My Kind of Wonderful(65)

“It’s okay,” she whispered. “I’m okay.”

“I know,” he said, and kept hold of her.

“It’s just that the weekends are becoming so much more real to me than the rest of the week.” She pressed her face into his throat. “And so much more important.”

He tried not to react to that. Part of what had allowed him to let her in as much as he had was the hard reality that being here in Cedar Ridge wasn’t her life and never would be. Harsh as it sounded, it’d made her safe.

But if she turned that upside down, if she stayed, he wasn’t sure what could possibly happen. He didn’t have the room in his life—or his heart—for one more string.

He had too many strings now.

“I’m just so grateful for this second chance,” she said. “So damn grateful. I want to make good use out of it, but it’s hard because I don’t know who I am or who I’m supposed to be.” She lifted her head and stared at him. “I made that list thinking it’d give me direction, but instead all it has done is confuse me. I don’t want to be just the list, you know?”

“You’re not,” he said firmly. “You’re a beautiful, smart, wonderful, warm woman who brings heart and soul into the lives of everyone you meet. You’re not the list at all. You’re far more.”

She pulled it out of her pocket, that damn little notebook. “I made a promise to this thing.”

“That’s fine,” Hud said. “But that doesn’t mean it gets to define your life. You get to do that, Bailey. Only you.”

She stared at him and nodded. “Yes, you’re right.”

He cocked his head as if he couldn’t hear her. “What was that?”

“You’re right.” She gave him a little push and he had to laugh.

“I heard you the first time,” he admitted. “I just like the way that sentence sounds on your tongue.”

She rolled her eyes. And then blinked. “Oh! I nearly forgot the reason I’m here tonight.” She pulled his phone from another pocket. “Gray’s the one who told me I could find you here.”

Hudson grimaced. “You saw Gray?”

“Yes, I went to the resort first,” she said. “To bring you the phone.”

As she said it, his phone buzzed an incoming call. He took it from her and looked at the screen. Gray. Might as well get it over with, he thought, and answered.

“You should probably stay off Facebook,” Gray suggested, and disconnected.

The phone immediately buzzed again. He answered with a curt, “What?”

“Check out Facebook,” Kenna said gleefully.

“Delete it,” Hud said. “Whatever you dumbasses have done, delete it or I’ll find you and it won’t be pretty.” He disconnected and stared at Bailey.

“Um.” She blinked. “Problem?”

“You told Gray I lost my phone?”

“No, I told him I got it by accident,” she said, and then paused. “What’s going on? Who was that?”

He was scrolling through Facebook. “Gray,” he said, distracted. “And then Kenna.”

“You threatened your sister?”

Hudson looked at her. She was shocked and horrified. “You don’t have a sister,” he said.

“No. No siblings period, you know that.”

“Which means you wouldn’t understand the occasional need to strangle someone who shares your own blood. Shit,” he muttered. “Here it is.”

“What?”

“What Gray and Kenna are so gleeful about.” He turned his phone screen so she could see. He had the Cedar Ridge Resort’s Facebook page up. There was a post there from Hud.

“I didn’t know you posted on Facebook,” she said.

“I don’t,” he said. “Ever. Gray went on as me.”

She started to read it.

“Out loud,” he said.

“Okay.” She turned the phone to a better angle. “‘Did you see Dancing with the Stars last night?’” she read. “‘The dancers were so beautiful it brought a tear to my eye… ’” She stopped and stared up at him, and then laughed.

“You think this is funny?” he asked. “You gave Gray access to my phone and he’s a dick.”

“And you’re upset that people will think you love Dancing with the Stars?”

“I’ve never watched a single second of that show,” he said stiffly. He’d cop to Say Yes to the Dress, but not this. No way. “And that’s not my point,” he said. “He’s just screwing with me. And that’s the point.”

She bit her lower lip.

He narrowed his eyes and considered retribution. Because there would be retribution. “The messee is about to become the messor,” he said.

“Was that in English?”

“You’re going back to Denver tonight?” he asked instead of answering her question.

“Yes.”

“Maybe you have time to pick something up for me.”

“Sure,” she said. “What?”

“Just a little something for Gray.” He pulled out a credit card and gave it to her. “Something special. I’m thinking sheer lace. A woman’s extra-large.”