Susan Mallery - Straight From The Hip

“And smug is a goal?”

Izzy grinned. “Sometimes.” Since meeting with Garth, she’d known this was the only way to win. She’d never been so sure of anything. “I’m going to talk to Lexi and Skye later.”

“I can’t wait to see that explosion.”

“They’re going to love my idea.”

“Uh-huh. Are you on drugs?”

“I’m right and eventually you’re going to have to admit it. That’s enough of a high for me.”

There was a knock on the door. She stood to answer it.

“Besides,” she continued as she reached for the doorknob and turned it, “what’s the worst that could happen?”

She turned to face the visitor and nearly fainted when she saw Nick.

It had been over two weeks since she’d left his ranch. Two weeks of feeling as if the best part of her had died. She ached for him, had trouble sleeping and had known she would bear the scars of his betrayal forever.

Still, she couldn’t help wanting to touch him now, to reassure herself that he was real. She saw the dark circles under his eyes, the drawn hollows in his cheeks. She wanted to hold him and ask if he was okay. She wanted to kiss him and have him kiss her back. She wanted to hear the sound of his voice.

“Should I get my gun?” Dana asked.

“You women are quick with the weapons,” Nick said, staring at Izzy. “Shoot me if you want, I’m not going anywhere.”

Izzy stepped back to let him in the condo. “Have it handy. I may need it later.”

“Sure.” Dana backed out of the room. “I’ll be close by. Yell if you need anything.”

Seconds later, Izzy heard the bedroom door close.

Nick continued to study her. “You look good.”

“You look like shit.”

“That’s how I feel.”

“Good. What do you want?”

He gave her a faint smile. “To tell you how much I love you, Izzy. I probably have from the first moment we met.”

“You kidnapped me.”

“I’m a helluva guy.”

She turned away and walked to the window. She desperately wanted to know his words were true, but how could she trust him? She folded her arms across her chest and told herself to keep breathing. That the pain in her stomach would eventually go away. That hope was for someone else, not her.

He came up behind her, but didn’t touch her, which was good. If he did, she would probably shatter.

“You changed everything,” he said. “I can’t stop thinking about you. Please, give me a chance to prove myself to you.”

“You have Stockholm Syndrome,” she said, closing her eyes tight. “That’s all this is.”

“That’s when the prisoner falls for the person holding him hostage.”

“Okay. You have something else then. What you’re feeling isn’t real and even if it is, I don’t care. You lied to me.”

“I know. I kept my relationship with Garth a secret. I was stupid and wrong and, worse, I hurt you. I’m sorry, Izzy. God knows you deserve better than I gave you and you deserve better than me. I live with guilt every day. I can never make the past right. You should be with someone who isn’t so damn scarred.”

She spun to face him. “I never minded the scars.”

“I meant the ones on the inside.” His green eyes burned with a fire she’d never seen before. “But I can’t help it. You’re the one. I never thought I’d love someone. I never thought I deserved it. But here we are. I know I screwed up. I know I need to prove myself and I want to. Just give me the chance. Please. I love you.”

He reached up his hand as if he was going to touch her, then dropped it to his side. For the first time since she’d known him, he looked unsure.

She thought about all the rejections in her life. How neither of her parents ever cared about her. How she hid behind crazy adventures. Facing death was a whole lot easier than facing the fact that she had no one of her own.

She, too, had never thought she would fall in love. Be willing to risk it all. Nick was everything she wanted, everything she needed. Not perfect…just perfect for her.

“I’ve decided to save Garth,” she said. “It’s the only way to resolve whatever issues he has. It won’t be easy.”

Nick blinked. “Save Garth, as in…”

“Drown him in love. Pull him into the family. Comfort his bruised and tattered heart.”

“Garth Duncan?”

“He’s a person, too.”

“Don’t you hate him?”

“Not anymore.” She tilted her head. “He talked to me the other day. Said I shouldn’t give up on you.”

Nick looked confused. “Garth?”

“You keep saying his name as if there are three different men we could be talking about. So are you going to help me save him?”

“Uh, sure. If that’s what you want.”

“Good. We have to convince Dana first. She won’t be easy. Then Lexi. Skye’s all mushy inside, so I think she’ll get on board right away. We need a plan and that’s not my strong suit. Maybe we could ask Aaron to help.”

He grabbed her upper arms. “Izzy, while I appreciate you wanting to save Garth, that’s not what I came here to talk about.”

She smiled. “I know.”

“I love you.”

“You keep saying that, but don’t people in love kiss? Or plan for the future? There’s a lot of talk here, but not a lot of action. I have to tell you, it’s fairly disappointing.”

She had more to say but was cut off when he leaned in and kissed her.

She welcomed his mouth on hers, wrapped her arms around him and melted into his body. He pulled her even closer, holding her as if he would never let her go. They kissed until she thought she might drown from the joy of it all.

After several intense minutes, he pulled back. “Isadora Titan, will you marry me?”

She grinned. “Maybe.”

He laughed, bent down and pressed his shoulder against her midsection, then straightened, lifting her off her feet.

She shrieked. “What are you doing?”

“Kidnapping you. I’m going to keep you at my ranch until you come to your senses and say yes. It worked before.”

All the blood rushed to her head, but she didn’t struggle too hard. A door opened and she saw the lower half of Dana enter the room.

“Do I want to know what’s going on?” her friend asked, sounding both amused and appalled. “Is this what you do for fun?”

“Sometimes,” Izzy said. “He’s kidnapping me because I didn’t accept his proposal.”

“Should I be packing up your things?”

“That would be nice.”

“You going to say yes?” Dana asked.

“Eventually, but he’s going to have to work for it.”

“That’s my girl.”

Suddenly she was on her feet again. The room spun as her blood rushed elsewhere. Nick held her, his expression fierce.

“You’re going to say yes?”

Love filled her. The hot, bright emotion gave her strength and healed the last few cracks in her heart. “I love you. What else would I say?”

They reached for each other.

“Take it outside, children,” Dana said. “I just got the sofa cleaned.”

Izzy giggled. “She’s so romantic. We have to find her someone.”

“Not in this lifetime,” Dana grumbled. “I mean it, Nick. Don’t listen to her.”

Izzy led him outside. Dana closed the door behind them. Izzy stared into his green eyes and knew she’d found home at last.

“Thank you,” he said. “For giving me another chance. I love you, Izzy.”

“I love you more.”

He touched her cheek. “Something for us to argue about for the next fifty years.”

“As long as you’re clear on the fact that I’ll be the one who wins.”

He kissed her. “We’re both going to win.”

“True,” she whispered against his lips. Which made it a very good day.

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