November’s Ride with Viper (Mustang Mountain Riders #11)

9. Marlowe

CHAPTER 9

MARLOWE

With the Friendsgiving Feast pretty much forgotten, I peered through the passenger-side window of Viper’s truck as we cruised up the side of the mountain. He thought he was being generous by letting me ride along this afternoon while he scoured the area Thunder had assigned to him. So far, we hadn’t seen anything out of the ordinary.

“Are you hungry yet?” I settled my palm on my belly to silence a grumble. Ruby had packed up Thanksgiving dinners to go for all the Mustang Mountain Riders so they’d have something to eat while they canvassed the area. It was sweet of her to do, but the smell of herb-roasted turkey breast had been taunting me from the backseat for the past hour.

“I’m getting there. How about you?” Viper lifted our joined hands to his lips and pressed a kiss to my wrist. He was so much more accommodating when he thought he was getting his way.

“I could eat. Want to find a place to stop?” We hadn’t seen another vehicle on the road for the past twenty minutes. Usually, the stretch of road leading toward Lake Bliss was well traveled, but not today.

“Sure. I know just the place.” Viper glanced over and smiled. Warmth gathered in my chest and radiated out through the rest of my body. My entire life had changed over the past few days. Now I couldn’t imagine a moment without him in it. We hadn’t seen each other in person in over ten years, but it felt like no time had passed.

A sign for Lake Bliss came into focus. “I don’t know what you’re thinking, but there’s no way you’re going to trick me into skinny dipping in the lake again this time of year.”

The tension in his jaw let up as he smiled. “That’s too bad. I was looking forward to warming you up after.”

“It’s freezing out. I promise I’ll let you warm me up, even without a plunge into the lake first.”

Viper turned down one of the side roads leading to the lake. We used to drive up here a lot when we were younger. We’d build bonfires on the shore and lie back on the sand to watch for shooting stars in the summer. In the winter, we’d join candlelit cross-country skiing outings. It was just another place in a long list of many that I’d forgotten how much I missed.

We rounded a corner, and the lake appeared in front of us. Viper parked in the empty lot, and we both stared through the windshield at the beauty ahead. Snow already covered the top peaks of the mountain range behind the lake. Most of the trees had lost their leaves, but the firs and evergreens stood out, their strong trunks reaching toward the darkening late afternoon sky.

I soaked it in for a few long beats. “I’ve really missed this place.”

“This place has missed you.” Viper shifted in his seat, turning to better face me. “Despite what happened this morning, it’s a good place to live. A great place to raise a family.”

My lungs expanded, making it difficult to take in a full breath. Was he finally going to bring up the pact? Neither one of us had mentioned it yet, though it seemed like the promise we’d made so long ago had been hovering around us, just waiting to be acknowledged.

“You still want half a dozen kids?” he asked.

“Oh, at least that many. Maybe a baker’s dozen, even. An odd number is better. That way, fights won’t ever end in a tie.” I laughed at the sheer amount of shock reflected in his expression. We’d both been the only child in our families. I’d always hoped for siblings, but my mom said she never needed more since I was so perfect. I knew that was a bald-faced lie, but later found out they never even thought they’d get pregnant with me.

“A baker’s dozen is thirteen, right?” Viper’s nose crinkled. “Maybe we start with one and see how things go before we make that big of a commitment.”

“I didn’t realize we were talking about making a commitment.” I pulled my leg up underneath me and shifted to get a better look at him.

For someone built like a truck who’d never been afraid of anything or anyone, the hint of vulnerability in his eyes surprised me. “We did make a commitment to each other a long time ago. I know you haven’t forgotten.”

The pact. He wanted to do this now? With the fate of the town on the line? “Maybe we should put a pin in this conversation and come back to it later,” I suggested. “Like when the bad guys have been caught and we know Mustang Mountain will still be around for years to come.”

His arm slid around my shoulders. “I’m going to do everything in my power to deliver my own brand of justice, but if something happens to me?—”

“Stop.” I shook my head back and forth so quickly that it started to spin.

“I don’t want there to be anything left unsaid between us.” Viper cupped my cheek. His thumb grazed my bottom lip. I sucked in a breath, not willing to entertain this train of thought.

“Nothing’s going to happen. I heard Atlas say these guys always slip up. You’ll find out where they’ve been hiding, then take them down.” I wanted to believe it would be that easy. That people I cared about wouldn’t get hurt.

Viper held my gaze for several seconds. “Do you want to stretch your legs for a minute? Let’s walk up to the edge of the lake before we eat.”

By the time I’d unbuckled and shrugged my jacket on, he’d rounded the front of the truck and opened my door. My boots crunched on the dry leaves as we left the warmth of the truck. Soon, the ground would be covered in snow. I’d loved watching the change from fall into winter in Chicago, but here in the mountains, the seasons were even more pronounced. I inhaled a deep breath of fresh air and let Viper lead me to the edge of the water.

“Remember that night we came up here?” He opened his arms, and I snuggled into his embrace.

“Of course.” We’d spent too many nights on the edge of the lake to count, but there was no doubt he was referring to the night we made the pact.

“You ever hear from that piece of shit who broke your heart?” Viper’s pulse thumped through his chest. His flannel shirt was soft under my cheek.

“No. You?” We’d been in the same small graduating class, though I’d lost touch with all of my classmates when I moved away.

“He got married a year or so after graduation. Last I heard, he was on his third or fourth wife and in jail for failure to pay child support.” Viper’s palm slid over my back.

“I guess I dodged a bullet with that one. Sure didn’t feel like it at the time.”

“We made a promise to each other that night.”

Nodding, I closed my eyes. “I remember.”

“My birthday’s coming up next month. I don’t see myself getting married before then.” He pulled back slightly and nudged my chin up to meet his gaze. “At least not to anyone but you.”

I tried to swallow, but my mouth had gone bone dry.

“What do you say, Lo Lo? Want to follow through on that promise we made to each other? We’re standing in the exact same spot as we were all those years ago. You might think it’s too soon, but I’ve been waiting for this moment for over half my life.”

Tears filled my lower lids and overflowed down my cheeks. Great. My mascara would probably start to run, and he’d always remember me with black streaks down my face on the night we officially got engaged.

“I feel the same. In the time we spent apart, I realized something. My home is with you. Whether we stay in Mustang Mountain and raise a baker’s dozen of kids or follow the next wild adventure life decides to take us on. You’ll always be my north star, Viper.”

He wiped the tears from my cheeks with the pads of his thumbs. “If you want thirteen kids, we probably ought to get started right away.”

A soft laugh bubbled up through my chest. “There’s no way I’m going to let you talk me into getting naked out here again. That was a once-in-a-lifetime deal.”

“How about when we get back to your grandma’s place?”

Even thinking about what he had in mind warmed my blood. I was about to respond when a light flashed off in the distance on the other side of the lake.

“What’s that?” I narrowed my eyes, trying to figure out where it was coming from. Unless it had been developed while I’d been away, that side of the lake had never had any cabins. It was too difficult to reach except by water.

“Could be some hunters looking to tag a big buck.” Viper’s grip around me loosened. “Or it could be we just found where the Savage Bones have been hiding.”