Page 44 of True Ruin

“Shh,” Dallas whispered, though the warning had no force behind it.

He eased away, dealt with the condom, and reached for a blanket. Gabi had barely managed to roll onto her back before he wrapped her in it, tucking the edges around her as if she might otherwise come apart. At least if Sam found them, they could say they were merely enjoying his pretend fort.

She stared up at him with a crooked grin, looking as spent as he felt. His heart gave a hard quiver against his ribs, love trying to force its way out. He accepted the reality, his body still humming from the feel of her, that he was toast.

“Come on,” he murmured, taking her hand. It took both of them, another burst of muffled laughter, and one failed attempt before they made it to their feet. Bewildered was putting it kindly.

Only the porch lamp broke the darkness as they slipped through the door. The town had gone quiet hours ago. A dog barked somewhere down the street, then stopped. The night hummed with crickets, and dry leaves scraped along the curb with the gentle breeze. They slid to a sit on the scuffed planks, legs stretched out. Gabi had the blanket wrapped around her shoulders, the ends fisted at her collarbone, her legs bare. Dallas scooted closer, until the sides of their feet touched.

Neither of them said anything. Not yet. It was going to take a minute to recover from what had happened, the significance of breaking their agreement.

Dallas tipped his head back. The sky stretched clear and black above Promise, crowded with silver pinpricks anchored in velvet folds—the same stars he’d seen thousands of miles away. Without the lights of a city to dull them, they seemed unnervingly close. Orion had cleared the rooftops, sharper here than Dallas remembered anywhere else. He followed the pale scatter of the Milky Way, letting peace settle into him, wondering if he’d ever been this content in his life.

“You’ve never been this silent for this long,” he said, rolling his head toward her because he couldn’t keep his gaze away any longer.

Her eyes, dewy brown in the moonlight, met his, the lone freckle above her lip calling to him. “I’m waiting for more of your stinging honesty.” She tapped her temple with the hand clutching the blanket, giving him a view of her gorgeous breasts bouncing beneath ice-blue silk. “Like you once told me: I can hear you thinking.”

Dallas cleared his throat. Skimmed his fingertips along the warped boards beneath him. How would his luminous, impossibly vibrant Sparkle react to being told he was in love with her? Aloof, guarded Dallas True falling for Promise’s princess.Two people who didn’t seem like a good match on paper, but in life, were possibly spot-on.

Everything about her awed him. Her compassion. Her sensuality. Her humor. Her courage. She was so alive, and he’d been numb for so long. He didn’t know whether he was good enough for her and Sam, but he wanted the chance to be.

He started with the bluntness she likely expected. “The friend pact?—”

“Isn’t working,” she finished.

“You think? I’ve had to keep myself from climbing in your window all week.” He reached for his glasses and touched the bridge of his bare nose instead.

“They’re on the coffee table. I was afraid you’d roll over on them.”

He dropped his hand to his lap and discovered his button fly still open. He started fastening it, fingers slipping. “I want…that is, I um…”

“Oh, you silly man.” Gabi brushed his hands aside and finished the buttons herself, sending another rush of heat through him. When she was done, she caught his face between her palms and kissed him. He was reaching for her when she murmured against his lips, “Let’s try long-distance.”

He grasped her shoulders, scooting her back enough to see her face. “Are you sure?”

“If we can agree to certain rules,” she said, badly concealing her delight. “Goodness, that’s the exact look Sam gives me when I mention homework.”

“Don’t joke, Sparkle. Women don’t have a monopoly on rules. Since the cabin, I’ve thought about little else but how I can make this work.”

She turned toward him and crisscrossed her legs, the blanket shifting over her thighs, alerting his cock enough for her tonotice. Her smile grew, showing her teeth, the crooked front one he adored.

“I’m listening,” she said, then did her best to distract him by drawing lazy circles along the edges of his tattoo, sending goosebumps over his skin.

“The deal is—” Flustered, he reached for the bridge of his nose again.

Gabi snorted and pressed a fist to her mouth.

“I think better with my glasses, okay?” He heard how ridiculous that sounded and laughed with her. Taking her hand, he kissed her knuckles, the inside of her wrist, lingering. Her cheeks flushed, her pulse leaping beneath his lips.Jesus, he was the luckiest bastard alive. The only woman he’d ever wanted seemingly wanted him back.

He only had to keep from fucking it up.

“I know I’m asking more of you than I should, Gab, while I figure out this career stuff.” He waited until her eyes met his, because he needed her to understand how serious he was—how much she meant to him, which was everything. “I’ll come home every three months. I can do that. Cairo is better than the last place I was based, so we can email every day. You have email, right? If not, we’ll set it up before I leave. Phone calls are feasible, maybe not every day, the lines are down a lot in the field, but I won’t disappear. I won’t pull some cut-and-run like I did with my brothers, I swear. And Sam, I want to be a part of his life. You two could meet me, maybe, in Germany, or?—”

“By rules, Dallas, I mean other women,” she whispered, her temper beginning to spark. The rest sounded wonderful, she wanted all of it, butthis, she had to clarify. “Whatever happens on assignment stays on assignment, isn’t that how you said it goes over there? I can’t do that. I know it’s a long way, it’s stressful, and people get lonely.” She frowned for the first time, her hand tensing in his, her fingers beginning to tremble. “Ifeel like I’m asking you to go steady, like we’re back on those bleachers, but it has to be just us. I won’t share you with anyone except your family and Sam.”

Dallas stared at her, his mind snagging on the impossible idea. She thought—she actually thought he might want someone else.

He shook his head, truly baffled. Was she jealous?