Hidden Summit (Virgin River #17)(68)

“Right. He offered to beat the shit out of you if you didn’t just leave me alone.”

“I’m not going to hurt you, for God’s sake! Can’t you give me ten minutes?”

She sighed deeply. “Stay right there. I’m going to pour a glass of wine. Can I get you anything? Merlot? Glass of tea? A little hemlock?”

He winced. “Tea would be nice.”

She went up the step and onto the porch. She opened the door. “You come in this house and I’m going to shoot you. Do you understand?”

“Leslie…”

“I’m serious. I’m so bloody sick of you, I will shoot you if you get in my space.”

“Fine. I’ll be waiting right here.”

She locked the door behind her for good measure. After dropping her purse on the counter and pouring a glass of wine and a glass of tea, she went back outside. She handed him his tea and sat in the other chair. “I came down here to get away from you,” she said. “I’ve told you that a number of times. When are you going to hear me?”

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I have heard you. I’m having a hard time letting go.”

“No kidding. But since you’re the one that ended our marriage and you have what you want, why not just enjoy it?”

“That’s the problem.” And then he sipped his tea and didn’t say more.

“What’s the problem now?”

“I hardly know where to begin,” he said, and he looked down into his glass. “I’ve made so many mistakes....”

“There’s a mouthful....”

He met her eyes. “Your boyfriend isn’t here, is he?”

“He’ll be along shortly,” she lied. “If I were you, I’d make this quick. What is it you want now?”

“Leslie, I’m sorry. I made a mess of our lives. I’m not sure what happened. But I’m now a man with many regrets.”

She was a little surprised to hear this. “What’s the matter, Greg? New marriage not working out so well?”

“It’s exactly what I thought I wanted, and now, I’m very embarrassed to say, it’s not what I want at all. I was a fool. I made a terrible mistake letting you go. I’m still in love with you.”

She was stunned speechless. She struggled to recover. There’d been a time, not very long ago, she would’ve given the earth to hear that. “I’m afraid that ship has sailed....”

“Has it? Because it’s never too late to repair the damage, if we handle ourselves appropriately. It’s time to put the cards on the table, Leslie. I’m not sure what happened to me—I was seduced, I guess. I was vulnerable for some reason and seduced and look what a fool I made of myself.”

She took a fortifying sip of her Merlot and then leaned forward in her chair. “You’ve fathered a child! Regrets or not, you have obligations!”

“Absolutely. And I intend to honor them. Allison makes a good living—she doesn’t need alimony from me but I will insist on supporting my child, both financially and emotionally. The sad truth is, I can’t stay in that marriage. It was a mistake, Leslie. I never really let you go and you’re the soul mate I should be with for the rest of my life. I want you to give me another chance.”

She actually gasped. “Are you crazy?”

“No, sweetheart, I was crazy. I was crazy when I thought an affair with a pretty young woman made sense, but I’m recovered now. I came to my senses. Late, I admit, but I finally see how wrong it was to leave you. I can’t tell you how sorry I am or how much I want another chance. We were so happy—”

“No, we weren’t,” she said, though she said it softly. And to her surprise, he turned his head to meet her eyes. “We weren’t. In fact, that’s what you told me when you were leaving me—that you weren’t happy. That you couldn’t live a lie. That you were really in love for the first time! And now that it’s in the past and I have some perspective, I can see that I wasn’t happy, either. I gave up so much to be your wife.” She shook her head. “I’ll never be that foolish again.”

“What?” he said, scooting forward in his chair. “What did you give up? I gave you everything!”

“No, you gave nothing and I gave up everything. We both worked tirelessly for your success and never discussed what was important to me. I wanted children, Greg. How many times did I tell you I wanted a family? You were so busy talking about yourself and your ambitions, you never listened to a word I said.”

“You want children? Fine, then. We’ll have children.”

She shook her head. “No, Greg. You’re much, much too late.”

“Don’t be hasty, Leslie. Don’t make the same mistake I made. We had a good life, you and me. You begged me to stay and I was the idiot who didn’t take you seriously when I should have.” He tried to reach for her arm.

“No,” she said again. “I’m over you. Completely. In fact, I have no respect for you.”

“God!” he said. “How can you say that to me?”

“Easily. It’s time for you to get over yourself. You didn’t honor your vows. You betrayed me and left me and went on your merry way to a new life. Made a mistake there, did you?” She shook her head. “Well, there are consequences, Greg. I guess you’re going to have to live with that.”