From Ashes

When I knew I didn’t have more than a minute left, I put the slightest pressure on her ponytail and she looked up, quickly releasing me with a satisfied grin as she crawled over and sank down on me. Her mouth opened but nothing more than a breathy sound of pleasure came out as her eyelids fluttered shut and she started riding me. On our kitchen island. In our house. On the ranch. Hell. Yeah.

It didn’t last long, but thankfully I was able to hold off until she got off first. We lay there, with her draped on top of me placing kisses over my chest, and I couldn’t think of anything better than right now. But then again, I thought that every time Cassidy and I were together.

“We need to thoroughly sanitize this island before I cook in here,” she said between kisses, and I laughed as I pulled her up to kiss her.

“Does that mean you like the house?”

“You really built this?” Her eyes were wide with amazement as she looked down at me.

“Dad and I have been building it for quite a few years now. The second I met you, I knew I wanted to finish building it for you. Even when I thought you were with Tyler, you were always who I pictured when I was here working on it, or when I was working on plans in Austin. We expanded the kitchen a bit, put the huge island in here, and I haven’t even shown you the master bathroom yet.”

Cassidy’s mouth formed a perfect O. “Is there a tub?” she whispered, like she was afraid there wouldn’t be.

I gri

“Really?!” She squealed and kissed me hard. “Oh, I can’t wait to use it.”

I couldn’t wait for her to see it. She was already dreaming of soaking in it; she was going to go into shock when she saw that monster.

“I love the wraparound,” she said dreamily.

“You know, that was the last thing we built. Only added it because that night on the hill you said you wanted to live on a ranch one day and just sit on the porch during the evenings. It was so hard not to tell you right then about the house, but I was going to take you the next day before everything happened with Tyler. Now I’m kinda glad you didn’t see it before it was finished.”

She didn’t say anything, just looked at me with those whiskey eyes, and I knew without her saying the words that she loved me. It was pouring off her, and God, I loved her too.

“Now all that’s left is to go pick out furniture and make it our home.”

Cassidy’s face fell. “What about all the furniture from the town home?”

I shook my head. “I didn’t pay for that furniture. Dad did, ’cause he was trying to help me get out of the apartment. So now that Amanda’s getting out of the dorms next year and moving into an apartment, she gets all that stuff.” Amanda went to A & M, the traitor, and though I wasn’t thrilled she was go

“Gage, is th—” She stopped suddenly and looked down at my chest.

“What, darlin’?”

“Is this really going to be our home? Here on the ranch?”

My heart skipped a beat. I could have sworn she’d want this. “Uh, that was the plan. I built on the ranch for a reason. I’d always pla

Her eyes welled with tears and she did a face-plant onto my chest.

“Cass? Darlin’, what’s wrong? Do you not like it here?”

She shook her head, but before I could feel like she’d killed my dream, she spoke up. “You don’t understand. Since we set foot on the ranch a year ago, all I’ve thought about was living here with you. It’s all I want, Gage, and I was afraid I’d never get to.”

I laughed once. “Cassidy, you scared the shit outta me. I thought you didn’t like it here or something.”

“No, no. I love it, I swear I do. I just didn’t want to get too excited about it if you weren’t sure about my living here with you.”

“I’m sure, trust me. Cassidy, if this is what you want too, then this is our future. This house, this ranch . . . it’s yours.”

“I want it! I want it so bad.”

“I’m glad, darlin’. Now, are you ready to talk about everything? Afterward, we’ll get dressed, I’ll show you the rest of the house, and we’ll go back to the main house for di

“Can you just tell me something first?” she pleaded, leaning up on one arm to peer down at me. “Are you mad at me about Co

I took a deep breath in and out, looked up at the skylights, and ran my hands over her back. “I’m not mad at you, I’m mad at him. I’m hurt that you kissed him back, and it hurts knowing you have those feelings for him. But you told me everything and that had to be hard, and after all is said and done, you left him and told him not to wait for you because you were coming back to me. And, darlin’, I’m not letting you go. I told Co

She nodded and pressed her lips softly to mine. “I love you, Gage Michael Carson.”

“I love you too, Cassidy A

Chapter Seventeen

C ASSIDY

WE’D BEEN GONE for almost six hours by the time we got back to the main house, and from the looks of everyone, other than little Emily, they knew exactly what we’d been doing. Or, at least, the good parts. Gage had ended up grabbing one of the spare shirts he always kept in his truck since the one he’d been wearing had been used as a sheet, and I saw that didn’t go u

John looked at me, looked over at Gage, then back to me. “Where’d you take her, Gage?”

“To our house,” he said proudly, and squeezed my hand.

John smiled big under that mustache. “What’d you think, Cass?”

I let go of Gage’s hand to run and fling my arms around John’s neck. “Thank you for my wraparound porch, and my bathtub and my kitchen.”

Everyone laughed out loud and John chuckled as he set me back down. “He sure did have a lot of changes he wanted made after he met you. I’m glad you like it.”

“I love it,” I breathed, and stepped back to Gage. “I can’t believe you’re going to let us live on your ranch though. Thank you. I seriously love it here.”

He shook his head and looked at Gage quickly before quirking a gray brow at me. “Not sure what you mean, doll; you marry Gage, this land is half yours.”

“Di

I was still staring at John. What did he mean half mine?

Gage kissed my forehead and ushered me toward the kitchen before he went to talk to Jesse about what Isabella wanted to do for di