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I’ve turned the situation around and around in my head. I’ve considered different ideas, but I get the same answer every single time. My mother has no heart, and I will never let her hate touch Ryder and his family.
A family who welcomed me with open arms. The Kincaids showed me what it means to be a part of a family. To know without a shadow of a doubt that those people have your back always. It’s a gift that’s priceless to me. I’ll do whatever I have to do, marry whoever they chose to protect that. To protect them.
I’ll never love another the way I love Ryder Kincaid. The last couple of days have been a dream come true. I missed him more than I can express, and the red glaring numbers on the clock remind me that in a few short hours, I have to walk away from him again. I have to leave the man I love, the one who owns me heart and soul.
I have to save them from her.
This time, however, when I walk away, I’m not hiding the reason why. I know my Ryder, and he not only deserved the truth, but he wouldn’t stop trying to get through to me. He would fight for us, just as he has the past two years. He never wavered.
He loves me.
I feel that love in every fiber of my being.
Tears fill my eyes, and not for the first time since he knocked on my door on Saturday evening. My chest is tight, and the pain of knowing this is it for us grips my heart like a vise. A sob breaks free, and I cover my mouth, trying to hold it in.
“Jordyn?”
I swallow the pain presenting as a lump in the back of my throat. “Go back to sleep,” I whisper, but there’s no hiding the crack in my voice.
“Come here, sweets.” He rolls me toward him and pulls me into his chest. He doesn’t try to tell me it’s going to be okay, because he can’t promise that. I know he wants to, but we’ve talked enough since my confession that he understands my mother is not who she presents to the world.
My father, well, he lets her do her thing. My parents are criminals. How they got away with what happened to my brother is beyond me. I’d love nothing more than for justice to be served for his death, but I have no proof. I was a little girl listening in on a conversation. Unless we find something concrete, it’s my word against theirs.
My father is even more detached than my mother is. I don’t ever remember getting a hug from either of them, and the last person to tell me that they loved me was my big brother a few days before we lost him.
Until Ryder.
Suddenly, it’s important to me for him to understand that love will never fade. “There will never be anyone else for me, Ryder. I might m-marry because they demand it, but I’ll never love him. My heart will forever be yours.”
“I don’t know how, but we will figure this out. I need to talk to my brothers. We’ll figure out a way. Even if you and I have to leave. If that’s what it comes to, then so be it.”
“No. I won’t let you leave your family. They need you.”
“I need you in my life, Jordyn. You’re a part of me.” He kisses the palm of my hand and presses it against his chest, over his heart.
“I hate her.” My voice breaks with my tears. “I hate them both.”
“I need you to stay strong for me. We will figure out a way.”
“I don’t see how.”
“It will work out.”
He sounds so confident. “Promise me you will remember that I’ll only ever love you.”
“I love you too, baby.”
“I’ll never forget this time with you. I’m so sorry for leaving the way that I did. I never wanted to hurt you, but I was scared, and I didn’t know what to do. I know that I put you through hell. From the deepest part of my soul, I’ll never forgive myself for putting you through that.”
“I need you to stay present, baby. You were in an impossible situation. I understand.”
“How can you be so forgiving?” I don’t deserve him. This just further solidifies that. My family should never touch the goodness that is Ryder Kincaid and his family.
“I can see your pain, Jordyn. I can feel it rolling off you in waves. I see it in your eyes. The woman I love is here in my arms. She didn’t walk away to hurt me. You were protecting me, and I love you even more knowing what you’re willing to sacrifice for me and my family, but, sweets, I’m not going to let you. We will figure this out. I won’t live without you.”
