Total pages in book: 22
Estimated words: 20639 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 103(@200wpm)___ 83(@250wpm)___ 69(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 20639 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 103(@200wpm)___ 83(@250wpm)___ 69(@300wpm)
Everything she says guts me. How could I have messed up this badly? How could she not know how I feel about her? How could I have gotten this so wrong? I stand up and put my hands in my pockets. “I wanted you around, Annie. I wanted this marriage more than I’ve ever wanted anything in my life.”
I try to let the walls down. I want her to know how sincere I am, but she’s not having it. It’s obvious she doesn’t believe me. She starts swinging again and leans her head back as if we’re not in the middle of a discussion. “It doesn’t matter now. It’s over… Well, it will be next month.”
I grunt. Every emotion rolls through me. Since she left me, I’ve been scared, mad, angry, worried, sad, lost. Fuck, I’ve been so lost without her.
I want to tell her how much I love her, and I’m kicking myself for never telling her before now. How could I have not said the words? But instead of saying them now, I hold them inside because I know she doesn’t want to hear it.
I sit down on the swing next to her, and I hate that she tenses. I lean away from her. “Do you remember the first day we met?”
She rolls her eyes. “Do I remember the night that I practically threw myself at you? I was sure you thought I was easy or one of those buckle bunnies.”
I shake my head as I think back on that day over a year ago. It was easily one of the best days of my life. And not because I’d won a bulldoggin’ event. It was entirely because of Annie. “I remember thinking that I couldn’t believe you were talking to me. You were the most beautiful woman I’d ever laid eyes on, and you wanted to talk to me.”
She giggles. “I wanted to do more than just talk to you.” She puts her hand to her face. “I still can’t believe I slept with you that night.”
I can’t stop the smile that forms on my face. “Honey, I was there. The chemistry, the connection… there was no way either of us could resist being together. It was a perfect night.”
She’s smiling softly, lost in memories, and she closes her eyes. “Maybe we moved too fast. We should have slowed down and gotten to know each other a little better.” She opens her eyes and looks at me. “We got married two weeks later.”
I nod my head. “Yeah, because I knew I wanted you to be my wife. I knew I wanted to be with you.” I almost say it. I almost say the words, telling her I love her, but she tenses up, and I lose my nerve. I let out a breath. “We didn’t move too fast, Annie. Yeah, we wanted each other, but it was more than that. I wanted you to be my wife.” I blow out a breath. “Do you regret marrying me?”
CHAPTER 8
ANNIE
I gasp at his question. How can he think that? Even after everything, I haven’t regretted one second of my marriage with him. “No, I don’t regret marrying you at all.”
He sits up and looks around the ranch and then toward the house. “I know this is not what you’re used to.”
I groan in frustration. “You’re not listening to me, Dustin. You’re not hearing me.”
He takes a deep breath, and I can see him visually trying to calm himself down. “I’m listening. Talk to me, explain it to me.”
When I don’t say anything, he shakes his head. “I know you don’t owe me anything, Annie, but I need to know. Please.”
I nod my head and feel arrogant even saying it, but I force the words out. “Fine. You act like I’m too good for this house.”
He just stares at me. “You are too good for this house. Just like you’re too good for me.”
I open my mouth to protest, but he keeps talking. “Baby, you’ve seen the world. You’ve traveled all over and seen places that I’ll only dream about. The house you grew up in costs twenty times what my ranch does. You can have anything and anyone you want. You expect me to believe that you’re happy here? With me?”
Stunned, I just stare at him. How can he think I’m not happy with him? How can he not know that he is more than I want or will ever need? I would give up all the money I had to be with him. Heck, that’s what I did.
I stand up because sitting next to him on the swing is just too much and too tempting. It’s always been this way. Ever since we met, it’s been like a there was a magnet between us, drawing us together, and now, even when we’re in a disagreement, I feel it. “You’re right, Dustin. I had money, and if I wanted anything, I bought it. But you know what I couldn’t buy? I couldn’t buy love. I couldn’t make my parents spend time with me. I had friends, but I didn’t know if they were my true friends or if they were there because they got to vacation at lavish places or spend time at my family’s mansion or what. I had sitters and people paid to be around me.” I cross my arms over my chest. “And when I met you, I felt…”