Change Rein (Willow Bay Stables #1)(40)
“I needed a reason to be near you. I wanted to see if what I felt for you could possibly be real, and, if it was, if you would feel the same way about me in return.” He spins to face me, gripping the bar on the edge of my bed until his knuckles turn white. “I staged it—the fire.”
The blood inside me boils at the thought that he could be responsible for something as horrible as what I’d just gone through, but I’m reminded of the person he is, and instead of acting irrationally, I wait. I wait for him to give me one goddamn good reason why I shouldn’t kick him out of my hospital room. Even though the thought of losing him kills me.
“A colleague of mine who I’d worked with for years and trusted immensely was supposed to simply find an old photo of a barn fire similar to my property and have it leaked to the local press, only enough so that your father would take my request. It was fraudulent, but it shouldn’t have been harmful to anyone. The staff would be paid regardless, and no one would be the wiser.” He squeezes his eyes shut. “Francis disobeyed a direct order, deeming the lie too unbelievable, and set fire to the entire barn. I was lucky he thought it wise enough to do so when the horses where all turned out to their paddocks for the day, but the knowledge that he’d caused so much destruction on a whim both terrified and angered me.
“I fired him on the spot. I should have turned him in to the authorities, but he knew the part I’d played in the event itself and threatened to embellish that. Instead of taking chances, I paid him a year’s severance to leave and never come back. It didn’t work. He kept causing trouble.”
“The break-in,” I whisper. “The first day we kissed.”
He nods, shame weighing heavily on him. “That was Francis. It was after that I knew I’d made a mistake. I came clean to the police after our first night together, but they weren’t able to do much. He said I ruined him, and thus, he would ruin me. The threats weren’t taken seriously enough, as I had no way to prove any of it at this point.” When he lifts his head, tears and guilt wash down his face. “I never thought he’d come after my horses at Willow Bay. He hadn’t popped up in weeks on any of the authorities’ radars, so we assumed he’d just let it go. I’m so sorry. You should hate me.”
My brain’s a little sluggish from the painkillers, but even so, I don’t hate him. I’m not sure how I feel about the fact that he knew about me and sought me out on purpose. Is it weird and extreme? Sure. But that doesn’t negate the fact that I still fell in love with him by my own free will. He didn’t force me, and he isn’t, despite what he may think, a bad person.
“Branson, come here,” I whisper, tapping the empty space beside me.
His hesitation hurts my heart, but eventually, he comes.
“Look at me,” I lift his chin with my hand and trace the stubble along the lines of his jaw. “We are not the mistakes we make, nor the things we fear, and most certainly not the things we bleed for.” I lose a single tear, as does he. “Fate, and a little help from you,”—I wink—“brought us together, and Momma said, ‘When fate brings you your person, its job is done and it’s on you to keep them.’ So you can try runnin,’ or whatever other absurdities are in that handsome head of yours, or you can save us both a lot of trouble and heartache by just stayin’ put.”
His words drip with uncertainty. “How can you forgive me for this?”
“Do I wish you’d told me about everything before now? Yes. Not because it means I would have handled anything differently, but because we are always stronger together than we are apart, Branson. Regardless, we will handle it from here on out as a team. Whatever that looks like, I’m with you.” I pull him towards me by the back of his neck. “I forgive you. Do you understand me?”
He nods.
“That forgiveness has nothing to do with being earned. It’s on me to give, and that’s my choice. You don’t need to be my hero. I don’t need one. You’re more than that. You’re it for me, Tucker. Don’t you get that? You’re my second chance. It doesn’t matter if I can’t compete again for the rest of my life because you’re the only gold medal I want.”
When he crashes his lips against mine, his suffering and his joy melt into me as the passion of our kiss heals the wounds we’ve earned.
“You’re it for me too, London.” He pulls away, resting his forehead on mine. “Even when you’re cheesy.”
“You did not just call me cheesy!” I exclaim, slapping his arm.
Running his thumb over my bottom lip, he grins. “I like it.”
“You better.”
“I’ve got to go make some calls. I’ll send your family back in, okay?”
“Okay,” I whisper.
After standing up, he kisses me softly on the lips. “Whatever I did to deserve you, I don’t know and I don’t care. I love you.”
“I love you too.”
As he moves towards the door, a smile spreads on my face.
“Hey, cowboy?”
“Yeah, angel?” He pauses at the doorway.
“You’re gonna owe my daddy a barn.”
The sound of his laughter fills both the room and my heart. “You got it, babe.”
You don’t know when the love you’ve been waiting for will come your way, but when it does, you’d be wise to remember that you aren’t perfect, and neither are they. Forgive, do your best, and when things need a little more fixin’ than that, you’d best change rein.