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)
Shocked, my mouth falls open. “Who are you, and what did you do with my husband?”
His face softens. “I like that. Keep calling me that.”
I roll my eyes at him. “Dustin, I won’t ask you to stop rodeoing. You love it.”
He shrugs, almost sad like. “The only way I’m doing the Classic is if you’re with me.”
I look into his eyes, and for the first time, I see a vulnerability there. “You know this is crazy, right?”
He’s still holding my hands, and he strokes his thumb across my wrist. “This past week, I’ve felt like I was going crazy, Annie. I can’t lose you.”
I open my mouth and then close it. I know I should tell him no. I know that if I don’t walk away now, I’m just going to drag out the inevitable. It’s on the tip of my tongue to say no when Dustin squeezes my hands and leans in. “Please, baby.”
I blow out a breath. “Thirty days… and then you sign the papers.”
He doesn’t hesitate. He stands up. “I’ll help you pack.”
I stand up too. “What? Right now?”
He walks toward the bedroom. “Yep, right now.”
I could argue with him, but it’s pointless. I only have clothes to pack up, so I grab my suitcases from the closet and lay them on the bed. Side by side, we work on collecting my stuff, and the whole time, I’m wondering if I’m doing the right thing… or if I’m making the biggest mistake of my life.
CHAPTER 7
DUSTIN
Relief.
Already, I feel better having Annie back on our ranch.
We’ve spent the day together. I helped her pack her stuff up and then loaded it in my truck. I followed her to the ranch, where we spent the day unpacking and getting settled. By midafternoon, she was getting huffy with me, and I’m sure it’s because I’ve been glued to her side, so now I’m giving her a break. She’s on the front porch, and I’m biding time in my office, acting like I’m catching up on paperwork when all I’m really doing is giving her a minute to herself before I follow her outside.
She’s been quiet most of the day, and it’s driving me crazy. When I can’t stand it any longer, I jump up from my seat and stalk to the front door. The screen door screeches, and Annie pulls her gaze from the mountains to me. “Hey.” I smile.
She sits up a little taller. “Are you thinking I’ll run?”
I want to sit next to her on the swing, but I don’t want her to freeze up on me, so I sit down on the top step of the porch. “Why do you think that?”
She uses her foot to control her swinging. “You haven’t left my side all day.”
I shrug. “I’m sorry. I wanted to be with you, but I sensed I was a little overwhelming to you.”
She seems surprised by my confession, and I stare at my hands. “I’m so glad to have you home, Annie.”
I lift my head to look at her, and we share a smile until she puts her guard up. “I mean, yeah, it’s nice even if it is just for a little while.”
I pick up a small rock and hold it in my hands. “Are you going to be happy here?”
She gets a wistful look on her face and stares out at the land. “The happiest I’ve ever been has been here… on this land… with you.”
My heart starts to race. “Then why?” My voice cracks. “Why did you leave me?”
She stops swinging. “We’ve been through this, D.”
I run my hands across my face, massaging my temples. “I know I messed up, Annie, and you don’t think what we have is a marriage, but this was real to me.” I hold my hand up and point at the ring that is still on my finger. “Our marriage was real.”
She shakes her head. “No, it wasn’t.”
Pure frustration leads me. “How can you say that?”
She plants both feet on the ground to stop swinging. “We didn’t have a marriage. We had two completely different lives.”
“How? Explain it to me.”
She takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. “Because we lived two separate lives.”
“What are you talking about?”
She points at me and then jabs a finger to her chest. “You were always chasing the next win but never planned a future with me. You never opened up emotionally. I’ve had to prove myself over and over. I’m never country enough, tough enough, and when I started to pull away, you didn’t even notice. You didn’t fight for me, for us, Dustin. You could take me or leave me.”
“Annie, that’s not true. I wanted—”
She cuts me off. “You acted like you didn’t want me around.” She points inside the house. “Unless we were in that bedroom, then you acted like you knew me and wanted me.”