Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 83244 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83244 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 416(@200wpm)___ 333(@250wpm)___ 277(@300wpm)
Every muscle in my body locked when he appeared in the doorway. I stopped breathing. The color drained from Brayden’s face as his eyes shifted past me over to the front porch, where Ryan was standing with Anslee perched on his hip.
His entire body went still, and just like that, the world seemed to stop on its axis. I didn’t think it could get any worse.
I was wrong.
9
SMITTY
I’d come to Brooke for answers, and I was just starting to get somewhere when the screen door opened. I looked up just as the man from the fair stepped out of the house with the little girl balanced on his hip, and I couldn’t take my eyes off her.
She had these soft brown curls that framed her round face, and her blue eyes were shining bright, just like they’d been at the fair. One tiny fist was curled around the front of his T-shirt, and she was looking around the yard with wide, curious eyes.
The guy took one glance at Brooke before turning his attention to me. “Hey… Everything okay?”
Brooke didn’t answer. She just stood there, looking like her worst nightmare had just come true. His eyes flicked from me to her and back again, measuring the situation. He came down the steps and made his way over to us, stopping beside Brooke.
He didn’t stand in front of her, but close enough that if something went sideways, he’d be there.
The guy was being protective of his woman.
I couldn’t fault him for that. He hadn't done a thing wrong. As far as I knew, his only crime was loving Brooke. The realization got to me more than I wanted to admit.
Seeing the concern in his eyes, Brooke looked up at him and said, “I’m fine. We were just talking.”
“I’m Ryan,” he said, offering his hand to me.
I stared at it a moment, and even though it was hard, I took it. His grip was firm, just like mine. Neither of us was trying to prove anything. We were just trying to figure each other out. I gave him a quick nod. “I’m Brayden. Good to meet ya.”
“Same.” He nodded once before looking back at Brooke. “You sure everything is okay?”
“Yeah, we’re good.” She reached up and gave the little girl a tickle. “I won’t be much longer.”
“Okay.” He glanced back at me as he announced, “I’ll be inside if you need me.”
She kissed the top of the little girl’s head, and my chest tightened so hard I could barely breathe. She made it look so natural, like breathing. A soft smile crossed her face as she watched him turn and head back to the house.
She’d always wanted this.
A family. A home. Someone to love.
I’d always known she’d have it.
I’d just always hoped it would be with me.
I looked back at Ryan and the little girl, watching as they stopped just inside the screen door. He wasn’t listening. He wasn’t even trying to. He was waiting, just like Brooke asked him to.
Because he trusted her, and I envied him for that more than I cared to admit. My attention drifted back to the little girl. She was leaning into Ryan, like it was the most natural thing in the world. Like he was her father. She was watching me and her mother, completely unaware that my whole damn world had just tipped sideways.
“How old is she?”
“Almost nineteen months.”
I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. I’d already done the math. It wasn’t hard. There was no way I could forget the last time we were together. It wasn’t quite three years ago. Not long after, the calls came even less often, and it just seemed harder and harder to work out a weekend to see each other. Soon I stopped asking, and the silence settled in.
It wasn’t just her.
My pride and overall mental state had a part to play in it. I’d always known she deserved better. I was a kid with no real home, no family, and if that wasn’t enough, I was responsible for my own brother’s death.
She always said none of that mattered, that she knew I was a good man, but I knew she was wrong and I’d grown tired of trying to prove otherwise.
So, when the calls stopped coming, I didn’t fight the silence.
I leaned into it.
That’s why I did what I did.
Yeah, I wasn’t innocent in all this. I had my own part to play in it, one that ultimately ended up being the best thing that ever happened to me. That didn’t mean I stopped caring about her. It didn’t mean I stopped loving her. Hell, even after all this time, I still loved her.
It didn’t matter now. The damage was done. She’d moved on. There was no changing that. But I still had to know, “Is she mine?”
“Bray…”
Her eyes filled with tears when I pushed, “Just tell me.”