Page 241 of The Reason I Married Him
The door shuts,and I’m left with Ryland and Hattie, who seem just as stunned and confused as I am. Hattie hands me a tissue, and grateful, I take it, wiping my nose and the blood that seems to still be dripping out of it.
They stare at me. I shift uncomfortably, and after a few moments of silence, Ryland says, “Do you have anything you want to fucking say?”
I really fucking do.
Looking Ryland dead in the eyes, I say, “I love your sister. I’m in love with her, and I will do anything to make this right. Anything.”
Hattie takes a step forward. “You . . . you love her?”
“Yes,” I say while wiping my nose. “And I wanted to tell her that, but well, I fucked everything up.”
Ryland studies me for a moment, his eyes like lasers. After a few moments of dreadful silence, he finally says, “Take a seat. I’ll grab you an ice pack.”
Relief floods through me as I take a seat at the dining room table, Hattie following closely. She sits across from me, and so does Ryland as he tosses me the ice pack. Normally, I’d probably skip the ice, but fuck does Ryland have a strong right hook. My face is throbbing.
“Start from the beginning and don’t lie. Whatever you say will be vital to how much or how little we help you,” Ryland says.
“Understood, but I want you to know, I don’t expect your help. I’m the one who messed up, so I’m the one who needs to fix this.”
“I respect that. Now tell me, why did you think it would be smart to blackmail my sister into marrying you?”
I don’t even correct him because if I want this to go right, I will need to take full responsibility for my actions. “My ex, Cadance, broke off our wedding the night before it was supposed to happen. I was nursing my wounds when I was reminded that the family cabin I was supposed to take ownership of would go to my cousin, Wallace, because he was the next in line to get married. He doesn’t care about the cabin and would knock it down. That cabin, well, it means just as much to me as The Almond Store means to you, Hattie. Or the farm means to Aubree. I couldn’t let it get into the wrong hands, so I stupidly came up with a plan. I knew Aubree would want the land, and I thought we could work out a deal.”
“So you two didn’t have contact before the week you first came into town?”
I shake my head. “The only other times I’ve seen or spoken to Aubree was when Clarke and Cassidy were still alive. I surprisedher and offered up the deal. It wasn’t until she ran into Amanda and Matt and their awful comments did she agree to go through with it. I know she did it to save face, and at one point, I tried to back out, but she was set on marrying me. And as we moved around town together, selling the idea of our relationship to everyone around us, I started to feel something for her on a different level. And those feelings grew with every moment I spent with her. Her strength and intelligence, her love for her family, her dedication to Cassidy’s legacy, I fell hard for it all. Before I knew it, I was saying I do to someone I fell hard and quick for. And I was so fucking terrified that I’d lose her, that she wouldn’t feel the same way, that I held back on anything that would scare her away since she was so skittish. Meaning I didn’t tell her about Cadance. I know now how big of a mistake that was.”
“When you got married, did she know about your feelings for her?”
I shake my head. “I told her when we were in the cabin. She confessed her feelings first, and I fell right in line, knowing it would be safe to tell her how I felt. I had plans to tell her about Cadance. I just wanted to find a time when it would work. I realize now that time would have been at the very beginning. But my stubborn ego got in the way, and I couldn’t fathom telling her that I was left the night before my wedding.”
Ryland nods as he sits back in his chair. “When did you tell her to drop out of the deal?”
“Early on,” I say. “And I offered her an out many times. I’d offer her the out now if I knew she’d take it. I’d give her the land, I’d give up my fucking cabin, anything, and I mean anything, to just at least make this right.”
Ryland slowly nods his head. “Good answer.” He continues to study me. “I don’t like what you did, but it seems Aubree was equally involved in the reason she married you. Regarding therest, that seems to be between the two of you, but I will tell you that she doesn’t trust easily, especially men. The fact that she trusted you enough to enter into some marriage deal tells me you’ve made an impression on her. Now it’s up to you if that impression will be lasting.”
“I knew you loved her,” Hattie whispers. When her eyes meet mine, she adds, “And I knew she loved you. I could see it. She was so different. Lighter, happier. Like the weight of the world was no longer resting on her shoulders. Since you’ve gotten here, I’ve seen a shift in her behavior. She’s smiled more. She’s talked more. She’s done things like the burlesque show that she wouldn’t have done before. You’ve made an impact in her life, Wyatt, and I just need to say, if you’re not serious about this, if you’re not serious about her, then please walk away now. Don’t hurt her any more than you already have. I know Cassidy would say the same thing. We want her to love and be happy. I think she could be happy with you, but only if you’re in it for the long haul.”
“I understand,” I say. “And you have my word that I’m serious about this. I want her for the long haul. I want to be the man she trusts and loves. The one she can depend on other than her brother. I want to be the man who deserves her love back.”
Hattie nods. “Then good luck. She’s not going to give in easily.”
“She’s going to put up one hell of a fight. Good luck digging yourself out,” Ryland says, leaning back in his chair. “Also, you owe me at least five nights of babysitting of my choosing. Mainly so I can see how serious you are at being in our lives, especially Mac’s and Aubree’s.”
“Make it ten, then,” I say.
Ryland leans over the table and holds out his hand. “Deal.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
AUBREE
I stare at my reddened eyes in the mirror and shake my head. “What a stupid day,” I mutter.
I’m all cried out. I’m emotionally spent. And all I want to do now after a long shower, some mindless scrolling through social media, and my dinner, which consisted of an apple, is go to bed.
Wyatt hasn’t even bothered returning to the guest house, and for a moment, I was worried that perhaps Ryland forced him away, but then I dropped the thought because I shouldn’t be worried about him. I should be furious, wishing he’d never come back to this guest house, but unfortunately, that’s not how love works.
