Page 89 of A Montana Rodeo Star

Jason reached for her hand. “We get that you like him⁠—”

One look at Brent and there was no holding back. “I love him.”

All three men looked at her with surprise. Maybe it was too soon. Maybe she should have waited until she could be alone with Brent to tell him her feelings. If being at the wedding had done anything for her, it had been to force her to acknowledge one fundamental truth.

She’d fallen for Brent a long time ago.

He saw her in ways no one else could. He was passionate about his dreams. He wanted others to chase theirs. The light he carried with him on a daily basis was impossible to ignore. Like a moth to the flame, she’d been entranced by him.

“I love him,” Faith said more firmly.

Tate backed away and rubbed at his neck. “Faith, you can’t⁠—”

“Don’t tell me what I can and can’t feel. Just because he went through something no one should ever have to deal with… and he went about it a little wrong…” She peeked at Brent, not surprised to see the embarrassment crawl up his neck. “… doesn’t mean he isn’t deserving of my love. And nothing you can do,” she poked him in the chest, “will convince me otherwise. Besides, up until a couple weeks ago, you were totally team-Brent.”

Her brothers exchanged worried glances.

“Just give us a minute, okay? If he does something wrong, I’ll yell for you and the two of you can go all big brother on him with my blessing.”

The corner of Jason’s mouth twitched. He was the first to nod. Then the two of them headed for the barn with Tate calling over his shoulder, “We’ll be just over here.”

Faith turned to face Brent, finding a wry smile on his lips.

“So… you love me, huh?”

She crossed her arms. “Shut up. You’re the one who came to visit me. I assume that’s so we can hash out what’s been happening?”

The amusement fled his features and he dipped his head. “Yeah,” Brent whispered, “I think that’s a good idea.”

Jutting her chin toward the porch, Faith murmured, “Shall we?”

They took their seats, and she retrieved her book to place it in her lap. Nerves attacked from all angles. She’d told him she loved him and he hadn’t run off. That was a good sign, right?

Brent leaned back in his chair and rubbed the bridge of his nose between his finger and thumb. Then he heaved a heavy sigh. “Does it sound bad if I say that I’m a mess?”

She bit back a smile. “I think we’re all a little messy.”

“Isn’t that the truth,” he muttered. Then he turned his head toward her and studied her until she was about to burst. Just when she didn’t think she could take his scrutiny any longer, he asked, “Did you mean what you said?”

Her throat dried. “About…”

“Loving me.”

Slowly, she nodded, not trusting her voice.

A muscle in his jaw feathered and he peered out at his truck in the driveway.

“Before you say anything, I want you to know that I’m okay if you wanted to try something long distance. And after I’m done with school, maybe I could go with⁠—”

His head snapped toward her. “No.”

Her heart sank.

“As much as I would love for you to make that kind of sacrifice for me, I’m done letting people do that.”

“Brent—” she started, exasperated.

“That came out wrong,” he huffed. “It’s just…” He stared up at the sky then sighed. “My dad talked to me last night. It’s a long story, but I see it now. The things we do for people because we love them. The sacrifices we make without expectations for them to be returned. I’d gotten tired of being the golden child for so long and I thought the way to fix how I was feeling was to do something for me.” His expression hardened. “I was wrong, Faith. It wasn’t the rodeo that was missing from my life.”