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That was enough to let me know they were worried. Because they knew me. They knew what kind of woman I was, and in any other situation, they never would have questioned where my mindset was.
I couldn’t say I didn’t understand their apprehension. My mom felt a bit blindsided earlier in the week when she learned I’d been interacting with Wyatt for weeks now, and none of them knew a thing about it. So, she felt compelled to come back on Thursday evening with my dad just before I closed.
They expressed their concern, and I did my best to reassure them they had nothing to worry about. Whether they believed me or not remained to be seen.
Of course, I understood the hesitation they might have had with trusting me, too. Because I wasn’t so sure I trusted myself any longer.
On the one hand, there was the part of me that was strong and determined and would fight anyone who thought they could take what was ours. And I kept telling myself that was precisely what I was going to do in this situation with Wyatt.
But on the other hand, I was thinking about how I’d accomplish that in a way that was gentle and kind for Wyatt. I was worried how he might feel when I ultimately gave him the answer about the land and the truth about where things needed to go from here.
The Rhea I was before I met Wyatt wouldn’t have given it a second thought. Wyatt would have needed to be responsible for his own feelings. But the Rhea I was now, the one who’d gotten to know Wyatt a bit better, believed he at least deserved some common courtesy, because he really had been nothing but kind and respectful toward me from the very start.
And though I’d seen a change in him over the last week—he was becoming far more confident around me—I had to admit I was partly to blame for that. I’d given him reason to believe it was okay to get more comfortable with me.
Now, I’d have to take it all away, and I wasn’t quite sure I had it in me to do that in a way I’d have done it before I’d gotten to know him.
At this point, I could only hope hearing Wyatt talk business tonight would do what I needed it to do for me, because no matter how much I’d told myself that tonight wasn’t important, I’d spent entirely too much time getting myself ready.
Why did I care how I looked?
I wanted to pretend I didn’t know the answer to that question, but I did.
This would be my only chance to make up for him seeing me in my sweats a week ago when he showed up at my house. Sure, he’d seen me in my dress on my birthday, but I couldn’t remember much of what happened that night. For some reason, I wanted to see the look on his face when I opened the door and be able to remember that look long after I made the effort to put distance between us.
As though he knew what my plan was, it was at that moment my doorbell rang. After giving myself one final glance in the mirror, I turned and walked toward the front door.
A moment later, I was standing face-to-face with Wyatt, and he’d given me exactly what I’d been hoping for—an enchanted look that indicated he liked everything in front of him.
One half of his mouth quirked up in a smile as his eyes made their way back to my face. “You look stunning, Rhea.”
I dropped my gaze to the ground, another wave of disappointment in myself moving through me.
This was bad.
It was wrong.
I had no intention of allowing things to progress anywhere romantic between us, and doing what I’d done tonight by wearing this dress certainly indicated the opposite. I was purposely giving him all the wrong signals.
From the very start, I’d had the thought in my head that it was me who had to be worried about how Wyatt would use his money and power to take advantage of this situation. He’d proven himself to be noble. I was the one who seemed to have the questionable morals at this point.
Lifting my chin, I returned my attention to him and replied, “Thank you, Wyatt. You look nice, too.”
And he did.
He’d gotten himself dressed in a suit that fit him perfectly, the dark blue tie making the blue in his eyes that much more captivating. It was a wonder I’d managed to tear my eyes away from his moments before.
At first glance, I’d assumed the suit was about him recognizing this was a business dinner, because it was. That much had been made clear.
But then I thought back to last week. He’d fully intended to take me out for dinner to discuss the project at Westwood’s, and he hadn’t arrived in a suit. Sure, he hadn’t arrived wearing sweats, either, but I wondered what made him opt for the suit this time around.
“Are you ready to go, or did you still need some time?” he asked.
“I’m ready. Just let me grab my purse,” I replied.
He gave me a nod, and I walked away to get my purse and my keys. The next thing I knew, Wyatt and I were in his vehicle and on our way to dinner. And it was then I realized another mistake I was making.
“This probably isn’t a smart idea,” I blurted as Wyatt pulled away from the farm.
