Be brave, Jess. You can handle this.
I drew in a deep breath, slowly exhaled.
The front door opened again and Eliza hurried past. “I’m going to fix something for him to eat. He said he’s hungry after the long drive.”
I felt my lips twitch. How many times while I was staying with Tracker had he said he was hungry and told me to fix him something to eat? The man was always hungry.
It must be all those big muscles needing nourishment.
I focused my attention on the doorway, unable to look away.
Tracker stepped over the threshold, lifting a hand to push his sunglasses up onto his head. My breath caught. My heart went wild. He was still so big and powerful-looking. So handsome. I wanted to run to him and press happy kisses all over his face. Run my fingers through his hair. Hug him close.
Instead, I stood immobile, watching him. Waiting. Terrified.
He went still as his silver gaze landed on me. My heart slammed into my ribs. Oh God, I didn’t know if I could do this.
We stared at each other, neither one of us moving. Neither one of us speaking.
Sounds came from the kitchen as Eliza opened the refrigerator and set something on the countertop. Then the microwave turned on.
“Jess.” His voice carried across the short distance like a caress, making heat ignite in my belly. His gaze traveled down my body, then back to my face. “I have something for you.” He unzipped his leather jacket and pulled out his sketchpad.
My legs trembled. I’d accidentally left the rose drawing in his apartment. I hadn’t had a chance to gather it up before leaving. I’d missed it ever since, wanting a part of him to remember, to hold close, to help me survive without him. Had he come to return it to me?
He took a step toward me. I took a step toward him. We both stopped with just a few feet separating us.
Eliza peered into the room at us, then quickly disappeared.
“You forgot this.” He handed me the rose drawing. I took it from him, holding it against my chest. My heart squeezed.
“Thank you.”
He hesitated, then opened the sketchpad, flipped through a couple of pages, then stopped. He turned the page toward me.
“Start here. There’s something I have to show you.”
CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE
Tracker
My heart thundered as her gaze traveled over the page. It was a drawing of her face that day I’d used her in the workout room, the hurt I knew she’d felt after I’d stormed out and told her to terminate any resulting pregnancy. I’d hated myself for doing that to her. It had been cruel and unforgiveable.
Her eyes filled with tears. She glanced up at me.
“Tracker?”
“Keep going,” I whispered. “Look at the rest.”
Slowly, page by page, she looked at the rest of my drawings, the ones I’d sketched after she’d gone, pouring my heart and soul onto the page. Picture after picture of Jess in every possible way. Of me, in misery, my heart split in two.
She came to the last one where I’d drawn the two of us together, embracing, our lips locked in a passionate kiss, our love evident in the details I’d drawn on the page.
Tears streamed down her cheeks and she lifted a hand to wipe them away.
“There’s a lot of pain in this book,” she whispered, her gaze holding mine. “I’m so sorry, Tracker.”
I cleared my throat. “I wanted you to see what I went through these past weeks. Normally drawing helps soothe me, eases my pain, but this time, it didn’t work. I drew you for days on end, trying to free myself of the misery, but it just wouldn’t work. I sparred with the other dregs, I lifted weights, I beat on the punching bag until my knuckles were raw, but nothing helped.”
I lowered to my knees in front of her, swallowing hard and lifting my gaze to hers. “What I’m trying to say is I’m lost without you, Jess. I’m nothing without you. I need you to help me heal. I need you to help fix me.”
She sniffled and wiped at another tear. “Tracker…” It was a breathless, needy sound that made my heart pinch.
“The only thing that can ease this terrible ache in my chest is you, Jess.” I grabbed her hand and pressed it against my heart. “I love you. I need you. I can’t live without you. Please forgive me.”
Her eyes filled with fresh tears and a happiness that took my breath away.
“Took you long enough,” she whispered with a soft laugh. She cupped my face in her hands, then knelt before me, and pressed her lips to mine.
And just like that, the fear that had been holding me back sifted free like a feather in the wind. I wrapped my arms around her and kissed her back. I poured my heart and soul into that kiss, wanting her to feel everything I felt for her. We knelt there on the floor, kissing, hugging, laughing softly, and all the pain and heartache I’d endured these past weeks slowly slipped away. I was with Jess now. I could heal. She could fix me.
Finally, I drew back and gazed into her beautiful hazel eyes. “You were my first in a lot of ways. The first to steal my heart. The first to show me what true love is. The first to make love to me. Sex before you had just been that: sex. A bodily need. But with you, it was so much better. It was special. It was beautiful.” I paused, drew in a deep breath. “You were the first to make me want to truly live, Jessica. I’m so damn sorry I sent you away. I’m an idiot. A coward. I was scared—I’m still scared—that I might hurt you someday. You are literally the heart that beats in my chest. You are the balm that soothes my battered soul. You are the light in my dark, screwed-up world. You make the nightmares go away. You make me want to live and be a part of something beautiful. You are what completes me and makes me whole.”
I looked deeply into her eyes. “Life with me won’t be easy. I can’t promise it will be safe. I can’t promise I won’t have any more nightmares or that I won’t accidentally hurt you. I can’t promise there won’t be more bounty hunters coming for me, but with The General dead, I’m hoping it will all die down soon. And if I have you in my life, by my side, I know I can overcome anything.” I swallowed hard. “I want you, Jessica, only you, for the rest of my life. Please say you’ll forgive me for being a dumbass. Please say you want me for me, for the man I am and for the man I can be.” I drew in another deep breath. That had been a lot to say. More than I’d said to anyone all at once before. Had it come out right? Could she forgive me? Could she still love me after I’d hurt her?
Her gorgeous eyes filled with fresh tears. She cupped my cheek in her palm. “Oh, Tracker, I love you, too. So, so much. Nothing will ever change that. I will always love you. And I want you too. Forever.” She paused, lowering her gaze. “Can I call you Liam now? Are you ready for that?”
I hesitated, then nodded. “Yes. I’m ready to start being Liam again. A part of me will always be Tracker, but I’m ready to start letting the bad parts of Tracker go, and letting the good parts bring Liam back. You taught me that I don’t need to be a cold-hearted bastard, that it’s okay to feel things, and that love doesn’t make you weak. It makes you strong. I hope I can always be the man you need, Jessica. And if I ever do something wrong—which I’m sure I will—then I want you to straighten me out, help me do the right thing.”
She smiled and wiped at a tear. “You’re all I need. Just you. Whatever mistakes we make, we’ll overcome them. Together.” She stared into my eyes. “I’m not pregnant, just so you know. But someday, I do want kids. It’s important to me. Is that okay with you? Do you want a family someday?” There was expectancy in her eyes, and also worry. She was afraid I didn’t want kids, but who could blame her after how I’d reacted that day in the workout room? The truth was, I did want a family someday. With her, I wanted it all.
I dragged her back into my arms and squeezed her tightly. My heart nearly burst with joy. Having a family with Jess would be the perfect happily-ever-after ending to my story. “Yes. Nothing would make me happier than having a family with you.”
“Oh, Liam,” she whispered
, tightening her arms around me and pressing her lips to mine. “You make me so happy.”
Liam. My heart swelled. Hearing my real name on her lips felt so good, so right. And she made me happy. More happy than I deserved. I was never letting her go again. Ever. She was going to heal me. She was going to fix me. With her, I could be free.
I hugged her tightly, and as we knelt there, holding each other close, our love flowing between us, I knew I’d made the right decision to swallow my pride and come after her. I knew everything would be fine. No matter what came our way, we would get through it.
We would survive.
Together.
# # #
Thank you for reading Tracker and Jessica’s story. I sincerely hope you enjoyed it. It would mean a lot to me if you would take a moment to leave a review on Amazon and/or Goodreads:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B079WBSVZ9
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38609283-the-tracker
Don’t miss the next book in the series, The Fighter, available here: The Fighter
Books in this series:
The Tracker
The Fighter
The Healer
The Smuggler
The Trainer
The Hacker
The Extractor (coming approximately August 1, 2019)
The Enforcer (coming approximately December 1, 2019)
Other Titles by Leslie Georgeson
No Son of Mine (standalone mystery/drama)
Unlikely Heroes romantic suspense series:
Stolen – Book 1
Abducted – Book 2
Deceived – Book 3
Stoned – Book 4
Scarred – Book 5
Underneath paranormal/sci-fi romance series:
Exiled – Book 1
Drifter – Book 2
Unseen – Book 3
About Leslie Georgeson
Leslie Georgeson is the author of the standalone mystery/drama NO SON OF MINE, the UNLIKELY HEROES romantic suspense series, the paranormal/sci-fi romance series UNDERNEATH, and the newly released THE DREGS, a military romantic suspense series. Leslie lives with her husband and daughter on a quiet country acreage in Idaho. She is currently working on The Extractor, the seventh book in The Dregs series, and anticipates an August 1, 2019 release.
Connect with Leslie Georgeson
Author webpage
Facebook
Twitter
Goodreads
The Tracker Page 33
