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His brows furrowed and his eyes delved into hers. He continued to frown at her as if he wanted to say something. There was zero chance of that happening. She didn’t need another guy telling her what she could and couldn’t do.
Scarlett let out a strangled growl. “What? What do you want? Is this some kind of ploy to get even with me over whatever happened with Annabel? I don’t get it. Why do you have this vendetta against me?”
“I don’t have a vendetta, Scarlett,” he said.
“Then what?”
She watched him closely, but even doing that didn’t give her any of the answers she desired. He pressed his lips together and then shook his head as he got to his feet. “You’re right. I shouldn’t be here.” With that, he got to his feet and marched toward the barn.
Without realizing why, she jumped to her feet and chased after him. “What is going on? One minute you’re cold, the next it’s almost like you want to help. Then you’re back to hating me.” She hurried beside him, his long legs taking strides she found hard to keep up with. When he didn’t answer, she grabbed his forearm and turned him to face her. “Answer me.”
He scowled at her. “You know what? I wanted to help you. I felt sorry for you. It can’t be easy to be dismissed by your own father like that.”
His words stung, but only because they were exactly what she was trying to deny while she’d been alone on that porch. Not only that, but she was also trying to figure out if someone like Elijah could actually care for her.
“It shouldn’t matter what choices you made before. Your dad is your family. He shouldn’t be judging you based on any of that. It’s wrong.” Elijah pulled his arm free from her and continued forward.
“But you don’t like me either.” It was the only thing she could think of to say. What he’d stated was probably the nicest thing he’d said to her since she’d arrived back in town. For the first time in a while, she felt seen.
“It doesn’t matter if I don’t like you. We’re not family. I don’t have to like you. But your father should at least show you some degree of love. Why would you even want to stay?”
Scarlett’s steps slowed and her voice came out weak. “Because he’s my dad and I love him.”
Elijah stopped suddenly. He didn’t turn around, didn’t respond to her words—just stood still.
“I lost my mother. I don’t want to lose him too. I feel like he’s a shell of himself, and I don’t know how to connect with him. He’s all I have left.” There, she’d admitted it to someone other than Annabel. While it was too hard to admit her fears to her own father, she could tell Elijah without any repercussions. She wasn’t sure what her father would say to a confession like that, but she knew it wouldn’t go over very well. Carlos Perez was the most stubborn, hardheaded man she knew. He didn’t appreciate weakness of any kind.
Not even from his daughter.
It was one of the reasons they hadn’t discussed the loss of her mother.
Scarlett squeezed her eyes shut. Vulnerable. That was the only sensation she felt. All her walls were crumbling. She had to be strong in front of everyone, including Annabel, because that was who she was.
She was strong, independent, and always knew what to do next.
But now she was lost.
More hot tears slid down her cheeks, but she fought them back. She was alone in all of this. Annabel was her best friend, but they weren’t as close as they had once been. Her friends in Germany were more like acquaintances. Over the last decade, Scarlett had managed to push away every person who might have gotten close to her, and that was why she had wanted so badly to return to her home.
Alone.
The word felt cold, final. It wrapped around her like a noose, making sure to cut off all oxygen she might have had a chance at getting.
She suddenly felt a strong pair of arms wrap around her, holding her tight, pulling her against him.
Scarlett gasped, sucking in sharply. Her eyes fluttered open but only briefly enough to find Elijah was the one giving her a hug.
Her legs gave out and she slipped her arms up beneath his, her hands clutching his shoulders. She buried her face in his chest, not caring that she was clinging to a man who, only hours ago, had told her to stay away from his sister.
The physical connection to someone who was willing to just hold her was more of a boon than anything she’d received since she’d heard the news of her mother’s accident.
Sobs racked her body, and with them all the anguish she’d been dragging along inside her fell away. She’d lost her mother—the only person in this world who truly understood Scarlett inside and out.
Her confidante. Her cheerleader. Her best friend.
She’d never see her again, and that realization had resided inside Scarlett, festering like the wound that it was. The tears continued to fall, and with each passing minute, Scarlett grew weaker until the sobs stopped altogether.
Surprisingly, Elijah didn’t pull away. It was only when he shifted his weight to adjust for her own numbed legs that she realized what she’d allowed herself to do.
