“I might be a glutton for punishment,” he said.
“With how often you continue to challenge me to a bet even knowin’ I’ll kick your ass, you definitely are.”
A quick grin tipped up the corner of his mouth. Christ, he loved this girl. “That too, but this isn’t about that.”
“No? What’s it about?” She seemed to hold her breath, her eyes darting back and forth between his as she completely ignored the hoots and calls of congratulations to the acting mayor.
“I’ve got something I need to ask you again. And I’m gonna keep askin’ because you’re not the only pigheaded one in this duo.” He cupped her face and brushed his thumbs over her cheeks, darting his eyes over her face. Attempting to memorize every eyelash, every freckle, every gold fleck in her irises and tuck them away for when he’d need them the most. “I’ve never stopped wantin’ you, Kenna. Not a day since I’ve been gone. And I won’t stop. Not for the rest of my life.”
She reached out and tucked her fingers into his jeans pockets, not tugging him closer, but not letting him put even an inch of distance between them.
He took that as encouragement and continued, “And I think we both know I’ll never stop lovin’ you. I’d give anything to have you by my side, but I understand that you can’t do that right now. I see how important you are to this town. To your family. I know how much you’re needed here. But I need you too. I need you as much as I need air. Bein’ home, bein’ here with you, feels like I’ve taken a deep breath for the first time in ten years.”
Kenna’s eyes shone, their glassiness reflecting the hanging lights on a nearby tent. “Hud…”
“I know you need to stay, but we can still be together, Kenna. Even if we’re a thousand miles apart. Even if we’re three thousand miles apart. Couples do it every day, and there’s no way they’re as stubborn and determined as we are. So, I’m askin’ again. Hell, I’m beggin’, and you know I’d never admit that to anyone but you.”
She huffed out a laugh and then seemed to hold her breath, waiting for the next words to come out of his mouth.
“Be with me,” he said. “In however that takes shape, for however long you’ll have me. Just be with me.”
She didn’t answer with words. Instead, she lifted up on her tiptoes, gripped his neck, and brought his face down to hers. Their lips met, then parted, their tongues sliding against each other, and he’d never tasted anything sweeter in all of his life. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he lifted her up against him as their mouths stayed fused together, their bodies as close as they could get in public without getting themselves arrested.
Christ, what he wouldn’t give to be inside her once more before he had to leave. But time already wasn’t in their favor, and he knew that once he got lost in her body, there was no telling when he’d come up for air. He only hoped her reaction meant he’d have plenty more chances in the future to cover her body with his, sink into the heaven between those beautiful thighs, and settle into the home she provided him within her body and her mind and her heart.
Holding her against him so her feet dangled a foot above the ground, he pulled back and looked into her eyes. “Is that a yes?”
“No,” she said, cupping his face, her thumbs tracing the five-o’clock shadow that had sprouted up since he’d shaved off his beard that morning.
Hudson’s stomach dropped, his eyes flicking between hers as he tried to read her, but he couldn’t decipher anything from her stare.
And then she pressed their mouths together and murmured against his, “It’s a hell yes.”
“You suck.” He nipped her bottom lip, laving the sting with his tongue, too lost in the sound of her laugh to stay mad at her for almost giving him a fucking heart attack.
She smiled before it slipped from her face, her expression sobering. “I need you as much as you need me. And I’ve been an idiot, thinkin’ we can’t make this work. You’re right—we are stubborn. And if anyone can do this, it’s us. I have faith in us. In you.” She glanced down, her voice lowering to just above a whisper. “And for the first time in a long time, I have faith in me, too.”
Hudson’s chest filled with pride for his girl—his best friend, his soul mate, his Kenna—so thankful she finally had as much trust in herself as everyone else did. He kissed her again, needing to fill his well with as much of it as he could to last him for the coming months they’d be apart.
After not nearly long enough with their lips melded together, their tongues twined, CB jumped up on Hudson’s legs, barking her little head off and proving exactly why he’d named her that in the first place.
He pulled back, holding Kenna up against him by a handful of her ass and not caring in the least that dozens of Havenbrook residents were watching their every move.
She glanced down at the barking dog before meeting his gaze, her lip caught between her teeth. “What’re you gonna do with CB?”
“Well…I needed to talk to you about that. I was sorta hopin’ you wouldn’t be opposed to a roommate.”
“And you thought you’d wait until now to spring that on me?”
He shrugged, unrepentant. “I knew you wouldn’t say no that way.”
“Liar.” She leaned close and scraped her teeth against his bottom lip. “You knew I wouldn’t say no, period.”
“That too.”
She threaded her fingers through the short hair at the back of his head, her expression serious. “I love you, you know. And I need you to come back to me.”
He swallowed hard, knowing he’d do every fucking thing in his power to do just that. To return home to her. To marry her and have babies with her and grow old with her. “I love you too, Kenna.”
It’d taken them too damn long to get there, but sometimes the best things took a little extra time. And if he got Kenna when it was all said and done, he didn’t care what sort of winding, convoluted path he had to travel if she was waiting for him at the end.
“So, we’re really doin’ this?” he asked.
She wrapped her arms tighter around him and held him to her as if she never wanted to let him go. “Looks like.”
He hummed against her mouth, unable to stop himself from tasting her again. When they finally came up for air, he pressed his forehead to hers and closed his eyes. “Does that mean you’re gonna be at the cabin waitin’ for me, just like we planned?”
She hummed, and he met her gaze, finding her watching him with every ounce of love he felt for her reflected back at him. “I guess you’re just gonna have to show up and find out.”
Oh, he would.
Just like he told himself all those years ago, Kenna was it for him. And come hell or high water, he’d be coming back to her.
The last place Mac should’ve been headed to was the cabin. Havenbrook was in mourning, the lives of two beloved residents stolen too soon. And Nat needed all the support she could get as she tried to help her best friend navigate his new normal that was nothing he could have possibly planned for.
But even as mayor, there wasn’t much Mac could do besides offer emotional support. And Nat had sent her—shoved her—away, saying she was smothering her and to back the fuck off. Ah, sisterly love. Mac didn’t know how long Nat would be home to support Asher, but she’d take every second of it she could get—all four sisters hadn’t been in the same place for more than a handful of days at a time for years.
Muscle memory had her driving her Jeep down the winding roads without conscious thought, allowing her mind to wander. She and Hudson hadn’t missed talking in some form for a single day since he’d left Havenbrook. And they’d both been right—it was hard. But they were crushing it because they were too bullheaded to do anything else.
What had been a surprise for her was that the hard wasn’t necessarily the distance. It was the wondering and worrying. It was the disappointments when orders were given and plans were changed, and suddenly their scheduled reunion, ten years in the making, couldn’t happen. At least, not for another several month
s.
With a sigh, Mac pulled into the gravel driveway in front of the cabin that had held so many memories for the two of them. Even if Hudson couldn’t be with her tonight on his birthday like they’d planned all those years ago, she’d wanted to be here because this was where she felt closest to him. Where before, she’d avoided this place at every turn because of the memories it held, now she came as often as she was able to, specifically for that reason. Lilah and Marianne had all but given her free rein to come and go as she pleased, and she abused that as often as her demanding job allowed her to.
A demanding job she actually sort of loved.
She wouldn’t lie and say it’d been easy—she couldn’t step into a role that had been filled by men the entirety of Havenbrook’s existence without it being difficult. But she’d proven herself—the election they’d held to replace her daddy had demonstrated as much when she’d won by a landslide. There were still the male elders to deal with, but Mac didn’t back down from them anymore. She was there to get shit done, and they could either get on board or get the hell out of her way.
“All right, CB. You ready?” she asked her favorite canine, reaching out to scratch behind CB’s ears. She was a lot tinier than Hudson—and a lot hairier—but at least Mac had a bed partner to keep her company when the nights got too lonely without him.
The dog jumped across the center console and straight into Mac’s lap, her tail wagging and tongue lolling. She loved coming out to the cabin almost as much as Mac did.
The two of them stepped out of the Jeep, and Mac breathed in the fresh spring air. Flowers sprouted up in the gardens Mac had weeded last weekend, and the hammock strung up between two blooming trees called her name. She grabbed the bags from the back seat—one of these days, she’d just leave their stuff at the cabin so she didn’t need to pack something each time—and slammed the car door shut.
She stepped up to the cabin, fumbling with her keys as she tried to balance her and CB’s bags—that spoiled dog traveled with more items than she did. A package on the doorstep caught her eye, and she furrowed her brow. Not much mail showed up here, and even fewer packages—as in none. She dropped the bags on the porch and bent to pick up the box, seeing her name across the label in Hudson’s unmistakable handwriting, and excitement shot through her. Unable to wait another second, she ripped open the tape and lifted the flaps, finding a pile of pink Starbursts surrounding a small, square box. She breathed out a laugh, shaking her head. Tucked along the side was a note.
I found this at a tiny store in Germany nine years ago. It’s the only one I never mailed to you because I needed it with me. It doesn’t compare to the real thing, but it’s the exact shade of your eyes, and it made me feel close to you even when we weren’t.
She lifted the lid on the box, finding a marble inside. And Hudson was right—it was the exact color of her eyes. “Just like Hud to one up me, sending me a gift on his birthday,” she mumbled to no one.
Why the hell would he send her this, though? Didn’t he still need to feel close to her while they were apart? God knew Mac could use some of that closeness because it’d been too long since she’d felt his arms around her.
Suddenly, the door flew open from the inside, and Mac let out a shriek, jumping back. CB came running, barking her head off, until she sniffed out who stood inside the cabin.
Hudson.
Hudson was…here. Looking utterly exhausted, his hair cut close and a way-past-five-o’clock shadow covering his jaw, his lips quirked up on the side.
“What…what—” Mac couldn’t find any other words. Could only stare at him openmouthed, her heart trying its hardest to beat straight out of her chest.
“I knew I should’ve greeted you naked like I’d planned. Didn’t have enough time, though. I just got here.”
“Just got—” Mac was smarter than this, but her vocabulary was doing its damnedest to prove otherwise.
“I gotta be honest…I thought I’d at least get a hug by now. Maybe a ‘happy birthday.’”
She breathed out a laugh, set the box on the entry table, and jumped into his arms, wrapping hers around his neck and squeezing him as tight as she dared. Pressing her nose into his skin, she sucked in a lungful of Hudson-scented air and felt tears prick the backs of her eyes.
“What are you doin’ here?” she asked into his neck, her throat thick with emotion.
He squeezed his arms around her, and nothing had ever felt this good. “I need to tell you something.”
Mac’s heart skipped a beat, and she pulled back to stare into his eyes, swallowing down her apprehension. Whatever he had to tell her, whatever mission he’d been called up for or new duty station they were sending him to, or any number of other possibilities the army could come up with, it would be fine. They’d make it work.
“Okay.”
“I’ve been lyin’ to you.”
Her eyes went wide, and she darted her gaze over Hudson’s face, trying to read it. Trying to figure out what the hell he meant by that. Lied to her about what?
“Okay…” she said again, trepidation seeping into her tone.
“I haven’t been waiting on orders to deploy.”
“Okay…” Apparently that was all her brain could think to say.
“I’ve been waiting on my DD 214 papers.”
She stared at him, waiting for him to elaborate. When he didn’t, she said, “I don’t know what that means, Hudson.”
“It means…” He reached up to cup her face. He brushed his thumbs against her skin, and she never wanted him to stop touching her. “It means I’m home.”
“I can see that you’re home, but what—”
“No, Kenna. I’m home. For good.”
She hadn’t even fully processed the words before she was on him, his face held in her hands as she kissed him with every ounce of love she felt for him. They were hungry, frenzied. They shed their clothes without hesitation, their bodies crashing together as if they’d been doing this dance their whole lives instead of fighting against it.
On an old hardwood floor with a two-hundred-plus-pound soldier pressing into her wasn’t the most comfortable place in the world to be, but she didn’t care. With his chest brushing the tips of her breasts, his arms surrounding her, and his lips whispering wordless pleas against her skin as he sank into her over and over again, she’d never felt more loved. She gripped him as tight as she could, struggling to get even closer still. Desperate for him in a way she’d never known was possible.
“Christ, I missed you. Missed this.” He braced himself on his arms, resting his forehead against hers as he gazed between them, pumping his hips and watching as he disappeared into her over and over again. “I don’t want to go this long without you again. Ever.”
It was then that she broke, her emotions surging out of her in waves of pleasure as Hudson groaned and jerked against her, her name a hoarse cry on his lips.
Their panting breaths filled the space around them, and only then did Mac come into herself enough to realize it wasn’t Hudson caressing her hip, but rather CB showing her love with puppy kisses.
She groaned, reaching down to shoo the dog away. “Get out of here, you pervert. God, you really do live up to your name.”
Hudson laughed, then scooped up Mac in his arms and stood before dropping down onto the couch. He settled her across his lap, his not-even-close to softening cock still inside her. God, he felt good, and she needed him again. She’d come less than two minutes ago, and she was still hungry for him.
She rocked against him tentatively, his answering groan spurring her on. “No recovery time? That’s a fun new toy to play with.”
He dropped his hands to her hips, resting his head against the back of the couch and gazing up at her with heavy-lidded eyes. “I’m happy to let you use and abuse me as much as you’d like. We’ve got a lot of time to make up for.”
She knew now probably wasn’t the best time to have this conversation—while he was buried to the hilt inside her
and her clit throbbed with the need for attention—but she couldn’t stop the words even if she’d tried. “What does this all mean? No more army?”
“No more army.”
Her heart broke for him, not wanting him to have to choose her over it. And needing him to know he didn’t have to. “I’m not goin’ anywhere, Hudson. You don’t have to choose between us.”
“I know.”
“You…you loved it, though.”
He nodded. “I did. But I was stayin’ for the wrong reasons. I’m ready to move on to the next chapter of my life.”
“And what’s that next chapter include?”
“A new job—something Caleb suggested a long time ago and I’ve been workin’ on the past few months. This place.” He tipped his head, gesturing to the cabin. Then he squeezed her hands that were encased in his. “And you. For as long as you’ll have me.”
As long as she’d have him? She wasn’t even sure the rest of their lives would be long enough. “Bet you get sick of me first.”
He cracked a grin, wrapped his arms around her, and guided her to move over him, to take whatever she needed from him. “That’s never gonna happen. Hope you’re ready to lose.”
Lose? Nope. No matter the terms they agreed on, she’d win in the end if it meant she got to spend the rest of her life with him.
THANK YOU FOR READING MAC AND HUDSON’S STORY! If you’ve already read where it all began for them in Pact with a Heartbreaker, be sure to check out Second Chance Charmer to see Willow and Finn get their happily ever after.
HE WAS the resident bad boy. She’s small town royalty. Their love was doomed from the start.
Finn spent his childhood living so far on the wrong side of the tracks, he couldn’t even see them through his trailer window. When he moves back to his small, southern hometown to open the first bar in a formerly dry county, he’s no longer the boy who left—he’s a man with something to prove. As long as he doesn’t allow himself to get sidetracked by the only girl he’s ever loved.
Captain Heartbreaker (Havenbrook Book 4) Page 27
