Page 112 of Taming I Do
“I am.” I let go and turned to scan the departing crowd. I’d been looking for Jasper’s family, but they all seemed to have disappeared. It was best that way. I hadn’t been looking forward to saying good-bye, especially to Abby. This would make it easier.
I caught a ride back to Taylor Grove with one of the volunteers. All the lights in the house were out. The long driveway usually held at least two or three cars, but thankfully, no one had come back yet. I didn’t want to be there when they did.
Jasper had hooked my trailer up for me earlier that day in preparation for my trip home. At the time he’d planned on going with me, saying he wanted to make sure I got back to Dallas safely and that he didn’t want me to have to face Stella alone.
So much for that.
I didn’t even bother to change out of the borrowed clothes. Just got behind the wheel, turned over the ignition, and slowly pulled out of the drive.
Jasper
I glancedaround the circle of people surrounding me. My mom and dad stood to my left. My brothers fanned out on my right. Even Suzy had come to the station and stood next to Abby, who hadn’t stopped crying since I’d exited the sheriff’s office a full five minutes before. I’d been doing my best to explain myself to everyone, with mixed results.
“You’re telling me you’ve been lying to us for the past three years?” Dad’s cheeks always got red when he was pissed off, and now they looked like two bright, ripe apples as he whipped his hat off his head and stomped a few feet away.
“Frank, calm down. You’re going to give yourself a heart attack.” Mom went after him while I tried to hold my ground against the withering gazes of my brothers.
“So, you’re not running the dog-fighting ring.” Trent nodded. “That’s good to know. I didn’t want to believe it, but when I saw you standing there...”
“I’m sorry. I owe all of you a huge apology and I hope you can forgive me.” I shuffled my feet. “All I ever wanted to do was protect you. I figured if you thought Colin was just mad at me, it would be easier than having to tell you he’d gotten himself mixed up in all of this.”
Mom put a hand on my shoulder. “You should have told us the truth.”
I met her gaze, only able to hold it for a moment before looking away. The disappointment in her eyes mixed with motherly love, and I was afraid to see which one was stronger. “I know that now.”
“What’s going to happen to Colin?” Mitchell asked.
I shook my head. “I don’t know.”
“I’m going to find out.” Dad pulled the door open and disappeared inside the building. Mom gave my hand a squeeze, then followed right behind him.
Davis checked his watch. “Fall Festival just wrapped up. Do we need to clean up now or can we take care of it tomorrow?”
I swallowed, hard. I’d let so many people down tonight, especially Delilah. The horror on her face when she’d realized what she’d walked in on. I’d never forget the look of sheer terror in her eyes. If she never wanted to speak to me again, I deserved it.
“I’m going to head that way now. See if I can catch Delilah and try to explain what happened.”
“Good luck, bro.” Trent clapped a hand on my shoulder. “Come on, I’ll give you a ride.”
I shook hands with Davis and Mitchell before pulling Abby into a hug. “I’m sorry, Little Bug. I didn’t mean to mess things up so bad.”
“Remember what I said about Heraclitus?”
“Hera who?” Trent asked.
“Abby’s a budding philosopher.” I tucked her head under my arm and rubbed my knuckles over it. “What’s the latest, wise one?”
She pushed against my side. “The road up and down is one and the same. He said that, too.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Trent asked.
“Jasper knows.” Abby stood there, a girlish grin on her face.
“It means I got myself into this mess, so I ought to be able to find my way out.”
“That works.” Abby skipped over to Davis’s truck. “Can we stop at the Dairy Dell on the way home?”
“Here”—I peeled off a twenty from the bills in my wallet—“get her whatever she wants. My treat.”
