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“I guess it all comes down to I couldn’t think of anything besides another woman that would have kept you away from me. You had always been so attentive, and then suddenly it was as if you loved someone more than me. When I got those pictures, it broke me. I couldn’t bear you telling me that you were in love with another woman.”
His eyes bordered between understanding and ire.
I held onto his hand with all I had. “I’m not making excuses; I’m just telling you why and where my heart was.”
“It never occurred to you that your parents,” he spat out, “were behind it all?”
I shook my head. “It should have, but I never thought they would be so cruel to inflict that kind of pain on me. I know you’ve been hurting, and I take the blame for that, but don’t think for a second that this past year hasn’t brought me to my knees. I’ve shed a river of tears for you, for us. Now, to know it was my own doing, you don’t know what that has done to me. I’m so sorry,” I cried.
He pulled me to him and enveloped me in his strong arms. I sobbed against his chest, not caring that we were out in public or that someone from my congregation might see me. All that I could focus on was that Ryder was holding me. I was where I had longed to be for months. I had come home.
Ryder stroked my hair. “Shelby, I’m sorry for keeping things from you and for being a stubborn bastard. Please don’t cry.” He kissed my head. “You know I can’t take it.”
“Too bad,” I blubbered into his chest.
He pulled me tighter, holding on for dear life. “I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you so much.” The tears kept on coming.
“Your parents deserve to be shot and hung. If I ever see them again, they are going to wish they never lied to me or you.”
I leaned back. “Lied to you?”
He narrowed his eyes, confused. “I came looking for you at your momma’s and daddy’s and they gave me some tired story of how you came to your senses and thought it would be less messy to end things this way. They told me to move on and forget about you.”
I blinked and shook my head. “Wait. They told me you never bothered to come.”
A deep growl rumbled in his chest. “Damn them.” His jaw tightened but he took a deep breath and let it out slowly, his anger dissipating. “I never stopped looking for you.”
“Really?”
“Really.” His warm hand caressed my cheek.
I leaned into it. “How did you find me?”
He flashed me a crooked grin before taking my hand. “Let’s go sit on that park bench. Those heels have to be killing you.”
I grinned down at my nude peep-toe heels. “These? I could mow the lawn in them.”
He gave me a look I had been longing for that said, that’s my girl, before leading us toward the bench. He made sure to help keep me steady as we walked through the grass. One of the things that made me love living in Colorado was that the grass here was so green and soft. Back home it was vine-like and coarse. Ryder helped me sit down before joining me. He put his arm around my shoulder. I rested my head on his chest. For a minute, we both took in the view without saying a word. The park was filled with metal sculptures of children at play. They were whimsical and sweet.
Ryder’s fingers glided down my bare arm. “Your memaw told me where you were.”
My head popped up. “I don’t believe it. She was furious with you.”
He shrugged. “She also drinks too much at bridge club and,” his lip twitched, “I do know how to charm a lady.”
“You seduced my grandmother?”
His face scrunched. “No,” he said, disgusted. “I only persuaded her.”
“She never mentioned talking to you.”
He grinned wickedly. “She said it would be more fun that way.”
“What does that mean, and didn’t she at least yell at you about the pictures?” I hesitated to mention them.
“Like I said, she was tipsy, and I caught her unawares while her driver was helping her into her car, though she mentioned I was a bad, bad boy and if I wasn’t so good looking, she would feed a certain body part to her dog. I wasn’t sure what that was all about, but now it makes more sense.”
I rolled my eyes. Memaw was something else. “What else did she say?”
He swiped my bangs to the side. “She said your momma deserved the vexation and if I was ballsy enough to track her down outside of her bridge club then maybe I deserved a second chance.”
“Is that what you were looking for? A second chance?” My heart begged for him to say yes.
