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No time like the present. “Great, everyone’s here, so I can say this once and get it over with.” I dug deep for the part of me that could shut off her emotions with a snap, but I couldn’t find her. So when I spoke, I did it with trembling fingers and a timid, quivery voice. “I loved you, Hunter, since we were kids. We used to be friends, and when everything changed, I missed you.”
“I missed you, too.” He didn’t even hesitate, but his words were cautious.
“I just want you to know that I really cared about you. I liked all of you guys. My father threatened me if I didn’t marry a Ryder brother.”
“What the fuck?” Austin barked.
I ignored my brother’s outburst. “Who I was, the things I did? All of that was to ensure you’d never marry someone like me. I didn’t want any of you to get hurt or lose your land because of my father. And just so y’all know, some of the rumors were true, but most weren’t. I didn’t deny any of it, and I played into it because I wanted the reputation so none of you would ever think about dating me.”
“Fuck,” Hunter spat.
“I pursued you because I felt the most comfortable with you, and it appeased my father and, like you guessed, my mother.”
“I can’t believe this shit,” Austin muttered.
I had a hard time even bringing her into this conversation. She’d ignored me practically my entire life, but when she found out I was sleeping with Hunter, she suddenly cared. And even though I knew that, I still liked having her around. I was desperate for her attention, and I wanted to keep it as long as I could. So that meant stringing Hunter along.
I moistened my lips and shrugged at Hunter. “I think deep down you knew that wasn’t me so you didn’t treat me like every other man did. It was wrong, and I never should have let our relationship go on as long as it did because that was when my mom started telling people we were getting married. I needed to end it, so I did the unthinkable.” My eyes darted to Maverick before going back to Hunter. “I needed you to hate me so you’d do exactly what you did.”
“Treat you like shit,” he grumbled.
I nodded and shuffled my feet. “I’m coming to terms with some things, and my actions have been eating away at me for years. I don’t expect you, or any of you, to forgive me.” I sucked in a breath and slowly released it. “I know it’s hard to believe, but my hope is that y’all understand that person wasn’t me.”
“No, that was an act to keep people away from you so they wouldn’t be on Dad’s radar,” Austin added. “Why didn’t you tell me any of this, and how the fuck didn’t I see it?”
“Because I didn’t want you to.”
“What did he do, Paris?” Beau asked, stepping forward, his policeman voice loud and authoritative.
I smiled ruefully. “It doesn’t matter.”
Hunter pushed his way through and grabbed my arms. My head collided with his chest when he pulled me against him. “I knew it,” he said to the top of my head. “I knew the little girl who used to chase me around with frogs was still in there.”
I hiccuped and couldn’t hold back a laugh, but a bubble of emotion clogged my throat and another piece of my soul was put back into place. I wrapped my arms around him and just held on, not because I still loved him, but for all we’d lost. For the little kids whose friendship never should have suffered at the hand of a man whose relationships are nothing but a transaction.
“What the fuck?” I pulled back at the sound of Scotty’s voice, and when I saw him storming up the steps, I gasped at the fury I could feel from the porch. “Get your fucking hands off her.”
“It’s not what it looks like.” Austin stepped in front of him, blocking his trajectory.
“It looks like my woman is in the arms of another man.”
Hunter made a hum of approval. “I’m glad those rumors are true.”
Scotty emitted an animalistic growl and shoved past Austin. Beau moved, and before anything bad could happen, I put my hands on Scotty’s chest and held him back. “Stop,” I pleaded. “Take a breath, remember last week, and think about why I might be here.”
When he looked into my eyes, his body lost some of the tension, and he tucked me into his side and savagely asked. “What rumors?”
“That Paris finally found herself a good man.”
“Really?” I asked in disbelief.
“No way you’re shocked there’s talk in Warrenville,” Hunter joked. “Everyone’s real happy y’all are together. The women all say they’re not surprised Paris ended up with a hottie.” He smirked.
Scotty made a funny noise, and when I looked at him, I could tell he was embarrassed. I risked a glance around and felt relief at the shift in energy from when I first got here. “You are hot,” I stated loudly, and Scotty squeezed my hip. There were a few chuckles, including one from Mack.
His eyes caught mine. “You said you don’t expect it, and frankly, I don’t think it’s necessary, but I’ll give it to you anyway because I think you need to hear it. I speak for all of us when I say you’re forgiven.” Thank God Scotty was holding me because my knees got weak. Mack stepped forward and put his hand on my shoulder. “I want you to know that I don’t, nor does anybody, hold you accountable for your father’s actions.”
Yeah, I couldn’t respond to that due to the knot of humility clogging my throat, so I just smiled.
