Free Dakota Born by Debbie Macomber

such undiluted joy, but she couldn’t help herself.
    â€œWelcome home,” he said at last.
    â€œOh, Monte.” She covered her mouth with one hand, hardly able to believe he’d come.
    Before another moment passed, she was in his arms. “I’ve been lost without you,” he whispered between kisses. “Never again,” he insisted, clasping her by the shoulders and gazing intensely into her eyes.
    The roses were clutched in Lindsay’s arms, the thorns biting into her skin, but she barely felt the pain. “Who told you I was home?” she asked breathlessly, once they broke apart.
    â€œNo one. I overheard your uncle say you’d be back sometime today.”
    Not knowing how to react, Lindsay stared down at the flowers. She loved him, she’d missed him—but she wasn’t ready for a confrontation. Especially now, with her heart so hungry for the sight of him. Again and again she tried to remind herself that they’d covered this ground before. Nothing was going to change. And as she acknowledged this, her joy at seeing him began to dissolve.
    â€œI know you said you wanted to break things off, but I’m hoping you’ve come to your senses. Tell me you have,” he pleaded. When she didn’t immediately respond, Monte answered for her. “Your kisses say you’ve been missing me,” he whispered.
    â€œI did miss you.” She couldn’t lie, but the truth was more than she wanted to confess. In an effort to diminish the growing intimacy, she carried the roses into the kitchen.
    â€œI’ve done nothing but think about you,” Monte told her.
    Lindsay brought out the stepladder to reach for the vase stored above the refrigerator. She’d done a lot of thinking, too. But during her trip, on the road with Maddy, everything had seemed much clearer than it did now.
    Monte leaned against the counter, gazing steadily at her. “You’ve had two weeks. Surely you realize we belong together.”
    Lindsay set down the vase. It seemed ridiculous that they should be having the most important—and perhaps the final—discussion of their relationship while standing in the middle of her tiny kitchen. There was so much she’d wanted to tell him, about her trip and her visit to Buffalo Valley. She yearned to share the things she’d learned, the places she’d seen—the Badlands, Yellowstone Park, Mount Rushmore. He was her friend, too, and that aspect of their relationship was as difficult to relinquish as the rest.
    â€œYou’ve come to your senses, haven’t you?”
    â€œYes, I suppose I have.” She sounded so…weak, so unsure. She was weak, but her resolve was growing stronger. She refused to let him talk her out of the very things that were most important to her.
    Monte sighed. “Thank heaven for that.”
    It took him a moment to realize she was still standing on the other side of the room. “Come here, sweetheart,” he murmured. “Let me show you how much I’ve missed you.”
    â€œI don’t think you understand.” Her voice was emotionless.
    â€œYou said you’d come to your senses.”
    â€œI have—and it’s over, Monte. Unless you’ve changed your mind about marriage and a family. And I don’t think you have.”
    He stared at her as if he didn’t believe her. “You don’t mean that,” he said, shaking his head impatiently.
    â€œI do mean it.”
    â€œI’ve heard that before, Lindsay, and it’s foolishness. We belong together, we always have. You know it, and I do, too. We’re good together.”
    â€œThat’s true, Monte, but I want more. I want a husband and children. Is that so difficult to understand?”
    His mouth thinned. “For the love of God, does it always have to go back to what you want?”
    â€œIn this case, yes. It’s my life.”
    He pounded his fist against the