AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Heath froze. “I’m as confused as you are. I don’t know how Nelson Redfield would have found out about anything I did. It was all between me and my lawyer.”
Ruby rushed to Heath’s side. “Between you and your lawyer? You were still pursuing legal action? I thought you decided not to do that.”
“He’s talkingcriminalcharges, Heath,” Chelsea blurted. “That means a trial. That means members of my family in jail. We could lose everything. And they’re talking about it in the damn newspaper. Our reputations could be completely ruined.”
Nolan placed his hands on his wife’s shoulders. It partly looked like he wanted to calm her down. It partly looked like he needed to hold her back. “Hold on a second. Let’s take a deep breath and talk this through. We don’t need to start worrying about worst-case scenarios right away. A whole lot would need to happen before that. There has to be a way out of this.”
“Just so everyone knows, I instructed my lawyer to drop the whole thing,” Heath said. “All of it. So I don’t see how I’m at fault here.”
“But when, Heath? What was the timing?” Ruby’s mind was racing, running through the chronology of their relationship. That first day they’d met, he’d gotten angry when he understood the timing of the first survey. But by the next day, he’d seemed ready to move on. Although there had been plenty of times he got upset about the Grandin and Lattimore families, he’d backed down every time. Ruby had assumed he was moving on. Movingforward. So that they could do that together.
Morgan strode over from the checkout counter and looked straight at her sister. “I just got off the phone with Vic. Mom and Dad were sent a threatening letter by Heath’s lawyer on December 30. They didn’t tell us because they were trying to keep it quiet until they figured out their next steps.” Morgan turned and delivered a death stare to Heath. “They were waiting to see if you might change your mind.”
“Ididchange my mind,” Heath pleaded. “Why does no one understand that?”
“Hold on a minute,” Nolan interjected and faced Heath. “December 30? You and I and Chelsea and Ruby went to the TCC together the next night. We had you over for dinner a week ago. And all that time, you were being nice to my wife’s face while you were going after her family? What kind of sick person does that? And when in the hell are you going to finally let this go?”
Ruby saw the moment when Heath was deflated by his brother’s words. She could see the conflict buried deep inside him bubbling to the surface. He’d talked a big game about letting go, but he couldn’t. The memories of Ashley and his mother were that strong. His need to get justice for them was so powerful that it made him do things he was now ashamed of.
“Heath Thurston, you just won’t rest until you destroy my family, will you?” Chelsea asked.
“And I suppose it’s perfectly okay that your family destroyed mine,” he snapped back at Chelsea. He then turned to Nolan. “Ourfamily.”
Nolan shook his head. “We have been through this and I’ve been extremely clear about it. If you make me pick a side, I’m picking Chelsea’s. She’s my wife, Heath. She’s my whole life.”
Ruby felt like her heart was being torn in ten different directions. She felt bad for everyone, but she couldn’t ignore the other feeling that wouldn’t go away. Heath wasn’t the man she’d thought he was. All she could do was look back at their time together and realize that every moment she’d thought she was falling in love with him, he wasn’t being truthful. What sort of future could they possibly have together under those circumstances?
“Chelsea and I are going.” Nolan turned to Heath. “Fix this or I will never forgive you. And just so you know, there’s still a good chance I will never forgive you.”
Chelsea didn’t even say a thing. She stormed back to the dressing room, grabbed her purse, kissed Morgan on the cheek, then walked right out of the store with Nolan at her side.
Heath watched as Chelsea and Nolan walked out of the Rancher’s Daughter.What a mess. What an absolute mess.He turned to Ruby, needing her touch. Her reassurance. Her confidence in him. “This is not what I wanted to have happen. This was all an accident. A misunderstanding.”
“Heath, the thing I’m struggling with right now is the timeline. I feel more than a little betrayed. I...I...I feel like you lied to me.”
“Hey, you two.” Morgan’s tone was biting. “You’re going to need to have your lovers’ quarrel somewhere else. I’d like to close early for the day so I can go console my parents, who are now completely beside themselves.”
Heath had felt plenty bad over the course of his life, but this was a new low—getting kicked out of a clothing boutique in the middle of downtown Royal. “Do you need help getting your things?” he asked Ruby.
“No. I got it. I need to change.” She walked off for the fitting room, leaving only Heath and Morgan and the world’s most uncomfortable silence.
“I’m going to fix this,” he said to Morgan.
“Uh-huh. Right.” Her voice dripped with sarcasm.
“Okay. I get it. You have zero confidence in me, but I am going to fix it.”
“Let me put it this way. Your words don’t mean a whole lot right now. Okay?” Morgan jangled her keys impatiently in her hand.
Of course, Heath had no earthly clue how he was going to fix this. He had no connections with Nelson Redfield, and how in the hell did you go about getting criminal charges dropped? Funnily enough, this news would have made him ecstatic six months ago. He would have been dancing in the streets. Now? He felt nothing less than utter devastation. He’d hurt the people he cared about most in this world, including his brother, just as they’d finally gotten back to a good place with their relationship. Heath might never forget the look on his brother’s face when they’d been sitting down to breakfast, and the diner became abuzz with the news story. But even worse than that was the situation with Ruby. She’d used the wordbetrayed. How was he supposed to come back from that?
Ruby emerged from the dressing room, looking dejected. “I’m so sorry, Morgan. I’ll come back to shop later.”
“That sounds great. I look forward to seeing you. But please tell your boyfriend to stay at home next time. He’s no longer welcome in my store.”
Heath felt the anger rise up inside him. He had to rush to Ruby’s defense, even when he knew that it would be far more advantageous if he held his head up and walked right out of the shop. “Morgan, please don’t take it out on Ruby. She hasn’t done a single thing to deserve it. You’re welcome to be as mean as you want to me.”
“I’ll take that under advisement,” Morgan said.
