Her entire body heated. He was no longer the boy with big dreams, the unwavering, sweet friendship in his eyes. He’d grown up in the intervening years, turned into a man, solid, with wide shoulders, thick arms, a lean body, and a different kind of desire in his eyes that lit something deep inside her.

The man she always knew he’d become, deep in the back of her brain. A man she could trust.

Until, of course, he walked out of her life. Again.

“Dodge . . .”

His voice softened, a huskiness to it. “I missed you, Echo. Every day, every hour, every second. And I tried to forget you. Tried to move on, but . . . you’re like Alaska. You’re in my bones, my cells.” He moved his hand behind her neck. “You are still the only woman for me.”

He paused, and she swallowed, and then his mouth captured hers.

Oh. His kiss wasn’t exactly soft, but not bruising either, and for a moment, she just stood there, overwhelmed. He tasted different and yet the same. There was so much certainty in his touch, she could hardly believe this was the same man who’d told her to stay away from him.

Yeah, well, she hadn’t believed it then either.

Maybe she should stop thinking. Stop what-iffing. Stop fearing that she’d somehow break his heart.

And that in the end, he would break hers.

Dodge. She let her body mold to his, relaxing into the sweet safety that was the boy she’d always loved.

He moaned, a tiny rumble of desire, and it ran a thrill through her. She gripped his shirt, then wound her arms around his neck, pulling him down to her.

His arms went around her, the strength of them radiating through her, and she simply held on.

And kissed him back.

Oh. Dodge.

His hands tangled in her hair, and he deepened the kiss, and it lit a fire right down to her core, one that she’d tried to forget.

But how could she ever forget this man and the way he made her feel? She sighed, a sweet sound of surrender, of hope maybe, lighting deep inside.

Around her the night turned soft and cozy And for the first time since she could remember, she didn’t worry about what lay beyond the horizon.

Oh boy.

With that little sound, Echo made everything inside Dodge turn to fireworks and heat.

Echo was softness and home and everything he’d longed for since the day he’d stupidly walked away from her.

Since the day he’d proposed.

He was in big trouble. His heart thundered, and a sweat had broken out across his body, completely lit with the fact that, oh, he’d missed her. Missed the smell of her, the taste of her, the feel of her against him.

Missed her laughter, her smile, the way she took him seriously.