Page 46 of Wild Rivals

For reasons I can’t explain, I wasn’t expecting that. I know that Maddie and Chloe are friends, like good friends, maybe even best friends, but I didn’t think Maddie would go and share something so intimate with the woman who’s engaged to my brother of all people. Especially as she was so adamant that nobody finds out.

“Don’t worry, I promised her that I wouldn’t tell anyone,” Chloe reassures, but it doesn’t have the desired effect.

I’m not worried that Chloe knows. I’m trying to figure out what the hell it means that Maddie told her.

“Tell anyone what?” Kade asks as he ambles up the front porch steps.

“Oh, Wyatt was just trying to get information out of me about the gallery opening,” Chloe replies, surprising me with how quickly she can think on her feet.

Kade bends to kiss her, before straightening and saying, “He was?”

I shove my hands in my pockets and cross my ankles as I lean against the railing before saying, “Yeah, just wanted to know if she’s got any hot friends coming.”

Kade chuckles and shakes his head. “Typical. And don’t go messing with any of Chloe’s friends. They’re too good for you.”

I give him a half-hearted chuckle before he holds his hand out to Chloe and they say goodbye. They leave me behind, stuck on one thing: Maddie Hart told someone. And I don’t know what the hell that means.

28

WYATT

The sound of papers being shuffled fills the quiet as I flip the pages of the contract in front of me. I’m in the boardroom at the office with my brothers, Reed, Tanner, and our attorney, Maxwell—Max—East to review the Evergreen contract. If everything checks out, we can sign and exchange the land in sixty days.

These sorts of things move slowly because of the requirements we have to fulfill before any sale can be finalized in this state. Today’s meeting is just one of many that we’ll have until we sign on the dotted line.

I shift in my seat, ignoring the heavy feeling in my body. It’s been lingering for the past few days, any time I think about the land and Maddie in the same breath. Like it’s telling me this is a mistake.

Hell, I know it is.

There’s no maybe about it. I knew it the second I decided to undercut her, but I powered through, convincing myself that it was the right thing to do. But now, I can’t help but think that couldn’t be further from the truth. I only went behind her back to Jim because I made this personal to me. Getting one over on the Harts for everything they’ve done—my accident and Autumn’s broken heart—felt more important.

The air conditioner kicks in and the tightness in my chest squeezes a little harder. I don’t know how to make this better or if that’s even possible at this point.

“The title is clear,” Max says, his voice even as he turns a page. “Everything is standard contract language, which I’m not worried about.”

Reed shuffles his papers, the sound too loud in the quiet room and grating on my senses. “Good. I’ll put the deposit through on Monday and then it’s just a matter of signing the contract and closing.”

Knowing it’s coming and hearing it out loud are two very different things. I pinch the bridge of my nose, trying to ease the headache that’s been there all morning.

Once the contract is signed, that land becomes ours and I’ll have to live with what I did for the rest of my life. Sure, Maddie doesn’t seem broken up about it now, but it’s eating me up inside and she was furious when she came to my place when she found out.

Tanner nods. “The surveyors can be out as early as Tuesday, and they’ve confirmed they can get the boundary markers in place by the end of the week.”

The boulder sitting on my chest presses in even more until it feels like it might crush me. It’s getting harder to breathe and I can feel my panic clawing at the column of my throat.

Kade shifts back in his chair and asks, “Has there been any pushback?”

They’re all oblivious to my spiral.

Max shakes his head, setting his pen down on the stack of paper in front of him. “No. We’ve not heard a peep of protest from the county, or anyone else for that matter. It should be a smooth transfer given the location of the plot and that it won’t impact on anyone directly.”

Except for Maddie.

Who could have won the land fair and square if it wasn’t for me.

That thought is what breaks me.

I stand, my chair rolling back with the force and knocking into the wall behind me. “If you’ll excuse me.” I hold up my water glass, ignoring the confused looks from Grayson and Kade as they both look at the still full water jug in front of me.