“Better than anyone hoped,” I agreed. “Marcus doesn’t bend easily. You impressed him.”
Inside the cabin, the fire I’d lit earlier still crackled warmly. We shed our outer layers and collapsed onto the bed together, laughing as adrenaline and relief mixed into giddiness. I rolled her beneath kissing down her neck, then lower, savoring every sigh and shiver I drew from her.
We made love with the kind of joyful urgency that followed victory. No shadows tonight, just us, skin against skin, whispers of love and promises between gasps. When we finally lay spent and tangled, her head on my chest, I stroked her back in slow circles.
“This is just the beginning,” I told her. “There will be harder days. More challenges. But we face them together.”
She pressed a kiss over my heart. “Roots and win
