Love Me Reckless (Love Me Dangerous #2)

Chapter 38

Chapter Thirty-Eight

SAWYER

We play naked hot tub wish list as the sun breaks over the mountains, lifting the darkness one hue at a time, turning the sky from soft pink to a pale, serene blue.

“What about that loan?” I ask, giving her a little splash.

She shoots me an adorable scowl. “My credit isn’t looking so hot, haven’t you heard?”

Finn River Ranch Security is still tracing the money Sheldon siphoned from Kirilee’s accounts but I have a feeling it’s gone for good, as is whomever Shel was working with. According to Zach, Kirilee’s opal plus the ring she’s determined to give back along with the envelope of cash in Sheldon’s pocket will be returned as soon as the investigation wraps up. Now I just have to convince Kirilee to take my offer to help with that loan she needs.

“I’m sure it’s temporary,” I say.

Her green eyes turn thoughtful. “Will you go with me?”

“Hell yes.”

Her mouth crimps in a grimace. “What about you?”

Losing my job in the most frustrating way still burns. “I’ll figure it out.” My quick conversation with Carson last night flashes through my mind. Do the others feel the same or are they going to believe I betrayed them?

From inside the house, my phone chirps. It’s not a known ringtone, but it’s the second call like it in ten minutes.

“Maybe you should get that?” Kirilee asks.

“It’s probably the sheriff.” Even though we spent hours running down the events that led to Sheldon and Kirilee inside the house in Grayhawk last night, he was clear we weren’t finished.

I jump out of the tub and wrap in a towel. The icy winter air seems to freeze on my wet skin as I hurry across the cold planks and into the kitchen.

When I grab the phone, the number comes up as unlisted. “Hello?”

“Reed.” It’s McTavish.

I rub the back of my neck. “Morning.”

“Didn’t see you at muster,” he says in his brisk tone.

“Uh, maybe you didn’t hear about?—”

“I heard,” he says. “We’ve got a few things to be sorted. Come see me.”

I glance at the clock on the opposite wall. It’s just past 8:00. By now, the crews are spread across the mountain, running stop times and testing the machinery.

“Yes, sir.”

McTavish ends the call as Kirilee comes inside, the dark blue towel tied at her chest. “I’m properly pruned. Should we get ready?”

I lean down and kiss her freckled shoulder, then pull her close.

“I wish we didn’t have to leave today,” she says.

In one motion, I flip her over my shoulder, making her shriek. “We’ve still got a few hours.”

“You’re not serious!” She cackles, squirming against my hold. “You can’t possibly have the energy for more.”

I turn into the bedroom. “Interesting theory. Let’s test it. ”

Later, leaving the house with our meager belongings feels like saying goodbye to a loyal friend. Kirilee sits close like she always does, her hand on my thigh. But when I go to place my hand on hers, the absence of the ring on her finger means I can entwine our fingers, with nothing between us.

I bring our clasped hand to my lips and inhale the rich cocoa scent of her skin deep into my senses.

Nothing between us .

Never again.

That afternoon, I drop Kirilee at Grayson’s house, then take the winding drive to the maintenance yard. The route takes me past some of the roads I drove last night. Everything looks different in the daytime, but the memories are there. Sharp enough to cut.

Sheldon’s final words echo through me. All these years, he’s held onto that shame—his willingness to leave me behind in order to save himself. No wonder he was so ready to let me carry the blame for Mom’s death. It meant he didn’t have to.

If only he’d told me. We could have tackled it together.

Because I’m not staying long at McTavish’s office, I don’t bother with the employee lot, and park instead in front of the maintenance building. Crews from the mountain trickle in, the burr of the snow machines rising over the landscape.

I don’t like having to face the guys. By now they for sure know why I didn’t show up today, and most also probably know why I hijacked one of the maintenance trucks last night.

The sorrow from Sheldon being so suddenly gone from my life sits heavy inside me as I step from the truck and walk to the door.

McTavish is in his office, and he’s not alone.

“Sawyer, come in,” McTavish says, beckoning to me .

The man sitting across from him stands. He’s wearing faded Levi’s, a pair of worn lace-up boots, and a forest green wool shirt. A thick, dark beard frames his lean face, and he sizes me up with his intelligent brown eyes.

He extends his hand. “Jonah Burgess.”

I shake. “Sawyer Reed.”

The man gives me a warm smile, like I’ve said something funny. “Yeah, I know.”

I eye McTavish, but he’s focused on our guest.

“I wanted to personally thank you,” Mr. Burgess says.

“Uh, okay.”

Mr. Burgess shoves his hands in his pockets. “Getting us off Glory Basin chair yesterday. I hear it was your quick thinking that made it happen.”

“Oh.” Restarting that diesel motor yesterday might have been a century ago. “Just doing my job, sir.”

The man’s face turns serious. “My daughter wanted to be here too but she’s not getting discharged just yet.”

Shit, this is the dad. “I’m just glad she’s okay.”

“Without your dedication and quick instincts, I’m not sure she would have made it.”

“We would have gotten her off the mountain. Our ski patrollers are top notch.”

Mr. Burgess nods, his lips pressed into a grimace. “Thank you. This place means a lot to us. To my family.” He offers his hand again, and I shake it.

“You’re welcome.”

The man nods at McTavish, then slips through the door.

I’m about to follow him when McTavish slides an envelope across the table.

I eye it, then lock eyes with him. “What’s going on?”

“That test result yesterday was rubbish,” he says, his nostrils flaring. “I tracked down the results myself. None of the five who were tested failed.”

Surprise flashes to anger inside me. “Then what the hell was yesterday?”

“I can’t say. It makes no sense. A mix-up, likely.”

I stare him down. He’s not fucking with me, right? “So… I’m not fired?”

“Nay.” He shakes his head.

My knees feel rubbery, so I lower into the chair.

McTavish points a finger at me. “Plus ye’ve left a mess up in that engine room and one of the snowmaking station’s foamed into a frozen lump.”

“Uh, right. That’s on me.”

“See to it that it gets taken care of tomorrow.”

“Yes, sir.”

He offers his hand, and somehow I find my feet so I can stand up and shake it.

“I wasn’t gonna let yeh go without a fight, Reed.”

I lock eyes with him. “Thank you. That means a lot.”

When I step out of the office, the envelope stuffed in my back pocket, the garage is full of my crew. This is weird. Everyone should have left already.

Cheers and whistles erupt from my crew of Men in Black, creating a roar of sound that hurts my ears. I’m pulled into man hugs and slapped on the back.

Emotion lodges in my throat as a bright sense of belonging rips through me… Is this real?

Carson and Brody grab my arms and legs and with the help of the rest, lift me into the air. I’m laughing and terrified as they spin me around.

“Put me down before you hurt yourselves!” I cry over their noisy cheering.

Finally, I land on my feet. I get more hugs and high fives as we file into the hallway to the outside. The cold air is a shock, but the lowering sun carries a hint of warmth, like a promise .

Smiling like a fool, I offer to give Carson and Brody a lift to their vehicles in the employee lot below.

“I didn’t believe it for a second,” Carson says once we’re underway.

“Glad to have you back,” Brody adds, clapping me on the shoulder from the back seat.

“Who was that guy you met?” Carson asks.

“Jonah Burgess,” I say. “His daughter had that medical emergency.”

“No shit?” Carson says. “Whoa.”

“Wait, you know him?” I ask.

“Not personally.” He gives me a look. “You’ve never heard of Burgess Energy?”

“No,” I say.

“His family started the first byproduct recycling business, and it’s grown into a worldwide industry. They make biofuels, animal feed, building material… all kinds of stuff from agricultural byproducts. He’s probably worth billions.”

“He looks like he walked out of a Filson store.”

“Yeah, he’s a big fly fisherman too.”

I laugh because of course Carson would know this. I used to think Tara was the one with the inside scoop. Now I’m not so sure.

I turn into the lot and head for Brody’s truck.

“Sorry about your brother,” Carson says as I pull up alongside it. “That must be hard.”

“Sounds like he was really desperate,” Brody adds.

It’s a little too raw to talk about, but I want them both to know that I appreciate their kindness, so I nod. “Thanks, guys.”

“See you at the house?” Carson asks with a sly grin.

“Maybe with a guest?” Brody pumps his eyebrows.

“Kirilee’s welcome anytime,” Carson says. “You know that. Though I might need to pick up a pair of earplugs.”

I give his shoulder a shove and he laughs .

They jump out and shuffle to Brody’s truck. I watch them cruise to the exit. Before I follow them out of the lot, I dial Zach’s number.

“Hey, you doing okay?” he asks.

I put him on speaker and set the phone on the dash so I can drive. “Better now. I got my job back.”

He gives a low hum of approval. “Good news. And well deserved. Any idea what happened?”

“McTavish didn’t say.”

“I’d put money on Birch Cahill.”

I nod, even though he can’t see me. “Or Kirilee’s dad.”

“How’s she doing?”

“I’m heading to Grayson’s right now to pick her up.”

A bright warmth rises through me, heating the back of my neck and my face, making me smile. It was a struggle to leave the rental house this morning on time, and I can’t wait to be with her again. I remember that first night in Darby, when Zach admitted how crazy he is about Sofie. Now I understand. I cannot get enough of Kirilee, and I don’t think that’s ever going to change.

“Any progress with the ranch?” Zach asks.

Things could turn pretty bad if Kirilee’s family can’t put together a solution, but I’m not losing hope. “Not yet.”

“Grayson’s a smart guy. I’m sure he’s got ideas.”

“Thanks for everything you did last night.”

He releases a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry about Shel.”

I follow the long, paved curve past tall spruce and aspen trees, the pale blue sky peeking through the branches. “Me too.”

“If only he hadn’t pulled that gun?—”

“You aren’t taking blame for this,” I say. “He was trapped and he knew it.”

“Yeah. It doesn’t make it any easier, though.”

“I can’t imagine anything making this easier.”

He releases a heavy sigh. “Right.”

I turn left, which brings the ski slopes, empty now, into view. My job might not be the most glamorous, but man, do I love it .

“So with you being reinstated at the ranch, and Kirilee newly single, I guess that means you’re sticking around?”

I laugh. “You can’t get rid of me that easily.”

“Something I’ve been meaning to ask you.” His tone has turned serious.

“Okay.”

“I know you’re not big on being in front of a lot of people, but…” He pauses to release a tense breath “…will you be my best man?”

“Shit, Zach… of course.” My chest tightens, and I rub it with my fist. “I’d be honored.”

Emotions clot in my throat. Thankfully, Zach chatters nonstop about the outdoor wedding he and Sofie are planning, giving me a moment to take it all in. For someone who lived in fear for so long, that Zach is so excited about this wedding and joining his life with Sofie’s feels so good inside me, so pure and joyful. Like a gift.

It’s proof that dreams really can come true. That it’s possible to leave the darkness behind and step into the light.

When I turn up Grayson’s driveway, Kirilee is waving at me from the deck, both arms in the air, her face lit by the golden rays of the setting sun.

I take a moment for gratitude, to savor the way her smile brightens when I step out of my truck.

I think back to that first moment I laid eyes on her across the crowded restaurant. It wasn’t long before she caught me looking. I was ready to shy away, brush off the feelings stirring inside me. Back then I was an outsider, looking in. She had every right to scowl at me, put me in my place.

Instead, she smiled. And I’ve been falling for her ever since.

Kirilee leans over the railing. “You are not going to believe this!” she screams.