The Lemon Sisters (Wildstone #3)(27)

The words ran through his brain for several long seconds before they penetrated, and even then, he was stunned into silence. “I . . . didn’t know,” he finally said.

“I know.” Her eyes drifted shut. “I didn’t want you to. I didn’t want anyone to know. I didn’t want pity when I didn’t even fully understand how it would affect me.”

He stared at her, wishing she’d open her eyes and look at him. “You should have told me. Or at the very least, told your family. You shouldn’t have gone through that alone.”

“I wanted to be alone,” she said, and finally met his gaze. “I have no regrets about that, Garrett. And if I had to do it all over again, I’d do the same thing. Actually, if I could go back and change anything, it would be to not tell you about the pregnancy to begin with, so that you didn’t have to suffer the loss, too.”

He was surprised by how much she could still shock him. Hurt him. Rising, he turned away. He’d thought he no longer cared, that he’d moved on, but seeing her again and hearing what she’d gone through all alone had proved him wrong. A fact that, in turn, scared the hell out of him. Her walking away from him had left its indelible mark, had changed him, made him more protective of his heart. The heart that at one point had beat in his chest for her.

And it was beating for her right now, too, but in frustration—something that he didn’t know what to do with. “That’s not how relationships work, Brooke. You share the good and the bad. Especially the bad. You lean on each other and get through shit because of it. You don’t do it all alone—you’ve got to understand that by now. Hell,” he said with a rough laugh, “who am I kidding? Clearly, you still don’t know that at all.” He scrubbed a hand down his face. “I wanted to help you through it. I wanted to be there for you.”

Her face crumpled. “I know, and I’m so sorry—”

“No. Stop.” He took a deep breath. “I get it. And thank you for the apology, but I don’t need it.” He rose to his full height, but she grabbed his hand and tugged until he looked at her again.

“I was trying to protect you,” she said. “We were young and stupid and got pregnant. People would have talked.”

“I never cared about that. I only cared about you.”

She stood up, too. “That would never have held up, considering what you now know.”

He stared at her. “Are you suggesting that I would’ve wanted out because you lost the ability to physically bear a child?”

“Yes.”

“Jesus.” He shoved his hands through his hair, not even sure what to say. “What did I do so wrong that you could think that of me?”

She shook her head. “Don’t forget—I saw you, Garrett, I saw your face when I told you. You were way more excited about the pregnancy than I was.”

He let out a sound of stunned disbelief. “That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t have wanted you if you couldn’t have babies, Brooke. I wouldn’t have cared about that. I didn’t care about anything other than making sure you were okay.”

She gave a slow head shake. She didn’t believe him. And if there was one thing he knew about Brooke, it was that you couldn’t change her mind unless she wanted to change it. He looked at her, really looked, and felt something clench inside him, something that lessened his frustration. Her dark circles had dark circles. She wore no makeup. Her eyes were red from crying, but it was more than that. She looked beyond exhausted. “Okay, seriously,” he said, “when was the last time you slept?”

She shrugged. “What day is it?”

Not willing to play, he shook his head and took her into Mindy and Linc’s house. “Which bedroom are you using?” he asked.

She didn’t answer.

“Brooke.”

“The living room couch.”

His brow furrowed. “Why?”

“I didn’t want to dislodge any of the kids. And I didn’t want to sleep in my mom and dad’s old room, which I realize is Mindy and Linc’s now, but still. The couch is fine.”

“The couch isn’t fine,” he said. His personal feelings aside, it bothered him that she had so thoroughly ignored her own needs as if she felt she didn’t deserve to have them. “It’s uncomfortable as hell and has been since the day Mindy brought it home from some sale warehouse.” Still holding on to her, he strode back out the kitchen door and across the side yard to his own kitchen door.

Where they were immediately bombarded by a trio of meows.

“They love you,” Brooke said.

“No, they stalk me. Ali McClaw and Chairwoman Miao were Ann’s. I’d like to rehome them, but I’m pretty sure they’ll refuse to go anywhere.”

“You would never abandon them. Or anyone or anything that needed a place to call home.”

Uncomfortable with the realization that she knew him every bit as well as he knew her, he shook his head in automatic denial. “Don’t kid yourself. I’d dump them in a hot minute for a dog.”

The cats ignored this for the bullshit it was. So did Brooke. She hadn’t taken the time to look around last night. He knew because he’d been watching her so closely. But she looked now, and he knew what she was seeing. Just like Mindy and Linc’s house, this one had changed since she’d seen it last. The flowery wallpaper was gone, as was the beat-up old furniture. This version was much more masculine, the furniture big and comfy, all in deep colors. Shelves were lined with books and mementos, along with photographs, and he wondered if she was surprised to see herself in several of them. He took her upstairs to his bedroom.