, Reese took another big bite of the juiciest burger she’d ever had the pleasure of enjoying.

“So, what do you think?” Garrett asked.

Reese laughed because she’d already told him how much she loved it. “I still think it’s the perfect burger.”

Garrett chuckled. “No, I was asking what you think about having some ice cream afterwards. I have some chocolate chip with cherries in the freezer.”

“Oh.” It was a good thing it was dark or Garrett would’ve absolutely seen her cheeks turning the color of those cherries.

“What’s going on with you?” Garrett asked. “You’ve been a million miles away ever since we got back from Madigan’s. Did something happen there I need to know about? Did that guy say something to you or hurt you?”

“No,” Reese said, wishing he hadn’t noticed her change in demeanor. She just couldn’t stop thinking about what Orly had said, and how it felt like their lives were on hold because of Russell. She didn’t want to burden Garrett with those thoughts though, but Garrett wouldn’t be Garrett if he didn’t notice every little thing about her, and it surprisingly felt good instead of stifling to be looked after so closely. “I guess I’m just in awe of how much my life has changed in the time I’ve been here.” Which was true. She was finally happy. Really happy. And she didn’t want anything to change that. Especially not Russell or one of his goons. “I just don’t want anything or anyone to come between us, or ruin our happiness,” she said,

Garrett’s expression turned dark, nearly murderous, and it totally matched his tone when he said, “I’d like to see them try.”

Reese couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled out of her. She loved how protective Garrett was, not just of her, but of what they shared. Their attraction. Their time together. He cared about and protected all of it, and Reese loved that about him so much. She polished off the last bite of her burger. “Ice cream sounds good. But first…” She stood, and Garrett was on his feet beside her.

“First…” he teased softly, his face just a breath away from hers. She loved having him this close. It was too dark to see his eyes, but she could still smell the scent of his slight aftershave, and the masculine aroma of barbeque sauce and beer on his breath.

She pressed a kiss to his mouth and his hands instantly went to the back of her neck, pulling her in, surrounding her as he took over the kiss, deepening it. She savored every second, every swipe of his tongue, every nip, and especially the soft groan that escaped the back of his throat.

“First,” she whispered again, unable to make her voice work right with this man still touching her. “I want to show you something. I don’t know how I’ll ever repay you for all you’ve done for me, but growing up, I always loved being outside at night. Looking up at the stars. Watching the fireflies. Smelling the Jasmine bush my mom tenderly cared for since I was eight. It was a magical time for me, much like it is now. I took an interest in astronomy at an early age, and a lot of my first art pieces were inspired by the stars and the night sky.”

“Sounds like I need to invest in some astronomy books,” Garrett mused.

She smiled, because she knew that meant there would likely be a huge box of new astronomy books sitting on his front porch the next day or two. “But this star won’t be in those books.” She pulled two folded up pieces of paper from the back pocket of her shorts. “Like I was saying, I don’t know when or how I’ll ever be able to repay you for all your kindness, but I did want to commemorate it, and this was the most special way I could think of.” She unfolded the papers and showed him the top one.

There was just enough light from the citronella candle burning on the table and the few strings of solar lights around them to be able to read it. “I named a star after you,” she said when he looked at her with a mix of awe and confusion. “Here.” She took the second page and held it in her other hand. It showed a clear image of the star and the stars around it. “This star is now called Texas Ranger Garrett Cooper.”

She couldn’t read his expression at first, but then he pulled her into his arms so fast, she barely had a chance to move the papers out of the way. “You named a star after me? Reese…no one has ever done anything like this for me before,” he said in a low, gruff voice. “No one.”

“I’m glad I could be the first,” she said.

He pulled back, his hands cupping the side of her neck, his thumbs carefully rubbing just under her ears. “And the last.”

All the air escaped her in one breath. Was he saying what she thought he was saying? “Garrett,” she breathed right before his mouth covered hers and her entire body dove into a sensual kiss that made her heart beat faster and her panties grow wetter.

***

Garrett had almost let those three little words that had been on the tip of his tongue slip out, but caught himself just in time. It was too soon to tell this incredible woman how he really felt about her. She was still dealing with so much, and the last thing he wanted to do was scare her away.

But this…what she’d given him tonight…he literally didn’t have words. She’d named a star after him. It might seem silly, but when she’d told him, it was like his heart stopped beating, and his chest filled with so much love, he thought it might literally burst right through his ribcage. How had this slip of a woman stormed into his life and taken hold of his heart so quickly and so thoroughly.

The last thing he’d wanted to do when he first met her was fall in love with her. But he knew from that first day, when he’d invited her to stay in his guest house that he was screwed. And he’d been right. He wanted to regret it, but there wasn’t a cell in his body that felt anything other than complete adoration for the woman in his arms. Kissing her was absolute heaven, but even when they weren’t touching, when she was just nearby, or even just in the same room, his body was aware, his focus was on her, and the pull to be closer to her was nearly overwhelming.

He’d thought his friends were nuts when they were falling for their women. The way Caden instantly connected with Hallie, how he defended her even when it went beyond logic and reason. Garrett hadn’t said anything because the man was getting enough grief from the other guys, but he’d had his reservations about the woman. Same with Skyla. He couldn’t understand why Blake had gone from cold to hot with her so fast. Literally overnight.

Garrett swore it would never happen to him. That he had better sense than to fall for a woman like that, especially with as much baggage as Hallie and Skyla had. And Orly… the woman was an angel, but he definitely didn’t know what to make of Luke taking her in when she was wanted for murder. None of it made any sense to him at the time, but he loved his friends, and was determined to be there for them, and support them through anything.

Now? Now, he understood. And he felt like a total moron for judging them back then.

“Garrett?” Reese’s voice penetrated his thoughts.

His hands were still cupping her neck, his fingers in her soft hair. He cleared his throat, wanting to, needing to express how much her gift meant to him. “Thank you. I don’t think I've ever told anyone because it’s just a silly thing, but before I decided I wanted to be a Texas Ranger, I used to dream about being an astronaut. One of my favorite birthdays was when I turned nine years old. My parents took me to Johnson Space Center and I got to spend all day there, just learning about everything. Then they surprised me with a trip out to Cameron County to see a scheduled rocket launch the next day. Best. Birthday. Ever.”

Reese smiled. “I’m glad you like your star.”

Garrett let out a soft breath. Like didn’t come close to describing what she’d just done for him. “I have an old telescope in my closet. We could try to find it.”

Reese’s whole face lit up with a huge smile. “I used to have a telescope, but I couldn’t afford an expensive one. I ended up selling my crappy one when I needed some extra cash for my art supplies.”

“Give me two minutes,” Garrett said, hoping the old thing was as good as he remembered. If not, then astronomy books weren't the only thing he was going to be buying online tonight.

Less than two minutes later, he brought out the box with his telescope. It was a little dusty, but all the parts seemed to be intact even though he hadn’t used it since before he’d gone off to college. He still remembered how everything fit together, and worked quickly to assemble it and set it up on the picnic table.

When he first bought this house, he wasn’t sure how he’d like living in the country. He’d grown up in the suburbs, but this was way more rural. His neighbors weren’t in shouting distance, and the city limits were well over an hour away. It definitely made for a long commute, but he’d quickly learned to love it. It gave him time to listen to music or podcasts, sometimes he’d pop in an audiobook.

“All set,” Garrett said, presenting the telescope to Reese like it was his baby. And in some ways, it was. He’d brought it with him to college, to his first apartment, and even after years of not taking it out of the box, he couldn’t bring himself to part with it. He looked up at the night sky, marveling at the array of brightly lit pinholes in the vast darkness, and thanked his lucky stars that he’d chosen this house over all the others. For himself. For Reese. And for all these stars.

“Let’s see if we can find it.” The excitement in Reese’s tone only made him want to hunt for that star even more. Determined to find the star she’d named after him, he put his eye to the lens and started adjusting the dial.

It had been a long time since he’d seen the world from this perspective, but it was like coming home. And he had Reese to thank for that.

“I pulled up the star chart app,” Reese said. “I think it might actually be a little more helpful in finding it than this paper.”

He hadn’t heard her go back for her phone, but maybe she’d gotten it while he was inside getting the telescope. Let’s see.”

It took almost half an hour to line up the telescope in the vicinity of where it looked like his star was. Then another fifteen minutes to find it. Reese had been patient and helpful the whole time, and the second his gaze landed on his star - it still felt weird to think of it like that - he swore the ball of fire shone a little brighter just for him.

He raised his head and looked up at Reese who was watching him expectantly. “Did you find it?”

Garrett nodded. “Come look.”

Reese came to stand in front of him. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind as she lowered her head to the telescope and looked through the lens for a long moment.

“Do you see it?” He asked.

“Yes.” She straightened and turned in his arms to face him. Her gaze landed on his mouth and it only made him want to kiss her again. “My mom got me a star a year before she died. I haven’t seen it since. But maybe one day our stars will find their way to each other.”

Garrett held her close, never wanting to let go of the beautiful and thoughtful woman he’d lost his heart to. “I think they already have.” It was too dark to see into her eyes, but he didn’t miss the way the moonlight danced in her hair, or the way her cheeks pinkened when he leaned in to kiss her delectable mouth.

It definitely felt like their stars were aligning.