Page 120 of Falling for the Grinchy Bad Boy

“What’s the worst that could happen?” I asked, though I already knew the answer.

“You get rejected in front of the whole town again,” Matt replied with brutal honesty. “But you survived it once. If Joy is worth having—and from everything you’ve told me, she is—then she’s worth having to survive it again.”

He was right. The humiliation of being left at the altar had nearly destroyed me, but I’d come through it. I’d rebuilt my life, learned to trust again, found the courage to open my heart to someone new. If loving Joy meant risking that kind of public rejection again, then so be it.

“Besides,” Matt added with a grin, “this time you’re not the one taking the risk. You’re not asking her to marry you or making some grand romantic gesture that could blow up in your face. You’re just telling her how you feel and letting her decide what she wants to do about it.”

The distinction was important. With Lynn, I’d built up this elaborate fantasy of what our life together would be like, proposed marriage based on what I thought we should want rather than what we actually had together. With Joy, I just wanted to be honest about my feelings and see if she felt the same way.

“I need to go see her,” I said, suddenly feeling like every minute of delay was a mistake. “I don’t want to wait. I can’t. I have to talk to her.”

“No,” Matt said firmly. “You need to respect the space she asked for. But on Sunday night, when the festival ends and she’s had time to think things through? That’s when you make your move.”

I groaned. I didn’t want to wait. I was sick of wondering and worrying and hoping that Joy would give us a chance to figure this out together.

“What if she’s already decided to leave town?” I asked, voicing the fear that had been eating at me since last night.

I knew she had one foot out the door already.

“Then you convince her to stay,” Matt replied simply. “You remind her of all the reasons Calton Hill is home and all the reasons you’re worth taking a chance on.”

That was a lot easier said than done, but I had nothing left to lose. And everything to gain.