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"Isn't she a beauty," he said before he realized he was alone. He was so used to Kate being by his side that he'd spoken out loud. In just a short period of time, she'd become an intrinsic part of his life.
Gently he removed the hook and turned the fish loose. The current pushed against his legs as he moved through the river toward the shore. He leaned his rod against the HUMMER and unlocked the back. Just because Kate wasn't around didn't mean he had to be alone. Not like before. Just because he didn't have Kate didn't mean he couldn't have a woman in his life.
He shrugged out of his vest, but he couldn't shrug away the loneliness that settled on his shoulders. Problem was that he couldn't see himself with anyone but Kate. And that was a big problem, because she wanted more than he could give her. He'd made a lousy husband to Louisa and they'd made each other miserable.
Rob stepped out of the waders and shoved all his gear in the back of the HUMMER. He loved Kate. The kind of love that tied him up in knots. He'd married Louisa. Had had a baby with her, but
he'd never loved her like that.
On the drive home, Rob took a hard look at his life. He was a guy who learned from his mistakes. But maybe he hadn't learned from his mistakes so much as he'd just avoided living his life. Then he'd met Kate, with her beautiful face and smart mouth, and she'd made him want more.
Kate wanted more too. She wanted to grow old with someone, but was that what Rob wanted? It wasn't a hard question to answer. He wanted Kate. He wanted to take her hand without thought, just because it was there to take. He wanted to press his mouth to her ear and say something that would make her laugh. He wanted to slide his hand down Kate's back to the curve of her behind. A familiar touch between two people who knew each other intimately.
He wanted to watch her try to outfish him, all the while knowing she was wearing a lace thong. He wanted her to be his friend and lover, and he wanted it for the rest of his life.
He took a left and headed for the M &S, but Kate wasn't baking bread for the next day. One of the Aberdeen twins told him that she'd mentioned something about the Mountain Momma Crafters.
He wouldn't be surprised if she was planning to force-feed them jalapeno jelly. He drove to the grange, and his heart pounded as he moved up the steps. Even before he opened the door, he could hear the voices of dozens of women. He paused with his hand on the door, manned up, and slipped into the grange. His gaze landed on Mrs. Fernwood, who stood between two long tables. She had a piece of paper in her hand.
"Fold the left side of your triangle in half," she said.
The door closed with a loud bang, and heads swivelled to look at him. He only had interest in the redhead at the end of the furthest table. She looked up, her gaze wary as he moved toward her.
"Hello, Rob," Regina called out. "Have you come to make an origami cicada?"
He'd rather get puck shot than make a damn origami cicada. With dozens of pairs of eyes staring holes in him, he walked across the grange until he stood before Kate. "I need to talk to you."
"Now?"
"Yes." When she only scowled at him, he added, "Don't make me throw you over my shoulder."
Iona Osborn heard him and started to giggle.
Kate set down her folded paper and stood. "I'll be right back," she told the group. He took her soft hand and led her back outside.
As soon as the door shut behind them, she pulled her hand from his. "Has something happened to Grace and my grandfather?"
The setting sun washed the wilderness area in shadows and brushed silver light across her pale cheeks. They stood on the steps of the grange, and he'd bet that if he opened the door, twenty old ladies would come spilling out.
"No." He looked at her, the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life loving. "It's not about that."
Her nose wrinkled. "You smell like fish."
"I know. I just caught a sixteen-inch beauty. You would have loved it."
"Is that what you came to tell me?"
"No, but while I was fishing, I realized how much I've missed you and that my life is shit without you."
"Rob, I don't-"
"You're right," he interrupted before he lost his nerve. "You deserve more. You deserve someone who loves you enough."
Pain clouded her eyes and she looked away. He placed his hand on the side of her face and brought her gaze back to his. "I love you, Kate. I don't just think I might love you. I've never loved a woman more than I love you. I love your tenacity. I love that other men think you're a ballbuster and that I alone know the truth. I love that you single-handedly want to change the eating habits of Gospel. I love that you know what you're worth. I used to think that if something went wrong in my life, I'd just solve the problem by never making the same mistake twice. But that didn't solve anything. It just made my life lonely as hell. Then you came along and let the sunlight back into my life. And I don't ever want to go back to the way things were before you propositioned me that night in Sun Valley. I love you and I want to be with you forever. I want you to be my friend and lover. Not for today or tomorrow.Not for a year or five years from now." He wrapped his arms around her waist and lowered his mouth to her ear. "Kate, be my wife. My lover. My forever."
After a pause that seemed like a lifetime, she said, "You're doing it again."
"What?" He pulled back and looked into her face. Tears rested on her bottom lashes, and his heart beat heavy in his chest while he waited for her to speak again.
