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“But… you.”
“Stay, Savannah, juststayaway from me… Please.” His eyes lock with mine and they plead so desperately that my insides feel as if they’re being twisted.
“Tell me what happened. You're hiding something from me, Cole. I can tell.”
“I need to be alone.” He remains focused and stern.
“I miss you.” I reach up to touch his face and when he closes his eyes and holds his breath, I know he’s feeling the same, which makes all this so much harder to understand.
“Whatever it is, Cole, we can figure it out.”
“No.” He quickly snaps out of his trance and pushes my hand away. “Forget about me. Forget about whatever it is you think we had, and move on.” He marches away from me, into the stable, and all I can do is watch through tears as he rides out of the yard on Rebel’s back.
My phone vibrates in my pocket and as I start making my way back toward the house, I quickly dry my tears before I read the text that’s come through.
I’m sorry. What I did today was selfish. I just needed to know you were okay. I have more to tell you. Something your parents wouldn’t want you to find out. Call me.
Daniel
I stare at the message and wonder what it could be. I’ve been convinced that Daniel is here as part of my parents' attempt to get me back to L.A. He’s the kind of guy a girl’s folks would want her to bring home. He works for my Father, they play golf together at weekends and all this seems out of character. I’m not entirely convinced I can trust him.
Diner 10am
Curiosity gets the better of me and I fire back a response before heading back inside the house to face the embarrassment of what just happened.
“You okay? That looked kinda rough.” Leia’s little sister Katrina is the first person I come face to face with.
“It was, but I’ll be fine,” I assure her, unable to get Dan’s message and what it could mean out of my head. It isn’t until I notice the tissue in Karina’s hand that I realize how self-absorbed I’m being.
“Jeez, I’m sorry, Karina, today must be tough for you. You and Dalton were dating, right?” I feel awful.
“Not really, we went out together a few times but nothing actually happened. We didn’t even get to first base. We were both much better off as friends.” Karina smiles sadly, and I don’t miss the way her eyes glance across the room at Zayne. I’ll admit to finding the guy cute. The way his jet black, slightly too long hair falls over his dark eyes gives him an attractive kind of edge, and the curl in it seems like a vast contrast to his sharp features. You can tell there’s something a little sinister about him, and I can’t judge a girl for being drawn to that. “I guess I’m feeling kinda of guilty. It was wrong of me to let Dalton think we could have been more.” She hangs her head.
“Dalton was everyone’s friend, and if I learned one thing about him in the short time I knew him, it was that he really valued friendship.” I smile at her because this girl’s had a tough year, she lost her dad a few months ago and although Leia is convinced Karina had her doubts about him, I know she still would have loved him. I may not be happy with my own father right now, but it hasn’t changed the way I feel about him.
“You're right about that. Dalton was real special.” She smiles to herself fondly.
“We’ve shown our respects, we’re leaving.” Verronica Walker has a sour look on her face as she marches toward us and snatches at her daughter's hand as if she’s a child.
“Look at your sister. No shame.” She shakes her head judgingly as her eyes look toward Leia in disgust. “Standing beside that rodeo has-been, doing nothing to hide the condition she’s in.” Veronica tuts.
“And why should she? Leia and Wade have done nothing wrong.” I decide that I’ve held my tongue around this woman far too many times to let her get away with this.
“They are adulterers.” Veronica’s voice becomes a little louder. Loud enough for everyone to hear, and she seems to embrace the attention she’s attracted. “And I don’t know how this town could vote for a man who condones that kind of behavior in his home.” Her eyes shift toward Garrett as if she’s fully aware of what she’s doing. Garrett hands off the child he’s holding to a surprised looking Sawyer and calmly steps closer to her.
“The town has a choice, Veronica. They can choose between me, and a man who condones domestic abuse.” He stands in front of her folding his arms and narrowing his eyes as he waits for her response. I smirk to myself when I watch the woman’s lips move in an attempt to form words, yet nothing comes out.
“My brother and your daughter are very happy together, isn’t that everything a parent wants for their child?” He frowns at her suspiciously.
“What I want is a little respect and some decorum.” Veronica gathers her strength and stands a few inches taller.
“See yaself out, Veronica.” Garrett turns his back on her, lifting Jack back from Sawyer before continuing his conversation with Graham and Fiona who own the guesthouse in town.
Leia looks ready to burst into tears, but I shake my head at her firmly.
“Come on, let's get you a tea or some shit.” Wade takes her hand and leads her toward the kitchen, while Karina smiles at me apologetically.
“I’m sorry about her,” she whispers, keeping her head low as she follows her mother out the door.
