Mike
Istood there, rooted to the spot, the entire town staring at me from their plastic seats. The music had stopped and everyone had gone quiet.
I felt like I was drowning in their collective gaze, the weight of judgment and curiosity pressing down on me until I could barely breathe. Some faces showed shock, others disgust, but a few, thank God, looked sympathetic. Brooks was pushing through the crowd toward me, his expression fierce with protective anger.
“Show’s over, folks,” Dolly announced loudly, her voice cutting through the uncomfortable silence. “Let’s get back to the music, shall we? Who wants to sing next?”
But the damage was already done. I could feel the whispers starting, see the way some people were pulling out their phones. By tomorrow morning, half of Texas would know that Pastor Mike Johnson had been caught in a compromising position with the town’s notorious asshole that he’d been shacking up with for nearly a month.
“Mike.” Brooks reached me, his hand settling on my shoulder. “You okay?”
I nodded automatically, though I wasn’t sure it was true. My mind was racing, calculating the fallout, wondering if I’d justdestroyed everything I’d worked for. But underneath the panic, all I could think about was Cash’s face when Doreen had said those horrible things, when she’d blamed him for everything. And the way he’d looked at me like I was going to abandon him too.
“Where did he go?” I asked, scanning the crowd desperately.
“Probably to his truck,” Rowan said, appearing at Brooks’ side. His face was grim. “That woman... she had no right to say those things.”
“She’s Tyler Blackburn’s mother,” Brooks said quietly. “He and Cash were... caught, back in high school. When it came out, both their families lost their minds. Cash was kicked out by his father and Tyler left town right after graduation and never came back.”
My stomach clenched. No wonder Cash had looked so devastated. This wasn’t just about us being caught. This was about old wounds being ripped open, about a past he’d never fully escaped. The one he was sodesperatelytrying to heal from.
“I have to find him,” I said, already moving toward the parking area.
“Mike, wait.” Brooks caught my arm. “Maybe give him some space. He’s probably?—
“No.” I pulled free, my voice harder than I’d intended. “I’m not letting him run. Not this time.”
I pushed through the lingering crowd, ignoring the stares and whispered comments. My heart was pounding as I reached the makeshift parking lot, my eyes searching frantically for Cash’s familiar truck. But even as I scanned the rows of vehicles, I had a sinking feeling I was too late.
His truck was gone.
I stood there in the empty parking space where his truck had been, feeling like the ground had opened up beneath my feet. He’d run. Just like I’d been afraid he would from the verybeginning. The moment things got difficult, the moment his past caught up with him, he’d chosen flight over fight.
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out with shaking hands, hoping desperately to see Cash’s name on the screen. Instead, I saw Maggy’s name on the screen.
Maggy: I’m so sorry, Mike. Doreen was out of line. Don’t let Cash out of your sights.
I couldn’t help but scoff, all the hope gone from my body. It was too fucking late for that now. Cash was already gone. And judging by the look on his face, he was never coming back.
I stared at my phone for a long moment, Maggy’s text blurring through the tears I was fighting back. The irony wasn’t lost on me. He was already miles away, probably driving as fast as he could toward the county line.
My hands were shaking as I dialed his number, pressing the phone to my ear and listening to it ring. Once, twice, three times. Then straight to voicemail.
“Cash, please,” I said after the beep, my voice cracking despite my efforts to stay calm. “Please don’t do this. Don’t run. We can work through this, whatever it takes. Just... just come back. Please.”
I hung up and immediately called again. Voicemail. Again. Voicemail.
“Fuck,” I whispered, shoving the phone back in my pocket.
“Any luck?” Brooks asked, approaching with Rowan close behind. The concern in both their faces made my chest tighten.
“Gone,” I said, the word tasting like ash in my mouth. “He’s gone, and he’s not answering his phone.”
Brooks ran a hand through his hair, looking older than his years. “I should’ve seen this coming. The moment Doreen opened her mouth, I should’ve gotten between them.”
“This isn’t your fault,” I said quickly. How could he have known? “It’s mine. I should never… God, what was I thinking? In public like that?”
“You were thinking you cared about him,” Rowan said quietly. “And there’s nothing wrong with that. It’s not like the rest of us haven’t done things like that.”
