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Instead, I’d set off on a mission to show Burntwood the town’s daughters were more than just farmers’ daughters. Our identities weren’t wrapped up in our family’s name or our husband’s. But what I’d failed to see was every woman had made her own choices.
A couple of my peers had left and never returned. Most stayed because family meant everything to them and our community needed nurses and teachers, and a great many other jobs to be filled. Others got married right out of high school and had babies.
I had been a lone wolf for no good reason, and it hurt to acknowledge how much I’d given up proving a point nobody but me had cared about.
“It’s getting cold.” Cade sat beside me and handed a plate my way, then dug into his own.
I broke off a piece of bacon and popped it into my mouth, while Cade shoveled large bites into his. A rancher didn’t have the luxury of lingering during mealtimes. There was always work to be done and not enough hours in the day, but I sensed he focused on his breakfast not out of habit but avoidance.
“How long have you been up?” I forked some scrambled eggs, then dabbed them in maple syrup.
“Since five forty.”
My eyebrows shot up. “Wow. Isn’t that a late start for you?”
He snorted and chewed. “Too much Cuervo.”
“Good thing you have all of them farmhands to pick up your slack.” I elbowed him playfully and cut into my waffle.
He grinned and shook his head. “Feels like old times, but you better be careful. That sassy mouth of yours will get you into trouble.”
“Trouble? That’s what you call it? I recall it much differently. And enjoyed the lesson you claimed to be teaching me, probably far too much.” Warmth spread through me as I skirted my gaze around the room to ignore the smoldering in my belly.
There wasn’t a dining table in his small cabin, so meals were eaten in the sitting area in front of the hearth. Personally, I liked the casualness and rustic ambience. Long ago, we would spend many hours on the couch talking, laughing, and making love.
I felt his intense blue eyes on me when I noticed the broken bathroom door. Under the hot shower water, the events of the day had hit out of nowhere, and I couldn’t stop the sobs. Crying so hard had made me hyperventilate. All I could do was pray Cade would get to me because I’d been paralyzed on the shower flower.
“The door is fixable, ya know?”
I turned to look at him. “I do. It’s just a thing and not a person.”
“That’s right.” He drank his coffee, keeping his eyes on me. “Good to know you haven’t forgotten.”
“Nope, never.” We’d been raised not to worry about our possessions because they could be fixed or replaced, but our loved ones and livestock were irreplaceable. “I suppose you want to have that talk now.”
“You mean the one where you tell me everything that fucker did to you?”
I exhaled a strenuous breath. “That’s the one.”
“Needs to be done, Shelby. It’ll be difficult, but I’m here for you and nothing you say will ever change the way I feel about you.” It was as if he knew I’d been assaulted and needed to hear it straight from the horse’s mouth.
“I’m afraid it might change things between us,” I told him truthfully.
“Change what? Us? My love for you?” He stared at me like I had horns growing out of my head.
“Yes, then I’d lose you after I finally got my stupid head screwed on right.”
“You know that’s impossible.” He reached for my hand and laced our fingers together. “I’ve wanted us for… forever. You think now that you’ve finally said you want us too, I’m going to throw it away? God, baby, if I did, they better lock my ass up in the looney bin because I’ve lost my fucking mind.”
I covered my mouth with my free hand and laughed.
“I’ll never stop loving you, Shelby. I promise, whatever you tell me, I’m not going anywhere.”
“Will you promise not to do anything stupid?” I knew what I was asking was a tall order, but I had to. The last thing I wanted was for Cade to go off half-cocked and get hurt or arrested.
“Christ, Shelby. That’s not fair. I do stupid shit all the time.” He issued me a sexy wink.
“You know what I’m talking about. You can’t go on a rampage to defend my honor.” I knew with every cell in my body he’d want to kill Jake after hearing what happened.
